• Facebook Privacy Policy
• Apple iOS5 License Agreement
• Cellphone service agreements

Most of us don’t read them because they seem trivial,  but it doesn’t change the facts. If we use products like Facebook, iPads and mobile phones, we agree with the terms and conditions set by their makers. In the same way, those of us who profess to be Christians had better realize that this places us under Christ’s rules. But I think there are two big differences.

Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former.

Matthew 23:23

First, Christ’s rules aren’t legalistic. I don’t think he cares as much about how we calculate our tithes, how we conduct baptisms, and how regularly we attend Sunday services compared to how sincerely we want to follow Him. Following Christ isn’t about dotting our i’s and crossing our t’s, but committing our lives to the values that He cares about.

This leads us to the more important point – Christ’s values aren’t trivial. Many have lost faith in the Church because we constantly argue over silly matters. Pessimism about Christianity is at an all-time high and church attendance continues to decline in most Western countries. Perhaps attendance is not the problem, but a symptom of how far we have strayed from the values of the early Church.  Perhaps it’s time to refocus on what Jesus calls the “important matters of the law.”

My brothers and sisters, believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ must not show favoritism. Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in filthy old clothes also comes in. If you show special attention to the man wearing fine clothes and say, “Here’s a good seat for you,” but say to the poor man, “You stand there” or “Sit on the floor by my feet,” have you not discriminated among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts?…

…Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment.

What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.

James 2:1-4, 12-17

I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out, and find pasture… I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. (John 10:9-10 NIV)

Or how about the dynamic and exciting depiction of the early church?

They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved. (Acts 2:42-47 NIV)

I love my church, but comparing ourselves with THAT is very humbling, challenging, even depressing. It’s like falling for the bait and switch; we have resigned to “the way things are”. We have lost our passion for love, justice, and the proclamation of God’s good news. No wonder that in an age of unprecedented fascination with spiritual wellness, outsiders see Christianity as a failed experiment.

With the New Year right around the corner, it’s time for some serious reflection. What if none of Jesus’ commands are optional? What if all His promises are credible? What if instead of treating salvation as icing on the cake, we considered our relationship with God more precious than anything else we have? What if instead of making excuses and blaming church leadership, we started praying and struggling through the issues that prevent us from being faithful witnesses for Jesus?

As it is said, half of every solution is knowing the problem. A thoughtful church thinker put it this way:

The church is always in crisis and its greatest danger is that it is only occasionally aware of it. (Bishop Roy Williamson)

Witnessing about love, justice, faith, hope and salvation is serious business. We are always in crisis because we are constantly tempted to give in to our selfish nature, and then to explain our actions away by watering down the gospel. But a watered down gospel is no gospel at all. As G.K. Chesterton said,

The Christian ideal has not been tried and found wanting; it has been found difficult and left untried.

In the year 2012, let’s not leave the Christian ideal untried, but

Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching. (Hebrews 10:23-25 NIV)

Okay I take that back – it’s more like wishful thinking. Still, if you’re feeling like a cheerful giver, I’d appreciate some financial support to buy bibles for the new year. Read my last post if you want to know what it’s all about. Or, click (this link) and donate to the Pocket Testament League under my ID: 378239

Thanks!

It begins with your pocket

Let me start with the obvious way – join the Pocket Testament League and “commit one of your pockets to the Lord”. You can order gospels at www.ptl.org for free and that includes shipping. Place a gospel inside one of your pockets and pray for God to create opportunities to share the good news with the people you meet each day. You don’t have to be an extrovert to do this. God is the one who will create openings – your part is to have the desire to share the Truth, to be prepared and to be alert so you won’t miss these opportunities.

Set aside a special time

Another way is to come with me for street evangelism. Just leave your contact info by phone, email or Facebook so I can give you a shout  the next time I venture into the streets. We waste so much time waiting for the “perfect moment” to share to our friends and it never seems to come. But with strangers, any moment is the best moment.

Just last month a telemarketer got me to donate to UBC. I’ve never donated to UBC before but the sincere attitude of this caller and all the callers before her finally won me over. I shelled out my hard-earned money for nothing in return. It’s amazing that we Christians know about the free gift with infinite and eternal returns and yet we can’t ever seem to find the right time to share it!

I think we should stop making excuses and start taking Jesus at His word. In Acts 1:8 He says, “you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” Don’t just be a believer, be a witness!

Support the printing and sharing of free gospels

Finally, for those wanting yet another way participate, you can support me though prayer and sponsorship. Getting gospels into people’s hands accomplishes nothing if they
do not read it with open hearts and minds. This work absolutely needs to be covered in prayer to be successful.

On the financial side, gospels cost money to print. The Pocket Testament League estimates their cost per gospel at $0.66, but instead of selling the gospels, they operate on free will offering. Now, I am committed to covering the costs for every gospel I order. This places a limit on my order quantity, but with your sponsorship, I can reach many more people.

To sponsor me, follow (this link) and put in my member ID before making a donation: 378239

Encouragement is welcome

Oh and one last thing, if any part of this post has inspired you to take action, do leave a comment here. There are few things more encouraging than fellow brothers and sisters joining you in a journey of faith!

I drove to the Staples compound but suddenly felt weak as I parked my car. This was a surprise – handing out 50 free booklets in the most tolerant country of the world is really no big deal. Still, there was a heavy feeling of wanting to turn back. Thankfully, I just came from a workshop on prayer so I had the good sense to reach for my lifeline to God. The prayer relieved my stress and emboldened me to set out.

My first attempt was to a Filipino lady who parked close to my car. She politely said no on account of being already a “believer” but encouraged me for what I was doing. I made my way to the bus terminal, offering gospels and taking the rejections in stride. However, it was harder when several people stood close to each other. My roughly 5% success rate meant that most people said no, and it felt awkward asking someone who had just overheard me getting turned down by another person.

Eventually, I reached the end of the bus stop so I walked back to the spot which seemed to have the highest foot traffic. My spirits went down with each “no”, and the weirdest feelings came when people pretended I was invisible, but each person who received a gospel was worth it. Some even produced a genuine smile of joy.

I also met a Christian who chatted me up on my surprising results – 30 minutes into the adventure and I was halfway through my gospels. The Chinese versions were especially handy because several people couldn’t understand English. In the end, I got through 46 gospels in one hour, including the 15 minute chat with the Christian. I had 4 Chinese gospels left, so I felt it was time to restock on English versions (ie. order a new batch).

Awkwardness is the biggest challenge of street evangelism – I only had enough guts to hand out booklets, not enough to engage non-believers in meaningful conversations. Eventually, I hope I will get over even that. As for now, I can still say that this was still a great experience. I can’t wait for the next order of gospels to arrive!

I ordered these because of a shortcoming that I perceived from gospel tracts: they can be quite oppressive because they are designed for maximum guilt trip with minimum material. One leaflet is packed with penetrating questions and arguments. Many are turned off unnecessarily, and those are open minded are stuck with a piece of paper that says little else about Christianity.

Thankfully, I stumbled upon the Pocket Testament League. They print the Gospel of John for the cost of a gospel tract. Even more amazing, they actually offer the gospels for free – it’s up to you whether to cover their costs with a donation.

So, I have 50 booklets of unfiltered words directly from God, and I’m excited to hand them out. Maybe I’ll do another street evangelistic adventure some time soon!

Part of the challenge is the in-your-face nature of calling someone a sinner. Typically this is done by quoting a commandment (such as #9 – Thou Shalt Not Lie), followed by a convicting question like, “have you ever told a lie?” and a bible thumping “then you are a sinner, and you must repent to escape hell.” It is a good approach biblically speaking, but I just struggle to do that in real life.

Besides, terms like sin, judgment and repentance are meaningless for non-Christians. Worse, they could have a distorted meaning and come with much emotional baggage. These words are often associated with ploys to guilt someone into attending (and giving money) to the church, or with arrogant expressions of religious superiority.

The heart of the problem is that a normal person’s view of “good enough” simply doesn’t cut it according to God’s standards. The purpose of the law is to convict us of this, but our stubborn hearts are masters of excuses. Take the example of the lie – it leads to a tough debate on whether harmless white lies count as sin. Real life is filled with gray areas. Even the Bible admits this by calling for discernment (Philippians 1:9-11).

Now most people who will not admit to being “sinful” will admit to being imperfect, and a case could be made that God, who is perfect, would therefore disallow them from heaven. But we live in the age of Tolerance, and a God who only wants people to never mistakes is not believable at all. We are content to live by our own standards as long as we “don’t hurt anyone”.

The fact is, God does not define perfection as “never making a mistake.” What God requires is a heart that loves perfectly and unconditionally:

You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect. (Matthew 5:43-48)

Understanding that God requires all men and women to show unconditional love may be the key to a believable, biblical response to this troublesome question. We live in a world where people just want to get along with each other, where tolerance has become the ultimate ideal. But tolerance is a bankrupt idea. We only let others do whatever they think is right, if we don’t think it’s absolutely wrong.

Tolerance must now give way to unconditional love. It loves what is right, discerns what is debatable, hates what is evil, and forgives all wrongs. It upholds justice and reconciles broken relationships. It sacrifices self for the sake of all, and does so with incomparable joy. And the Bible says that this is exactly what God asks.

I’m still figuring this out myself, but the next time someone asks me why he or she needs a Savior, I think I have an answer that cuts through all excuses. It doesn’t guarantee repentance, but hopefully I will have clarified what God expects from people, and hopefully they feel that unconditional love can be their ultimate ideal as well.

Last week, I met with Rod, a classmate who had just completed a July trip to Peru and is planning a September trip to Philippines. As we were encouraging each other, I found out that he regularly does street evangelism around town. That was it – I had to try it out myself! Thankfully, Rod agreed to have me along on his next foray into the streets.

Initial Reservations

I think the toughest part about sharing my faith with other people is the mental barrier. People in Vancouver are generally tolerant, but the last thing I want to do is abuse that tolerance by imposing something very personal on them – my religious opinions.

I’ve shared with a few people in the past, but generally it’s after an extended period of small talk. Even then, I start out by casually asking them about their religious views, and I rarely share my own belief unless they ask me back. But this is different – I am going out on the street armed with Gospel tracts and offering one to each passerby.

Observing the Experienced

What excited me about this venture is going with a regular, which allows me to start out just observing him. We met at his church in Surrey and started walking to the Surrey Central skytrain station. As Rod approached each person, I would imagine myself in his place.

He approached everyone in a friendly way, handling rejections with grace, and taking advantage of every opportunity to connect. He had Korean tracts for Koreans, Punjab tracts of Punjabs, comic tracts for teenagers, even Christian tracts to encourage Christians! Some people would ignore us completely, but others would give a specific reason for not getting a tract. Rod would then ask them a question or two, which sometimes led into a meaningful religious conversation.

My First Tract, and After

Eventually, I felt I was ready. I got a few rejections, but people opened up to me as well. I couldn’t even avoid the conversation – Rod and I stumbled upon two Chinese girls touring Vancouver, and horror of horrors, there was no Chinese tract! So we gave them an English tract and I had to talk to them in my broken Mandarin. When I started to run out of things to say, they finally asked, “what do you want us to do?” Rod finished the rest of the conversation in English, encouraging them to ask their local host to bring them to a Chinese church.

The Takeaway

I don’t know how much my street evangelism adventure has benefited others. What I know is that my eyes have been opened: it really reminds me of the Parable of the Sower: sharing the Gospel is like sowing the seeds. Many will fall on deaf ears, but some may grow fruitful and multiply. My job is to tell others what I have seen, but what happens to them is in God’s hands.

This is what I observed: the most intimidating people can be really grateful for the tracts, while the most approachable people sometimes clam up when I mentioned Jesus. Clearly, people are at varying levels of openness, and my level of evangelizing skill has little to do with their reaction. What’s important is that God gave me a chance to glorify him by telling others what I have experienced.

Street evangelizing is not the only way to share one’s faith, but it was rewarding for me to set aside a specific time to introduce Jesus to people I don’t normally meet. I must say, this would not be possible without Rod’s encouragement and example. It shows the importance of fellowship in church as we spur one another towards good works. As for street evangelizing, there is a new found hunger – I will definitely do this again.

I’ve been captivated for the past year about the idea of Missional churches but the concept is too abstract for me to explain. One thing I can say is that being Missional is not just a fad, not just a style of church, not just a trend. It goes back to the way church was, the way I think church should be – a body that represents Christ – and this video from Soma Communities provides one such example.

I used to blog only when I think I’ve completely figured out all the different angles of the topic at hand. This time I certainly don’t have all the answers, but for an idea as grand and as profound as this, I guess that’s okay.

http://www.somacommunities.org/

^^^^^ CLICK ABOVE

Text does not do this topic justice; the video above really must be watched. But here is a very brief set of excerpts:

Main Point

My main point is that God promises those of you who remain single in Christ blessings that are better than the blessings of marriage and children, and he calls you to display, by the Christ-exalting devotion of your singleness, the truths about Christ and his kingdom that shine more clearly through singleness than through marriage and childrearing.

What Jesus is Saying

So Jesus and Paul and Peter all say: Children are born into God’s family and receive their inheritance not by marriage and procreation but by faith and regeneration. Which means that single people in Christ have zero disadvantage in bearing children for God, and may in some ways have a great advantage.

A Radical Relational Reordering

Take heed here lest you minimize what I am saying and do not hear how radical it really is. I am not sentimentalizing singleness to make the unmarried feel good. I am declaring the temporary and secondary nature of marriage and family over against the eternal and primary nature of the church. Marriage and family are temporary for this age; the church is forever.

Uniquely Displaying the Glories of Christ

And with this promise there comes a unique calling and a unique responsibility. It is not a calling to extend irresponsible adolescence into your thirties. It is a calling to do what only single men and women in Christ can do in this world, namely, to display by the Christ-exalting devotion of your singleness the truths about Christ and his kingdom that shine more clearly through singleness than through marriage. As long as you are single, this is your calling: to so live for Christ as to make it clearer to the world and to the church

1. That the family of God grows not by propagation through sexual intercourse, but by regeneration through faith in Christ;
2. That relationships in Christ are more permanent, and more precious, than relationships in families;
3. That marriage is temporary, and finally gives way to the relationship to which it was pointing all along: Christ and the church—the way a picture is no longer needed when you see face to face;
4. And that faithfulness to Christ defines the value of life; all other relationships get their final significance from this. No family relationship is ultimate; relationship to Christ is.