Does the Great Commission of Mt 28:18-20 supersede the cultural mandate of Gen 1:26-28? Does the command to ‘go and make disciples of all nations’ replace the requirement to fill and subdue the earth and to rule over all living things?
At first sight, it might seem that this is indeed the case. After all, the cultural mandate was given to Adam in Eden, as God’s image-bearer, in a state of innocency, prior to the Fall. …
What follows is based on (‘inspired by’, if you like) this post by Mack Stiles.
It is all too easy to assume that we know what a biblical approach to evangelism would look like, while persisting in the delusion that the bare declaration that ‘God loves you’, or an invitation to follow three of four simple ‘steps’ will do the trick. We must severely critique both what our tradition says evangelism is, and also what our culture says it would like it to be.…
How many people sometimes feel inadequate, discouraged or even ashamed when it comes to their efforts to share Jesus Christ with others?
Although Jesus told us to be fishers of men, we are content to be keepers of the aquarium.
A girl returning home from Sunday School complained about the class’s reaction after the day’s lesson. “We were taught to go into the world and make disciples of all nations,” she said, “but we just sat there.”…
Bringing good news of the redeeming Saviour, v9, the returning Lord, v8, the reigning King, v7.
The battle has been won, the long years of captivity are ended, the holy city and its temple will rise from the ruins, peace and joy and plenty will enjoyed across the land.
This was fulfilled following the decree of Cyrus in 539 BC. But how complete was that fulfilment?
Neh 9:36 tells us that the return of the exiles was not all they hoped it would be: “We are slaves today, slaves in the land you gave our forefathers.”…
Many of us can sympathise with Krish Kandiah when he says that he has more experience in doing evangelism badly than in doing it well.
Here are four ways to evangelise badly:-
St Francis of Assisi is supposed to have said: ‘Preach the gospel. Use words if necessary.’ Many Christians today think that the gospel can be proclaimed by our deeds, and that words are at best an optional extra. But although Christian behaviour is an essential accompaniment to the gospel, the gospel itself must be made known using words, or it will not be made know at all. …
In his book More Ready Than you Realize – Evangelism as Dance in the Postmodern Matrix (2002), Brian McLaren gives 8 factors that he sees as summarising post-modern evangelism:-
1. The Relational Factor – count conversations not conversions.
2. The Narrative Factor – listen to their story, share your story and share God’s story, not just propositions or formulas.
3. The Communal Factor – expect conversion to normally occur in the context of authentic Christian community, not just in the context of information.…
When it comes to involvement in our world, two options are available: escape and involvement. Many evangelicals seem to have opted for the first option. They have withdrawn from the world, pulled up the drawbridge, and, apart from occasional evangelistic excursions, been blind and deaf to those in need. After all, the Bible teaches us to separate from the world (doesn’t it?), and to wait for the new age that will be ushered in by the return of Jesus Christ. …
In an recent edition of Themelios, D.A. Carson suggests that there are a number of possible motivations that preachers might appeal to, especially when addressing unbelievers. I summarise:-
1. Fear. Although the gospel promises deliverance from fear (Heb 2:14-18), Christ and the apostles did not shrink from warning people of the consequences of unbelief (Mt 10:38; 13:30; 16:26; 22:10-13). It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God (Heb 10:31).…
