“The gospel is meaningless to the world absent relationship.”
I hate the word evangelism. It evokes too many memories and awkward conversations with door-to- door salesmen selling Jesus wholesale. But I am often so overwhelmed by the good news of Jesus Christ that I want to share it with someone. I NEED to share it because it’s not good news for me alone; it’s the BEST news for the entire world. I hope that others can encounter the same life- changing grace that’s changed my life, to experience the same love that’s saved me and gives me hope everyday.
But...
I don’t know how. I can’t just walk up to someone and say, ‘Hey, do you know Jesus? Can I tell you about how Jesus changed my life?’ They might look at me like a crazy person, not to mention that I struggle with talking to strangers anyway about sports or the weather much less about what many consider a ‘taboo’ topic.
Yet...
At PCN, one of our core values is ‘Relational Gospel Sharing.’ We know Jesus calls us to share the gospel with our neighbors, in the community around us, and with the world. Not only that, as our mission statement offers, the initial sharing and connection with our neighbors is not the end of the story: sharing the gospel leads us into relationship with others, invites others to be a part of our church story and for us to be a part of theirs, so that we can grow in worship, faith, and service together.
I’ve prayed a lot about this in recent months as we’ve moved forward in our strategic plan for the future. We’ve created a hospitality team to help extend the welcome and the hospitality of Jesus Christ with our visitors; to connect members and visitors alike to Jesus, to each other, and to the life and ministry of PCN. But this gospel sharing in the form of relationship building is not the task of one team or one committee. This is the call from God for each of us.
The good news of Jesus Christ doesn’t make sense outside of genuine, authentic, trusting relationship. How can we share about love, grace, forgiveness, empathy, hope, a full life, and have it make sense to anyone - or have anyone listen for that matter - absent the intent to create meaningful, intentional relationships? The message seems hollow without it.
I know many churches right now are looking for the secret to boosting and growing their membership, especially after the sobering ‘come back’ from the pandemic. There is no secret, of course, to church growth, and no guarantee that it will happen. Much of the decline can be attributed to a secularizing society around us of which we have little control.
But what we at PCN are committed to doing is building intentional, authentic relationships with our neighbors, not to grow our church, but because we feel called to extend and share the grace of God. We want to invest in our neighbors and community, to include them, to let them know that they belong here in our church community, that we accept them for who they are, and that we are a stronger community with them here. In fact, we need them.
We feel called to create a culture of radical hospitality at PCN, where every member, participant, and visitor can’t help but share the good news with his/her neighbors, co-workers, family members, and friends by extending welcome, kindness, an invitation to join us for worship or a PCN event. We feel called to relational gospel-sharing where people aren’t just numbers, but are loved and are a vital part of who we are as the Church.
Isn’t this what Jesus did for those that followed him? Didn’t he help show them that they mattered, that they belonged, that they were important to what God was up to in the world, and that they were genuinely loved by God no matter what?
I think this intentional relational gospel-sharing can be challenging, even for me.
But this is our commitment at PCN.
The formation of the hospitality team ministry is the beginning. Even now we are developing a new Life Groups ministry whose primary purpose will be relational gospel sharing as we encourage our entire congregation to be a part of this small groups ministry. We will be hiring a new Director of Community Life to oversee this Life Group ministry and to help the Community Life Committee discern and create new initiatives, programs, and events to help us connect with God, with each other, and with our neighbors.
As we reflect on old ministry activities and develop new ones, we will now be asking, “How does this connect us with God, with each other, and with our neighbors outside of our church?” Our ministries will have an outreach component to them.
But aside from all the strategy, the plans, the programs, and all the things that our Session is doing to help lead and guide our congregation into God’s vision for us, relational gospel sharing is the call for each of us. That’s right. Each of us inviting a neighbor to church, to a mission project, to a ministry event, to check out our worship or classes online, is going to make the biggest difference. Each of us being willing to not only invite, but shepherd and come alongside others, is going to have the biggest impact as we seek to build up the Body of Christ.
Beginning this June and throughout the summer, I want to challenge you to begin to think about how each of us can be more intention about our relational gospel sharing; how each of us can extend the hospitality of Christ, come alongside neighbors and help them experience the grace of God in Jesus Christ. Maybe this means going out of your way to greet someone you don’t know in worship, or maybe it means walking next door and inviting your neighbors to join you at church on Sunday.
Maybe it means being more affirming of those around you, sharing hope when the world seems to be falling apart. Maybe it means seeing church as less about consumerism (what I get out of it, how I’m fed spiritually), and more about what I can give for the sake of my neighbor. Maybe it means taking more time to fellowship after church, to participate in a class or on a ministry team. Maybe it means making Life Groups a priority when we get the ministry up and going.
Try it out. Take on this challenge this summer. Get out of your comfort zone a little bit. I’ll do it with you. And let’s see what God can do right here at PCN.
With Grace & Peace, Adam
