Let’s take a walk down the popular Roman Road…
Rom 1:20 For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.
Rom 3:23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
Rom 5:8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Rom 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Rom 10:9 If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
Rom 10:13 for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
Rom 11:36 For from him and through him and for him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen.
Acts 2:38 Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
Rev 3:20 Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.
That sequence of verses is incredibly popular and has been used for decades to introduce people to Jesus. Unfortunately, it sometimes leaves them right there, simply introduced to Jesus. Some consider that the end of the road. Pitch a tent, set up the lawn chairs and hang out (fire insurance in hand) and wait for Jesus to return and take us to our eternal destination. The question I have is this: “When did Jesus change jobs”? When did He move from Son of God to Bus Driver?
Here’s what I believe is one of the scariest verses in the Bible (Matt 7:21-23):
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’
Can you imagine, spending most or all of your life as a Christian and having Jesus return and explain He never knew you? So much for that fire insurance! I think what this verse is pointing out is that there’s more to the Gospel than simply accepting Jesus as your Savior. He wants a relationship. Intimate, interactive, conversational, engaging relationship with every one of us, and He’s relentless in His pursuit of that.
Let’s look at another set of verses that appear to look beyond the doorway, and give us some insight into what may be considered as “more”, or “the rest of the story”.
Matt 3:1-2 In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”
Matt 4:17 From that time on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”
Matt 10 (Jesus sends out the 12) As you go, proclaim this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons.
Luke 10:9 (Jesus sends out the 70/72) Heal the sick who are there and tell them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’
John 14:11-13 Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.
John 10:10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.
Matt 22 (the greatest commandment) Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment.
Matt 28 (the great Commission) Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Where did Barnabas come from?
The interesting thing about the Great Commission is that is does not say go out and make “believers” or “lead people to Jesus”. However for the most part, that’s what’s been preached and that’s what we’ve been doing for the last several decades. What it does clearly say is “make Disciples”.
Holy Apostle Barnabas of the Seventy was born on the island of Cyprus into the family of the tribe of Levi, and he was named Joseph. He received his education at Jerusalem, being raised with his friend and fellow student Saul (the future Apostle Paul) under the renowned teacher of the Law, Gamaliel. Joseph was pious, he frequented the Temple, he strictly observed the fasts and avoided youthful distractions. During this time period our Lord Jesus Christ began His public ministry. Seeing the Lord and hearing His Divine Words, Joseph believed in Him as the Messiah. Filled with ardent love for the Savior, he followed Him. The Lord chose him to be one of His Seventy Apostles. The other Apostles called him Barnabas, which means “son of consolation.” http://oca.org/saints/lives/2016/06/11/101691-apostle-barnabas-of-the-seventy
Barnabas was not one of the original 12 Disciples that Jesus selected. He was a Jewish man, being trained up under a Rabbi (Teacher of the Law) named Gamaliel. When he heard the Gospel of the Kingdom, he believed and then began to walk out the life of a Disciple. He was part of the group of 70 that Jesus sent out, which is discussed in Luke 10.
We’re called to be Disciples, and invite others to be Disciples. Walk out the Gospel of the Kingdom, all day, every day and not just in church on Sunday. Instead of asking God to bless our plan, why don’t we walk, aligned with the Holy Spirit, and engage in the plan the Lord all ready has in place?
Going back to the end of the Roman Road, or Rev 3:20, and looking deeper at that word “eat”, as in “come in and eat with that person”. It is translated “sup” in the NKJV version. When you dive into the Greek, you see that it’s a reference to “taking the chief meal of the day” or in Thayer’s Greek Lexicon it refers to it as an invitation to “share in my most intimate and blissful intercourse” (meaning conversation). It’s an invitation to a deep, intimate relationship.
The Gospel of Salvation is merely the front door to the fuller Gospel of the Kingdom that Jesus preached. His Disciples followed in His footsteps, as so should we...