[Biblemat] S>The Power of The Invitation - (Should we offer an invitation?)
Thomas Thornhill
preacherref01 at verizon.net
Mon Oct 22 18:37:38 CDT 2007
Tom Thornhill Jr here.
Greetings brethren,
First, THANKS to all who responded to my request on whether or not we
should offer an invitation at the conclusion of our worship services.
The following lessons is based PARTLY on that information and my own
personal thoughts. Also, I want to thank Mark Copeland for the great
work he is doing with his site, www.execuatbleoutlines.com. Points 1 &
3 are based upon a lesson found at that site, _but please don't blame
him for the lesson I have presented here_. These are my thoughts and
concerns on this subject. Thanks, I welcome any response that you might
have (PLEASE do not turn this into a discussion on biblematters -
instead email me personally). NOTE: If the formatting is not clear, I
also have the general outline below available in Microsoft Word, 2007.
Tom Thornhill Jr.
562-867-4416
www.roseavenue.org
/Sunday, October 22, 2007 pm/
*THE POWER OF AN INVITATION*
We are hearing much today about some churches (or preachers) having quit
offering invitations at the end of some or all of their worship
services. While I am not sure of the motives behind these decisions,
(which might vary from situation to situation - and thus I am hesitant
to pass judgment), it concerns me because I personally believe we ought
to always give opportunity to one who needs to make correction in their
lives. While there may be no examples of invitations as we offer it at
the end of a service, it is an */expedient /*to help those seeking
salvation (either obeying the gospel or repenting) with an opportunity
to do so.
Furthermore, in scripture there are many examples of invitations being
offered. So in my lesson this evening, I would like to examine some of
these examples and make some applications. Not just an invitation at
the end of a worship service, but invitations in general.
*I. **I. The Divine Invitation*
a. */Isaiah 1:18-19/* -- Isaiah is sent to a rebellious Israel by
God with an invitation for them to repent. Isaiah says, "/Come now, and
let us reason together' says the Lord, 'Though your sins be as scarlet,
they shall be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, they
shall be as wool/." Note how the Lord is willing to forgive if Israel
would only repent.
b. */Isaiah 55/*:1-3 -- everyone who thirst, "come to the water"
and those who have no money, "come, buy and eat". Vs. 3 -- "Incline
your ear and come to Me. Hear, and your soul shall live."
c. */Matthew 11:28-30/* -- Jesus offered the invitation to those
present and to all who would hear through the gospel. Jesus offered
rest to those who are weary and heavy laden.
d. */John 7:37/* -- "If anyone thirsts, let Him come to Me and
drink."
Jesus made reference to living waters in John 4:10-14.
e. */Luke 14:16-24/* -- In the parable of the wedding feast, you
find an invitation that at first was rejected by those initially
invited. Then the servants were instructed to invite anyone they could
find (21-23). The instructions to the servants included "bring in..."
and "compel them to come in."
f. */Revelation 22:17/* -- As revelation is brought to its
conclusion, an invitation is again offered -- this time to all who
desire to drink of the water of life.
g. */What is this invitation/*? It is an invitation to eternal
life and reconciliation with God.
h. _*/WHEN we offer the invitation at the end of services /*-- this
is the hope we have in mind._
*II. **Should We Offer an Invitation?*
a. I recently requested information from brethren about this topic
and received a handful of responses.
b. The primary reasons given for NOT offering an invitation
(whether every time or not all the time) were:
*/ i. /*It is not
one of the 5 commanded acts of worship - */(OR IS IT? Could not the
invitation fit under the heading of teaching and preaching?)/*
ii. It is a
tradition that started more than 100 years ago -- */(SO! Setting aside
the discussion of whether or not it can be bound, is it good or bad,
scriptural or unscriptural?)/*
*/ iii. /*There is no
example of a service where the invitation was offered at the end.
(*/Can we say that invitations were not offered with certainty? More to
come!)/*
iv. Some felt it is
not needed at every service when, for example, every person in
attendance at a small congregation was a regular and knew what they
needed to do. */(While I will concede, there may be occasions where this
is true, but even if everyone there is present and Christians, there may
still the need at times to repent and confess sins. I would say in this
situation, it would be appropriate to modify the invitation to the
audience, which I would ALWAYS recommend. In my mind, these times ought
to be the EXCEPTION rather than the rule!)/*
*/ v. /*The point
was also made that, whenever one has a need it should be addressed RIGHT
THEN -- without waiting for a formal invitation at the conclusion of a
Bible study or sermon. /*(*/*/I agree! But what if that sermon was the
catalyst that pricked the heart? Why NOT give the invitation before
Satan comes and snatches away that burning ember?)/*
vi. *LET IT BE
UNDERSTOOD,* I did NOT receive a single response that said giving the
invitation was wrong and most, if not all, were quick to defend the
right to extend an invitation as an expedient. _The only issue was
whether it could be bound as an absolute necessity and whether
congregations (or preachers) who choose not to offer an invitation
should be marked as unsound!_ *_Brethren, they have a point!_*
c. One the other hand, (and this is my conviction), I believe we
OUGHT to offer the invitation. And here are some of the reasons why:
i. _Because it
IS an expedient_ following a lesson from the word of God. Preaching is
to reprove, rebuke and exhort (2Tim. 4:2). If a preacher has done his
job, the lesson is relevant to someone (if not all) in the audience.
Thus while their minds are fresh on the topic and perhaps they have been
"pricked in the heart", (cf. Acts 2:37) -- they need to be given
opportunity then to respond. Remember the power of the gospel -- Romans
1:16, Hebrews 4:12
ii. _Because we DO
have examples of invitations. _ While it not made with the same wording
we use, there were still exhortations to respond.
*/Acts 2:40/*, "And with many other words he testified and exhorted them
saying, 'Be saved from this perverse generation!'"
*NOTE* that the word, exhort means, "to call to one's side, call for
summon....to admonish...to beg, entreat, beseech..." (Thayer)
Vine's says, "(a) to call on, entreat, (b) to admonish, exhort, urge one
to pursue some course of conduct." See 1 Timothy 4:13 where Paul gives
Timothy instructions. Again, 2 Timothy 4:2 -- Reprove, rebuke and exhort...
*/Acts 8:12/*, Philip went to Samaria, "but when they believed Philip
preaching the things of the kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus
Christ, they were baptized, both men and women." Did Philip in some
way, either during or at the conclusion of his preaching tell them what
they needed to do?
Throughout the book of Acts we see responses after preaching and
teaching -- while some were private studies, others were VERY public.
iii. _Because of
the urgency of the message_.
2 Cor. 6:2, "Behold, now is the accepted time; behold now is the day of
salvation."
2 Cor. 5:11, "knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men."
*/Incidentally, this is WHY we would open the baptistery at midnight on
a Tuesday if one wanted to obey the gospel, OR in the middle of a sermon
if someone wanted to be baptized right then./* *Why NOT give the
opportunity at the conclusion of a sermon or Bible class?*
iv. _Because, we
don't know if one will have another opportunity_. In Acts 24:25 we read
of Paul having preached to Felix and he was afraid (trembled -- KJV),
but he put off obedience. It is possible that if an invitation is not
offered that one will put off obedience and then go away and never get
another chance.
v. _Because of the
value of repetition_. When one hears the invitation repeated EVERY TIME
they assemble, they know it is important and it becomes impressed in
their minds. Ask a child who has assembled with the saints all his life
what the steps of salvation are. At some point, when he/she is ready to
obey -- that is what he will want to do.
One brother responded, noting that his son obeyed the gospel one Sunday
afternoon between services. He saw the urgency and acted immediately.
The response was a result of REPEATEDLY hearing what he needed to do!
Both Paul and Peter wrote letters reminding brethren of things they had
taught before. _We NEED repetition_.
Another brother made mention of a man who had faithfully attended
services for 30 years and then one Wednesday night he decided to obey
the gospel. Later he told the preacher that he had not planned on
obeying, but something was said in the Bible study that prompted him.
He responded during the invitation.
vi. */_Why NOT offer
an invitation_?/* While it might not be a specific command - in our
culture, I CANNOT think of a valid reason to NOT offer an invitation as
a general rule, thought there may be specific occasions when it is not
expedient (e.g. 1. Public teaching to an audience of agnostics
addressing whether or not God exists. In such a case, much more ground
work needs to be laid before one is ready to obey the gospel. _BUT,
even then, would not an invitation to further study be appropriat_e?
2. In a foreign country where you just starting to preach, people may
not understand what is being done -- so it takes time to teach them all
the truth. NOTE: The practice of offering an invitation is not done in
many foreign countries for various reasons.
vii. _Sometimes our
invitations are not thorough enough_! There may be some who want to
obey the gospel, but they really don't know what is expected or what to
do. Do we EVER take the time to explain what will happen and how it
will be done? We CANNOT assume that one will figure out what they need
to do without hearing it. They may have heard a great lesson that
convicted them, *but what now?!* An invitation can answer that question
-- just like Peter on the day of Pentecost, cf. Acts 2:37-38.
viii. _Honestly, I
WONDER why it is not seen as important or necessary._
I can think of scenarios or reasons where I would be very concerned if
one chose NOT to offer the invitation. Such as:
1) Because the true plan of salvation opposes the denominational concept
of salvation and there is a fear of upsetting (i.e. offending) someone
too quickly.
Such an attitude could leave a wrong impression of security with the lost!
2) Because one is attempting to "get along" with others who teach a
different plan of salvation (i.e. not sure if one has to be baptized to
be saved, etc.).
3) Simply because the "traditional way of doing it" needs to be
challenged. If something is a good thing, (i.e. an expedient) it should
not be rejected just because you can! Cf. 1 Cor. 11:2, 2 Thess. 2:15,
"Therefore brethren, stand fast and hold the traditions which you were
taught, whether by word or our epistle." _Rejecting something that is
an expedient just because you can is no better than binding an expedient._
*_NOTE:_* I am NOT saying, nor accusing anyone of teaching these as the
reasons some fail to offer invitations, but they are thoughts that enter
my mind and cause me to be concerned. Especially with the debates now
taking place among brethren concerning the subjects of fellowship and
false teachers, as well as the elimination of "negative preaching" in
many places, and churches trying to distance themselves in every
possible way from "traditional" churches of Christ.
ix. */These are some
reasons WHY I believe we OUGHT to offer an invitation./* And until
proven different, I will continue to offer one and teach that it should
be done. But, having said all this, I cannot with complete conviction
make a general assessment saying that it is wrong for one to not do it,
_though I think it unwise_.
* III. **Personal Invitations*
a. These invitations ought to take place. The best way to reach one
who is lost is with a personal invitation. It is also a scriptural
means of reaching the lost. Consider:
i. It was
prophesied - Isaiah 2:1-3
ii. It was practiced
1. John 1:40-42 -- Andrew invited Peter to meet Jesus
2. John 1:43-46 -- Philip invited Nathaniel to meet Jesus
3. John 4:28-30 -- the Samaritan woman invited her neighbors and
village to meet Jesus
4. Luke 5:27-29 -- Matthew (Levi) gave a feast to his tax
collector friends to introduce Jesus to them
5. Acts 10:33 -- Cornelius invited his household
b. Consider the power of an invitation -- it works, as the examples
above show.
c. Where do we need to extend invitations?
i. To attend the
services of the church -- Isaiah 2:3, John 1:46
ii. To study the
Bible -- Acts 8:30, "Do you understand what you are reading?"
iii. To obey the
gospel -- Acts 22:16 -- after teaching, there comes a point when we need
to encourage one to become a Christian.
Everyone will agree that the invitation is important and at some point
it must be extended. So at this time I extend an invitation to you.
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