Jesus constantly used the language of “entering” the kingdom. It’s possible to be outside, and then to get inside.

We enter through faith; the moment when someone places their confidence in Jesus is their entrance into the kingdom of God. 

At the same time, it’s just the *first* moment of a whole life of discipleship to Jesus that is beginning to unfold. Dallas Willard once said, “Discipleship is a natural part of confidence in Jesus as he really is.”

When Jesus frees us, our response is to follow him. As Charles Wesley wrote in the hymn “And Can It Be”:

My chains fell off, my heart was free; I rose, went forth, and followed Thee.

Sources: Matthew 13:44-46 (NIV)

Dallas Willard, “Spiritual Formation as a Natural Part of Salvation,” Conversatio Divina, The Martin Institute for Christianity and Culture, Westmont College, April 17, 2009. Charles Wesley, “And Can It Be, That I Should Gain?” Sing Joyfully (Carol Stream, Illinois: Tabernacle Publishing, 1989), Hymnary.org.

Oliver Hunkin and Alan Parry (Illustrator), Dangerous Journey: The Story of Pilgrim's Progress (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Eerdmans, 1985).

John Bunyan, The Pilgrim's Progress from this World to That Which is to Come (Project Gutenberg, 1678, 1994). Don Everts and Doug Schaupp, I Once Was Lost: What Postmodern Skeptics Taught Us About Their Path to Jesus (Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 2008). 

Friendship Evangelism: The 5 Thresholds toward Faith, InterVarsity Evangelism, InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA.

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How can God be good when there is so much evil and suffering in the world?

This question is in some ways the most profound challenge to Christian faith.

Everyone who asks that question is asking it at two different levels.

One is the intellectual level: Is there any way to make moral sense of this world?

The other is the personal level. Every human being has known pain in some way.

How can we respond to this question thoughtfully?

Sources: James 1:2-4 (ESV)

“Stephen Fry on God | The Meaning Of Life | RTÉ One,” RTÉ - IRELAND’S NATIONAL PUBLIC SERVICE MEDIA, January 28, 2015. Stan Jones, “When Suffering, Find Empathy in the Cross,” Preaching Today, August 2017. Don Everts and Doug Schaupp, I Once Was Lost: What Postmodern Skeptics Taught Us About Their Path to Jesus (Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 2008). 

Friendship Evangelism: The 5 Thresholds toward Faith, InterVarsity Evangelism, InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA.

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We Christians believe some pretty strange things.

One of the things we believe, which is at least pretty strange today in the Western world, is that spiritual knowledge is possible. We believe it is possible to be known by God, and to come to know God, and things about God. Not just beliefs, not just points of inspiration, but genuine knowledge.

This puts us in a sticky situation when it comes to our relationships with those who don’t share our Christian faith: We believe we know things that other people don’t. Not because we’re better than others in any dimension, but simply because we have been given the grace to learn these things.

It’s like we’ve been given a pair of glasses that helps us see the world differently.

Genuine inclusivity is not saying that our differences of belief don’t matter. It’s not saying, “Oh well, we can’t really know anything anyway.” Genuine inclusivity means listening to and respecting others even when the differences really do matter—even when it’s not possible for a conflicting set of beliefs to both be true.

If our friends are seeking, genuine kindness is offering the glasses to them and asking if they’d like to put them on.

Sources: Luke 11:29-32 (NIV)

1 Kings 10:6-9, 13 (NIV)

Acts 17:29-30 (NIV) Don Everts and Doug Schaupp, I Once Was Lost: What Postmodern Skeptics Taught Us About Their Path to Jesus (Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 2008). 

Friendship Evangelism: The 5 Thresholds toward Faith, InterVarsity Evangelism, InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA.

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The point of sharing the Good News is not “winning.” Helping our friends in their journey toward Jesus is not a debate or an intellectual contest.

Jesus didn’t answer every question asked of him by people who weren’t really looking to be persuaded of his message. Instead, he taught in a way that reached the hearts of those who were genuinely seeking God.

At the same time, when people are seeking God, they’re also grappling with real intellectual questions. We don’t want to treat these questions like problems to solve or barriers to overcome. Instead, each question is an opportunity for people to see the beauty of Jesus just a little more clearly.

One of seekers’ common concerns is the question of Hell: Could a good God really send people to eternal punishment? It’s a question that can put us and our friends on edge.

But when we look at Jesus’ own teachings about Hell, we see that he’s teaching about people’s hearts. Drawing on the Hebrew wisdom literature, he shows that the trajectory of our lives now continues into eternity. When we take Jesus’ teaching seriously, we see that it’s good news of justice in the face of profound evil—and goes hand-in-hand with his offer of life to all who sincerely repent and believe.

Sources: Matthew 13:10-12 (NIV)

Matthew 21:23-27 (NIV)

Luke 6:46-49 (NIV)

Proverbs 22:8 (ESV)

Proverbs 26:11 (Brenton’s Spetuagint Translation)

Isaiah 9:4 (NIV) Don Everts and Doug Schaupp, I Once Was Lost: What Postmodern Skeptics Taught Us About Their Path to Jesus (Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 2008). 

Friendship Evangelism: The 5 Thresholds toward Faith, InterVarsity Evangelism, InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA.

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As we have conversations with our friends about spiritual things, one of the most powerful things we can do is share stories of our own experiences with Jesus.

We see paradigms for this kind of sharing in the Bible itself. After delivering him from demonic oppression, Jesus says to the man of the Gerasenes: “Go home to your friends and tell them how much the Lord has done for you” (Mark 5:19 ESV).

Some of us don’t have a particularly dramatic conversion story. Some of us can’t even remember a time in our lives without faith in Jesus! But the stories we can tell aren’t just those about the moment of conversion. We can also tell our “present-tense testimony” of what the Lord is doing in our lives today. All of us have stories that include these ingredients:

• Sin (and its consequences)

• Jesus

• Faith

• Change

When you tell your real story of God’s work in your life, it may resonate with your friends more than you expect.

Try it for yourself using our one-page guide: Telling What God Has Done For You (Fill in the Blank)

Sources: Mark 5:18-20 (ESV)

“I’ve Always Known Jesus. How Do I Share My ‘Testimony’?” Mission Central, December 16, 2021. Don Everts and Doug Schaupp, I Once Was Lost: What Postmodern Skeptics Taught Us About Their Path to Jesus (Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 2008). 

Friendship Evangelism: The 5 Thresholds toward Faith, InterVarsity Evangelism, InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA.

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We all live inside stories.

When someone’s seeking, trying to get to a point of resolution, trying to get answers, then the story of the Bible can come alive for them with new urgency and clarity. This is the most fruitful time in someone’s journey toward Jesus to dig into the stories of faith with them.

We’re following Jesus’ lead here; he taught using stories—specifcally, using parables. These stories are not just illustrations for prepositional ideas. They’re metaphors to *live inside of.*

We can share the parables of Jesus themselves, which have unique power to convey the reality of God’s kingdom.

We can also imitate Jesus by finding parables in our everyday lives and sharing them gently and earnestly with our friends who are seeking.

Sources: Mark 4:30-32 (NIV) Ezekiel 17:22-24 (NIV)

Kenneth E. Bailey, Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes: Cultural Studies in the Gospels (Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 2008). Don Everts and Doug Schaupp, I Once Was Lost: What Postmodern Skeptics Taught Us About Their Path to Jesus (Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 2008). 

Friendship Evangelism: The 5 Thresholds toward Faith, InterVarsity Evangelism, InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA.

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There's a difference between having a kind of meandering interest in something and actively seeking it.

When spiritual questions become urgent for someone, they’re seeking. They want answers.

When someone’s at this stage, we can include them in our communities—places where they can ask their questions honestly and deeply. We can also help them clarify their quest and focus it on Jesus.

Our friends and coworkers may begin to ask questions like:

• Who do I think Jesus really was?

• What are the “dealbreaker” issues for me when it comes to faith?

• Could I really trust Jesus with my life?

We can also help them count the cost. Are they ready to follow Jesus . . .

• With their possessions and money?

• With their relationships and sexuality?

• With their career and whatever power they have?

Because seeking involves seriously considering a new way of life, it can’t last forever. The tension of putting everything on the line is too great. Often, people only spend *three months* at the seeking threshold before deciding whether or not to follow Jesus.

So, we want to be there when someone is ready to start seeking. If we show up when they’re ready to dig in, we might get to see some of the most powerful moments in their journey toward faith.

Sources: Luke 14:25-33 (ESV) Don Everts and Doug Schaupp, I Once Was Lost: What Postmodern Skeptics Taught Us About Their Path to Jesus (Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 2008). 

Friendship Evangelism: The 5 Thresholds toward Faith, InterVarsity Evangelism, InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA.

#FindingGodAtWork #FaithAndWork #GoodNews #Gospel #TheGospel #InterVarsity #Seeking #Seeker #Seek #Questions #Conversation #Apologetics #Luke14 #FiveThresholds #5Thresholds #DonEverts #DougSchaupp #IOnceWasLost #Personal #Witness #Evangelism #Evangelical #Evangelicalism #GentleWitnesses #Mission #SpiritualFormation #ChristianLife #MissionCentral

Cats—even affectionate ones—are often less than fond of crowds. They can get a bit skittish. They stay aloof.

Some of our coworkers are like that, too. It’s not that they’re unkind or rude; it’s just hard to see them open up. They’re a bit . . . aloof.

Let’s not assume that someone isn’t open just because they aren’t *immediately* open. Sometimes, you just have to find the right context to put someone at ease. When someone is willing to be open with you, that may create a safe space where they're willing to also explore being open to Jesus.

Sources: Revelation 3:20 (NIV)

Nan Porter

Bill Gaultiere, "Jesus Will Walk Right Up to You," Soul Shepherding. 

Arthur Bennett, The Valley of Vision (Carlisle, Pennsylvania: Banner of Truth, 1975).

#FindingGodAtWork #FaithAndWork #GoodNews #Gospel #TheGospel #InterVarsity #Open #Openness #Vulnerability #Change #Conversation #Conversion #NanPorter #DallasWillard #ArthurBennett #ValleyofVision #FiveThresholds #5Thresholds #DonEverts #DougSchaupp #IOnceWasLost #Personal #Witness #Evangelism #Evangelical #Evangelicalism #GentleWitnesses #Mission #SpiritualFormation #ChristianLife #MissionCentral

In their journey toward Jesus, our friends eventually may get to the point where they ask, “Could this change me?”

Sometimes it sneaks up on people unexpectedly. They’ve been exploring ideas or talking with a Christian friend, and suddenly they realize, “Something is happening inside of me.”

We want to be really attentive to this moment when it’s happening for someone.

We can help them begin to connect the dots.

Sources: Luke 1:38 (ESV)

Luke 18:22-33 (ESV)

C.S. Lewis, Surprised by Joy: The Shape of My Early Life (New York: Harvest/Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1955).

John Paul II. Dominum et Vivificantem [Encyclical Letter on the Holy Spirit in the Life of the Church and the World], The Holy See, May 18, 1986.

Daniel Goleman, Emotional intelligence: Why It Can Matter More Than IQ (10th Anniversary ed., New York: Bantam Books, 2005). Don Everts and Doug Schaupp, I Once Was Lost: What Postmodern Skeptics Taught Us About Their Path to Jesus (Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 2008). 

Friendship Evangelism: The 5 Thresholds toward Faith, InterVarsity Evangelism, InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA.

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In this special episode, Chris interviews Weija Chang and Rose Brucal, his coworkers and co-conspirators at Northern Illinois Food Bank. These three started an unofficial lunchtime discussion group together called Hungry for More, a place where coworkers have permission to talk about the issues that often get skipped over at work: faith, politics, social issues, and more.

Listen up to hear how they put the group together, what forming a culture of listening looks like, and how simple it can be to make space for deeper conversations.

#FindingGodAtWork #FaithAndWork #GoodNews #Gospel #TheGospel #InterVarsity #Curious #Exploration #Conversation #Discussion #Listening #Lunchtime #AskQuestions #NonJudgmental #Spaces #FiveThresholds #5Thresholds #DonEverts #DougSchaupp #IOnceWasLost #Personal #Witness #Evangelism #Evangelical #Evangelicalism #GentleWitnesses #Mission #SpiritualFormation #ChristianLife #MissionCentral