It is easy to go through the motions. It is easier to do the good but not the best. It is easy to become self-absorbed, but it requires more effort to focus on others. Jesus said, “But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it” (Matthew 7:14, NIV). It can be tough to be proactive, to do the right thing, to do the best, to focus on others.
“What Jesus would do” calls for more than the usual. It calls for making a difference in our world. It calls for incarnating the gospel, for being the “body” of Christ in the world. It calls for loving interactions. But the church does not seem to be making an impact. We don’t seem to be influencing our culture.
I have been reading The Church of Irresistible Influence by Robert Lewis. Lewis is the pastor of Fellowship Bible Church in Little Rock, Arkansas. At Fellowship Church, small groups have become a significant mode for incarnating the gospel. How can Sunday School classes influence their communities? How can they incarnate the gospel? How can they show the world the love of Christ?
What if classes could accomplish two things with one effort? What if the investment of the class in ministry to the community (1) gave a growth outlet for learning as a class and (2) made the community more open to Christ and the church? Your community is saying, “If your Christianity is real, let’s see it” (p. 48). How could your classes say “let’s live it!”? For some outreach/servant evangelism ideas, go to http://www.servantevangelism.com/ideas/search_ideas.php.
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