The Master Plan of Evangelism

Robert E Coleman

The Master Plan of Evangelism

Robert E Coleman

Consecration

Matt 11:28-30 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle

and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

HE REQUIRED OBEDIENCE

Jesus expected the men He was with to obey HimThey were not required to be smart, but they had to be loyalDisciples means that they were learnersIt was not until much later that they started to be called "Christian" Acts 11: 26 - inevitable as surelytime obedient followers invariably take on the character of their leader

None of the disciples were asked at first to make a statement of faith or accept a well-defined creed - though they didto be the Messiah All they were asked to do was to follow Jesus - this was a call to faith in the person of Christ and obedience to No one will follow a person in whom he has no trust, nor will he sincerely take the step of faith unless he is willing to obey what his leader says

Following Jesus seemed enough at first -but they had not followed very fa“It soon became apparent that being a disciple of Christ involved the surrender of one's whole life to the Master in absolute submission to His sovereignty. There could be no compromise.“No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.”They had to leave sin and be conformed to the new disciplines of the KOG

Lovethe life of a disciple and their conduct - this was to show itself in obedience to Christ, John 14:21, 23 and isdevotion to those whom He died to save Matt. 25:31-36 There was a cross is part of consecration of self for others, Mark 8:34-38; 10:32-45 This was strong teaching - and not many of them could take it, John 6:25-59

Jn 6:60, 66 On hearing it, many of his disciples said, “This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?”From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him. Jesus did not go running after them to try to get them to stay - he was training leaders for the Kingdom, and if they were going to be fit vessels of service, they were going to have to pay the price

Count the cost

Those who would not go all the way in time fell away. They separated themselves from the chosen company by reason of their own selfishness. Judasthe end but only due to the plan of God To follow Jesus meant to lose the world Read Lk 9:57-62

Count the cost

Jesus told them that it would not be easyJesus did not allow anyone make their own terms of discipleship. A would-be disciple was made to count the cost. To sum it up bluntly, Jesus said: Luke 14:33 you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples.

Luke 14:25-30 Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them he said: 26 “If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple. 27 And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. 28first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it? are not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule you, 30 saying, ‘This person began to build and wasn’t able to finish.’

After a while Jesus had only a handful of true followers leftJn 6:67-69 “You do not want to leave too, do you?” Jesus asked the Twelve. Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and to know that you are the Holy One of God.”Immediately after Jesus began to talk with His disciples more about His suffering and death, and with greater franknessby their answer and knew he could tell them more

After a while Jesus had only a handful of true followers leftJn 6:67-69 “You do not want to leave too, do you?” Jesus asked the Twelve. Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and to know that you are the Holy One of God.”Immediately after Jesus began to talk with His disciples more about His suffering and death, and with greater franknessby their answer and knew he could tell them more

To obey is to learnHowever the disciples did not quickly understood everything the Lord saidConsider Jesus and Peter at Caesarea Philippi - Matt 16:21,22,23 Again and again Jesus spokeHis death, and its meaning to them, but it was not really comprehended until the day He was betrayed into the hands of His enemies. Not comprehending clearly the message of the Cross they also at first did notplace in the Kingdom

To obey is to learn

- It was hard for them to accept the teaching of being a servant, Luke 22:24-30; John 13:1-20- They argued about who would be greatest in the Kingdom Mark 9: 33, 37, 10:35-37; Matt. 20:20- They were harsh in their judgment upon others who did not agree with them Luke 9:51-54They rebuked parents who wanted Jesus to bless their children Mark 10:13The outworking of what it meant to follow Christ was not fully

Jesus patiently endured these human failings of his disciples“He was willing to put up with a lot of those things which issued from their spiritual immaturity. He knew that they could master these defects as they grew in grace and knowledge. Their capacity to receive Revelation would grow provided they continued to practice what truth they understood.

Obedience to Christ was the way the disciples learned more truth. He did not ask them to follow what they did not know to be trueJesus did not urge His disciples to commit their lives to a doctrine, but to a person - he was the doctrine, and only as they continued in His Word could they know the truth,8:31, 32

Supreme obedience was interpreted to be the expression of loveThis was shown in Upper Room just before his death, Jesus said: “If you love me, keep my commands…Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them… “Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them

Anyone who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me…If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. 11 I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. 12 My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.John 14: 15, 21, 23, 24; 15:10, 12).

This was demonstrated by JesusAbsolute obedience to the will of God, of course, was the controlling principle of Jesus’ life- He continually gave his life to the will of his Father which made it possible for God to use His life fully according to its intended purposeMy food, is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work. 4:34 By myself I can do nothing; I judge only as I hear, and my judgment is just, but him who sent me.

This was demonstrated by Jesus

If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love“Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yours be done.The cross was but the crowning climax of Jesus' commitment to do the will of God. It forever showed that obedience could not be compromised-it was always a commitment unto death.

The worldly-minded religious leaders stated the truth when they said in mocking Jesus, Mark 15:31

"He saved others; He cannot save himself"Of course, He could not save Himself. He had not come to save Himself. He came to save the world.He came to offer himself as a sacrifice to God for the sins of all men. came to die.could be satisfied.

Moving towards the cross made each step that Christ took on the earth a conscious acceptance of God's eternal purpose for His life. When Jesus spoke about obedience the disciples could already see it in human form. JesusI have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him.This is the duty of a servant. It was true of Christ, and nothing less can ever be accepted as worthy of his disciple

This was the way that Jesus would mould their lives - by His word. children to obey him if he expects his children to be like him. In the church no one can ever be a leader until first he has learned to follow a leader and Jesus taught bringing to their lives discipline and respect for authority

Jesus knew that the Satanic forces against them were well organized and equipped to make ineffectual any half-hearted effort of evangelism. They could not possibly defeat the devilish powers of this world unless they gave strict adherence to Him and his strategy for victory.This required absolute obedience to the Master's will, even as it meant complete abandonment of their own.

THE PRINCIPLE APPLIED TODAY

We must learn this lesson again today - we are engaged in life and death warfareBasic to being a disciple is to know that we are called to be servants of our Lord and to obey His Word.It is not our duty to reason why He speaks as He does, but only to carry out His orders. Unless there is this dedication it is doubtful if we will ever progress further in Kingdom

“tsapikue

Why are so many professed Christians today stunted in their growth and ineffectual in their witness?Often there is a general indifference to the commands of God, or at least, a kind of contented complacency with mediocrityIt would appear that the teachings of Christ upon self-denial and dedication have been replaced by a sort of respectable "do-as- you-please" philosophy of expediency.

Why are so many professed Christians today stunted in their growth and ineffectual in their witness?Often there is a general indifference to the commands of God, or at least, a kind of contented complacency with mediocrityIt would appear that the teachings of Christ upon self-denial and dedication have been replaced by a sort of respectable "do-as- you-please" philosophy of expediency.

Coleman concludes by saying, “The great tragedy is that little is being done to correct the situation, even by those who realize what is happening…the need of the hour is not for despair, but for action. It is high time that the requirements for membership in the church be interpreted and enforced in terms of true Christian discipleship…Followers must have leaders, and this means that before much can be done with the church membership something will have to be done with the church officials. If this task seems to be too great, then we will have to start like Jesus did by getting with a few chosen ones and instilling into them the meaning of obedience.