...About Ease

So I helped out at a Harvest Crusade a couple of weeks ago and it proved to be the pinacle of something God has been poking and prodding at me about for a while now. From unknowing conversations, to messages I hear, to the places I land in the Word, everything seems to take me to the same place.

A couple of weeks ago, a close friend of mine told me of how a high schooler approached him at Roosevelt Field Mall to invite him to the Harvest Crusade and to share the gospel with him. As they chatted, the young guy told of how he and his team ("SWAT" - Students with a Testimony) had been casually sharing with people in the mall that day and watched as 34 people made professions of faith. Then, later that night, we sat in the arena at Jones Beach and watched as hundreds more gave their lives to Christ and entered the Kingdom. As it was happening, my friend turned to me and said, "granted a lot of prayer went into all this, but is it really that simple?" That question had already been resonating in my heart and mind for a long time.

I BELIEVE IT IS THAT SIMPLE.

It is that simple because the Gospel is that powerful! We are not (and thank God it's not on us). I think "the church" needs to return to the simple proclamation of the message of the Gospel - the uncompromised, life giving Gospel that changes lives. To share it boldly, plainly, passionately, and lovingly...and to do it everywhere. I am beginning to feel like we (the church) are overstrategizing at times. Complicating the simple. We stress the program, the packaging, and the response as we minimize the power of the simple message to change lives. God is the one who ripens people to the Gospel. We are prone to exalt the quality of the messenger (us, how it's packaged, etc.) above the power of the message itself to penetrate hearts! God is powerful enough. The gospel is strong enough to save. We don't need to put a bow on it. He doesn't need our help in that way. He just needs us to share it plainly and share it everywhere.

I'm all for strategy, tact, creativity and all the rest of it. I really am. Networking and strategizing to get the name of our churches out there is good. But, our call is to get the life saving message of Jesus Christ out there. Greg Laurie came to NY, shared, and left. Those kids at Roosevelt Field, came, shared, and left. We (the church) are in a unique position to share the gospel with people, engage individuals, and then offer them a spiritual home and a family - a safe place where questions can be answered and people can be equipped to GO and share with others.

People are ripe to the gospel! The Harvest crusade proved that to me. Take Long Island. Of 2.7 million people here, some 3% profess passion for Christ, which means over 2.6 MILLION PEOPLE are drowning. If even another 1% of the LI population comes to know the Lord (which would mean if only 1 out of every 100 people I share with receives Christ while 99 others reject the message), there would be another 26,000 people in the Kingdom from LI! Our churches would be bursting at the seams. And yet, so many of us who are working for the Kingdom on LI are struggling to plant a church or launch another campus? The harvest really is plentiful. There is wheat here! That's what we saw at Jones Beach. That's what those kids saw at Roosevelt Field.

So the question is, would we boldly and lovingly GO and be the fragrance of Christ? To share the message plainly and boldly. That means that many, MANY will find us to be the aroma of death. It will be a foul odor to those who are dying as it exposes their end. They will not want it. But, many, MANY others will find it to be the aroma of life...as God ripens people's hearts to the Gospel (2 Cor 2:14-17). More and more I am realizing that the response is God's department, not ours. God is the one who ripens people to the Gospel. No one says "Jesus is Lord" but by the Spirit (1 Cor 12:3, Mat 16:16-17). Amazingly, He chooses to do all of this THROUGH US. Of 2.6 million, I believe there are MANY who are ripe to the Gospel today...and God pleads with them through us! But are we willing to be the aroma of death to some so that we can be the aroma of life to others?

Would we lovingly be the fragrance of Christ to every corner of this island? At a minimum, those kids at the mall encountered 34 people who are spiritually fertile. Greg Laurie's simple, uncompromised communication of the gospel surfaced hundreds of people who are spiritually receptive. God has ripened many hearts. But Greg Laurie and those kids aren't from here. This is our home. God can do the same thing through us and our churches every day if we would just go back to the uncompromised, simple, plain proclamation of the Gospel.

We could have a Harvest crusade everyday (figuratively). I believe we could see people come to know Christ every day. Why not? If we would just boldly, plainly and passionately spread this good news everywhere with authenticity and vigor, God would plead with people through us! (2 Cor 5:20) "I love you! Be reconciled to Me!" GOD WILL GRIP HEARTS! We don't even have to search far! We've got a huge harvest and hardly any workers. I believe there is wheat everywhere. We just refuse to reap it.

The One who led thousands to be saved in one shot in Acts is the same today as He was then. I believe He can do that right where you live even now. Maybe the means will be different, but the response just the same. The Gospel is flourishing in Africa, Asia...pretty much everywhere in the world, but for North America. I hope to see great revival on Long Island. I believe God is up to something here. He's shaping me to return to the simple message of the Gospel and to proclaim it as I go...and watch what happens. Let's stand together to share the good news with people now. Not later. Now.