Right Turn: Turning Lives Around Through Closeness

A movie called “The Book of Eli” is a parable illustrating the sometimes chaotic power of Scripture.  The story takes place in the near future of America, after a nuclear apocalypse leaves the country a desolate wasteland.  Through that wasteland travels a loner named Eli.  Eli believes God has sent him to bring one of the few remaining copies of the Bible to the west coast.  As he travels, Eli wanders into a ramshackle town ruled by a villainous man named Carnegie.  Most in the town no longer know how to read.  None in the town have ever read the Bible—except Eli and Carnegie.  Both believe in the power of Scripture.  And as they confront one another on the dusty streets of this western town, their talk of Scripture turns the town upside down: Carnegie: Is that thing loaded? I don’t think it’s loaded. Eli: Only one way to find out. Carnegie: Look, I need that book. I mean…I want the book.  And you.  But if you make me choose, I’ll kill ya—I’ll take the book. Eli: Why? Why do you want it? Carnegie: I grew up with it. I know its power. And if you read it, then so do you. That’s why they burned them all after the war.  Hey, just stayin’ alive is an act of faith; building this town is an even bigger act of faith, but they don’t understand that.  None of them.  And I don’t have the right words to help them, but the book does.  I admit…I’ve had to do things…many, many things I hate to build this, I confess that…but if we have that book, I wouldn’t have to.  Now imagine…imagine how different, how righteous this little world could be if we had the right words for our faith.  Well, people would truly understand why they’re here and what they’re doing and wouldn’t need any of the uglier motivations.  It’s not right to keep that book hidden away; it’s meant to be shared with others; it’s meant to be spread. Isn’t that what you want? Eli: With all my heart and soul.  I always believed that I’d find a place where this book belonged, where it was needed…but I haven’t found it yet. Carnegie: I love this guy.  I love this guy! Shoot him…please.” Guns flare.  People scream.  But as the dust settles, Eli walks out of town.  He has other places to go.  He’s got a mission to accomplish.

It’s tempting to have a similar picture in mind when we imagine the mission of Paul recorded by Luke in his book which is called Acts.  It’s tempting to imagine Paul traveling through the pagan wasteland of the Roman Empire.  He’s a loner out there—except for a few occasional rag tag supporters.  Again and again, Paul wanders into a dirty town, speaks words of Scripture, and the city gets turned upside down.  Then, as the dust settles, Paul walks into the sunset.  He has other places to go.  He’s got a mission to accomplish.

That image certainly resonates with Luke’s account in Acts 17 of Paul’s visit to Thessalonica:  1Now when they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a synagogue of the Jews. 2And Paul went in, as was his custom, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures, 3 explaining and proving that it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead, and saying, “This Jesus, whom I proclaim to you, is the Christ.” 4And some of them were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a great many of the devout Greeks and not a few of the leading women. 5 But the Jews were jealous, and taking some wicked men of the rabble, they formed a mob, set the city in an uproar, and attacked the house of Jason, seeking to bring them out to the crowd. 6And when they could not find them, they dragged Jason and some of the brothers before the city authorities, shouting, “These men who have turned the world upside down have come here also, 7and Jason has received them, and they are all acting against the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, Jesus.” 8And the people and the city authorities were disturbed when they heard these things. 9And when they had taken money as security from Jason and the rest, they let them go.  10 The brothers immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea (Acts 17:1-10 ESV).

Paul saunters into Thessalonica.  And on three Saturdays, Paul teaches Scripture at the local synagogue.  He preaches Bible.  He speaks the Words of God.  And those words have power.  They spark an uproar.  They turn the city upside down.  What Paul speaks so shakes things up that he is forced to leave Thessalonica.  Can you see him–walking into the sunset?  He’s got other places to go.  He’s got a mission to accomplish.

And that image colors our view of evangelism.  For some of us the word “evangelism” means going to a country, a city, a neighborhood, a workplace, a school, or to a person and quoting Scripture, teaching Bible, and speaking the Word of God.  That word shakes things up.  And when we’re done speaking, we move on to the next country, city, neighborhood, workplace, school, or person.  The word “evangelism” conjures images like a crusade where the speaker and his team swoop into a city, fill a stadium with people, preach God’s Word, and then swoop away to the next city.  It’s about speaking and moving on, speaking and moving on.

That is certainly an aspect of evangelism.  It is part of what Paul recalls as he reminisces about his visit to Thessalonica in the first chapters of 1 Thessalonians.  Luke provides a news report on Paul and Thessalonica.  Paul provides a documentary.  Luke gives us the 30,000 foot overview.  Paul gives us the detailed account.   In 1 Thessalonians we learn there was a lot more to Paul’s visit than we may have imagined.

As we saw last Sunday, Paul describes in 1 Thess. 1:9 the ultimate result of his stopover: you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God.  Because of what Paul spoke, these Thessalonians completely rejected the spiritual beliefs and practices taught them by their parents and grandparents and fully embraced the truth about God found in Jesus.  Lives were turned around when Paul came to town.

Last Sunday we explored the important role that character played in this turn-around.  Today we look at another aspect of the turn-around: 10You are witnesses, and God also, how holy and righteous and blameless was our conduct toward you believers. 11For you know how, like a father with his children, 12we exhorted each one of you and encouraged you and charged you to walk in a manner worthy of God, who calls you into his own kingdom and glory. (1 Thess. 2:10-12 ESV).

Paul uses two images to describe his role in turning people’s lives around.  First, Paul uses the image of a father: For you know how, like a father with his children….  When Paul remembers what he did in Thessalonica, he sees it as him playing the role of a father.  Paul writes of evangelizing like a father. In that ancient culture, the father’s primary role was to provide moral instruction.[i] The father taught the children how to live.  The father spoke to the children about the purpose of life.  That’s how Paul uses the image here.  Paul says in vs. 12 that he exhorted each one of you and encouraged you and charged you to walk in a manner worthy of God.  Like a father, Paul taught these Thessalonians how to live.  He spoke to them about the purpose of life.  He exhorted them.  He charged them.  Paul writes in vv. 8-9 that he preached to them the “gospel of God.”  Paul verbalized the message of the Bible.  That’s what he means when he remembers evangelizing like a father.  Evangelizing like a father is speaking and teaching the instruction of the Bible.

And that is an important element of evangelism.  Evangelizing like a father is critical.  If we want to turn lives around, we too must evangelize like a father.  We’ve got to preach like a papa. We have to speak Scripture with lost people.  We have to share the Bible with those far from God.

And that will be the focus of next Sunday’s lesson.  Next Sunday I’ll preach about the importance of verbalizing Scripture to non Christians.  I’ll introduce a tool that can help you preach like a papa, evangelize like a father.

But too often, that’s our only image of evangelism.  Too often, that’s all we can imagine.  Evangelism is the loner sauntering into a country, a city, a neighborhood, a workplace, a school, or a person’s life, speaking Scripture, and then moving on to the next country, city, neighborhood, workplace, school, or person.

But Paul points to another vital image for evangelism: 7But we were gentle among you, like a nursing mother taking care of her own children. 8So, being affectionately desirous of you, we were ready to share with you not only the gospel of God but also our own selves, because you had become very dear to us.  9For you remember, brothers, our labor and toil: we worked night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you, while we proclaimed to you the gospel of God. (1 Thess. 2:7-9 ESV).  Paul uses a different image here.  He uses the image of a mother.  Paul remembers evangelizing like a mother.  In that ancient culture the mother’s primary role was one of nurturing the children.[ii] A father was in charge of moral instruction.  But a mother was in charge of nurturing.  Paul points to his role as a mother as he reached out to those in Thessalonica:

• He was” gentle” with them (vs. 7).
• He “took care” of them (vs. 7)—a phrase meaning to warmly cherish. ^[iii]
• He was as nurturing and caring as a “nursing mother” to her children (vs. 7).
• He was “affectionately desirous” of them (vs.8 )—a word which means to be drawn toward something with intense feelings.^[iv]
• They were “very dear” to him (vs. 8)—a word meaning “beloved.”

Can you feel the warmth?  Can you sense the affection?  Can you picture the way Paul was drawn toward these people?  This is not a teacher informing students.  This is not a speaker communicating to listeners.  This is not even just a father instructing children.  This is a mother nurturing her babies.  This is a man in love with Thessalonians.  This is a man filled with affection and concern for people.

This fondness led Paul to do something more than just speak.  Paul writes in vs. 8: we were ready to share with you not only the gospel of God but also our own selves.  The words “we were ready” literally mean “we were delighted” or “we were pleased.”  “It gave us great joy to share with you not only the gospel of God but also our own selves.”

Paul did much more than just evangelize like a father.  He also evangelized like a mother.  He didn’t just instruct.  He also invested.  He didn’t just communicate.  He was also concerned.  He didn’t just share good news.  He also shared himself.

Paul shows that it’s not enough to merely preach like papa.  We’ve also got to love like mama. Those are the two foundations of evangelism.  You’ve got to preach like papa.  You’ve got to verbalize God’s words to lost people.  You’ve got to share good news.  And next Sunday we’ll explore this.  But you also got to love like mama.  You’ve got to share your life.  You’ve got to invest in people.  You’ve got to do life with people.  You’ve got to love like mama.

And that introduces the second of four vital components of outreach.  Last Sunday we discussed the importance of character.  This morning Paul’s example reveals the role of closeness.  Lives are turned around as we practice closeness.  Paul drew close to those he reached out to.  He formed the kind of relationships with them that could be characterized as family.  They were not just acquaintances.  They were not just colleagues.  To Paul, they were family.  He loved them like a mama.  He drew close to their hearts and homes.

And that’s why turning lives around can never solely be accomplished through church programs.  Programs can be helpful.  Programs can bear fruit.  But ultimately evangelism necessitates more.  It requires not only preaching like papa.  It requires also loving like mama.  Evangelism is about drawing close to people.  It’s about doing life with people.  It’s about getting to know that student in the back of your classroom, eating lunch together, attending a movie, going shopping, playing basketball, and in that context sharing the good news.  It’s about introducing yourself to that neighbor you’ve lived next to for over a year, having him over for dinner, going fishing with him, catching a Tiger football game, and in the context of doing life, sharing the good news.

It’s at this point, however, that a defense mechanism kicks in.  As I began to see this picture of loving like mama, I also began to think that this was a lot easier for Paul than it was for me.  After all, Paul was a missionary.  What else did Paul have to do but hang out with people, get to know people, and do life with people?  Wasn’t that Paul’s job?  And if that’s the case, Paul’s model of evangelism is not every helpful.  Because unlike Paul most of us don’t get paid to hang out.  Most of us are much busier than Paul.  We have jobs.  We have school.  We have piano, and soccer, and dance and dishes to wash, and weeds to pick, and shutters to paint, and emails to answer, and diapers to change, and papers to write and calls to make and cards to send and groceries to buy and floors to sweep and kids to drive and notes to study and tests to take and projects to finish.  I began to dismiss Paul’s focus on loving like mama, because he doesn’t know how hard that would be for someone like me.  It takes time to practice closeness.  And time is something few of us have.

But then I re-read vs. 9: For you remember, brothers, our labor and toil: we worked night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you, while we proclaimed to you the gospel of God. Paul opens up his Outlook, his Franklin Planner, his Dayspring weekly calendar, and his to-do list.  And he shows just how busy he was in Thessalonica.  The words “labor and toil” refer to Paul’s  work as a tent-maker and leather worker.  To demonstrate just how deeply he cared for these people, Paul refused to ask for handouts, for a place to sleep, for a lunch or dinner from any of the Thessalonians.  Instead, Paul made a living while in evangelizing in Thessalonica.  He made tents.  He was a leather worker.  New Testament scholar Ben Witherington III points out that in a city like Thessalonica, where there was large seaport, a great deal of commerce, and recreation in the form of the Greek games, there would have been a large demand for temporary shelters like tents and leather goods like sandals.[v] And apparently business was booming.  Paul had to work night and day to keep up with the orders.  It’s not like Paul had eight hours a day to hang out with people and form friendships.  Instead, he had an eight hour, nine hour, ten hour, or eleven hour a day job working leather—just to pay his bills, just to put a roof over his head and some food in his stomach.  And in whatever time was left, Paul invested in forming these friendships.  That’s how critical closeness was to Paul.

Can’t you imagine how tempting it would have been for Paul, after a long work day, to just pick up some fast food at the Roman Arches, drive home, and turn on the Roman Idol competition?  And when Paul did evangelize in those after-work hours, can’t you imagine how tempting it would be to just rely on preaching like papa—just swoop into a house, preach some Scripture, and leave so he can get home to watch Leno?  But instead, Paul spent those remaining moments of the day getting to know some Thessalonians, hanging out with them, chatting, talking, conversing and doing life together.  He’d meet them early in the morning for breakfast.  Sometimes they’d do a round of Frisbee golf during their lunch break.  On some weekends they’d rush off to the nearby lake and fish.  This very busy man spent whatever time he could investing heavily in the lives of these people.  And in that context, Paul shared with them the gospel of God.

Long-term, here’s what you can do to put this message in to action.  In October, we’ll be hosting another Divine Dinner week.  During that week, we want you to make time to have someone into your home for a meal.  That person should be someone who doesn’t necessarily attend church anywhere.  Have that person into your home and spend a few hours just investing in that relationship.  It won’t be a time to preach like papa.  It will be a time to love like mama.  Start praying for God to lead you to someone you can invite to Divine Dinner.

But this week, there’s something you can also do.  “My Turn” is your turn to put this message into action immediately.  Spend some time today prayerfully reflecting on these words:

There are at least three groups of people whom you can love like mama:

1.            People you know (coworkers, classmates, neighbors, family members, etc.)

2.            People you used to know (acquaintances from a past school, job, neighborhood, etc.)

3.            People you’d like to know (the regular waiter at a diner you frequent, a student whose locker is nearby, etc.).

Write down some names of people who might fit into one of these groups: ________________________________________________________________.

There are a number of ways you can begin to build a relationship with one of those whose names you’ve written down: Involve him in an activity you are already doing (lunch during your lunch hour, attending a Tiger game, going to the gym, taking the kids to the park), invite her to a holiday party, interact with him on Facebook, invite her to participate with you in a church service project.

Write down one thing you can do this week to build a relationship with one of those whose names you’ve written down above: _____________________________________________.

 

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[i] Ben Witherington III, 1 & 2 Thessalonians (Eerdmans, 2006), 81.

[ii] Witherington III, 81.

Strong, J. (1996). The exhaustive concordance of the Bible : Showing every word of the text of the common English version of the canonical books, and every occurrence of each word in regular order. (electronic ed.). Ontario: Woodside Bible Fellowship.

. Vol. 5: Theological dictionary of the New Testament. 1964- (G. Kittel, G. W. Bromiley & G. Friedrich, Ed.) (electronic ed.) (176). Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans.

[v] Witherington, 38.