Warren W. Wiersbe - Be Dynamic (Acts 1-12): Experience the Power of Gods People (The BE Series Commentary)

This book is for some missionary friends who have challenged and enriched our lives and whose ministries have extended the church:

Paul and Kathie Buyse
Don and Alene Dix
Don and Vera Hillis
Abe and Marj Van Der Puy

Contents

The Big Idea

An Introduction to Be Dynamic
by Ken Baugh

Twenty-three years ago, my wife and I were sitting in our car parked in front of a beach in Malibu, California, watching the waves and eating our quarter pounders with cheese (that was when I could eat a quarter pounder without looking like one). We were on our honeymoon, and as we were sitting in the car, basking in our love for each other, I noticed a homeless man moseying around on the beach. He finally sat down by a trash can directly in front of our car.

My sweet wife suggested that I go over and share Christ with this man, but to be honest, that wasnt my first thought. I was more interested in finishing my burger and fries than I was in the eternal destiny of this man. But then, being the incredibly intuitive person that I am (yes, Im being sarcastic), I realized that this was a test. My wife wanted to see what kind of spiritual stuff her new husband was made of. So, being the spiritual giant that I am (again, I jest), I told her that I would love to go over and share Christ with this man, but I didnt have an evangelistic tract or Bible to use. I thought this would get me off the hook. But to my chagrin, Susan just happened to have a Four Spiritual Laws booklet in her purse. Now I was on the spot, so I relented, set down my burger and fries, took one last slurp from my Coke, got out of the car, and walked over to where the homeless man was sitting.

His name was Paul, and I asked him if I could sit down and talk with him. He said, Sure. As we talked, I found out that at one time he had been a prominent businessman but had lost everything, including his wife and family, so he just dropped out of normal life. Pauls story was truly tragic. As we talked, I slowly steered the conversation toward spiritual matters and gently shared the gospel with him. He was fairly polite but not very interested in continuing our dialogue, so after about ten to fifteen minutes, I thanked him for taking the time to talk with me, gave him the booklet, and wished him well.

As I walked back to the car, I saw my new bride beaming with pride, thinking that her new husband was a bold and dynamic man of God, willing to share the gospel with a total stranger. But I knew the truth about myself: that I would never have taken the initiative to talk to Paul without Susans prompting. You see, twenty-three years ago it was difficult for me to share my faith with strangers. And to be honest, even today after Ive been in ministry for over twenty years, its still difficult.

Yet the mandate of the Great Commission to go and make disciples of all people groups is a command for every true follower of Christ, not just for those who have the gift of evangelism. God wants every disciple to be a dynamic witness for Him. This is the Big Idea that runs throughout the first twelve chapters of the book of Acts. Peter was just a fisherman, untrained in the fine details of theology, yet the Holy Spirit used him in dynamic ways to bring many people to a saving faith in Jesus as the Messiah.

So heres my question: How can we be like Peter and share our faith with others in effective ways even when were scared and may not really want to? The answer lies in knowing how to use four tools of evangelism: service evangelism, lifestyle evangelism, friendship evangelism, and confrontational evangelism. Lets open up our evangelism toolbox and learn how to use each one effectively.

Tool #1: Service Evangelism. Think of service evangelism as a way of sharing the love of Christ with others in practical ways that meet specific felt needs. Its giving that cup of cold water to someone who is thirsty (see Matt. 10:42). Now, the difference between humanitarian aid and service evangelism projects is that humanitarian aid doesnt typically share openly about the person and work of Jesus Christ, but in service evangelism you do. And as you serve people, with no strings attached, you will quickly discover that they ask you why you are helping them, and this gives you the opportunity to share the gospel: Im just sharing Gods love in a practical way. Can we talk about Jesus? Recently, I was part of a team from our church that brought aid to those affected by Hurricane Ike in Galveston, Texas. We had our food-pantry truck with us, and we went to Walmart and loaded it up with water, drinks, socks, T-shirts, blankets, and food items and drove to a campsite where there were dozens of people living in tents who had been displaced by the hurricane. As we were handing out these goods to the people, they were both grateful and inquisitive as to why we were helping them, and it gave us a great opportunity to share with them the love of Christ. So service evangelism is a simple way to meet human needs while talking about Jesus.

Tool #2: Lifestyle Evangelism. This means of evangelism is based upon Jesus words to be light in the world (see Matt. 5:14). To be the light that Jesus is referring to simply means that as a Christian, I am to reflect who Jesus is to others. For example, the moon has no ability to generate light on its own; it simply reflects the light of the sun. In the same way, as believers, we are to reflect the light of Christs love, mercy, and kindness to others everywhere we go. No doubt youve heard some variation of this illustration: If you were put on trial because of your claim to be a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you? Thats what were talking about in lifestyle evangelism, living out the faith in such a way that others see the difference and ask you about it.

Tool #3: Friendship Evangelism. A few years ago, I was working with a trainer down at my local gym. He knew I was a pastor, but I never brought it up. Instead I was willing to wait and see what might happen. One day after a few weeks, I was in the middle of a set, lifting a couple of very heavy dumbbells, when he just blurted out, So whats the deal about Christians believing that Jesus is God? I was so surprised, I almost dropped the weights on my head. For some reason, my trainer felt safe enough because of our growing friendship to ask me a spiritual question that had been on his mind for a long time. I think friendship evangelism operates in a similar way to another statement Jesus made about Christians: We are to be salt in the world (see Matt. 5:13). Salt was used to preserve meat without the aid of refrigeration, and salt is also a flavor enhancer. I believe as we build relationships with unbelievers, and they get to know us and we them, our friendship can act like a flavor enhancer bringing out the God flavors of His Word. I like how The Message version of the Bible puts it: Let me tell you why you are here. Youre here to be salt-seasoning that brings out the God-flavors of this earth (Matt. 5:13). When a believer becomes friends with an unbeliever, their friendship becomes a God-ordained flavor enhancer that draws them to Christ.

Tool #4: Confrontational Evangelism. I consider most street preachers to be fairly confrontational in their approach to evangelism. I used to be really turned off and even embarrassed by their approach. However, I have come to believe that street preaching can be very effective. My good friend Lon Solomon, pastor of McLean Bible Church, became a Christian through the ministry of a street preacher while he was attending the University of North Carolina. Today, Lon has a thriving ministry in the Washington D.C. area, including a weekly radio broadcast that takes the gospel to tens of thousands of people each week, and all because a street preacher was bold enough to proclaim the gospel in a direct and compelling way. The confrontational approach isnt for everybody, and it certainly isnt the most effective tool in every situation, but it sure works in the right context.