The Invitation - A Sacred Trust
Title: The Invitation - A Sacred Trust
Subject: Invitation, Preparing The
The Invitation: A Sacred Trust
R. Darrel Davis, Evangelist
Foundation Ministries - www.onlyfoundation.org
How many times has your sermon failed to take flight because it was grounded by a poor invitation?
When I first started preaching, I always struggled with the invitation time. I found myself floundering around waiting for some divine illumination to shine upon my feeble words which might elicit a response from my hearers.
Sure, I understood that the Holy Spirit was the Agent at work in people's hearts during that crucial time, but I also understood that I was the agent He chose to work through to reach people with the good news. So it was important for me to be effective in my invitations.
I came to realize that one thing was lacking in my sermon preparation: invitation preparation.
For the faithful expositor of God's Word, it is natural, even essential, to spend hours pouring over a scripture digging out God''s truth to share with the audience. But planning an invitation just did not seem right. I thought I was supposed to wait for the Holy Spirit to put words in my mouth during that hour. I was wrong.
Just as you should never step into a pulpit unprepared to deliver a sermon, you should never step down from a pulpit to invite listeners to respond without adequate preparation. The invitation is a sacred trust.
Preparing for an invitation begins with a proper understanding of the invitation. I believe that the invitation is not just the last 5-10 minutes tacked onto the end of a message that motivates people to respond; it is the entire message. And, the invitation should never be divorced from the sermon.
We should never preach only to inform; we preach to transform. In other words, everything we say or do during the message should be building toward listeners responding to God. His Word is the catalyst for change. When we deliver it faithfully, we should expect people to be changed.
Whenever I preach evangelistically, I continually invite the hearer to come to Jesus Christ. I begin the message with a pre-invitation. I say something like, "at the end of this message, I am going to invite you give your life to Jesus Christ." I will give a basic statement of the gospel and tell the listeners how I am going to ask them respond. This eliminates any "surprises" at the end of the message.
During the message, I present the gospel and remind the hearers that they will be able to respond in the next few minutes. Usually, this is at the end of each sermon point as I generally preach three point messages. By the end of the message, they are ready to make a decision.
Also, an effective invitation begins by planning how people will respond. Will they have to get out of their seats and come to the altar, will they fill out a decision card or will they go to a counseling room after the service? Ask yourself, "How will the listener respond?" It is important to establish this beforehand and to communicate that to the listener clearly. This is doubly true when preaching to unbelievers or the unchurched as they are unfamiliar with church ways.
If there is no way for people to respond, there will be no life change. The listener may not know how to respond. An example of this can be found in Acts 2:37. Peter's Pentecost sermon had brought about conviction in the hearts of his listeners, yet they had to ask, "Men and brethren, what shall we do?" Peter answered, "Repent and be baptized..."
A careful examination of the sermons of the Bible reveals that the listeners were always invited to do something and told how to do that something.
Finally, plan what you will say. It may be helpful for you to write out the invitation on paper. Prayerfully consider what you will say and pray for the empowerment of the Holy Spirit during the time of decision. Reinforce your words with appropriate scriptures.
When I preach evangelistically, I always use a variation of the ABCs of salvation for the time of commitment. I invite the listener to ADMIT to God that they have sinned and need a Savior, BELIEVE on the Lord Jesus Christ, and COMMIT their lives to Him as Lord and Savior. I always reinforce each point with scripture.
I am consistent in this invitation regardless of my audience or venue. Since the gospel is a simple message, it requires a simple explanation and invitation. After the message, if someone says to you, "That was so simple, a child could understand it," then you have hit the mark.
It is important to understand that the invitation is a sacred trust. It is a cooperative effort between the preacher and the Holy Spirit. Mere words are not enough to bring conviction and life change in the heart of the listener. We must preach and invite people to respond as if everything depended on us and trust God because everything depends on Him.
R. Darrel Davis, Evangelist
Foundation Ministries - www.onlyfoundation.org
How many times has your sermon failed to take flight because it was grounded by a poor invitation?
When I first started preaching, I always struggled with the invitation time. I found myself floundering around waiting for some divine illumination to shine upon my feeble words which might elicit a response from my hearers.
Sure, I understood that the Holy Spirit was the Agent at work in people's hearts during that crucial time, but I also understood that I was the agent He chose to work through to reach people with the good news. So it was important for me to be effective in my invitations.
I came to realize that one thing was lacking in my sermon preparation: invitation preparation.
For the faithful expositor of God's Word, it is natural, even essential, to spend hours pouring over a scripture digging out God''s truth to share with the audience. But planning an invitation just did not seem right. I thought I was supposed to wait for the Holy Spirit to put words in my mouth during that hour. I was wrong.
Just as you should never step into a pulpit unprepared to deliver a sermon, you should never step down from a pulpit to invite listeners to respond without adequate preparation. The invitation is a sacred trust.
Preparing for an invitation begins with a proper understanding of the invitation. I believe that the invitation is not just the last 5-10 minutes tacked onto the end of a message that motivates people to respond; it is the entire message. And, the invitation should never be divorced from the sermon.
We should never preach only to inform; we preach to transform. In other words, everything we say or do during the message should be building toward listeners responding to God. His Word is the catalyst for change. When we deliver it faithfully, we should expect people to be changed.
Whenever I preach evangelistically, I continually invite the hearer to come to Jesus Christ. I begin the message with a pre-invitation. I say something like, "at the end of this message, I am going to invite you give your life to Jesus Christ." I will give a basic statement of the gospel and tell the listeners how I am going to ask them respond. This eliminates any "surprises" at the end of the message.
During the message, I present the gospel and remind the hearers that they will be able to respond in the next few minutes. Usually, this is at the end of each sermon point as I generally preach three point messages. By the end of the message, they are ready to make a decision.
Also, an effective invitation begins by planning how people will respond. Will they have to get out of their seats and come to the altar, will they fill out a decision card or will they go to a counseling room after the service? Ask yourself, "How will the listener respond?" It is important to establish this beforehand and to communicate that to the listener clearly. This is doubly true when preaching to unbelievers or the unchurched as they are unfamiliar with church ways.
If there is no way for people to respond, there will be no life change. The listener may not know how to respond. An example of this can be found in Acts 2:37. Peter's Pentecost sermon had brought about conviction in the hearts of his listeners, yet they had to ask, "Men and brethren, what shall we do?" Peter answered, "Repent and be baptized..."
A careful examination of the sermons of the Bible reveals that the listeners were always invited to do something and told how to do that something.
Finally, plan what you will say. It may be helpful for you to write out the invitation on paper. Prayerfully consider what you will say and pray for the empowerment of the Holy Spirit during the time of decision. Reinforce your words with appropriate scriptures.
When I preach evangelistically, I always use a variation of the ABCs of salvation for the time of commitment. I invite the listener to ADMIT to God that they have sinned and need a Savior, BELIEVE on the Lord Jesus Christ, and COMMIT their lives to Him as Lord and Savior. I always reinforce each point with scripture.
I am consistent in this invitation regardless of my audience or venue. Since the gospel is a simple message, it requires a simple explanation and invitation. After the message, if someone says to you, "That was so simple, a child could understand it," then you have hit the mark.
It is important to understand that the invitation is a sacred trust. It is a cooperative effort between the preacher and the Holy Spirit. Mere words are not enough to bring conviction and life change in the heart of the listener. We must preach and invite people to respond as if everything depended on us and trust God because everything depends on Him.