Tell Someone: You Can Bring Others to Jesus

Hey, everybody. You're listening to A New Beginning, which is a podcast made possible by Harvest Partners. If this program has impacted you, I'd love to hear from you. So just send an email to me at gregatharvest.org. Again, it's gregatharvest.org.

You can learn more about becoming a Harvest Partner by going to harvest.org. The moment you became a Christian, you entered the Lord's military. Your CO, your commanding officer, has given you a direct order, son, daughter.

Go into all the world and preach the gospel. So you either say yes, sir, or you say no, sir. You're commanding.

What are you going to do? In the military, lives depend on clear communication, on an organized chain of command, and on the need to obey orders without question and without delay. Today on A New Beginning, we might well follow that example and how we respond to God's leading in our lives. Pastor Greg Laurie helps us get the instruction we need to follow the orders of our commanding officer. We'll learn how we can tell someone the good news.

If you've ever felt like you're not ready for that assignment, you've tuned to the right place. This is the day, the day when life begins. Well let's grab our Bibles and turn to Luke chapter 15. This is a new series that I am doing and the title of it is, Tell Someone, Subtitle, You Can Bring Others to Jesus. I believe if you will hear, process, and implement the principles that I'll share with you from the Word of God that you will be leading people to Christ before you know it.

You might say, Greg, that's a bit presumptuous, isn't it? Is not conversion the work of the Holy Spirit? Yes, that's true. But honestly, sometimes that's said by people that do absolutely nothing. In evangelism there is God's part and there is our part. Our part is to proclaim the gospel. God's part is to convert people. But we all have a part to play.

The Holy Spirit is going to nudge you at times to share your faith but He is not going to take you over and make you do it. But this is what God wants us to do. So that brings us to point number one.

If you are taking notes you might want to write this down. Point number one. Effective sharing starts with caring. But really if we are honest do we really care about nonbelievers? A lot of times we want as little to do with them as possible.

Instead of infiltrating we are isolating and we are never going to reach anyone if we don't have contact with them, are we? Jesus said go into all the world and preach the gospel. But it starts with a burden.

Sharing starts with caring. Now look at Luke chapter 15. I had you turn there earlier because this is a series of teachings given by Jesus. Luke 15 has three primary movements in it. It shows how God views people who do not yet know Him.

And you might be surprised by what you read here. Jesus uses three metaphors showing God's love. First we have a shepherd who lost a sheep, verses 1 to 7. A woman who lost a coin, verses 8 to 10.

And finally a father who lost a son, verses 11 to 32. So first we are compared to a sheep being sought by a shepherd. By the way when the Bible compares you to a sheep don't take that as a compliment. Sheep are one of the dumbest animals on the face of the earth. I know they are cute and cuddly but they are really stupid.

Jesus speaking about said, My sheep hear My voice. It would have been a much greater compliment if He said, My dolphins hear My voice. Dolphins are smart. I love dolphins. If I could have a pet it would be a dolphin. I mean a weird pet. Which you can't have. Because I watch a show called Flipper growing up.

That takes too long to explain. But I thought, I want a dolphin too. If He said, My dogs hear My voice it would be a good thing. Even in this case if My cats hear My voice. No. He says, My sheep hear My voice. Shall we hear it?

Kind of. Sheep are basically defenseless animals. They don't have teeth to speak of.

They have little tiny claws. They can't run fast. Basically a sheep is a leg of lamb for the taking.

They had to just carry mint sauce around with them. You know just kill me. Eat me.

And by the way my coat makes a nice sweater. So a sheep is completely dependent upon a shepherd. Just as we are completely dependent upon God. Not only are sheep stupid. They also go astray. Because this story that Christ tells is of a shepherd who had a hundred sheep and one went astray and he left the 99 searching for the errant lamb. And he would not give up until he found it. And then when he finds the lamb Jesus says, In the same way there is more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents and returns to God than 99 others who have strayed.

Listen to this. Every time someone on earth believes in Jesus heaven rejoices. We need to remember that because that should cause us to care about non-believers.

If heaven rejoices over every one sinner that repents should we not do the same? And then Jesus talked about a woman who lost a coin. Now back in those days the bride would wear sort of a headband.

And in the headband there were multiple coins. So to lose a coin from your headband as a bride would be like losing your wedding band. I am never going to lose my wedding band. I have been married 41 years by the way.

And I have gained so much weight I need the jaws of life to get the wedding band off now. It is there permanently. But if I were to lose it or misplace it trust me when I tell you I would search until I found it. So this girl is looking for her lost coin.

She finds it. Jesus again concludes there in Luke 15 verse 10. In the same way there is joy in the presence of God's angels when even one sinner repents. And finally the last movement of the story we have a father missing his son. It is probably one of the most well-known stories from the Bible. It is such a perfectly written story that author Charles Dickens said of it. It is the greatest short story ever told. Poet Robert Bridges said it is a flawless piece of art. I have told this story all around the world.

Because I have had the opportunity to preach the gospel. I find it resonates with every kind of person. Every kind of culture. Men get it. Women get it. Children get it.

Everyone understands it. It is such a straightforward story. And if God were to ever take a selfie this is what he would look like. In this story Jesus says God is like a father who has two sons. And when one of the sons goes astray he desperately misses that son and longs for his return.

You know the story. The boy comes to his dad demanding his portion of the inheritance. He effectively says, Dad you know you are living way too long.

I am tired of waiting for you to die. Just give me my part of the inheritance now and let me go. And amazingly the dad acquiesces and gives the boy what he requests. And off that kid goes to a place far away ending up with hookers and booze and partying and all that kind of stuff. And after a while that boy spends all of his money and all of his friends that he had are gone with the money. And he is actually feeding pigs which is not a very kosher thing for a good Jewish boy to do. And he actually is thinking maybe I will eat the food that I am feeding the pigs and then it dawns on him this is stupid.

This is ridiculous. I am going to go back to my father and I am going to say, Father I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Just take me on as a hired hand. So back home the boy goes. Now the guy was probably older. Maybe his body was a little bowed with age.

Maybe his body was ravaged with the bad choices he had made in his lifestyle. He is going back home. Meanwhile back at the ranch. It is almost like the camera moves now from the boy and we come to the father. This is called the parable of the prodigal son. But it could just as easily be called the parable of the loving father.

For it is the story of how God loves us. Back at the ranch there is dad sitting on the front porch maybe in his rocking chair missing this boy. Periodically he would get up. Walk into his son's room.

Look at all the things hanging on the wall. Say I miss that rascal of a kid. I wish he would come home. Maybe it has been years.

Maybe it has been decades. We don't know. The story doesn't say. But he would just long for that boy's return.

He would sit out there and wait. One day he is sitting out there on the porch and he sees a familiar figure making his way down the path to the home. It is his boy. And the father is so excited he bolts out of his chair and runs to his son and throws his arms around him and kisses him.

It says rejoice with me. This is my son who is dead and is alive again. The boy didn't even get to finish his speech. Father I am no longer worthy to be called you.

Forget that. You are my son. You have always been my son.

Welcome home. That is a picture of God. Here is the amazing thing. In this culture it was considered undignified for an older man to run. Not to mention the fact that it is harder for an older man to run.

I know this from personal experience. Because I have tried running. You know I can walk for a long distance and I am fine. I will just do a little jog. I am walking really fast. People tell me I walk really fast.

But then let's do a jog. The moment I do this I hate life. Everything is shaking. Just misery.

Immediate misery. I hate it. Go back to walking again. I have people that love to run. I just had a good run. What a great run. What are you crazy? You had a great. Oh. Crazy.

Great run. Man the endorphins were released. I have never had a single endorphin released in my life doing any kind of exercise.

I haven't had the release of endorphins eating hamburgers however. It is undignified. Father's older gentlemen did not run in this culture. If Jesus had not said this we would not even dare to suggest that Jesus compares the Father in heaven to a father who misses his son so badly he is willing to lose his dignity if you will to get to his son as quickly as possible. So here is my question for you. If that father was willing to lose his dignity to engage his son are you willing to lose yours to engage a nonbeliever?

By that I mean walking maybe to a stranger. Or raising the subject of the gospel. You know what is going to happen now. People are talking about whatever and you are going to quote a Bible verse. Are you going to say something about Jesus? That whole conversation is going to shift.

Some people are going to get angry with you. We don't want to do that. We don't want to leave our comfort zone. We don't want to make ripples but Jesus says go into all the world and preach the gospel. What about what is sometimes called lifestyle evangelism?

Is it enough to let our light shine but not really overtly share our faith? Pastor Greg answers that in just a moment. What an encouragement to hear that Pastor Greg's teachings are helping this woman and many others like her.

Let us know how these studies have impacted you. Send an email to Pastor Greg. Well Pastor Greg continues now with his message about our privilege of sharing the gospel. Called, Tell Someone. Say no sir. What are you going to do? You are commanded.

We must do this. Now what is the Great Commission? Again it is to preach the gospel and it is to make disciples. What does that mean?

It means to the best of our ability led by the Holy Spirit we seek to bring people to Jesus Christ, get them up on their feet spiritually and then go and do it again and go and do it again and go and do it again. And let me ask you this. When is the last time you did that?

When is the last time you engaged someone? I believe it can energize you and help you as well as it can help the person you are ministering to. I would compare it to going to Disneyland with adults or kids. It is a drag to go to Disneyland with adults because they complain so much.

And I would include myself in this. First thing we say is, so stinking expensive. What is it? Like a thousand bucks to get in the park now? I mean it is crazy. So we gripe about that. Then we walk in the park and oh they have a place to eat here. Where is a good restaurant? So then we go and eat.

And what happens after that? We are sleepy. So we are saying, I know there is Adventureland.

Is there a nap land here somewhere? Yeah. That is the problem. And then we go to write, that is so fake.

That doesn't look real at all. We just complain the whole time. You know it was a lot better when Walt was still around. That is going to Disneyland with an adult. The happiest time for a kid going to Disneyland is when you walk in. The happiest time for an adult at Disneyland is leaving. Now take a kid with you.

A child. See it through their eyes. It really is as the song says, a whole new world. It is a magical place in the best sense of that word. They love it.

They are enjoying it. That is why you should take a child. Because you know you are standing in line for a ride now and they have these little signs.

If you are at this place in the line you will be on the ride in one month. It is like did you have to tell me that? I was happier when I didn't know. But children they don't care. They love the rides.

They love the whole experience. And this can be true of church as well. For those that have known the Lord for a while we become a little jaded. We take things for granted.

We start complaining about everything. The music is too loud. Music is not loud enough. It is too hot. It is too cold. It is too big. It is too small. It is too something.

And on and on we go. And then if that preacher would dare to add an invitation for people to come to Christ at the conclusion of His message we see that as an affront. Because He says, now there might be some of you here that don't know Jesus today and you are thinking, what is He doing?

This is going to take longer and I want to go to lunch. And I have had people why I am inviting people to Christ get up out of their seat and walk out. To me that is so insensitive. How could we be so out of sync with heaven? Heaven is waiting with bated breath for someone to believe so we can have a victory shout and break out an applause and we well we just want lunch.

We just want the service to end. Now I am going to tell you how it will change. Bring a non-believer or a new believer with you to church next Sunday.

Everything is different. You ever notice when you bring a visitor to church how you look at everything in a different way because you look at it through their eyes? So while the worship is happening you are kind of looking at them sideways.

Are they liking this? Then maybe if I get up to speak you are praying, God don't let Greg tell that lame joke again. Lord help him.

He is so weird. Lord are those my thoughts? I don't know. My prayers. But then you are praying, Lord have them give an invitation.

Lord speak to them. Show Greg or the pastor to give that invitation. And then when the pastor says, now if you don't know Jesus Christ here is what you need to do.

Yes. And you are praying for that person. And then that person that you brought if they respond to that invitation and they receive Christ what a joyful day that is.

You see how everything can change when you get a non-believer or a new believer in your life. Listen. This is the command by the Lord. Don't think of this as a mere duty. Don't think of this as drudgery. Think of this as a privilege. Think of this as a joy. Think of this as the greatest opportunity, the greatest adventure ever to share the gospel.

Let me say one last thing. To not do this can be hazardous to your spiritual health. You show me a church that doesn't have a constant flow of new believers coming in and I will show you a church that is stagnating. The church has a choice before us. We can evangelize or we can fossilize. And you have a choice before you. You can seek to reach people with the gospel and not be a hoarder but share with them the truth.

And you can be blessed beyond measure. Well I am going to end this message now. But I am going to do what I just talked about. Because here is someone visiting us today. And you have come to this church service with your friend or family member. And you are hearing us talk about how to reach people like you.

Let me just say this to you that are visiting. God loves you. He has a plan for you.

This whole service has in fact been about you. How you can come into this relationship with Jesus. And you are separated from Him by your sin.

And there is nothing you can do to rectify this. God loved you so much Jesus died on the cross for your sin and He rose again three days later. And right now He stands at the door of your life and He knocks.

And He says, If you will hear My voice and open the door I will come in. Many years ago. I won't say how many.

Over 40. I heard that invitation and I believed in Jesus. I have never for a moment regretted it.

And you are hearing it right now. Jesus said, Where do you stand? Would you like your sin forgiven? Would you like to know that you will go to heaven when you die? Would you like to know this peace that we have been talking about today? If so I am going to give you an opportunity to believe in Him as we close in prayer.

Let's all bow our heads. Father thank You for Your Word to us. Thank You for the wonderful message of the gospel. Now I pray for any hero or those that are listening who do not yet know You. Lord would You help them to see their need for You.

And help them to come to You. And help them to believe in You at this very moment. In Jesus name I pray. Amen. Pastor Greg Laurie with an important word of prayer. And if you would like to make that kind of change today in your relationship with the Lord, Pastor Greg will help you with that and he will do so before today's edition of A New Beginning concludes. So please stay with us. Now if you missed any portion of today's study, a message called Tell Someone, you can hear the whole program again online at harvest.org or download an MP3.

Again go to harvest.org. Well it's such a privilege to have author J. Warner Wallace with us today. Jim Wallace is a good friend of the ministry and he's just finished a book called Person of Interest.

He makes a case for the uniqueness of Christ, much as a detective would make a case for a crime where there's no crime scene. It's a fascinating read and very convincing. Now Jim, you were an atheist for many years. What if you had read this book during that time? Would it have changed your mind? That's a good question and I kind of wonder sometimes, do we really hold intellectual objections or are most of our objections deeper than that?

Or emotional or volitional as that was really behind my objection. But I will tell you this and I often say it. I only met two kinds of Christians. I was in Southern California. To be honest, I didn't have any Christian friends growing up. No one ever invited us to church. No one ever invited me to church. My parents weren't Christians.

I just did not have a sense. I didn't know anybody and then I met some Christians at work. Now I'm working as a police officer and then a detective. And the two groups of people I met the most often were, number one, police officers, a couple at our agency who were Christians. And when I would ask them questions, they did not have good answers. And I thought, wow, these are people who have a high value for evidence. Yet when I asked them questions that are really evidentially based, they're like, so really? So you would never build a case against this guy we just put in jail the way you just built that case for me for Christianity? I just thought, really?

This is a very unexamined worldview. Then the other group I met who said they were Christians were the people I was taking to jail, okay? And those folks were telling me, yeah, you know, I'll be honest with you.

They would tell me I just got saved like, you know, last year. We're driving them to jail. And I'm thinking to myself, really? So we have two kinds of groups here. We have people who are either unwilling to look or don't even know if this is supported by the evidence and people who don't behave as though it's supported by the evidence. And I wanted no part of either one. I think it would have been discomforting to know that there is a way of living as a Christian that is very well informed, informed about history, informed about science, informed from an educational perspective.

You don't have to turn off your brain to be a Christian. As a matter of fact, this is the, I think, the Great Dane of all the dogs in the yard, okay? The dogs who are, you know, philosophies of the world and the history of philosophy.

I see this as the Great Dane, right? We don't need to act like Chihuahuas where we're constantly barking because we're the smallest dog in the yard. But it turns out the Christian worldview is very well informed and is supported by the evidence. You can be comfortable. You don't have to react aggressively. All you have to do, though, is know what the evidence is, and you'll have a sense of calm about defending the case for Christianity.

Great statement. You don't have to turn off your brain to become a Christian. You know, the Lord says, come let us reason together, says the Lord.

Reason, there's a place for that, a place for answering the objections that people have and giving them biblical evidence. This is a resource that you will consult again and again. Footnoted, researched, well written, but at the same time, illustrated and made understandable. So anyone, I think a young man or a young woman, be able to understand this as well as someone who is older and more of a reader.

This is something everyone's going to benefit from. It's a brand new book called Person of Interest, subtitled Why Jesus Still Matters in a World That Rejects the Bible, written by former cold case detective J. Warner Wallace. And we'll send you your copy for your gift of any size.

Yeah, it's brand new. In fact, the publisher graciously sent some advanced copies, only available through A New Beginning. And we want to send this resource to you to thank you for partnering with us so these daily studies can continue reaching out with the gospel. And our prayer is that this book will help you reach out with the gospel in your own circle of influence. So ask for Person of Interest as you send your generous gift today to A New Beginning, Box 4000, Riverside, CA 92514. Or call 1-800-821-3300.

We can speak with you anytime, again at 1-800-821-3300 or go online to harvest.org. Well, Pastor Greg, you spoke today about having a relationship with the Lord. Yes. Someone can enter into that kind of relationship with the Lord right now, can't they? Yeah, they really can. That's the amazing thing. I think people are surprised that it doesn't take years to become a Christian. It doesn't take months. It doesn't take weeks. It doesn't take days.

It doesn't even take hours. You can believe on the spot. And I would like to lead you in a prayer where you can ask for His forgiveness, a prayer where you can receive Jesus Christ into your life as your Savior and Lord. So if you want Christ to come into your life, if you want Him to forgive you of your sin, if you want a second chance in life, if you want to go to heaven when you die, stop what you're doing and pray after me these words. Lord Jesus, I know I am a sinner, and I'm sorry for my sin. And I turn from it now, and I choose to follow You from this moment forward as Savior and Lord, as God and friend. Thank You for loving me and calling me and forgiving me. In Jesus' name I pray, amen. Amen. And listen, if you have just prayed those words with Pastor Greg and meant them sincerely, the Lord has heard you and forgiven you of your sin.

The Bible tells us Jesus is faithful and just to forgive us of our sin and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. And we'd like to send you some materials to help you begin to live this new life. We call it our New Believers' Growth Packet. Just ask for it, and we'll send it free of charge if you prayed for the first time today with Pastor Greg. Write a new beginning, Box 4000, Riverside, CA 92514, or call 1-800-821-3300, 1-800-821-3300, or go online to harvest.org and click Know God. Well, next time Pastor Greg helps us with something called Frangelism. Find out what it is when you join us next time, and you can sign up for Pastor Greg's online training course that corresponds with this evangelism series by going to harvest.org. This is the day, the day when life begins