One of the many things that changed overnight with the lockdown was outreach. We can no longer invite non-Christian friends or relatives to hear the good news about Jesus at church or at other evangelistic events. So what can we do to fulfil The Great Commission (Matt 28:19-20) in a lockdown?
To begin with, we can pray. Prayer is the number 1 tool in our arsenal, and therefore Step 1 in our ‘P.I.E.’ outreach system (Pray, Invite, Engage). Every single conversion is a miracle of God, for no one turns to Jesus unless God first draws him (John 6:44). Thus prayer is imperative. Yet it also glorifies God by showing our dependence upon him. So please pick 3 non-Christian neighbours or relatives and pray hard that God will soften their hearts and prepare them to hear the gospel.
Secondly, we can still invite people to hear the good news preached each week at church on-line. For some reason, God has put big restrictions on meeting together at church for the past 2 months. We may not understand why he has done this, but we can trust that He is working all things out for the good of His church (Rom 8:28). Perhaps God wants our non-Christian contacts to share church on-line with us. We won’t know until we ask them.
And finally, we can still engage people in gospel conversations. Why not ask someone what THEY think God might be doing in this current crisis? Then just listen to their views. Don’t interject, and don’t offer your own opinions. The research indicates that if someone feels their opinions have been truly heard, they will actually ASK our opinion.
While these are strange days, there is still much we can and should be doing to ‘make disciples of all nations’. May COVID-19 not turn us into timid or lazy Christians. May it rather steel our resolve to evangelise even stronger in this lockdown.
