The mission of our church is: “Engaging our city and the nations with the treasure of Jesus.” But what does it mean to engage, and how do we do it?

When we say engage our ultimate goal is to engage or share with those in our city and the nations the Gospel or good news of Jesus. So, the biggest way that we as a church engage our city is through our Sunday church services. People of our city and the nations are engaged when they walk through the door and experience the people of God coming together for fellowship, worship and to learn about Jesus.

Jesus tells us; “all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” (John 13:35). That’s our fellowship. Our care for one another in the church shows Jesus to others.

The Psalms mention over and over to sing to the Lord, and by doing that we are engaging people with our love for Jesus.

Finally, Romans 10:13-14 says; “…everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching?” This verse shows the role of the church in preaching. The Sunday sermon engages people with the truth of the gospel.

We also need to be a people who are engaging others (our neighbors) outside the four walls of the church. That’s why it’s called our mission statement; we need to be on mission. Ultimately that’s the mission Jesus called us to. We call it the Great Commission, which is found in Matthew 28:19, “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.” That’s where our mission statement comes from.

We also need to be a people who are engaging others (our neighbors) outside the four walls of the church.

Again I ask how do we engage our neighbors and those around us with the treasure of Jesus? The apostle Paul was the master at this; after all he founded almost every church in the New Testament. I see three ways in which Paul engaged others with his life and ultimately the Gospel.

First he met people where they were at. In Acts 17:22, we find him addressing a group of religious men; “So Paul, standing in the midst of the Areopagus, said: ’Men of Athens, I perceive that in every way you are very religious. For as I passed along and observed the objects of your worship, I found also an altar with this inscription, ‘To the unknown god.’ What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you.’” Paul related to these men right where they were at and pointed them toward Jesus.

Second, he looked for points of connection with people. In 1 Corinthians 9:19-23a we see that Paul was very intentional in this: “For though I am free from all, I have made myself a servant to all, that I might win more of them.  To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win Jews. To those under the law I became as one under the law (though not being myself under the law) that I might win those under the law. To those outside the law I became as one outside the law (not being outside the law of God but under the law of Christ) that I might win those outside the law. To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all people, that by all means I might save some.  I do it all for the sake of the gospel.” He sought ways to connect with people; “all for the sake of the gospel.”

Finally, he just flat out loved people. There’s a saying that’s been around for a lot of years that says; “people don’t care how much you know, until they know how much you care.” Paul made sure people knew how much he cared. Just about every letter he wrote in the New Testament he starts off by telling the people how dear they are to him. In Philippians 1:7 he says to them; “It is right for me to feel this way about you all, because I hold you in my heart.” In Romans 1:9-11 Paul says, “I mention you  always in my prayers, asking that somehow by God's will I may now at last succeed in coming to you.  For I long to see you”.

We are called by God to engage the world around us, to share the gospel with them. So, I encourage you to do as Paul did; Meet people where they are at, look for points of connection and let them know you care – “all for the sake of the gospel!”