Tuesday morning evangelistic smack-down, #15

Insightful counting: “Unless Matthew, Mark, and Luke are totally wrong, all who want to preach and live like Jesus must place the “kingdom of God” at the center of their thought and action. This phrase (or Matthew’s equivalent, the ‘kingdom of heaven’) appears 122 times in the first three Gospels – most of the time (92) on the lips of Jesus himself. (Ronald J. Sider, Good News and Good Works)

Compassionate thought of the week: “We need to ask ourselves: Are we offering not coerced silver, but our lives? If we talk of crisis pregnancies, are we actually willing to provide a home to a pregnant young woman? If we talk of abandoned children, are we actually willing to adopt a child? Most of our twentieth-century schemes, based on having someone else take action, are proven failures. It’s time to learn from the warm hearts and hard heads of earlier times, and to bring that understanding into our own lives.” (Marvin Olasky, The Tragedy of American Compassion)

On the tithe: “The teaching that a man should give one tenth of his money to God and then be gfree to use the nine tenths for himself is an utterly dangerous teaching. In giving the one tenth and using the nine tenths for himself he may be buying off his conscience with the one tenth and thereby hallowing an utter selfishness.” (E. Stanley Jones, The Christ of the Mount)

“And the people are challenged…” We have too many preachers preaching without practicing, too many professors teaching without activating, too many parents scolding without leading and too many laymen partaking of a church experience without contributing to it. But occasionally, someone goes and does something noble, compassionate, evangelistic – and in that moment, God smiles and the people are challenged. Good.

Prerequisite to preaching: “Never preach an inch beyond your experience.” (Dawson Trotman, quoted in Daws)

This week’s Latin phrase: Difficile est tenere quae acceperis nisi exerceas - It is difficult to retain what you may have learned unless you should practice it. (Pliny the Younger)

Buster research: When asked to put the findings about Busters in context, especially in comparison to the views and behaviors of Baby Boomers, Kinnaman explained that “the morality of Busters comes from a very different background. For instance, divorce, crime, single-parent households, and suicide were much more prevalent while Busters grew up. Boomers took moral experimentation to new heights, but Busters now live in a world where such experimentation is the norm, not the exception. Busters have a more disconnected, individualized, less trusting spin on morality. They are trying to create a sense of identity because they feel that shaping influences such as family, church, and community have failed them. Boomers experimented to overthrow the morals of their parents, while Busters live with a mindset of trying to survive.

“It is important for churches to understand the natural skepticism of Busters as well as their desire for spiritual and conversational depth,” he continued. “Young adults do not want to hear on-the-stage monologues about moral regulations. To earn access to their hearts and minds, you have to understand each person’s unique background, identity, and doubts, and must tangibly model a biblical lifestyle for them beyond the walls of the church.” (Barna.org, A New Generation of Adults Bends Moral and Sexual Rules to Their Liking_)