Altar Calls
The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, and he who is wise wins souls. Proverbs 11:30
Wins – Of course, we imagine that this verse is a congratulatory pat on the back for those who make the effort to bring others into the Kingdom. We think this verse is motivation for attending evangelism classes, passing out tracts and asking people where they think they will go after they die. Isn’t that what it says? If we are really wise, in a spiritual sort of way, we will win souls for the Lord.
Ah, but not quite. The context of this verse isn’t about getting to heaven at all. It’s about being a prudent manager of the assets God gives you so that in times of trouble you will not be poverty-stricken. Read the surrounding verses. A generous man will prosper. The diligent seeks good favor. The fool has troubles in his house. Discipline and knowledge go together. The Lord hates the perverse. Blessed is the man who makes his goods available to others (even at a price). No, there’s no soul-winning here. There’s living God’s way so that we can manage in the broken world. This proverb fits right into the instructions about taking care of what God gives. If you want to experience a tree of life, then be righteous. In the process you will save the lives of many because you will have the assets needed to do so.
The Hebrew verb is laqah. It covers the umbrella from seizing and grasping to acquiring, obeying, carrying away and buying. If it is translated “wins,” it certainly doesn’t have the eternal in mind. This verb describes real-time, down-to-earth management.
When we realize that Hebrew evangelism is first and foremost about a distinctive lifestyle and the magnetic attraction God promises when we adopt that lifestyle, then we can disconnect from the Greek idea of dragging people into the Kingdom by their epistemological hair. It’s not about what you know or how you know it (that’s epistemology). It’s about what you do in response to the question, “What does God demand of me?” In other words, evangelism is not first on the list of spiritual exercises. In fact, we might even say that it isn’t on the list at all. Why? Because God promises to draw those outside the Kingdom to the Kingdom when we are living in Kingdom ways. We are God’s magnets, not His bullhorns. There is absolutely no point in recruiting people for the Kingdom if Kingdom activities aren’t present in the assembly. That’s the difference between a membership drive and a magnetic attraction. We obey. God attracts. But it’s an electromagnet. Obedience is the juice that makes it work. Stop obeying and the power turns off. Result: No magnet.
A few days ago Michael noted that his Jewish neighbors are happy to tell him about how they live, but they almost never come to his door to ask him to join them. Conversely, other religious groups seem to show up every week, passing out pamphlets and thumping their Bibles. Why don’t Jews engage in that sort of active evangelism? Ah, because they understand that only God draws. All they are asked to do is live His way so that when God draws there is someplace for the orbiting proselyte to land.
You can look at it this way. God’s air traffic controller is looking for a field to bring in those who want to land in His ways. The evangelism question is not “Who have you asked?” but rather “How well prepared is your field?”
Topical Index: evangelism, magnets, win, laqah, Proverbs 11:30
“They knew he had tried to escape from Yahweh, because he had told them so”
Jonah 1:10
Jonah is our model, or so Mark seems to imply, and Jonah is known for bringing people to Yahweh.
In the passage above, we can see that Jonah has negative feelings toward his God.
And Jonah has openly communicated these negative feelings with the Ninevehians.
We can see that Jonah is upset with Yahweh and is moving away from Yahweh.
But even in the process of moving away from his God, Jonah brings others to his God.
Jonah brings others to his God by “instinctively” serving them when they need his help.
And Jonah is willing to sacrifice his own life if necessary.
To help other people, Jonah needs Yahweh.
So his actions take him back to his God.
It’s a very exciting life, isn’t it?
Now think of Nicodemus.
He’s like a Judge.
“When we realize that Hebrew evangelism is first and foremost about a distinctive lifestyle and the magnetic attraction God promises when we adopt that lifestyle, then we can disconnect from the Greek idea of dragging people into the Kingdom by their epistemological hair. It’s not about what you know or how you know it (that’s epistemology). It’s about what you do in response to the question, “What does God demand of me?” In other words, evangelism is not first on the list of spiritual exercises.” This is the exact opposite of evangelism in America. The typical service builds to a crescendo when the “altar call” is given and what takes place, i.e. the number who respond, determines how successful the event has been. I have extended many altar calls when serving our denomination as a commissioned evangelist and pastor. I have attempted to go back to the few who would listen and explain some of the errors, without success. The Way can not be embraced until the truth of the Hebraic connection is received. When your eyes see, you get it. When your ears hear, you get it. Until people understand, we are to simply live our lives Torah obedient and be examples of the impact of the Kingdom. I think part of the reason that people want to be more aggressive in their evangelism is because they want control. They believe that if they don’t take the salvation message (usually a set of beliefs about Jesus not the teachings of Yeshua), then people will die and go to hell. I still remember eating lunch with Skip during a break from a class in Evansville when he uttered what I believe the best message to give to someone: “So, how is that working out for you?” I have used this many times and it really does cause people to stop and consider what they are doing. Thanks for this good word, Skip!
Shalom,
It is interesting that this week’s Parsha – “Behar”(upon the mount) dealt with a very similar concept which Skip comments upon: “the instructions about taking care of what God gives.”
One might ask of course … how does the seventh year Shabbat for the land, and of course the Yovel, deal with this concept?
Despite The Lord’s declaration – And if ye shall say: ‘What shall we eat the seventh year? behold, we may not sow, nor gather in our increase’; 21 then I will command My blessing upon you in the sixth year, and it shall bring forth produce for the three years.
We can say despite this declaration because the “if” is not to rendered as “when”. The “if” is to be viewed as “if” you don’t do what you are supposed to do, (manage your affairs, your lands, your blessings, etc.) and you don’t have what you need … then The Lord will still provide for those who are obedient!
When we think about the cyclical seven year shabbat for the land it is not difficult to find a pattern in Scripture to fall back to. What we can find is the seven years of bounty and the seven years of famine in Egypt. What we find is The Lord’s wisdom manifesting in Joseph. What we uncover is the lesson: Manage the blessings that The Lord provides and then His servants will be able to use the stores to make it through the periods of trial.
More so than this … it is not just about personal survival and stewardship … it is about G_D’s way for us. Joseph did more than save himself. He of course saved all Israel (Jacob’s seed) … and we can see that he did so without extracting payment.
We could delve much deeper into this matter but perhaps a quick read of “BeHar” and contemplation of how the seventh year Shabbat for the land relates to the Joseph … and more importantly to how our obedience will be attractive to draw others in! After all … the folks came to Egypt to get the food … not the other way around! 🙂
ps. as for the connection to Shavu’ot …. this will be for another discussion perhaps!
Very interesting observations, Drew, especially so since only today I was listening to Monte Judah’s weekly Torah teaching on this very Parsha. You can stream it from his web site (actually, the audio of the full Erev Shabbat service). I think you’ll find it quite interesting.
Skip,
This is the key to real church growth. I have contended with this idea of flooding people into the church without their, commitment and determination to become like Yeshua and live Biblically. I have seen such individuals stay and cause a lot of problems in the church or wreck other committed members and drive them out of fellowship.
Make the grass green and the sheep will gather!
Shalom!