Still Missing ??

I'm currently attending a training event in Atlanta, Georgia. I'm hearing some good things about new initiatives that are speaking to how we can engage and reach our culture for Christ. The theme surrounding this event is "Living with Urgency: Sowing Together for a Harvest." I've heard many statistics, but there is one that has really gripped my heart; 250 million people who live in the US and Canada are lost (do not have a relationship with Christ). When you break this down it means that when someone dies every 11 seconds in this continent, there is a 75% chance that they will die without a relationship with Christ. Although I have appreciated the emphasis on reaching this mass of people through a new initiative, I have been surprised at the lack of mention of the most important ingredient needed in evangelizing people - LOVE. A while back I wrote a blog (5/13) about how this important ingredient was absolutely necessary to be effective in reaching people for Christ. Today, I'm recognizing that we do not talk enough about loving people when we speak of evangelizing them. The topic of love for the most part is missing when the subject of evangelism surfaces. If were going to reach people we need to realize that Christ engaged people with love. The woman at the well is one example (John 4). The woman experienced the unconditional love of Christ as he engaged her when he was drinking from the well on that day. His encounter with her was truly love and truth colliding together. The encounter radically shook her values and changed her heart and life. As I see it Jesus' model of evangelism was to balance love (genuinely care about people) and truth, and we need in our day to model and practice His method of evangelism. Biblically and practically we know that when you show people that you really love them, they will be more open and receptive to His truth.
My heart in writing this blog is to draw attention to the fact that evangelism needs to be balanced with genuine love and with the saving message of the gospel. One without the other makes evangelism incomplete. Words without love seldom brings transformation in the hearts of people. In our generation we have been somewhat diligent in sharing Jesus with lost people, I'm wondering what would have happened if we had shared the gospel along with exercising the unconditional love of Christ. Right now, showing love when evangelizing appears to be a missing ingredient. When you think of evangelizing, please make sure love's not the missing ingredient in your own evangelism strategy in reaching people for Jesus.

"If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal." 1 Cor. 13:1