See Something, Say Something

0:00 So we were at a pool party many years ago. Family was there. Friends were there. Everyone's hanging out. Food was over on a table kind of under this little overhang. Kids were swimming. There was a water slide. Lots of things were happening. And there was a group of us just kind of standing at the edge of the pool. Most of the swimming was kind of ending for the day, but we were all just kind of standing around, talking, hanging out. when all of a sudden my friend Janae, from across the whole courtyard, she had been kind of near the food table. She just began just screaming and yelling. At first we thought like she was telling some crazy story or just being silly. But all of a sudden we saw her like a streak shooting across the area and then fully dressed, head to toe, shoes on, jeans on. She just jumps into the water.

0:52 and all of us are like, okay, you know, just like what is exactly going on here? Until she came up from the water with a little boy in her arms. My nephew, Lion, five or six at the time, just pulls him to the top and, and, and praise God. He's, he's breathing, coughing, sputtering, crying. None of us standing right there at the edge of the pool had noticed him jump in. And we realized what had happened. All day long, he had been swimming, but he had floaties on, you know, like little water wings. And so when they took them off for him to eat, in his mind, he was water safe, jumping into the water all day. Now, all of a sudden, he didn't even realize in his mind they weren't on. And so while we stood there, he just did what he had been doing all day, just jumped into the water and then silently, breathlessly, terrifyingly quietly right next to, I mean, we were standing right there, but not one of us noticed him go into the water. But thank God from across the pool, Janae saw him jump in.

2:05 And you know what she didn't think? Well, he's not my child. His parents are right there. They probably got this under control. Wouldn't want to violate, you know, however they parent, right? No, she saw something and said something and praise God, she leapt into action and lying safe and alive and well today and an amazing little guy. Title of this message is See Something, Say Something. I'll never forget the first time I saw that Nike commercial that said, yesterday, you said tomorrow. Yesterday, you said tomorrow. And really, it's so easy to put off till tomorrow, to have good intentions, but to never get around to doing these things that God has called us to do. And it is always a mistake to put off till tomorrow what God has called you to do today. We said at the beginning of the series, if you're just with us now, time is short.

3:02 Life is precious. God has a plan, and you have a purpose. And today, what I want to talk to you about is evangelism. The who, what, when, where, how, why of evangelism, of sharing your faith. Because here's the big idea today. When you know Jesus, you need to play a part and do what you can to help other people come to know Jesus. And those two ideas, they blend so beautifully together when in Mark's gospel, Jesus speaks for the first time. Now, of course, these are four different accounts or eyewitnesses of the same events. And this isn't Jesus's first words, but in Mark's gospel, they are. And here's what we find him saying. This is Mark chapter one, just after John the Baptist is put into prison. It says, Jesus, who had been going around preaching the gospel and the kingdom of God said this, the time is fulfilled and the kingdom of God is at hand.

4:05 Repent and believe in the gospel. It's time, he's saying. It's been long enough. Yesterday, right, you said, here's the big idea. It's about time, believe in the gospel. It's about time, believe in the gospel. Where are we going? It's about time for us to help other people believe in the gospel. Esther says, Esther 4.14, this is Mordecai speaking, words to Esther. If you remain completely silent, if you don't open up your mouth, honey, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place. But you and your father's house will perish. And then here's the big thought. I want you to hear this from God to you. Who knows whether you have come into the kingdom for such a time as this.

5:04 It's about time for you to share your faith, to share your faith, to take the faith that has changed your life, that changed your soul, and to do what you can to share it with other people around you. Now, that's not like a big revolution. Some of you may have unclicked your pen. OK, got it. Yeah, I know I need to do that. Yeah, totally. like, oh, wow, I'm supposed to tell people about Jesus. Let me write that down here. Because you know that, right? You know it like you know you need a floss. You know it like you know you need to stick to your budget. You know you need to take your vitamins. And yet, who likes burping up fish oil, right? We all know we need the omega-3s.

5:48 But evangelism, at best, can feel like a daunting chore and one that we oftentimes feel ill-equipped for. And so what do we kind of think in our minds? Like I need to just sort of leave it to the pros, right? Praise God, he's given some the gift of evangelism, right? Some specifically are called to the office of evangelists. That's what they get up every day and do. And yes, the Bible does say that there are some who are called to be evangelists. But listen to me. it is the call of every Christian to evangelize. You might not specifically have that gift where it comes naturally to you, where it's easy to you, where it's like for you, it doesn't even feel like work to do it. But whether you have that gift or have been called to that for your life effort, your primary focus, every single one of us, every Christian, if you have the Holy Spirit, are called to share your faith.

6:46 So that's where we're going today, okay? This message is as big as we get, right? You have Jesus. You're meant to tell people about Jesus. But I want to attack the problem from a different angle a little bit. You know, because normally what happens next is, well, here's the pointers. And here's how to do it. And here's what to do if they say this. And here's how to say this. And sort of the script. And I've even been in, you know, situations where, like, here's exactly what you can say that can be like, got him. You know what I mean? like you create the trap and they walk into it. And I'm going to get practical in a little bit, but that's not my heart here. I really don't have anything better to say than where I'm going to end, and that is follow the Holy Spirit's leading and guiding. But a long time ago, I heard this quote from Matt Redman. Now, Matt Redman is a prolific worship leader. He wrote that song, Coming Back to the Heart of Worship, and so many other incredible songs.

7:44 And Matt Redman said something about worship that changed my life. I'll never forget it. He said, worship doesn't start with singing. And a lot of us, when we think about worship or we're getting better at worship, we focus on the singing. But he said, that's not where worship starts. He said, worship doesn't start with singing. It starts with seeing. When you see Jesus, when you see him, when your eyes are open to behold him, when you have, and the Bible says, This is a spiritual gift that God gives it to you, and you have to choose to lean into it. But when you have eyes to see, when you see Jesus, not as the Sunday school drawing, right? But when you see him, worship just sort of takes care of itself. The singing comes naturally when you see him. It's the byproduct.

8:38 It's the response, right? So for me, my goal isn't like, okay, guys, let's sing louder. Let's do some scales. Maybe if we warm up our voices a little bit here. If I can open up scripture and by the spirit of God, help you to see him, the singing will take care. I promise you, it will take care of itself. And I think it's the same for sharing the gospel. I think evangelism strategies and techniques are fine. There's plenty to learn from that. perhaps. But I think what we need is a passion for Jesus that leads to an overflow in our daily conversation. Let me show that to you at arguably the most important moment of history, the climax of all history, the day that Jesus rose from the dead. This is just one chapter to the left from Mark 1. Just jump over to Matthew chapter 28. And here's what it says. It says, now after the Sabbath, as the first day of the week began to dawn.

9:46 That's a Sunday, by the way. And that's why we have gathered here today together. We've come together on Sunday to commemorate the resurrection of Jesus from the dead, right? So here on the first day of the week, as the sun began to dawn, the day began to dawn, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to see the tomb. and behold, there was a great earthquake for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone from the door and sat on it. Can you see this in your mind's eye? Can you picture an angel descending from heaven, rolling away a stone and then just sitting on it? Like not a care in the world. When you sit down, it's like, well, Here we go.

10:38 He just sits down, plumps down on this rock. His countenance was like lightning. What does that taste like, Ratatouille? Lightning-y? What did that angel look like? Can you think of a more intense example? The only thing that comes to mind when I describe his facial expression was lightning-y. his clothing as white as snow. What was the guards' response? Oh, they shook for fear of him and fell down like they were dead. Hardened men of war, Roman elite soldiers, became like dead men.

11:23 But the angel answered and said to the women, don't be afraid, don't be scared, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. he's not here he is risen Jesus is alive Notice, as he said, come, see the place where the Lord lay and go quickly, look at this, and tell his disciples. Now that you've seen, go and tell. And indeed, he is going before you into Galilee. There you will see him. Behold, I have told you. So they went out quickly from the tomb with fear, but also great joy. And did they walk? Did they saunter? They ran to bring his disciples' word. What word?

12:17 Jesus is alive. And as they went to tell the disciples, behold, Jesus met them. Someone say awesome. Saying rejoice. It's over. I won. It's accomplished. It's finished. So they came and they held him by the feet and they worshiped him. He didn't have to tell them to worship him. They saw him. The singing took care of itself. The worship took care of itself. It was their natural response to exalt him, to lift him high. Their eyes were opened. And what came out of their mouth was praise.

12:54 Then Jesus said to them, don't be afraid. Go and tell my brethren to go to Galilee. And there they will see me. Like my friend Janae, who saw something and said something and did something, These women encountered God and worship was the result and evangelism was the overflow. It was the byproduct. When you've seen what they've saw, you can't keep it to yourself. You gotta tell, you gotta go, you gotta, what else is there to talk about? We're gonna just chat about the weather? Are you kidding me with what they've seen? they couldn't not tell.

13:41 And once God ignites a fire inside of you, that will be the end as well. And in case you haven't like had your heart sufficiently like blown away by Jesus in just a moment, just consider, like I love that Mark is like enamored by the angel because he comes down from heaven and it's epic. And he sits on this enormous stone that it took a handful of men to even budge. And he's just sitting there on it, just chilling, looking like lightning, clothes like snow. And who is he? This isn't Jesus. It's just his doorman. how epic and glorious do you gotta be to have a doorman like this? And don't forget, Jesus said there were 12 legions of angels just like this cat who were waiting, chomping at the bit to save Jesus from the cross had he only said the word.

14:49 Jesus in his glorious splendor a sash made of gold about him hair bright like wool eyes like a flame of fire feet like burnished brass a name written on his thigh that no one knows but himself a two-edged sword coming out of his mouth this is Jesus risen, glorious, faithful our friend, our savior who could with a word of his mouth vanquish his enemies but he chose to allow himself to be spread out on the cross and to die a sacrificial lamb for our sins. What I'm saying to you today, if your heart doesn't burn to tell other people in your world and about Jesus, look full in his wonderful face. Let your heart grow warm and hot with the power of who he is, with the warmth of his breath, with the help of his countenance.

15:47 I'm trying to say that the one who exploded out of the grave with an earthquake after saving your life has invited you to share his story. And let's let seeing Jesus lead to us saying something about Jesus, moving from obligation to overflow. So what are we trying to see? Well, of course, we need to see God. We need to learn to see ourselves. And then we need to learn how to see correctly other people. These are three things that we need to see so we can say something properly. How does Scripture teach us to look at God, to look at ourselves, and to look at other people? And of course, when we look at God, we see our Redeemer, our Savior, our Lord. And if all of those things are true, then He's our owner.

16:44 He's our master. He's our commander. He's not our life coach. He's not your personal assistant. He's not your wellness guru. He's not your therapist. He's your king. And your king has stationed you here on this earth in exile, apart from your homeland, to be his ambassador, to represent his royal rule as an outpost until he shows up, until such a time as he comes. We have to keep the flag of allegiance to him flying high in our hearts. So that's who we're talking about when we talk about God. Who are we talking about when we talk about ourselves? Ourselves, well, in his words, fishers of men. We are to fish for men. We are to see ourselves as being a part of the greatest story that's ever been told. Other people coming into the kingdom. Proverbs 11, verse 30 says, the fruit of the righteous is a tree of life and he who wins souls is wise.

17:43 What's the opposite of wisdom? Foolishness. It is foolish and selfish for you to have the gospel and not share. To have the good news, but to not tell it. To live in an era where the kingdom is expanding and the door to heaven is wide open. Anybody can come to Jesus and be saved. Literally, no one has done anything so bad they can't be saved. And no one is so good they don't need to be saved. And we have been given the message. We've been given the antidote for sin's power that can save, that can heal, that can forgive. And we are to see ourselves as soul winners. And then, listen, we're to look at other people as created in God's image, as recipients in his mind of God's love, that they have eternal souls that are going to live forever. Every person you encounter is immortal.

18:40 Everyone lives forever. The only question is where? And when Christ was hanging on the cross, he paid for the sins of the whole world. And so waiting at will call is a ticket to heaven. Waiting at will call is a ticket to eternal life. I was in LA once preaching and a friend of mine reached out who worked for a sporting company and said, hey, my company's got tickets to these games. I saw that you're in LA. Would you want to go? And I looked out my window and the literal arena for the hotel was right at the top. Well, it's right there. I can't not. It's right there. He said, okay, I got a ticket for you at Will Call. All you have to do is walk up, say your name, say there's something left for you. And what he did for me that day is our job for Jesus to literally walk up to people and be like, hey, just so you know, your name, it was written on the palms of his hand with nail marks on the cross. There's a ticket waiting for you at Will Call. That's our entire job. That's our entire strategy. Hey, FYI, Jesus paid it all. Not about performance or striving or trying to do enough to be right with God. No, no, listen. He did it all. If you go and say, I want to receive what Jesus left for me, you too can be saved. You and your entire household. So this is how we're going to look at people. We're also going to look at people knowing what's true about them is true of every human being, according to the Bible, three things you need to know about every person you meet.

19:59 No matter how much of a front they put on, no matter how angry they are, no matter how successful they seem, everybody who's not in Christ, the Bible says, is guilty, empty, and scared to die. All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, okay? So we don't need to be intimidated by people. You know, we don't have to take what they're saying at face value. We can know what's true of them is true of everybody. Outside of Christ, people are empty and guilty before him. There's a hole inside the heart. The Bible says God has subjected us to infirmity, not for any reason other than he wants that emptiness inside of us to cause us to lean into him. If he would allow us to be fully satisfied by sin, if someone could finally get enough money and no longer be, you know, empty, then they wouldn't look for God anymore. But everybody's just thinking, oh, no, it must be over here. It must be over there. You get enough money, well, there must be being famous.

20:52 You get enough fame, it must be, right, something, keeping the fame, keeping the money, right? There's always this nagging sense of emptiness. Have you ever left a store not realizing there was still one of those little magnetic tags on the purchase you made? So you walk out, and it's like, meh, meh, meh, and the whole store looks at you like, I didn't do it. I didn't do it. You go back in. That tag, the beeping, the buzzing, It was a mechanism designed to keep something from wandering away from where it was meant to be and meant to stay, right? God has put that inside of the human heart. So that sense of emptiness, that sense of guilt, everybody has this in common. They lie in bed at night wondering, what's going to happen to me when I die? What's the meaning of my life? How do I find forgiveness for the wrong things that I've done? How do I fill this hole inside of me? This God-shaped vacuum, it's been called.

21:47 So we can have that in our minds that we're aware of as we talk to people. In your life, people that you cross paths with, the people that you work with, the people that you live with, the Bible says, Romans 10, how can people call for help if they don't know who to trust? How can they possibly know who to trust if they haven't heard of the one who can be trusted? How can they hear if nobody tells them? So you who have seen something need to say something, need to tell someone, need to speak up, like Mordecai told Esther. And if you don't do it, God will raise someone else up to do it. But who knows? If you were not brought into the kingdom, for such a time as this.

22:47 So let me give you some practical tips and thoughts to guide you, hopefully, in your efforts to tell people what you've seen in God's good face. Number one, you need to ask the Lord to open your eyes. Ask the Lord to open your eyes so that you'll see the opportunities as they present themselves. That you'll not just be so oblivious oblivious and so glued to your phone and so in your little world that you don't notice the people around you. What's going on? Ask God. Say, God, open up my eyes. God, I really think sharing your faith starts with wanting to share your faith and asking God for opportunities to share your faith. God, would you open my eyes to see the windows, the natural little windows that open and then they close. They open and they close. Listen, the opportunity of a lifetime is only good for the lifetime of the opportunity. God, show me when the window opens. God, show me when the window opens. God, show me when the, so I can, I can just play my part because I know you and I want my life to be given to helping other people to know you. Number two, look for those cues that people will give you to tell you it might be time to have a conversation that could lead to the cross, that could lead to faith, that could lead to Jesus, that could lead to an invitation to come to church.

24:06 Look for those cues. I think about how simple it is when Philip in the book of Acts sees this guy in a chariot parked on the side of the road and he's reading the Bible. This chariot with this diplomat, this person from Ethiopia, it's just parked on the side of the road. And this guy's just like with an expression on his face, he's like, what am I reading? And God puts it in Philip's heart to walk over and be like, hey man, what you reading? And he's like, I'm the Bible. And he says, do you understand what you're reading? Right? Just this, he saw that the man was saying a cue that could prompt him to bring the discussion to Jesus, allowed him to point himself. Now that's pretty teed up, right? But sometimes God will do that. One time I was on an airplane. first time I ever got to lead someone to saving faith in Jesus Christ, just out in public, just not in church, just like a random moment.

25:04 I was just having my quiet time on the airplane, just reading my Bible. And halfway through the flight, a little tap on my elbow and a guy who's wearing a suit next to me, like presumably going to a business meeting, I was just a teenager at the time. He said to me, he said, what you reading? I was like, the Bible, right? It's like the Ethiopian eunuch in reverse, right? He asked me, what are you reading? And here's, you're not gonna believe it. You know what I was reading? John 3. Because I was going through the gospel of John. And every day I was reading a chapter, and today was John 3, which John 3 has like John 3.16, and that's where John 3.16 lives. Like it's home. It's home, it's the third chapter of John. What are you reading? The Bible. He goes, what part of the Bible? I was like, and you know what I did? I was like, well, read it for yourself. I handed my Bible to this man who was like, thank you. And he just began reading John 3.

25:58 And after about 15 minutes, I felt prompted. I couldn't do better than Philip. So I'm like, do you understand what you're reading? You know, it's like. And he literally was like asking me questions about the serpent on a pole and Nicodemus and this guy who held. And so we spent the next like few minutes before landing talking about Christ. And then it hit me. I was like, I thought, man, I should ask him, like, would you want to give your life to Jesus? And so I did. I said, hey, I don't want to, like, you're reading about Jesus. He saved my life. Would you want to give your life to Jesus? And he said, I really would. And so if I'm lying, I'm dying. We're holding hands as the plane bumps down. In Jesus' name, amen. And then he went his way. I've never saw him again. This guy just, but it was, God will, and I just think how easily I could have missed the cue. His simple question, hey, what are you reading?

26:52 Like he gave me a cue that allowed me to naturally walk into a conversation that led to this man's life being changed forever. look for cues people say things to you in conversation every day i i'm not ready i don't feel ready for what's coming or i'm new here right or uh things are not going well what are they giving you a cue right like like in a like in a broadway play what's my cue they say this you're gonna say this right when you hear someone say something like that hey they just gave you a cue to be like hey uh well if you're new here i'd love to have you come to church and you know see i'm saying? Things aren't going well. Oh my gosh, I went through a really hard time. And here's what God, you see what I'm saying? I don't feel ready. Ooh, a lot of us feel that way. I can think about a time in my life when they've given you a cue, but you have to be quick to listen and slow to speak. People are giving little hints that they're willing to open up a conversation without you shoving it on them in a natural, life-giving way. So you got to look for those cues. I was this last week, Lennox and I were in a sporting goods store and we, he wanted a pair of pool slides because he had ripped the strap off of his pool slides. And so we went in and while we were checking out, I looked down and the cash register had on her forearm, the tattoo of a little boy, which almost always means a child has passed away.

28:22 And so I said, hey, tell me about your tattoo. That's a beautiful little boy. Eyes pull up with tears. She said to me, it's my nephew. And he drowned. I said, oh, I'm so sorry. Tell me his name. And we began to talk and there was no big line backing up. So I thought she gave me a cue. We're gonna talk about this. So I got to talk about when my five-year-old daughter died and got to talk about faith and Jesus bringing me through it. I asked how her sister and brother-in-law's marriage is doing. She said the marriage didn't make it because my sister-in-law was drunk when it happened and she wasn't alert to see the child had fallen into the pool. And he's very mad at her and bitter. And I just was able to talk. And now I saw people about to come line. So this is my moment. I wasn't able to close the deal here. Stop, I must do the Lord's work. You cannot buy that basketball.

29:16 I just said, I know this. I know I couldn't have made it through what we went through without Jesus. And I know Jesus loves you. He loves your sister-in-law. He loves your brother. He loves that little boy on your arm. And so I was able to go my way. And I was able to just for a moment, hopefully, be an ambassador for God's kingdom and point here. It was so simple. It was so quick. It was just ready for the moment. But you got to embrace the awkward. That's number three, because there's going to be some awkward. There's going to be some times when people are not ready for that. People feel insulted by that. People can be angry about that. And that's okay. The awkward is part of it, all right? I just want to relieve you from the thinking that it's all going to go just like that. There are going to be some weird moments. I remember one time, some of my most, I mean, as I think back to times when I've been used in evangelism around the world in normal everyday moments, I think about haircuts because where can they go?

30:15 I think about flights because same thing, captive audience, right? And so I one time was in getting a haircut and the guy was talking to me and he, what are you doing today? I said, well, I'm going to go see Passion of the Christ today. This Mel Gibson movie, have you heard about it? And it's getting all this controversy because it's R-rated and it needs to be, I don't know how you make the cross of Jesus Christ not R-rated. So well done, Mel. And so I said, I'm going to see this movie. I said, would you want to go? He goes, oh, you wouldn't want me to go. I'm gay. I said, I'd love for you to go. And my name's Levi. Nice to meet you, gay. And I did say that, but I was just kidding. He said, can I bring my boyfriend? I said, I'll buy both of you tickets, bro. And so I got both of them tickets, and we went to the See the Passion of the Christ, and they met before, and we hugged in the movie parking, in the atrium of the movie, and we went in, and we sat down, and watched the whole thing. And I'm telling you something, when it ended, I turned to him and said, what'd you think?

31:11 And if I'm telling you, if I have ever seen a wall go up in front of someone's face, both of them, they said, thank you for the invitation and they got up and left. And I'm telling you, the next time I got a haircut, that guy wouldn't answer a yes or no question. And it became so awkward. What is this? Spiritual warfare. He watched Christ. Because you watch God drawing. From his own admission, he told me he wasn't a believer. And it was awkward. and it didn't go in what I would say. This wasn't a praying to receive Christ as the plane is landing. And I have as many of the stories that it went terribly and as many stories as it went volatile and awkward as I do in stories where it went well. So when you talk about being awkward and being willing to embrace the ark, what am I saying? I'm saying, you might think, Levi, what if I try to tell them about Jesus and they don't want to hear?

32:06 I would say wrong question. Better question is, what if you don't and they did? What if you don't? And deep down, they were begging, please, God, show yourself to me. Do you know what an incredible feeling it is when you just say, I'm just gonna just put it out there. I'm just gonna take a risk. I'm just gonna try. And you have someone tell you, I woke up this morning asking God for a sign. And now you're here saying this to me because I've watched that happen too. and everything in between. So embrace the awkward. Paul preached one of the greatest sermons ever of his life at Mars Hill. And you know what it says? Many mocked, a few believed. Many mocked, most dismissed, a few believed. And you know what I say?

32:59 Worth it for the one. Can we be mocked and ridiculed? Can we be rejected? Can we put ourselves out there and try? Embrace the awkward. Number four, be bold. Be bold. We need boldness. We're not be timid. God didn't give you a spirit of fear, but that takes prayer. Paul said, pray for me. This is Ephesians chapter six. Pray for me. Pray that when I open up my mouth, the right words will be given to me. Then I can be bold as I tell the mystery of the good news. May God come upon his church and give us a boldness to testify to the goodness of God to our generation and to not miss moments. And then I would say, do what you can. You can't always or ever, can we say that? You can't ever do everything, okay?

33:57 But sometimes you can do more than others. Sometimes you're gonna have a chance and the conversation's gonna flow and you'll have the opportunity to maybe share a lot. Sometimes you'll just get to share a little, but you don't have to feel like every single moment needs to move the entire thing down the field. Why? Because God is the one who's the harvester. So we're all agents in his garden. And I mean, sometimes we're gonna plant a seed. I mean, sometimes we're gonna water it. Sometimes we're gonna be some of the sunshine upon it. Sometimes we're gonna be some of the tilling that happens to it. If you only have 30 seconds, it would be crazy to try and, you know, ram the whole book of Leviticus down. You know what I'm saying? But then you can just look someone in the eyes. You can see them. You can show kindness to them. The last person I got to just share Christ's love with, I knew there was just a tiny little moment.

34:52 So I just said, hey, where are you from? And she said, I'm from Argentina. And I said, oh my goodness, I've never been to Argentina. I would love to go someday. She said, oh, it's beautiful, but I'm glad to be here. I came here, emigrated to become a pilot, and now I'm doing this. And I said, hey, I just, watching you work, it's really evident you care and you're putting yourself into it. I just wanna tell you something. I'm a Christian, I'm a Jesus person and I just can't help but feel how much God adores you. And I just want you to know God in heaven adores you. And so thank you for serving today. It was literally 30 seconds. And again, you just saw like glistening in her eyes. Who wouldn't wanna be told they're adored by their heavenly father? And I don't know if she's a believer. I don't know if she down the road is going to have someone who's going to share the conversation more or she's going to go through something really hard at some point that's going to cause her to be receptive. And God causes her to remember and string together a few of these moments over time. But I praise God that she went to sleep that night and her heavenly father sent a son to just remind her of his love for her.

35:56 We can be a part. We can do what we can. Maybe it's just an invitation to church when you're not the one preaching. or you don't know what's going to happen down the road. I was one time doing an event in Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, and I realized I didn't bring the right clothes when I found out what everybody else was going to be wearing on platform. And so I rushed to get to a store in time to get there. And the guy said, what do you need this outfit for? And I said, oh, I'm hosting an event at Dodger Stadium. And he's like, that's crazy. It's a baseball stadium. What kind of an event are you hosting there? I said, it's kind of like a church service. There's going to be music. There's going to be a message. You probably wouldn't want to come, you know, being that you, you know. And he's like, well, I'd like to come. I said, oh my gosh, I'll get you in if you want to come. And oh my gosh, at the end of the night, when the pastor was preaching and giving an invitation and people were responding, I saw a guy just beaming and going like this to me. And it was a guy from the clothing store. And he's holding his New Believers Bible. He's like, I just got saved.

36:47 I'm like, that's amazing. I think it wasn't a mistake that I forgot that jacket. I should forget my clothes on trips more often so I can do the Lord's shopping. Be ready. Be ready, number six. You just got to be ready. You got to live your life on your toes. You got to be aware of God's working behind the scenes at all times. So we can, like, not look at it like we're checking boxes, reading scripts, right? I used to be a telemarketer. I was the person who called your house at bedtime, at dinner time. And they gave us scripts. Hello, my name is Levi Lusko. I'm calling from MCI WorldCom. Can I speak to the person who pays the telephone bill? And I would try and sell long distance plans to people for their home lines. And you would find out sometimes there's seven lines in a house and you'd be like jackpot, right? And they call Cuba sometimes jackpot, right? Do you ever make international phone calls, right? We had these scripts. If they say this, I'm going to say this. That's not what we're talking about here.

37:52 people are not projects this this is not this is not paint by numbers here these are people in process on a journey loved by God and may we be a part of them having their eyes open to who he is but let's be ready what do I mean be ready I mean the scripture does talk about being prepared to give an answer when you're asked about the faith that's in you. So can you articulate who Jesus is? Can you articulate the gospel message? This would be worth you giving some time to. And journaling, how would you write out the gospel? If someone asked you, why do you believe? Why do you go to church? Why would you trust in Jesus? Why do you care about the Bible? For you to have thought through. And this is where memorizing Bible verses helps. So you're not fumbling and on your heels in the moment that you have the ability to point to some verses and to talk about the gospel. And if someone, if you were put in the situation to lead someone in faith in Christ Jesus. But where does it begin? It starts with your testimony, your testimony, your story of how you got saved, what you were like before Christ, how you met Christ, and what God has been doing in your life today. Again, not so you can rattle this off like you're a robot, but so that you can point to what Jesus has done that saved you.

39:16 And you're thinking, Levi, what if I try and they ask questions I don't have the answer to? I'm going to tell you. This is crazy. Write this down. Tell them you don't know. But you're interested enough to look into it. And if you, or if they're willing, you'd love to look into it and continue the dialogue to have the conversation. There's this guy that got saved in John chapter 9. It's amazing. And immediately people start asking questions that he doesn't have the answer to. And you know what he says? He goes, I don't know. I was headed to hell 10 minutes ago. I've only not been going to hell for a little while. So I don't know yet. But here's what I do know. I used to be blind. This is John chapter nine. But now I see. So I don't know that yet. I'll ask him when I have the chance. I'll look into it. But don't ever let what you don't know keep you from what you do know. And what you do know, his grace is amazing.

40:13 and free. What you do know is Jesus paid it all. What you do know is he rose from the dead. What you do know is he offers eternal life. What you do know is whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. What you do know is Jesus stands at the door of your heart willing to come in. All you have to do is respond to his knocking. And then this is really important. You need to back it up. Touch three people. Tell them, back that thing up. Don't do that. Don't do it. Don't do it. Don't do it. Don't even do it. Some of you don't even know to be offended, but you would be if you knew. Philippians chapter 1, verse 27. Look at this. Let your conduct, look at that. What does it say? Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Let your conduct be worthy of the gospel of Christ. Another place Paul puts it this way.

41:08 adorn the doctrine with your beautiful living. There, for some of us, if in truth, the way we live, the way we bump into the world, it would almost be better for you to not say anything because your life is speaking so loudly. You know, David was told, this is King David, this is a really tough sentence to hear. He was told, the way that you've lived, is giving people reason to blaspheme God. Because if they look at your life, the advertising that you're doing with your body defies everything that would be coming out of your mouth. So it's important. None of us are gonna do it perfectly. And again, we're not after perfection. We're after progress and authenticity and reality. We don't wanna end up like whitewashed tombs.

42:04 We look all squeaky clean and yet where there's just brokenness. and to, right? This is about loving people and living, following Christ authentically and then pointing people to him. But our lives need to back up the story. Number eight, I told you we were gonna end here, right? Rely on the Holy Spirit of God. This is so relieving to know in evangelism, it's not about us mustering up the, you know, right? No, no, no. we can rely on the Holy Spirit because he said, hey, don't worry about it. This daunting task, global evangelism, you're gonna receive power when my spirit comes upon you to be my witnesses in Jerusalem and Judea and Samaria and the ends of the earth. I love the thought that we are all filled with that same spirit.

42:55 So if I'm following him and you're following him and maybe we're variously in different people's lives, we will intersect with people's lives in different chapters, different areas, different fractals we'll reach. and so we can trust God as long as I'm ready and willing and on my toes to take whatever opportunity I can to sow a seed, to water that seed, to be some sunlight on it, or perhaps to be the lucky one who just bumps into the tree and all of a sudden the fruit starts falling down and all of a sudden you feel like, wow, this was a cooperative thing with lots of different people involved, but to God be all the glory, then we're trusting in him. So here's what the Spirit can do for you. This is Colossians 4, verse 5. Walk in wisdom. And this is the spirit of wisdom, the Holy Spirit is, toward those who are outside, who are outside of salvation, outside of the ark, outside of heaven, right? Outside of the kingdom.

43:48 But walk in wisdom towards them, redeeming the time, making the most of every time, right? It's about, what is it about? Time. It's not unlimited time. There's a countdown timer over everybody's life. Redeeming time, buying moments, seizing opportunity. The Bible talks about plucking coals from the fire. That's savage language, right? But not wanting our flesh to get burned doing so, right? This says, verse six, let your speech always be with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer each one. God, what would you have me to say? How would you have me to say it? What can I say that would at least just maybe take advantage of a cue they've given me that would open up a door that could point to you or at least let them feel love and feel seen. If someone can just leave a moment with you and they felt seen, they felt seen, they felt noticed, they felt loved, that will cut through a large percentage of the interactions people are having in the world, period, first of all.

44:49 But then to be willing to speak up as God will lead you. And then we can, of course, let's close off this message, leave the results to God. It's in his hands. He's working. This is great to know. God is the only one who can save people. Not me, not you, only God. In fact, John 6, 44, Jesus tells us, no one can even come to me unless the Father draws him. So as the Holy Spirit of God is drawing people, they have to choose to respond. And we don't know, that's why you can't say, every time if I do this, it's all gonna go exactly this way. No, no, we don't know that the Father's drawing them in that moment, right? So we're trusting it's happening or going to happen and we're gonna play a part of it as much as we can, but we're gonna leave the results to God.

45:44 Pastors, and you'll hear this as you listen to various teachings on this subject, love to make much of this statistic that's kind of the shocking clickbait, right? 95% of Christians have never led someone to faith in Christ, right? And you get to tell a statistic like that that's intense. That's like a club to beat people over the head with, like 95% of you. In a minute, we're all going to raise our hands. The last person we led to faith, come on. But I think the problem with a statistic like that is what if you take every opportunity God ever gives you and you never get to lead someone to faith in Christ? You can't control that. What if you were a background actor? What if you were a little character, a little part, just moving the conversation forward? What if you never get to be the one harvesting a seed, but you sowed seeds your entire life, right? So I relieve you of the responsibility to feel like, oh my gosh, I'm a failure if I've never led someone to faith in Christ.

46:45 But you know what does trouble me? In 2025, Barna did a study and they asked Christians this question. Do you feel it's important for you to share your faith? Do you think it's important for you to share your faith? And only three out of 10 said, I strongly agree. 31% of American Christians believe they have a personal responsibility to share your faith. And that's a problem. Because to end where we began, when those women finally got to the disciples and they were able to have a little team meeting, right? Hey, Jesus is here. Amazing. We saw him. We had to tell you about him. Now everyone's back together. You know, Jesus spoke over them before he ascended to heaven. He said this, and these are Jesus's last words. We started with his first words in Mark's gospel anyhow.

47:40 Let's talk about his last words. This is Matthew 28, 18. Jesus came and spoke to them saying, all authority has been given to me. authority in heaven, authority on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you. And lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age. Amen. According to Jesus, 10 out of 10 of his followers are meant to play a part actively in the Great Commission until he returns to this world. When I was a young boy, I used to have a recurring nightmare. And in my dream, I saw two lines, a line heading to heaven and a line heading to hell.

48:40 and I was in the line heading to heaven because I praise God, gave my life to Jesus, saw him, chose to follow him, turned from my sins, turned to him in faith, was given what I could never earn, eternal life. And in that line, you were kind of shuffling forward to enter into glory. And the two lines, the way they went opposite directions, they passed each other. And in my dream, I kept seeing people heading to hell that I went to school with or worked alongside or sat at a table in my job as a busboy. And there were moment after moment after moment where people would look me in the eyes and see I was headed into heaven. And they would say this to me, if you knew, why didn't you say something? Why did they just kept saying it to me?

49:32 If you knew, why didn't you say something? If we've seen him. let's speak up for him. Daniel 12, those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the firmament and those who turn many to righteousness like the stars forever and ever. Who's one person this week in your life you can talk about Jesus to? Invite to church, tell your story to? And will you commit before God to be alert and awake and ready, like my friend Janae, when needed to see something and to say something? Father, we thank you. We thank you that even in this moment, you're stirring our hearts towards you, God.

50:30 Hopefully fanning into flame our desire, our responsibility to be a part of and to not miss out on what you're doing in the world today. And we thank you for your spirit present in this moment. eager and willing to baptize us with fire, to give us the power to be your representatives.

51:02 If you would say, I'm here and I want that. I want that. I want like Isaiah who saw the Lord and then said, I will go. If you would say, I want to be a part of that and I repent from the ways in which I've been selfish with the gospel. Could you just respond to the Lord by just raising up a hand, just letting him know? God, we've been distracted. We've been busy.

51:35 We just have been too in our head, in our journey to notice the people around us who need you. So we turn from that sin, God. We acknowledge it to be sin. That's wrong. What we've been given, what we have, God, help us to share. We pray. relying on your power, your spirit on us. You can put your hands down. As we continue in prayer, I wanna just say to those of you who are here today and you've not trusted in Jesus Christ for salvation, you can be. You can be saved. You're not saved automatically. You're not saved by doing good things. You're not saved by going to church. But if you would put your faith in Christ, invite him into your heart as your Lord and Savior because of his death on the cross and his resurrection from the grave, you can and will be saved.

52:29 You can jump lines today. From that line going to hell to that line going to heaven. And the only way is Jesus. If the spirit is drawing you, if you sense God knocking on the door of your heart, I invite you today, I implore you today to don't put this off, don't delay. Get right with God. Give your heart to Jesus. live for heaven. Watch what God does inside of you. Turn from your sins. Turn to him in faith. I'm going to pray a prayer in a moment. And I'm going to ask that you pray it out loud after me to God. He'll hear you. He'll save you. He'll make your heart his home. There's no sin you've committed. He can't forgive. But I want to know who I'm talking to in a moment. I'm going to pray with you. But first, I would just like right now in the quiet of this moment, all across the church and church online, just to put your hand up if you're saying, I need to give my life to God today. I need to get right with God today. If that's you, I'm just grabbing you. Just put your hand up for a moment. Just slip it in the air. God bless you. Right there in the chat, you can just write, I'm giving my life to Christ today. We'll acknowledge you and pray for you. God bless you right there. Anybody else? I sense the Spirit of God drawing me. God bless you. Anybody else?

53:37 Anybody else before we close? Thank you, Jesus. Thank you for working in our midst. We see these hands. We see these lives surrendered. You can put your hands down. I'm going to pray now. Church, pray with us. Say this to God. Dear God, I know that I'm a sinner and I can't forgive myself or fix myself, but I believe you can because of Jesus, his death, his life. Thank you for it. Thank you for new life. I give you mine in Jesus' name.