Sermon Central
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Evangelism Through Fellowship
Contributed by Tim Smith on Feb 11, 2015 (message contributor)
Charles Moore writes, “Alan and I met 20 years ago. We were both students at Cal Poly. I was a freshman and he was a junior. As a physics major, Alan was both intelligent and articulate. How Alan got on with his studies, however, is still a mystery to me. Alan was vritually blind. He could not see well enough to get from one place to another without help. But when it came to reading, it was a different story. I can still see Alan, his face two inches from the text, arduously pecking away at each of his assignments. Alan not only got straight A’s but returned to Cal Poly as a physics professor. Although Jewish in background, Alan was extremely skeptical of anything religious, especially Christian. He was well read and well versed, and he argued his doubt like a scientist. Alan believed that Christianity was unable to pass the theological requirements of science. He therefore pled agnostic. There simply wasn’t enough evidence in his mind to warrant belief in God. As a fledgling freshman, I along with several others, tried to show him there was ample evidence in Christianity’s truth. There were not only facts of fulfilled prophecy and the reliability of the New Testament documents, but also the testimony of creation. Wasn’t that sufficient? Not for Alan…
Alan was unusually happy to discuss religious subjects, which always gave us Christians some hope. But even more intriguing was how he liked to hang out with us. Alan didn’t have many friends. He was rather unattractive, mush too serious and totally dependent on others for any kind of transportation. But we tried to reach out to him the best we could. Alan knew he could come anytime with us to the beach or on our recurrent midnight runs to Taco Bell. We tried to include Alan in everything we did. One evening, something happened. A bunch of friends got together to enjoy the sunset and a roaring bonfire. By the time the evening was over, Alan had made a commitment to follow Jesus and no one even. The next day, he came to tell me what happened. I asked him what made him decide. “While everyone was sitting around the fire, I realized that whenever I am around you Christians, I am happy. Even when we disagree with each other, I find myself liking to be with Christians.” “But Alan,” I said, “I thought you were never going to become a believer unless there is first enough evidence.” “Yes Chuck,” he replied, “I still require it. But that’s precisely why I now believe. It’s how you all love each other that strikes me the most. I never considered that evidence before. A good scientist considers all the facts. I simply haven’t found the love you Christians have for each other anywhere else. That’s enough evidence for me that Jesus is Lord.
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