What do the expressions ‘Talk the Talk’ and ‘Walk the Walk’ mean to you?
In light of our passage from Mark’s gospel lesson for this week I consider those two phrases to relate to mission and evangelism.
We are usually good about talking about Mission. In fact several times a year we have special Sunday’s dedicated to mission. Presbyterian World Service & Development (PWS&D) Sunday, Mission Awareness Sunday, Women’s Missionary Society (WMS) Sunday just to name a few. However, I am not aware of any Sunday’s through the church year that we dedicate to evangelism. It is as if evangelism were a dirty or bad word. Never to be spoken lest we actually have to do evangelism.
As Presbyterians we do not think of ourselves as evangelical. Instead we understand our identity as a mainline Protestant denomination. Evangelial is how those other Christians worship. However, the word evangel means the Christian Gospel. Evangelism is simply talking about God.
In Mark’s gospel Jesus makes it clear that the disciples are to go out, to heal and to teach. That’s mission and evangelism.
Text: Mark 6: 1-13
Questions for Sunday
- Why is talking about God to others a difficult task?
- How could you incorporate both mission and evangelism into your own life?
Prayer for Sunday
God of all creation, still my beating heart. Place me at ease and allow me to be guided by your Spirit. Enable me to share your story with people that I meet. Allow others to learn of your love for them. In Jesus name, Amen.