Have you ever felt completely out of place? Have you ever been in a situation where you were in a room full of people, didn’t know how to act, and weren’t sure how to meet anyone to help you feel more at home?

Some years ago, a pastor friend of mine got married. I had met his fiancée, now wife, a few times through our work together. They had a family service in a location out of state, then a large reception at a place back home. I went to give them my congratulations. For some reason—probably related to the fact that our kids were young then—my wife couldn’t go. So, I went alone. I did so with the expectation that I would find other colleagues at the party. If so, it would not be so awkward.

When I arrived, the party, the music, and the laughter was in full swing. The venue was beautifully decorated. Many people had turned up to express their love and congratulations.  However, none of my other colleagues showed up. I only knew 2 people in the room: the Bride and the Groom.

The groom was off talking to some folks with his back to me. However, the bride caught my eye from across the crowded room. I smiled and waved and mouthed “congratulations” to her. She scanned the room and realized: I didn’t know anyone else there. Rather than ignore me and go back to her party, she made her way across the room to me and took me by the hand. She thanked me for coming. She thanked me for the card I brought. Then she took me around the room and introduced me to people. Because she knew I would be lost without her hospitality. She was sacrificing her time – on her day. The day when she had the right, and expectation, to be the center of attention. She did so just to make sure I was welcome and that I was comfortable. That’s not just hospitality. That’s extreme hospitality.

When I think about this years later, I am still struck that the bride sacrificed for me, an outsider—though one who was invited to her celebration. It also strikes me that Jesus calls his followers, the Church, His Bride. We are also commanded to show this same sort of gracious and generous hospitality.

The thirteenth chapter of the book of Hebrews begins with, “Let mutual love continue. Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by doing that some have entertained angels without knowing it.” The writer ties the Christian trait of Love directly with showing hospitality to others. The reference to entertaining angels brings up the images of Abraham and Sarah entertaining the three strangers in Genesis 18. These acts of generous and gracious hospitality were certainly an amazing display of welcome to these messengers from the Lord. Even though they weren’t aware of who they were at the time, Abraham and Sarah showed them a lavish welcome.

Even though our culture is certainly very different from the times of the writing of Genesis and of Hebrews, the need for the same sort of hospitality remains. Though digital communication, distance work and school, and social media continue to permeate many parts of our daily lives there remains a deep need for human connection. The boomerang effect is happening as many people, corporations, and schools are prioritizing in-person interactions again. People still long for real community.

At the same time, and perhaps coincidentally, there has been a decline in church involvement in many parts of the world where such real community has been neglected. However, research and practical experience tell us that people who are connected to church are still interested in spiritual matters. They will want to know how to answer the big questions of life, how to find their purpose, how to serve their families, and many others. We know those questions are tugging at them because God is calling them unto Himself through his prevenient grace. The question is, who will help them find those answers?

The practice of extreme hospitality is one important part of evangelism. Who are the people near you that need to know that they are welcome? That may feel like an outsider in your church, even though they were invited. Like the bride in the opening story, are you willing to help them feel comfortable even at your own personal expense? To let them know they are a vital part of the big party? My friend saw my value, my discomfort, and that there was no way I was going to make it without her. There are many people out there in the same situation spiritually. Our job is to help them feel at home, where they belong. She did so even though it would cause her some discomfort. She deserved to be the focus of attention. Instead, she made me feel like the most important person in the room. How can you, your family, and your church help others feel this same sort of welcome?

There is a familiar story line I sometimes see in movies or books that goes something like this. Someone is facing a crisis and wants to overcome the current situation. The hero of the story goes to a wise master for guidance. The master gives the new student a series of tasks to do to train for the work ahead. However, the tasks seem to make no sense at all, they seem to be unrelated to the ultimate goal the student wishes to accomplish. Yet, through the patient teaching of the master, the student learns that the tasks were, in fact, preparing the student all along. 

Maybe you feel that way about your encounters with God at times. There are occasions when God calls us to do things that just don’t seem to make sense. The account of Philip and the official from Ethiopia is but one example of such a call. I encourage you to take a minute to read about their encounter in Acts 8:26-40, but I’ll give you a quick recap. Philip is called to leave Samaria and Jerusalem to go down an out-of-the-way Wilderness Road. There he encounters an Ethiopian official, a eunuch. Philip shares the Good News of Jesus and the Ethiopian is baptized in his new faith in Christ. It sounds simple, yet it is a remarkable story. The truth of which has all sorts of meaning for anyone who wants to be used by God to share faith in Jesus.

To get a better appreciation of the radical call on Philip’s ministry that led to the encounter with the man from Ethiopia we need to go to the earlier part of the chapter. Acts 8 opens with the record of the young church being persecuted by Saul, before his conversion and renaming to Paul. The apostles’ response is enthusiastic and fervent preaching of the Good News of Jesus Christ. Philip is one of Jesus’ twelve disciples. John’s Gospel tells us that he was close to Jesus. We know he was from Bethsaida, the same town as Andrew and Peter. He is among those preaching in chapter 8.

Philip is called to preach in Samaria. It would be hard to overstate the deep divide between Jews and Samaritans at this time. The ethnic divide is so deep, in fact, that Jews are told to not even take any dirt from the Samaritan towns on the soles of their shoes. No, they are told to shake that dust off and leave it at the edge of town rather than take it with them. 

Yet, the response to the Message of Jesus is strong. Signs, wonders, and healings are taking place. So much so that verse 8 tells us that the whole city was filled with joy. Miracles are happening. Lives are being changed. Numbers are growing. By all earthly measures, Philip’s ministry is exactly where it should be. Which leads us to an important lesson: Don’t fall into the trap of measuring your life with God in earthly metrics. It is tempting to measure our lives with God by things like our financial “net worth” (I loathe that term), our parents’ status in the community, our children’s success, membership in the right groups, or some other such thing. However, what God asks from us is faithfulness. He will produce every other success we need.

In the middle of all these wonderful things going on, God calls Philip back to Jerusalem. Maybe even that is seen as a bonus—you know, sort of like getting a promotion to the big city to take a big assignment. However, verse 26 tells us that God has something else in mind. An angel appears to him and tells Philip to leave his successful ministry. He is to go south (where very few people live). He’s to take the wilderness road to Gaza (which few people use). In addition, he’s to go in the middle of the day, according to the Greek (when few people travel). Everything points to a “reduced assignment”, we might say. Philip’s response is to go when and where he’s told.

There he encounters the Ethiopian official, headed back home after worshiping at the Temple. The fact that he’s riding in a chariot tells us that he’s particularly wealthy and powerful. Verse 29 shows us that Philip is listening to the Holy Spirit, and he’s told to go run alongside the chariot to talk with him. Which leads us to a second lesson: When God calls you to do something, it may not fit your sensibilities. See if you can capture the absurdity of the moment: Here’s Philip, a poor itinerant preacher. A fisherman by trade, now out in the deserted wilderness. He runs alongside the chariot to strike up a conversation as he overhears the official reading from Isaiah. Picture that for a second. 

We know that the official has questions. Lots of them. God leads Philip to answer them to the point where this one person is converted and baptized in a pool of water that they encounter along the way. Immediately after this, Philip is taken away, some 20 miles north. (We don’t know exactly how, but wouldn’t you love to see that instant replay?!) Third lesson: When God calls you, He’s already wherever you’re going. Look at what’s happened here: Philip is called to leave a ministry where the enemies of Israel are being converted in droves. Miracles are happening. Instead, he’s called to go in the middle of nowhere to talk to one person. Why did he ask Philip to talk to this one, nameless-to-us, person? Well, we will only find that answer on the other side of this life. However, there are a few things we can say. Christianity is not first a western thing, nor European thing. We know that it spreads to northern Africa. During the first five centuries of the church, this region of the world produced some of the greatest Christian thinkers of all time who still influence us today. They include Tertullian, Athanasius, St. Augustine, Aurelius, Clement of Alexandria, Cyprian, and Origen. These are directly influential (though centuries later) on Western thinkers like John Calvin, Martin Luther, John Wesley, and others.

According to the accounts of Acts, the Ethiopian official is the first convert outside of Jewish lineage. While we can’t be sure, it is reasonable to think that this person would have had some piece in spreading the Message of Jesus to the parts where it grew so strongly, and has influenced us so.

This is a reminder that even when things don’t make sense, pay attention to what God is doing. Philip’s call from God was clearly within his gifts. Yet, he was called to a time, a place, and a person that was clearly beyond what “normal” expectations might be. The result was far beyond what any of us could have imagined. That result began with one person faithfully following the Master’s instruction, even when they didn’t seem to make sense. Even when things aren’t the way we think they could and should be, remember that God wastes no person, no place, no thing. May we be faithful and obedient upon whatever wilderness road falls beneath our feet.

Occasionally, a friend or family member will send me a piece they’ve found in the media about the “decline” of the Church. These articles, videos, podcasts, books, etc. talk about the increase in the notion of the irrelevance of the church in the lives of many in the United States and/or Europe. Usually, this is accompanied by some degree of anxiety from the one who shared it. We should, no doubt, pay attention to the trends in which people seem to be turning their backs on the gospel of Jesus Christ. Numbers shown in such statistics are not merely benign figures. They represent real people whose lives matter to God.

The changing demographics in many parts of the world will cause, and are causing, some significant challenges for churches. This comes not only in the financial realm (fewer participants means less money in the offerings, presumably), but also in terms of ministries offered, lives impacted, and resources available. Things are changing and will continue to change. This changing landscape provides us with the opportunity, and responsibility, to rethink and restructure our approaches to evangelism. 

We need to admit that we are not the first generation to face challenges in our efforts to bear witness in the public arena to the great things that Jesus has done and to do so in a way that is faithful to the gospel. This is not the first time that the church has lost the privileged voice. Today’s Christians are living on the margins, just as many have done in the past. Yet, the Church continues in her mission throughout time and through the world. This gives us hope that we are not responsible for inventing something new to solve the problem. Rather, we look to the witness of the Scriptures and the saints who have gone before. We do, after all, stand on the shoulders of giants of the faith today. Standing on such a witness, let’s looks at some at some opportunities and responsibilities that the shifts in our culture might bring for evangelism:

• We cannot assume that the “public good” will assist us in making disciples of Jesus Christ. In the past, we could rely on the general culture to be conversant in the principles of the Christians message and, by and large, embrace them. At least this was the way the prevailing winds were blowing.
• With this in mind, it’s important to point out that the answer is not a full-frontal attack in the culture wars. That has been tried and found wanting. Rather, it’s going to need to begin with humility and repentance. It’s okay to admit past mistakes. It’s okay to admit that you may have questions too. These make the message even more welcoming.
• That doesn’t mean compromising the Message or seeking to do some sort of acrobatics to make it more “relevant.” The gospel is always relevant. Open the message of Jesus to others in a way that shows love and compassion. God will fill in the gaps. 
• The world is increasingly complex and changing at an even faster pace each day, it seems. 

This means that, as those living on the margins, we need to learn from those who are shaping the culture. Learn how to speak the language. Learn what questions the culture is asking. The gospel has the answers to those questions. But you will never know how to answer them if you don’t know what the questions are in the first place.

• At the same time, don’t get sucked into selling a bill of goods to the culture who only wants to measure usefulness in terms of individual gain, national prosperity, or economic advantage. The gospel does not fit into those frameworks. Rather, Jesus challenged all of those “advantages” and declared them all to be worth nothing compared to what He was offering.
• It means that we need to take time to get to know our neighbors. I mean, really get to know them. They are not just another “soul to be saved.” Rather, they are people who have hopes, dreams, wants, and longings. The gospel is the only thing that will fulfill those in a meaningful way. Others will be open to hearing the gospel when they know that you actually care about them for who they are, not just an accomplishment in your evangelistic mission.
• We must increase our practical ministries. We can learn well from the early Celtic Christian movement who embraced serving their pagan neighbors while sharing the Good News with them. They were hometown missionaries before we even had the term.
• We must be open to the Holy Spirit leading. We need to admit that there is no single method of evangelism that works everywhere for everyone. Don’t be too quick to criticize others for how God has called them to serve. 
• Evangelism must expect the ongoing discipleship of those who accept Jesus’ offer of Life and Life abundantly. Be prepared to take the long journey with others who express a desire to grow in their faith.

And above all else: what’s more important than HOW we evangelize is the character of the Christians who share their faith. Holiness matters. People not only need to hear that God is alive, but they need to see His followers live in such a way that they demonstrate the love of our Living God. This is a good place to recall John Wesley’s words about the Methodist movement in the West, its expanse in his lifetime:

“I am not afraid that the people called Methodists should ever cease to exist either in Europe or America. But I am afraid lest they should only exist as a dead sect, having the form of religion without the power. And this undoubtedly will be the case unless they hold fast both the doctrine, spirit, and discipline with which they first set out.” (Thoughts on Methodism)

 We need not fear for the future of the Church. The Kingdom will Come and God’s Will shall be done. If we fail to fulfill our role, God will raise up another. However, remembering that Palm Sunday admonition, I don’t want a rock to take my place in crying out – or in showing and sharing the love of Jesus as He commanded us to do. If we must do that from the margins, so be it.