Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Home
Evangelical
John 1:40-42 Making the Invitation

John 1:40-42 Making the Invitation

Last updated on: January 1, 2007 at 4:45 pm by Jim Erwin

John 1:40-42 Making the Invitation 2007-01-01T16:45:00-05:00 Jim Erwin

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

John 1:40-42 Making the Invitation

One of the two who heard John speak, and followed Him, was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. He first found his own brother Simon, and said to him, “We have found the Messiah” (which is translated, the Christ). And he brought him to Jesus.

(John 1:40-42 NKJV)

When we talk about our faith in Jesus Christ, someone will inevitably remind us that what we believe is fine for us but not for them. All this leads us to ask, “What does it take to bring people to Jesus?” The answer is what it has always been: God’s truth shared in love and friendship, illustrated daily in the life of the one sharing the Gospel.

For more than 50 years the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association has been helping believers share their faith through friendship and relationship. The simple plan they use to encourage believers in friendship evangelism is called Operation Andrew.

Operation Andrew gives you a plan that can help you invite someone to Jesus. This plan shows you how you can prepare yourself for the time when God wants you to invite someone.

Identify those who need Christ. Ask God to help you have His eyes and His heart for those who don’t know Him. Write their names on a card and place it where you can see it every day.

Pray daily for them. Pray that God would begin to show them their need for Christ and that He will help you to live in such a way that they see the difference Christ is making in your life.

Build bridges of friendship. Spend time with them. Have them over for dinner, play golf, go for coffee, listen to their problems. In other words, be a friend.

Share the Gospel. As you listen and befriend, God will open a door for you to talk about your relationship with Jesus Christ. The opportunity may come for you to invite your friend to an outreach event, a Bible study, a Christian concert or your church. All of these can be used by God to prepare your friend to accept Christ—but don’t wait for an event to share Christ if the door is open.

Help them grow in their new relationship with God. If your friend accepts Christ, you are the one who should help him or her get connected with a church and grow in Christ. A new believer is like a spiritual infant and needs someone to be a spiritual guide and mentor.

If your friend does not receive Christ, don’t be discouraged. Continue to be a friend, knowing that it takes time and cultivation to see a seed germinate.

What you are doing is simply preparing the ground. You are not going to change the person. God does that. But you can invite someone to a place or an opportunity where they can see changed lives and experience God’s love – a love that changes lives. Today, I want share with you a few tips on how to invite. How you do you get someone close enough where they can hear God’s message of hope? Next week I will talk to you about how to share with others in a non-threatening way.

One simple way to share your faith is to simply invite them to Jesus. You don’t have to talk about Jesus, or feel pressured to convince others about your faith. You just simply invite.

Remember, most non-Christians think Christians are strange and weird. Going to a church is an unusual experience efor many. So you have to real, and non-threatening. How can you invite someone with sincerity and without causing fear?

HOW CAN YOU INVITE?

One simple way is to invite them to an IBC Bremen house group. Some people may not come to church, but they may come to your house group. It doesn’t meet in a church. You meet at a more convenient time. You meet with a smaller group of people with the same interests and age. That appeals to some people.
Invite them to an IBC Bremen “food event”. BBQs, picnics, and house group meals or just any excuse to eat is an excuse to invite. Perhaps you can invite someone to the fellowship that we have downstairs. Most people are shy and they can’t overcome their fear alone. But put a donut and a cup of coffee in their hands, and they can hide behind the food.
Invite them to a special service or event at IBC Bremen. If you think it is appropriate, then invite them to a special service. We have family services, Vacation Bible School, house group services, Christmas, Easter and Church Anniversary and Mother’s Day. These special worship services may draw some people.
Invite them for a special sermon series that you think might appeal or interest them. I am not a perfect preacher, but I do try to preach in series – normally monthly. I try to address topics that interest people. Generally every month will be a different topic.

So here is your challenge – this challenge is printed on your bulletin. We are challenging you to look for seven people who don’t know Jesus. There are at least seven people around you who don’t know Jesus. There are probably a lot more. They could be relatives, friends, neighbours, colleagues, classmates, or just new acquaintances. We are talking about people back in your home country. We are talking about people here in the Bremen area. Here is your mission field and there are people who you can invite. We are asking that you commit to inviting seven people. Here’s what we want you to do:

You can look at the “Look” page and the “Operation Andrew” page.

God loves you. But you are not the only person God loves. God loves people around you. God wants you to invite them to discover God’s love for them. Just as Andrew invited Peter, you can simply invite other people to discover God’s love for themselves.

John

Sermons

invitation

learning to share your faith

personal evangelism

sermon

Previous Post

January 1, 2007

John 4:27-42 Sharing Your Faith

Next Post

January 1, 2007 1 Chronicles 13:1-14, 15:1-16 Why Do I Worship?

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category 1 Chronicles 1 Corinthians 1 John 1 Kings 1 Peter 1 Samuel 1 Thessalonians 1 Timothy 2 Chronicles 2 Corinthians 2 John 2 Kings 2 Peter 2 Samuel 2 Thessalonians 2 Timothy 3 John Acts Advent Amos Book Review Colossians Comics Culture Watch Daniel Deuteronomy Ecclesiastes Ephesians Esther Exodus Ezekiel Ezra Galatians Genesis Guest Post Habakkuk Haggai Hebrews Hosea Humor Inspiritational Isaiah James Jeremiah Job Joel John Jonah Joshua Jude Judges Lamentations Lectionary Lent Leviticus Link Love Luke Malachi Mark Matthew Micah Movie Review Nahum Nehemiah Numbers Philippians Political Watch Prophecy Watch Proverbs Psalm Revelation Reviews Romans Ruth Science Watch Sermon Series Sermons Simple Thoughts Song of Solomon Titus Top Ten Uncategorized Video Review Zechariah Zephaniah

Select a Month May 2026 October 2025 September 2025 June 2025 February 2025 January 2025 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 July 2024 June 2024 April 2024 March 2024 January 2024 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 June 2023 May 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 January 2022 June 2021 January 2021 October 2020 July 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2009 June 2008 October 2007 September 2007 August 2007 July 2007 June 2007 May 2007 April 2007 March 2007 February 2007 January 2007 December 2006 October 2006 September 2006 May 2006 April 2006 March 2006 February 2006 January 2006 December 2005 September 2005

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

What Christian tradition is especially associated with speaking in tongues?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Methodism Anglicanism Presbyterianism Pentecostalism