Reaching the Cities
Monday’s section of this week’s lesson asked the questions: What are the challenges in preaching the gospel in cities and reaching people in these difficult places?
Picture taken by William Earnhardt
I remember many years ago, when I was talking to a Bible Worker from a major US city. I asked him if he had ever been to the very famous baseball stadium in his city. He made a shocked expression and then said, “No! That is worldly.” What he failed to understand is that Jesus is not taking us out of the world. Jesus has not called us to be hermits, living alone in the mountains, telling people to come to us and we will share Jesus with them. In Matthew 28:19-20, Jesus sends us into all the world. He does not tell us to sit in church and wait for the world to come to us.
Jesus saw in every soul one to whom must be given the call to His kingdom. He reached the hearts of the people by going among them as one who desired their good. He sought them in the public streets, in private houses, on the boats, in the synagogue, by the shores of the lake, and at the marriage feast. He met them at their daily vocations, and manifested an interest in their secular affairs.-Ellen White, Desire of Ages, Page 151.
Being a Christian does not mean leaving all secular affairs behind. It means taking Jesus into your secular affairs. Jesus not only tolerated secular affairs, but He also took an interest in them. Jesus does not intend for us to sit alone in a monastery until He takes us to heaven to sit on a cloud playing a harp. He gave Adam secular responsibilities to care for the garden and animals. When we get to heaven, we will be building, gardening, and doing things that may be considered secular. Again, being a Christian does not mean giving up all secular activities. It means taking Jesus into those secular activities.
I do not condemn the simple exercise of playing ball; but this, even in its simplicity, may be overdone.-Ellen White, Counsels to the Church, Page 161,
Sadly, many have maligned Ellen White’s writings to make it look like she condemned all secular activities, while this is clearly not the case. Yes, I have been in secular sporting events where I felt a demonic presence, like at a minor league baseball game right before a brawl broke out on the field. But I have also felt a demonic presence in a church board meeting when someone was sowing disension. The answer is not for me to ban myself from all ballparks and all board meetings. The answer is to take the spirit of Jesus with me wherever I go.
They often hold themselves too much reserved, and exercise their authority in a cold, unsympathizing manner which cannot win the hearts of their children and pupils. If they would gather the children close to them, and show that they love them, and would manifest an interest in all their efforts and even in their sports, sometimes even being a child among children, they would make the children very happy and would gain their love and win their confidence. And the children would sooner respect and love the authority of their parents and teachers.-Ellen White, Counsels to the Church, Page 193.
Did you catch that? She is encouraging parents and teachers to take an interest in their children’s sports, much like Jesus took an interest in people’s secular affairs. We cannot sit in our church and tell those in the city to come to us. They are distracted. We must go to where they are and lead them to Jesus. I have done this with my golf ministry. I have had theological discussions with friends as we wait to take our turn at the tee box that they would never have with me anywhere else. I have baptisms from those discussions, one being a very active deacon in the church for several years now. That baptism did not come from me inviting him to church. It came from me meeting him on the golf course. By the way, his son, who was very young when we first started golfing, now holds a very prominent position in the Adventist health care system.
If we are going to reach distracted people in the city, or anywhere else, we must meet them where they are distracted and lead them to Jesus. The answer is not to take them out of the world. Jesus did not take us out of the world. The answer is for us to bring Jesus into our secular affairs and to teach and model for others how they, too, can bring Jesus into their secular affairs.
