Evangelism
Sermon
Readings:
Nehemiah 8:1--3,5--6, 8--10 -- Ezra reads the book of the law of Moses to the people, and reassures them that the joy of the Lord is their strength.
1 Corinthians 12:12--31a -- one body with many members.
Luke 4:14--21 -- Jesus reveals a dangerous gospel.
Theme
Evangelism
Nehemiah 8:1--3, 5--6, 8--10
Here in Norwich diocese we've been exploring a national initiative set up by the last Archbishop of Canterbury some years ago. Called "Springboard", it's an evangelism initiative, because numbers of regular worshippers in the Church of England have dropped dramatically over the last few decades.
The last big evangelism drive that I remember, was Billy Graham way back in the seventies and eighties. Billy Graham and his team hired football stadia all over the country and held huge and exciting rallies which included speakers and music to soften up the audience to make them receptive, then the big talk from Billy Graham. The talk always ended with an invitation to give your life to Jesus and there were innumerable counsellors on hand to give advice and to shepherd people in the direction of their nearest church.
The rallies were largely regarded as a huge success and there are a number of people still in churches today as a direct result of the Billy Graham rallies. But critics maintained that the coachloads of people who went to the rallies were mostly those who were already church attenders. This may be true, but even so the rallies were very effective in inspiring Christians to a firmer and more enduring faith.
For some people, the very word "evangelism" conjures up images which are abhorrent to them. Some see "evangelism" as implying a hard--line, right--wing, conservative form of Christianity which believes every word in the Bible to be literally factual, which has a very strict moral code and which refuses to allow any questions or any deviations from the rules which are proscribed. But although some evangelism may well be along these lines, many forms of evangelism are not. The Alpha course devised by Holy Trinity, Brompton is clear evangelism with a Biblical message, but is really based on the shared experiences, thoughts and questions of the participants. The Biblical talk is a kicking off point, but Alpha's phenomenal success is more through the group experience than through the talk. Thus Alpha is a much more gentle form of evangelism than the great rallies of old.
Evangelism in one form or another has been going on for a very long time. Way back in the Old Testament days of Ezra and Nehemiah, around 445 BC, there was an evangelistic rally. The people had returned from sixty years or so in exile, and during those two generations away from their home they had all but forgotten God and their own religious practices. They had become fully integrated with the Babylonians and had taken on their foreign ways. Jewish men had married foreign wives and so had begun to worship foreign gods.
Into this scenario came Nehemiah a layman, craftsman and man of action, and Ezra, a priest. Together they succeeded against considerable odds in rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem and in introducing necessary administrative reforms. Ezra was the great religious reformer who succeeded in establishing the Torah, the book of the law of God, as the constitution of the returned community.
In today's Old Testament reading from the book of Nehemiah, Ezra and Nehemiah had gathered all the people together in a large, open--air rally and Ezra began to address the crowd. The place of the rally was carefully chosen. It was in a square against the backdrop of the ruined temple which Nehemiah wished to restore, so was an impressive and symbolic setting. Ezra read from the book of the law, but it wasn't just a reading. As he went along, Ezra interpreted the meaning of the law to the people. In other words, he preached an inspiring evangelistic sermon and he preached it within the context of open--air worship. And there were plenty of counsellors on hand to interact with individual people.
Ezra was very successful, although it wasn't all plain sailing from then on and the people needed to be exhorted and inspired over and over again. But Ezra is thought by many scholars to be the father of modern Judaism and certainly the father of the Judaism of Jesus' day.
Ezra spoke not to complete outsiders -- gentiles -- but to those who had a basic grounding in the faith. He spoke to those whose families had been Israelites for generations, so that although they had strayed from the faith under force of circumstances, nonetheless they had an ingrained Jewishness which responded to Ezra's clarion call.
In a way, the Springboard initiative in our diocese has been similar. We haven't had a great rally, but we have had a travelling Springboard "school" which has spoken to large gatherings of lay church people and to priests, in order to inspire all of us to reach out to those in our communities who have a Christian background but who, under force of circumstances, have drifted away from the faith. The next part of Springboard is our response. We are challenged by our diocese to find ways of reaching out to our local communities under the Springboard banner.
It will be interesting to discover the different methods of outreach that different parishes choose. Perhaps all methods will have something in common. Hopefully all will be inspirational in some way and most will target those who are sympathetic to the church. There will be a "bonding" which may be achieved by shared meals or shared experiences and thoughts or the shared excitement of a spiritual high. Successful outreach is most likely to be in the context of worship, although that worship may not be formal worship but may be informal, open--air worship such as Ezra used.
The Bible can be read at so many levels and in so many ways. How interesting that a model of evangelism used four centuries before Christ, can still be a workable model for our time. Provided we have God's inspiration through his Spirit and follow the guidelines laid down by Jesus Christ, we can't go far wrong. Who knows? Like Ezra and Nehemiah, perhaps our evangelistic outreach will be so inspiring that this time next year, our churches will be full.
Nehemiah 8:1--3,5--6, 8--10 -- Ezra reads the book of the law of Moses to the people, and reassures them that the joy of the Lord is their strength.
1 Corinthians 12:12--31a -- one body with many members.
Luke 4:14--21 -- Jesus reveals a dangerous gospel.
Theme
Evangelism
Nehemiah 8:1--3, 5--6, 8--10
Here in Norwich diocese we've been exploring a national initiative set up by the last Archbishop of Canterbury some years ago. Called "Springboard", it's an evangelism initiative, because numbers of regular worshippers in the Church of England have dropped dramatically over the last few decades.
The last big evangelism drive that I remember, was Billy Graham way back in the seventies and eighties. Billy Graham and his team hired football stadia all over the country and held huge and exciting rallies which included speakers and music to soften up the audience to make them receptive, then the big talk from Billy Graham. The talk always ended with an invitation to give your life to Jesus and there were innumerable counsellors on hand to give advice and to shepherd people in the direction of their nearest church.
The rallies were largely regarded as a huge success and there are a number of people still in churches today as a direct result of the Billy Graham rallies. But critics maintained that the coachloads of people who went to the rallies were mostly those who were already church attenders. This may be true, but even so the rallies were very effective in inspiring Christians to a firmer and more enduring faith.
For some people, the very word "evangelism" conjures up images which are abhorrent to them. Some see "evangelism" as implying a hard--line, right--wing, conservative form of Christianity which believes every word in the Bible to be literally factual, which has a very strict moral code and which refuses to allow any questions or any deviations from the rules which are proscribed. But although some evangelism may well be along these lines, many forms of evangelism are not. The Alpha course devised by Holy Trinity, Brompton is clear evangelism with a Biblical message, but is really based on the shared experiences, thoughts and questions of the participants. The Biblical talk is a kicking off point, but Alpha's phenomenal success is more through the group experience than through the talk. Thus Alpha is a much more gentle form of evangelism than the great rallies of old.
Evangelism in one form or another has been going on for a very long time. Way back in the Old Testament days of Ezra and Nehemiah, around 445 BC, there was an evangelistic rally. The people had returned from sixty years or so in exile, and during those two generations away from their home they had all but forgotten God and their own religious practices. They had become fully integrated with the Babylonians and had taken on their foreign ways. Jewish men had married foreign wives and so had begun to worship foreign gods.
Into this scenario came Nehemiah a layman, craftsman and man of action, and Ezra, a priest. Together they succeeded against considerable odds in rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem and in introducing necessary administrative reforms. Ezra was the great religious reformer who succeeded in establishing the Torah, the book of the law of God, as the constitution of the returned community.
In today's Old Testament reading from the book of Nehemiah, Ezra and Nehemiah had gathered all the people together in a large, open--air rally and Ezra began to address the crowd. The place of the rally was carefully chosen. It was in a square against the backdrop of the ruined temple which Nehemiah wished to restore, so was an impressive and symbolic setting. Ezra read from the book of the law, but it wasn't just a reading. As he went along, Ezra interpreted the meaning of the law to the people. In other words, he preached an inspiring evangelistic sermon and he preached it within the context of open--air worship. And there were plenty of counsellors on hand to interact with individual people.
Ezra was very successful, although it wasn't all plain sailing from then on and the people needed to be exhorted and inspired over and over again. But Ezra is thought by many scholars to be the father of modern Judaism and certainly the father of the Judaism of Jesus' day.
Ezra spoke not to complete outsiders -- gentiles -- but to those who had a basic grounding in the faith. He spoke to those whose families had been Israelites for generations, so that although they had strayed from the faith under force of circumstances, nonetheless they had an ingrained Jewishness which responded to Ezra's clarion call.
In a way, the Springboard initiative in our diocese has been similar. We haven't had a great rally, but we have had a travelling Springboard "school" which has spoken to large gatherings of lay church people and to priests, in order to inspire all of us to reach out to those in our communities who have a Christian background but who, under force of circumstances, have drifted away from the faith. The next part of Springboard is our response. We are challenged by our diocese to find ways of reaching out to our local communities under the Springboard banner.
It will be interesting to discover the different methods of outreach that different parishes choose. Perhaps all methods will have something in common. Hopefully all will be inspirational in some way and most will target those who are sympathetic to the church. There will be a "bonding" which may be achieved by shared meals or shared experiences and thoughts or the shared excitement of a spiritual high. Successful outreach is most likely to be in the context of worship, although that worship may not be formal worship but may be informal, open--air worship such as Ezra used.
The Bible can be read at so many levels and in so many ways. How interesting that a model of evangelism used four centuries before Christ, can still be a workable model for our time. Provided we have God's inspiration through his Spirit and follow the guidelines laid down by Jesus Christ, we can't go far wrong. Who knows? Like Ezra and Nehemiah, perhaps our evangelistic outreach will be so inspiring that this time next year, our churches will be full.
