REACHING PEOPLE THROUGH THE SUNDAY SCHOOL (2)
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REACHING PEOPLE THROUGH THE SUNDAY SCHOOL
John 1:35-42
Bobby Earls, Alexander Baptist Association Annual Session,
October 4, 2001
JOKE: Either when in Rome do as the Romans do or Sinner, sinner down below.
I LOVE THE SUNDAY SCHOOL. I am a Sunday School Pastor. All the churches I have served have been Sunday School Churches. And because of that focus, all the churches I have served have been growing churches.
Having said that, I do not come as an expert. (An expert is someone who knows what he’s talking about when he’s away from home) But I can tell you about someone who is an expert. His name is Jesus. Look in your Bibles at John 1:35
"Again the next day, John was standing with two of his disciples and he looked upon Jesus as he walked and said, "Behold, the Lamb of God." And the two disciples heard him speak and they followed Jesus. Jesus turned and beheld them following and said to them, "What do you seek?" And they said to him, "Rabbi (when translated means teacher), where are you staying?" He said to them, "Come and see." They came therefore and saw where he was staying and they stayed with him that day, for it was about the tenth hour. One of the two who heard John speak and followed him was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother. He found first his brother, Simon, and said to him, "We have found the Messiah (when translated means Christ)." He brought him to Jesus.
For twenty years as a pastor, I have trained church members to share their faith using memorized presentations of the Gospel. I used everything from the Roman Road, to CWT, E.E., to FAITH. Almost without fail, I hear the same complaints from many of my members. “I can’t memorize.” “I can’t remember all of that.” I can’t learn all those scriptures.” I like to ask those same people, “Can you tell me your name, SS #, address, and telephone number?” When they give it to me, I always say, “I thought you said you can’t memorize?!”
Tonight I want to teach everyone of you a memorized presentation that you can use to effectively reach and win your friends, family and associates to faith in Christ. It consists of three words and we’re all going to work on it and learn it together. Are you ready? Here it is: “Come and see.” Say it with me. Come and see. Say it slow for those who are having a hard time. Come and see. I think you’ve got it! Now go and share it with somebody that needs Jesus. It works!
It is obvious to me as I read the Bible about the beginning of Jesus' ministry that he is collecting people. He is bringing people to himself and to each other. We sing "people need the Lord ..." and that is true, but people also need people. Adam was the best of God's creation but he wasn't complete. He wasn't total. He needed someone else in his life.
God gave us family because we need someone else. He gave us the church family because we need others. Sometimes people say, "If I have God, that's all I need". Not so, Adam had God. Adam had not sinned yet. He was in total fellowship with God but he was lonely. He was alone. He needed someone. Jesus was bringing people to Himself and to each other. He is still doing that. He is doing that in Christian marriages. He is doing that in churches.
Look in verse 39. He turned and saw them following Him and asked: "What are you seeking? What do you want?" We don't know what Jesus and the first disciples talked about but we do know that at the end of the time with Him Andrew was convinced. He immediately sought out his brother, Simon, the son of John. They were the Johnson boys and he said, "We have found the Saviour, the Messiah." And he brought him to Jesus.
Now his brother, Simon, he would be called Peter later, would become one of history's greatest men and leaders of the early Christians. What if Andrew hadn't brought his brother to meet Jesus?
Many of you have heard of D. L. Moody, the great preacher, founder of Chicago's Moody Bible Institution and much more. Do you know the name Edward Kimble? He is the Sunday School teacher who invited Moody to visit his class and brought him to Jesus.
We all know the name Billy Graham. How we thank God for Billy Graham. Do you know the name Mortachi Hamm? He is the one used to bring Billy Graham to Christ.
You don't have to be a Methodist to know the name John Wesley. John Wesley was saved because he was invited and taken to a prayer meeting by someone whose name is not known. You can be assured God knows it.
Garrison Keeler, the great story teller grew up in church. As a boy he was taken to every meeting. When he went to college he dropped out. He had a lot of good reasons, he thought, for not going to church. Every time someone would ask, "Do you go to church?" he would say, "No." And they would say, "Well, why don't you go to church?" And he would tell them why and they would leave him alone . One day someone said, "Do you go to church?" "No," he said. "Why?" And he told them. And then the person asked, "Would you go to church with me?" And he said, "Yes, I will." And Garrison Keeler has been in church ever since.
I’ll never forget the day, May the 14th, 1973 when a young lady in my high school invited me to come and see. She simply gave me an invitation to join her at the local Crusade that was going on that evening. The tent was up on the football practice field. Everyone could see it. So that night I went, and that night I got saved. Oh the greatest decision of my life was that night twenty-eight years ago. And all because a young girl, a high school student invited me to come and see.
Eighty percent of the people who come to church come because they were invited, not because of buildings or sermons or songs or ice cream socials. They come because they were invited by someone.
Would you become an Andrew or a Karen? Could you be a teller and a bringer? When you come to church, bring someone with you. Don’t just wait for High Attendance Day or Revival week. Bring someone to Jesus every Sunday. You may not be able to witness one-on-one just yet but you can invite someone to come with you or meet you there. You can make sure no one who visits is ever ignored or feels left out. You can get simply invite them to “come and see.”
II. PRINCIPLES FOR CHURCH GROWTH
A. Make a Commitment to Grow
Not every member of the church has a commitment to grow or to reach people for Christ. It costs to grow. It cost time, work, money and a willingness to change and sacrifice for growth.
Every church that reaches people will experience growing pains. Yet a growing church pleases and honors God. Jimmy Draper, (President of the SS Board) once said, “Any church that is not winning souls is an insult to God.”
Some people have a problem with numbers. God doesn’t have a problem with numbers. It’s amazing how many references are made in the scriptures numerically to the growth of the church, and the number of people who were coming to Christ. There’s even a book in the Bible called “Numbers.”
B. Recognize that the Sunday School Organization is the Greatest People-Reaching Organization on earth!
If you have a Sunday School then you already have the one church organization necessary to grow a church. The SS is the working arm of the church. If you reach people through the SS, then you can move them into every other church organization.
There are many ways of reaching people, and all are good, but vigorous outreach through the Sunday School is best:
1.3 % of those saved through Crusade or Revival Evangelism will be baptized.
18 to 23 % of those who are personally evangelized will be baptized.
Only 1 of 268 persons who occasionally come to worship will be saved!
1 of every 3 persons who are enrolled and consistently attend SS will be saved and baptized.
Will it work? Does Evangelism through the Sunday School still work?
1990 – present as pastor at FBI,
Most years we have led our Association in baptisms. Over 900 baptisms in 10 years,
Sunday School Enrollment from 300 to over a 1000
SS Attendance from 140 to 440
Sunday School classes from 16 to over 40
Budget from 165,000 to 500,000
C. OTHER IMPORTANT PRINCIPLES
1. The Pastor Must Lead. (Vision, example, enthusiasm)
2. You must be willing to change and lead others to change. (The reason most churches are not growing is because they are not willing to change. Seven last words of the church. “We never did it this way before.” )
3. Be persistent in the face of misunderstanding, opposition, lack of faith, negativism, etc. (Remember, not every church member wants to grow).
4. Set goals. (Both numerically and spiritually.)
5. Keep Evangelism primary.
III. PRACTICAL STEPS FOR IMPLEMENTING EVANGELISM THROUGH THE SUNDAY SCHOOL
A. Assign every prospect to an appropriate Sunday School Class
B. Assign a contact/visit to members of the Sunday School Class
C. Teacher/Outreach leader visits prospects during Church Visitation
D. Share a report of contacts and visits to prospects
E. Train Sunday School Teachers/Workers in Evangelism annually
F. Stress witnessing to the lost in Sunday School.
G. Enroll lost people in Sunday School Classes
H. Teach Evangelistic lessons at least quarterly (give invitation)
I. Pray during class time for the lost and for prospects