Sometime
ago I was invited to preach in a church that emphasizes relationships.
The individual who called made it clear that their pastor does not give
an invitation at the conclusion of his message. “We don't want to put
people on the spot” was the way he phrased it. Politely I informed the
gentleman that my entire sermon was an invitation. As Spurgeon once said,
“He succeeds best who expects conversion every time he preaches.”1
I
cannot imagine proclaiming the Good News and not giving the listeners an opportunity
to respond to the convicting power of the Holy Spirit. So, I accepted
the invitation to preach in this relational church with the understanding that
a public invitation would be part of the message. That morning three adults
came making their professions of faith. One was a lady in her early 30’s
who told me after the service, “I have been coming here for six weeks and each
Sunday I felt the need to make this decision. Thank you for allowing me
to do publicly what my heart has done inwardly.”
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When
the apostle Paul instructed the young pastor, Timothy, to “Preach the word”
he also added, “[and] do the work of the evangelist” (II Timothy 4:2,5).
What is the work of an evangelist? It is to invite people to accept Jesus
as Lord and Savior. The pastor/evangelist proclaims the message.
The Holy Spirit prepares the heart. The invitation is extended.
The lost who are obedient respond.
When
we proclaim the unsearchable riches of Christ we also assume the role of ambassador.
We are called, “ambassadors for Christ” (II Corinthians 5:20). The only
responsibility of an ambassador is to represent his supreme ruler and share
word for word what has been entrusted to him.
Just
as Jesus came preaching and inviting we are to do the same. He seldom
permitted people who sought blessing from Him to leave without confessing Him.
He said to the man with the withered hand, “Step forward” (Mark 3:3).
He responded to the woman with the issue of blood by saying, “Your faith has
made you well” only after she declared in the presence of all the people the
reason she had touched the hem of his garment (Luke 8: 43-48). He told
Zaccheus to, “Come down” in front of all the citizens in Jericho, (Luke 19:1-10).
The rich young ruler was told by Jesus so all could hear, “Sell what you have
. . . and come, follow me” (Luke 18:22). The first sermons of Jesus, John
the Baptist, and Peter called for repentance which demanded a public response.
Moses, Joshua, and Elijah drew the lines in the sand and issued an invitation.
The
invitation is the, “Now what?” after you have said, “And in conclusion,” for
the third time. Now that the audience has heard the proclamation, what
is expected of them? This is not a time for manipulation in order to exhibit
your skills of persuasion. It is not a time to increase your statistics
so they may be reported in your denominational publication or your next brochure.
It is not a time to make false claims of prosperity and blessings.
