Wednesday, March 04, 2009

Inside Out Witnessing

Living and Discipling among the Lost

One of the two who heard John speak and followed Him, was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother. He found first his own brother Simon and said to him, "We have found the Messiah" (which translated means Christ). (John 1:40-41)


Things were different in the beginning. The first Bible study at Ft Benning consisted of only 4 attendees: Me, the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. What you hear me describing 6 year later is the result of God’s blessing and a lot of work. But, one of the great impacts on the small beginnings in ministry was that fact that I was an insider. As a chaplain, I had free access and developed a lot of key relationships with believers and non-believers alike. The role of the insider is crucial.
Although Jesus recruited some of the men to Himself, we see many people invited to join Him by others. These are people with natural networks of family, friends, and co-workers. They are exposed to Jesus through others and immediately begin to enlist more people in their networks to follow Him too.


John the Baptist introduced John and Andrew to Jesus (Jn 1.35-36). Andrew immediately finds his brother Peter and invites him to come and see as well (Jn 1.40-41). Philip is recruited directly by Jesus and in turn finds Nathaniel (Jn 1.43-45). Later, Jesus invites John and his brother James to follow Him (Mt 4.21-22). No doubt John had a major influence on James’ decision to be Jesus’ disciple. This demonstrates the insider’s natural network in the beginning of Jesus’ ministry.


It is essential to help people discover their natural networks. Many come to Christ by influence of a family member or a friend. This happens because an insider has already established natural bonds in their circle of relationships. Those closest people witness the changes in lifestyle and seek an explanation. Another key factor is the vast amount of time the insider spends in these natural circles. They have the opportunity to provide clear explanation and, more importantly, model the effects of the Gospel in their lifestyle.


Have you led a person to Christ recently? Share your experience by clicking on "comments" below. (or if you get this by email go to http://www.tobelikejesus.com/ and leave a comment on this post)
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