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Draw Near to Hear – Really?
When I first read this, I was transported back to England and felt – frankly jealous. At that time, I was a new, baby Christian and the only one in my immediate group of friends and family. On Monday mornings, at the office, we would all talk about our weekend and what we did. When I got to, “Sunday I had Church and then….” – an uncomfortable silence would descend from everyone else. They expected me to launch into “Bible Thumping mode”. The thing is, I never did Bible Thump or even make casual conversation about what I’d learned that Sunday. Too scared!
But what if I had said something? Would the non believers in my office have drawn near to hear?
The tax collectors and sinners drew near to Jesus to hear. They were the ones who responded when Jesus said, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear!.” Who were these people?. Tax collectors were despised because they were people who had conformed to that society’s (Roman) rules. My friends are regular people who have conformed to their society’s rules…. it’s uncool to believe in God in England.
Then I thought about the Pharisees and the Scribes. I struggled with the balance of being accessible to non believers vs encouraging sin. Some in my English Church were adamant that I should never again step foot in a bar. That meant cutting myself of from all my friends, as that’s pretty much where they lived. I knew that I couldn’t be a witness from behind closed doors.
What I love about these verses though is that Jesus did not pursue the sinners. He did not track them down and bully them into believing. He just stood, had a testimony that created interest and spoke from the heart.
It’s a blue print for how we should interact with our friends.
As Jesus continues to transform me, my hope is that my life will be a testimony and that when I just stand and speak from the heart, my friends and family will draw near to hear… especially in England.
I completely connect with that struggle! It is my constant prayer to find that balance between words and actions. But what really strikes me as interesting is how I’m always surprised when one of my coworkers shows interest in spiritual matters! Why am I surprised? It’s the Holy Spirit who works on people’s hearts, and it is His call that they draw near to!
I’m right with ya, mate!
)
I am re-reading “Experiencing God” and need to be reminded that He is at work drawing people to Himself All The Time. We stand as a beacon in a dark world (sometimes that dark world is a pub…sometimes it’s a parent’s living room), and those in whom God has already begun the work, will come. They need to know what we are about, but then we step back and watch.
If they’re being drawn by the Father to Christ, they’ll be drawn to us who have His Spirit and, because we haven’t bashed anyone with the Bible, we have created a safe place for questions and doubts. You are the Light of the World, Sarah Laing! The darker the world, the brighter you *shine*.
Sarah, you ARE a testimony already! And thankfully, you along with many others are trying to get our Church to re-think how we approach the lost as the Lord is drawing them near. I hope we aren’t like the Pharisees and their “rules” of how church and Christians should “be like”. They wouldn’t associate with those who might even be considered unclean. They would only be seen in public with other people like them. They traveled together, they stayed together, they lived in a Pharisee bubble. Rules blind us one, from the Savior and two, from reaching those in desperate need OF the Savior. Their message to people outside the bubble was: “Become like us (translated: believe like us, dress like us, vote like us, act like us, like what we like, don’t like what we like. If you become like us we will consider you for “membership.” We have too many of those religious types in our world today. Sarah, thanks for the great reminder to GET OUTSIDE THE WALLS!
those people drew near to Jesus. how cool is that? Jesus didn’t condemn, he engaged, he loved unconditionally, he met needs. I want people to still draw near to the Jesus in me. God, keep me from repulsing lost people with my “Christianity.”
So, you wanna start a pub ministry?
)
yes… and we could use our band
Texas Hold Em, anyone…?
Pubs, beaches, gazeebos in Smyrna, wherever. Anyone read “The Shaping of Things to Come” ? You can find it at Amazon. The post-brick and mortar church can go anywhere and it is already happening. If there was more ministry at that level, would people be more likely to draw near to hear?