Send Me! January 29, 2011

From the beginning, Oasis Church has always been about teaching how to building relationships with believers and unbelievers and learning how to making a positive difference in our community.

In accomplishing that mission together, we have helped plant several churches, started one non-profit which scholarships kids who want to go to private or parochial school and started another non-profit to help men and women transition from prison to becoming productive citizens.

We have done remarkable things for a little church. We now face one of our greatest challenges.

We moved our services to Saturday nights and now we need to grow. We each need to begin inviting our friends and neighbors to be our guests and check us out.

As you commit to inviting the people you know to church, you will run up against common misconceptions and misunderstandings about church and Christians.

Tonight I want to share with you: The most common questions people have Christianity, The most common objections for not going to church, and The most common objections for not accepting Christ.

Part of our responsibility as Christians is to share with others what great things God is doing in our lives and invite them to get in on it, too.

This is where God loses most Christians. We are just not willing to share Him with others. Is it because we only want the good things of God for ourselves and we don’t want to share Him with others?

It is because we are afraid. No! It is because we are afraid. “…I will never leave you nor forsake you.” So we may boldly say: “The LORD is my helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?” Hebrews 13:5b-6 (NKJ)

So what does it say about your personal faith in God if you are too afraid to say anything about Him to anybody?

“…Don’t worry about what to say in your defense, because you will be given the right words at the right time. For it won’t be you doing the talking – it will be the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.” Matthew 10:19-20

Do you believe that as I share my faith with others, God will speak through me?

“Now, who will want to harm you if you are eager to do good “Now, who will want to harm you if you are eager to do good? But even if you suffer for doing what is right, God will reward you for it. So don't be afraid and don't worry. Instead, you must worship Christ as Lord of your life. And if you are asked

about your Christian hope, always be ready to explain it about your Christian hope, always be ready to explain it. But you must do this in a gentle and respectful way. Keep your conscience clear. Then if people speak evil against you, they will be ashamed when they see what a good

life you live because you belong to Christ life you live because you belong to Christ. Remember, it is better to suffer for doing good, if that is what God wants, than to suffer for doing wrong! 1Peter 3:13-17 (NLT)

The most common questions people have about Christianity:

Q) Isn’t it bigoted for Christians to say Jesus is the only way to heaven?

A) Are you aware that most religions require very strict standards of behavior be met in order to go to heaven? That means a lot of people are not going to make the cut. Christianity is different in that God only asks us to admit that we are not perfect and to ask Him for forgiveness.

Does that sound narrow-minded or bigoted to you? Christ accepts everyone who will acknowledge that He is God and asks for forgiveness. Does that sound narrow-minded or bigoted to you?

Q) Aren’t all faiths equally valid? A) The ultimate difference is that most religions teach that we somehow must earn our way to heaven by doing good things or discover God through study and discipline.

The unique thing about Christianity is that it teaches that God revealed who He is through the Bible. He also tells us how we can know for sure that we are going to heaven. We don’t have to live life and hope for the best when we die.

Q) Why does God allow innocent people to suffer? A) God created us with free will. We can choose to do good or bad. Wouldn’t you agree that some of our bad choices make innocent people suffer? The only way God could stop that is to take away everyone’s freedom.

Q) If God is all-loving, why would He send people to hell? A) God is very loving, so much so that He is waiting to give everyone a chance to choose Him. One day you and I will die and then we will stand before God to be judged for how we lived our life.

No one has to go to hell unless they reject God’s gift of Jesus. God requires us to be perfect to enter heaven. But we can’t be perfect. That’s why we need Jesus. He lived a perfect life and died to pay the penalty for our sins so we didn’t have to. No one has to go to hell unless they reject God’s gift of Jesus.

Q) If God is all-powerful, why does He allow evil? A) God is all-powerful. He is also perfect. If God wiped out evil, He would have to wipe out you and me too. Instead, He tolerates evil for a time until everyone has had a chance to choose Him.

Q) Isn’t the Bible full of errors and myths? A) What particular errors are you referring to?

If anyone ever brings up something you don’t know about, be honest and say “I don’t know.” Tell them you will check it out and get back with them.

Q) Doesn’t science contradict the Bible? A) The facts are just the opposite. Science is continually proving the validity of the Bible. There are several recent discoveries that I could show to prove my point. Would you like me to share them with you?

 There are great articles on the internet under “Science and the Bible, Reasons to Believe, Biblical Archeology” I have found most people really don’t want to seriously consider the facts. So don’t be surprised when they are not interested, even when they raise this as a question.

The most common objections for not going to church:

O) All the church is interested in is my money! A) I have heard that some churches are like that. Come to my church, I promise no one will ask you for money.

O) The church is full of hypocrites! A) It is true that the church is made up of imperfect people. Our purpose is to help each other become better people (spouses, parents, employees, employers, etc) than we currently are.

 O) I was forced to go to church as a child, now I want nothing to do with it! A) Church can be hard for a child to understand. Have you been to church as an adult? Would you come with me one Saturday night just to try it out?

O) I can be a good Christian without going to church! A) That’s not what the Bible teaches. It says that it is only through the church that the wisdom of God and His plan for our lives is revealed to us.

The Church is the bride of Christ The Church is the bride of Christ. For a Christian, not going to church is like saying, “Jesus, I love you, but I can’t stand your wife.” I have also found that going to church has helped me apply the things that the Bible teaches in real and practical ways.

O) I am a very busy person! A) How would you like to have access to more energy? I have found that by giving an hour to God, my batteries are recharged and I am more productive.   Going to church has helped me focus my time on the things that matter most.

The most common objections for not accepting Christ

O) I would have to give up too much! Why not give Christ a chance? Genuinely give your life to Him and see where it leads. If you are like me, you will discover you didn’t give up anything that wasn’t replaced by something better.

O) I intend to be a Christian someday, but not right now! A) You don’t know when you might die. You may not get another chance. Why not do it now?

O) I’m basically a good person, isn’t that enough? A) God’s standard for getting into heaven is to be perfect. I don’t know about you, but I blew that a long time ago. That is why we need Jesus as a perfect sacrifice for our

sins, so we can have a relationship with God sins, so we can have a relationship with God. If you like, we could settle that issue in your life right now?  

O) I’m not good enough for God to love me! A) You are right, none of us are good enough. But God loves you and me anyway. He promises that if we just ask Him, He will forgive us completely. Do you want to do that now?

Oasis, will you commit together to personally invite your friends and co-workers to church with you this year?

Then I said, "Here am I! Send me.“ Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying: “Whom shall I send, And who will go for Us?” Then I said, "Here am I! Send me.“ Isaiah 6:8 (NKJ)

Prayer Time