Key Verse

Matthew 5:13-16

¹³“You are the salt of the earth. But what good is salt if it has lost its flavor? Can you make it useful again? It will be thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless. ¹⁴You are the light of the world–like a city on a mountain, glowing in the night for all to see. ¹⁵Don’t hide your light under a basket! Instead, put it on a stand and let it shine for all. ¹⁶In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.

Something To Think About

As human beings, we have a natural tendency to gravitate towards those who are like us and to those who make us most comfortable. So, our tendency as Christians is toward isolation from non-Christians.

I have a secret that can help you end this isolation. It’s a secret that will help you develop friendships of integrity with non-Christians. This secret has been developed and refined over thousands of years. This secret is so amazing that it will change your life forever. Never again will you wonder how to develop relationships with non-Christians. Are you ready to hear this secret? Can you handle it? OK - here it is:

Barbecue.

Food breaks down barriers. For an outsider it’s an island of familiarity in the weird world of church. It gives visitors a chance to see us at our most normal - Hey look, they eat the same food as us, maybe they’re not so different after all.

In his book, Becoming a Contagious Christian, Bill Hybels talks about the “Barbecue-First Principle.” He tells the story of a time he called out to his new neighbor who was next door in the yard and asked if the neighbor wanted to go with him to a church function. The neighbor hesitated and then responded, “No thanks, but if you ever want to barbecue let me know.”

The neighbor was interested in getting to know him first before he was willing to be influenced by any of his religious ideas. Hence, the “Barbecue-First principle.” Often, we need to invest in friendships and pay our relational rent before people will listen to our spiritual ideas.

In the Bible, one of the first practitioners of this secret was Matthew. In Luke 5:27-32, we read that Jesus saw a tax collector called Levi (a.k.a. Matthew) and said, “Follow Me”. Matthew immediately left everything and followed Jesus. He also wanted his friends to meet Jesus, so he threw a big party for Jesus at his house and invited all of his tax collector friends and others. Of course the religious leaders couldn’t understand how Jesus could eat with tax collectors. Didn’t he know that they were sinners? Jesus responded - “Healthy people don’t need a doctor, sick people do.” We need to learn the lesson of this verse. If we isolate ourselves, how can me minister to those who need to hear about Jesus the most?

Let’s Discuss

It is important that we not immerse ourselves into the secular culture so much so that we lose our message. How can we identify with the secular culture while being different from the culture?

Personal discomfort is the main difficulty that most Christians face when seeking to befriend non-Christians. What steps can we take to help us overcome these feelings of discomfort?

Who in your neighborhood can you invite over for barbecue?

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If you would like a printable copy of this devotional, we have provided one here.

A 21^st Century Christian must know how to get out of the church, off the internet, away from the iPod and into the life of others.

This is Pastor Bart Wilkins presenting the sixth and final message in our 21st Century Christian series entitled “Being A Christian In This Age Of Isolation”.

Direct Link To MP3 File