Back when I was in high school, I had a pastor who was also the FCA leader for a few schools in the Tulsa area. This pastor began to meet with me and several of my buddies. He would gather us occasionally at Pizza Hut or Mazzio’s. He bought us pizza and poured into us, and then he challenged us to invite some of our friends who didn’t know Christ. He would share the gospel and then he would have us share the gospel. It was discipleship. I didn’t know what discipleship was, but that is what we were doing.

In those meetings and in sharing the gospel and pouring into friends, I discovered an incredible joy. I knew the joy of knowing Christ personally, but I did not know that I got to participate in sharing Christ with others. Sure, I had heard sermons about evangelism, but I had never experienced it for myself. The great joy of being a Christian is not only in receiving Christ but also in helping others come to know Him. It is what we call the priesthood of the believer, and Paul talks about this in the latter portion of Romans 15. Paul’s master passion was not just found in knowing Christ but in sharing Christ. Paul never got over this. He never lost a sense of awe and wonder at the grace of God that saved him and invited him into a mission and a purpose that was bigger than he was.

I pray that you will join us as we gather to worship this weekend. I pray that you would come with an open heart to receive from Christ’s Word and a heart to give and serve others. We all need Christ, and we all need each other. I hope to see you this weekend.

In Christ,

Pastor Chad McDonald