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“And he entered the synagogue and continued speaking out boldly for three months, reasoning and persuading them about the kingdom of God. But when some were becoming hardened and disobedient, speaking evil of the Way before the people, he withdrew from them and took away the disciples, reasoning daily in the school of Tyrannus. This took place for two years, so that all who lived in Asia heard the word of the Lord, both Jews and Greeks.” Acts 19:8-10

I am convinced that most churches are like the synagogue in this passage than the school of Tyrannus. Why? It’s a place where the preacher gets up and argues persuasively about God’s kingdom (a good thing) and some people come to Christ as a result (an even better thing.)

But the best thing always happens at churches and youth groups which are more like the school of Tyrannus than the synagogue. What happened there that was so special? Paul took the believers who responded in the synagogue and trained them in the basics of the Christian faith. “This took place for two years, so that all who lived in Asia heard the word of the Lord, both Jews and Greeks.”

This is an amazing statement…all who lived in Asia heard the gospel as a result of what took place at the school of Tyrannus. So, the next question is obviously, what took place there and how did everyone hear the gospel as a result?

What did not take place there was that every Jew and Greek from all over the province of Asia came to hear the gospel from the apostle Paul. That’s too many people in too small of a space in too short of time.

What did take place is that those being trained by the apostle Paul couldn’t just sit there after awhile. I am sure that they were so overwhelmed at the doctrines of grace that, after hearing Paul for so long, they exploded out of their chairs and hopped a chariot back to their communities to reach their friends, neighbors, family and co-workers with this life-transforming message of the gospel. Perhaps some of them brought the new believers they had led to Christ back to get trained by Paul at the school of Tyrannus and then these freshly converted, newly trained believers were mobilized back to reach even more people.

The math just works in this passage. Multiplication (as seen in the school of Tyrannus) works way faster than addition (as seen in the synagogue.)

In this passage it seems pretty clear that the apostle Paul taps into the potential of mobilizing (i.e. inspiring, equipping and deploying) other believers to reach their own circles of influence. This passage proves the exponential potential of training people to evangelize verses trying to evangelize everyone ourselves. The fully trained believers who “graduated” from the school of Tyrannus were able to do collectively over two years what the apostle Paul was never able to do by himself over his life time, reach everyone in an entire province with the gospel!

What does this have to do with you, your church and your youth group? More than you might think! I am convinced that the typical church is like the synagogue in Acts 19:8 where evangelism happens but at a rather slow pace. But what if we inspired, equipped and deloyed believers in our churches and youth groups to go back to their neighborhoods, work places, schools, sports teams, Facebook/MySpace pages and friends to carry the gospel to them? What if we transformed our churches into schools of Tyrannus?

Enough of depending on outreach meetings and evangelists to do the work for us! Let us turn our churches, youth groups, small groups, men’s meetings and women’s fellowships into schools of Tyrannus where evangelism training takes place! We can do collectively what our pastors, youth pastors and ministry leaders cannot through the tired, old “just invite your friends to the synagogue” approach! We can reach entire regions if we each reach our own circle of influence with the gospel.

If you need a free curriculum to start turning your church into a school of Tyrannus check out these ten free podcasts and downloadable outlines here.

Rock THE Cause by starting your own school of Tyrannus!

It was almost twenty years ago when I was invited to go and speak at a Bible club meeting at Arvada West High School. As I walked down the hallway after the last school bell and went toward the classroom where the Bible clum was meeting, my heart was beating with excitement. I couldn’t wait to talk to these twenty or so high schoolers about the importance of evangelism.

But then it suddenly struck me. Here I was, about to talk about the importance of proclaiming the message of Jesus, and here they were, hiding in the back room of a public school classroom exercizing their religious freedom out of the line-of-site of the people who needed Jesus. I quickly made my plan, pushed open the door of the classroom and found the teenager who would be starting the meeting (the one with the guitar.) I told him that I wanted to head outside and do the Bible study under a big tree that was in the park adjacent to the school.

“But that’s where a lot of kids hang out after school” he said with a flash of fear in his eyes.

“Perfect!” I proclaimed, “Since I’m talking about evangelism it will be a great visual.”

The young man introduced me and tentatively announced that they were moving their Bible study outside. Teenagers picked up their Bibles and hesitantly followed me and the teen with the guitar toward the door.

It might as well have been The Bataan Death March. The feelings of fear were palpable and rightfully so. As I pushed open the door to the outside and looked across to the park we were headed toward I could see that it was packed with teenagers…mostly of the gnarly variety. You could hear the snickers as they saw a single file line of teenagers following a guy with a guitar and an obviously-out-of-high-school dude with a big, maroon colored NIV Study Bible under his arm.

As the group settled into a big circle under the shade of a rather large tree, the teen with the guitar quietly eeked out a worship song, strumming ever so lightly. Everyone else whisper worshipped, embarrassed by the spectacle of, well, being a spectacle. As we sat and sang I could see teenagers outside the circle pointing and laughing at us.

It was awkwardly perfect.

When it was my turn to talk I opened the Bible and shared about the urgency of evangelism. By now teenagers had gotten over the shock of being outside “among the heathen.” But the shock soon returned like a tsunami when I proclaimed, “Okay, I’m done talking about evangelism. Now we are going to do it.”

You could have heard a lady bug burp on the blades of grass below us. Finally one teen broke the silence.

“What are you talking about?” she asked in terror.

“Well, the Bible says we are to be ‘doers of the word and not hearers only’ and we just heard about the importance of sharing our faith, so now we are going to do it.”

Hearts beat harder, mouths dropped open and palms got sweaty.

I turned to the trembling teen next to me and said, “What’s your name?”

“Josh” he said, his voice trembling.

“You see those three girls over there?” I asked.

“Y, y…yes” he stuttered out.

“We are going to talk to them right now about Jesus” I proclaimed.

“BUT I KNOW THEM!!!” he declared in fear.

“Great! You can introduce me!” I said while grabbing him by the arm and bringing him to his feet.

“You all pray as Josh and I talk to these girls about Jesus.” I said to the terrified circle of teenagers who, by this time, had wished they had invited someone else to speak.

Josh looked like he was having a seizure as we walked up to these girls and began to talk to them about spiritual things. Strange thing is, they were very open to talking. Minutes later they all put their faith in Jesus. I was thrilled but then Josh snapped…in a very good way.

“THAT IS AWESOME!!!” he yelled. “Now, you’ve got to grow in your relationship with Jesus so you are going to youth group with me!!!”

“O-k-a-y…” they said, obviously a little freaked out by the normally much more subdued Josh. He then went on and on about why he was so excited that they came to faith in Christ. They were beaming with joy…and so was I. It was something to behold. A different kind of seizure was kicking in and it kept shaking with adrenalin until we got back to the middle of the Bible-study-turned-prayer-meeting circle.

“What happened?” one girl asked as she looked up from her prayer.

“It was amazing!” Josh shouted. “They all trusted in Jesus and they are all going to youth group with me this Wednesday night!”

A surge of excitement exploded throughout the group. Then, without warning, Josh looked over at a teenager about 50 yards away and yelled, “I know that kid! He’s a Mormon! I’m getting him!!!” Before I could say anything he was sprinting toward this teenager like Forrest Gump on Red Bull.

Soon teenagers were jumping up from the Bible study circle, finding friends and engaging them in spiritual conversations. Other teens were providing “air support” through prayer. But all of them were engaged.

Why? We had moved from meeting to mission, from discipleship to danger, from the modern church to the book of Acts. There is nothing that can do that like evangelism…nothing.

The question is how do we do this same thing in our churches, youth groups, men’s Bible studies and women’s fellowships every single week? The answer is that we depend on the Holy Spirit, take THE Cause of Christ seriously (Matthew 28:19) and go for it in creative and compelling ways.

We need more pounding hearts and sweaty palms in church. We need more seizures. We need more mission and less meetings.

It’s time we become doers of the Word and not hearers only. Don’t you agree?

Do you remember the first time after you got your driver’s license that your dad looked at you and threw the keys to his car into your outstretched hands and said, “Go ahead and take it for a spin…by yourself.”

To be honest, I don’t. Of course, I never knew my biological father. But I imagine how that moment must have felt for those of you who do. What a rush knowing that he believed in you, that you were ready to take the big drive solo.

Maybe that’ how Peter felt when Jesus told a water soaked Apostle Peter on a beach to “Feed my sheep.” In a sense Jesus was throwing him the keys to the car and saying, “take it for a spin.”

Jesus was leaving Peter in charge of this ragtag group of young disciples. He was to feed and lead them to accomplish THE Cause of making disciples who make disciples in every nation. For three and a half years Peter was double clutching, second guessing and taking wrong turns. But it was okay because he only had his learner’s permit and Jesus was right there by his side.

But now Jesus was getting ready to evacuate the planet and Peter would soon be the one in the driver’s seat, leading the disciples in their quest to race the gospel around the globe. The good news was that, although Jesus would soon be gone, His Spirit would soon come to drive Peter as he drove the disciples to the finish line. The Holy Spirit was like a GPS meets Turbo charge in one and He would give Peter the direction and the power to get the job done. By the time the blood rushed to Peter’s head as he hung inverted on a cross the gospel had gone from Jerusalem to Rome and beyond. That’s a lot of souls. That’s a lot of mileage.

What kind of car was Peter driving? I don’t know but my best guess is a Honda. After all, the Bible says in that “the disciples were all in one accord…” (Sorry, I couldn’t resist.)

So just what is the car? It’s the body of Christ on a mission for Christ! And where is this car today? Parked! Instead of motoring from our Jerusalem through our Judea and Samaria, it’s sitting in the pews of our church buildings. Like a Ferrari wasting away in a garage we are called to drive, but too often we just collect dust and rust.

The keys to that car have been passed on from generation to generation and now it’s our turn to drive. In essence Jesus is throwing us the keys and saying “Go ahead. Take it for a spin.” He is entrusting us to make disciples who make disciples in our own little world and to take the next generation with us, just like Peter did as he drove the young disciples to make disciples who make disciples.

Start your engines and let’s drive!

Here’s something I’ve been thinking about…

No single act in the Christian life is as dangerous as evangelism. Bible study, prayer and attending church are not dangerous, they are disciplines. But when you actually open your mouth to proclaim the gospel to someone you risk some kind of loss. In some countries that could be your life. But in America it is most likely your reputation, a relationship or maybe even a pending promotion. When you share the gospel, even in a loving way, you could be subjecting yourself to mockery or, at the very minimum, alienation by co-workers, classmates, family or friends. When you proclaim Christ’s controversial message to those you know you are picking up your cross in a visceral and vocal way. You are that proving you are willing to die to that relationship, if need be, so that that person can hear and have the opportunity of being transformed by the gospel. Now that is dangerous and that is evangelism.

You may have heard of EE (Evangelism Explosion) but I would like to introduce you to DD (Dangerous Discipleship!) Oh, and, by the way, they both are related. Why? Because when Christians are externally reaching out to their friends, co-workers, neighbors and family members with the gospel of Jesus Christ they are, at the same time, engaging in an internal form of spiritual transformation.

The first thing Jesus did when he officially appointed them as apostles in Matthew 10 was to unleash them on an evangelistic campaign. Why? Because Jesus knew that when the disciples were put in a position of danger that they would be forced to either trust in him or run and hide. Jesus understood that discipleship without danger was really no discipleship at all.

If there is nothing to lose then there is nothing to gain. Maybe that’s why Jesus boldly stated to the large crowds who were following him in Luke 14:26-27, “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters—yes, even his own life—he cannot be my disciple. And anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.”

If you saw someone carrying their cross in that culture they were on their way to be crucified. So, in this passage, Jesus is inviting the crowds to come die with him by bearing the shame of His Name.

Are you willing to bear that same shame? If you are then start sharing your faith right away because evangelism gets splinter in your hands quicker than any Bible study ever could. Even as I type these words there are Christians across the globe dying for sharing their faith. They have picked up their crosses by proclaiming the Name of Jesus and risking everything.

In the United States you may not get killed for sharing your faith but you could lose your job, your reputation and your relationships. But remember that if you risk nothing then you gain nothing when it comes to your own spiritual development. And there is no spiritual discipline that risks as much as a lifestyle of relational and relentless evangelism.

In most discipleship meetings in the United States the only danger may be from a paper cut from turning the pages of the Bible or a a hot coffee tongue burn. Again, nothing lost, nothing gained.

Not too long ago I was invited to a men’s Bible study. As the guys who were there described themselves and their meeting I heard phrases like “we are a band of brothers” and “we are spiritual warriors!” So when they asked me to share for a few minutes I pulled a pin on the discipleship grenade. I said something like, “No offense guys but, while this is a great little Bible study, I wouldn’t quite call yourselves warriors yet. Warriors don’t sit around and talk about how they are warriors they go out and fight the battle and then they gather together and tell stories of what happened on the battlefield.”

I then helped them to re-imagine a new kind of gathering where they all picked a handful of others they were seeking to reach with the gospel. I cast a vision of a gathering where danger was introduced as a key element. Of course they could and should still dive into the Scriptures. But now the truths of the Divine Field Guide (aka “The Bible”) would be punctuated by stories of real men risking everything by reaching others with the good news of Jesus verses just reading about those who did this 2,000 years ago on a different continent.

Some kind of chord was struck in their hearts that morning. They resonated with my challenge. I am excited to hear how their new format unfolds.

But it needs to unfold in more than just men’s Bible studies. It needs to unfold in women’s Bible studies, church services, Sunday school and youth group meetings.

As I travel the nation and connect with young people through Dare 2 Share training conferences, I find teenagers mostly bored with church. Why? Because they live in a cause-driven culture and go to information-driven churches. To them church is more of an information download than the gathering of spiritual warriors who are working together to accomplish a dangerous mission. But the cause of Christ is at the epicenter of danger. It is his last and lasting mandate to “make disciples of all nations….”

I believe if we can unleash our young people, our old people and every “people” in between for THE Cause then we can witness massive amounts of souls saved. But I also believe that we will see an accelerated spiritual growth in the lives of those who are advancing the gospel because of the dangerous form of discipleship they are engaged in as they advance the kingdom of God.

Let’s do more than beat our chests and talk about being warriors for Christ. Let’s beat down the doors of hell and plunder lost souls from the empire of darkness. Then we can gather around the campfire, share stories, dive deep into the Word of God and give him praise for all that he is doing.

Now that’s dangerous!

Columbine flashbacks.

Almost eleven years after the tragedy at Columbine High School a lone gunman unleashed two bullet from a 30-6 Rifle into two teenagers at Deer Creek Middle School in Littleton, Colorado. One is in critical condition. The other was released last night.

My heart breaks for these two teenagers and for the hundreds upon hundreds of teens at this school who will never be the same. Their innocence lost at the sound of two blasts and at the sight of their friends getting hurt.

But thank God for math teachers. Dr. David Benke tackled the shooter while he was reloading. And then other teachers piled on. I’m married to a public school teacher and I thank God that, since Columbine, teachers like Dr. Benke are saying, “No more. Not at my school.”

These teens need hope now more than ever. These teens need Jesus now more than ever.

Pray with me for the students at Deer Creek Middle School. Pray for the teenager who is currently struggling to recover at Children’s hospital. And, yes, pray for the lone gunman to come to Jesus and receive the redemption he so desperately needs.

And please, I beg you, pray that God raises up a generation of teen evangelists who reach their friends with the good news of Jesus Christ so that young people across the United States can say with the Apostle Paul, “For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” Philippians 1:21

Have you ever been to a Simply Youth Ministry Conference? If not, you need to go. It’s experiential and transformational. It’s powerful and practical. Oh, did I mention that you’ll have a blast in the process of all this life change? How could you not be transformed with general session speakers like Doug Fields and Derwin Gray? How could you not have a blast with Emcees like Doug Fields and The Skit Guys? Oh yeah, did I mention Doug Fields will be there?

Relationships, training and interactivity are the name of the game at this youth worker’s training conference and it shows in the hallways. They are full of youth leaders deep in conversation about lessons they are learning and old principles they are putting into practice in new ways.

At SYMC you’ll discover a vibe and a tribe. The vibe is that of the Holy Spirit reverberating through the lives of the top notch Simply Youth Ministry team and the fired up group of trainers they have assembled. The tribe is that of fellow youth ministry revolutionaries like yourself who are tired of the status and sick of the quo.

Come join us this weekend in Chicago (I will be there on Sunday and Monday after the D2S Conference in Lincoln, Nebraska) and you will become a fan of the SYMC too. I, like the bearded guy o those irritatingMen’s Wearhouse commercials, guarantee it.

I remember my first real road trip as a young man. It was with a group of fifty plus teenagers from Colorado Bible Church. Our destination was a camp in Hollywood, Florida…in July…on an overcrowded school bus with no air conditioning. Did I mention that our starting point was Denver, Colorado? Strange smells indeed. Let’s just say that this particular summer camp didn’t conclude with a baptism in the Atlantic Ocean. It started with one, just to scrub the stink off.

In spite of the odor challenges I will never forget that spiritually life-altering week. God used it to transform my young life. It was at this camp that I really began to catch a vision for what God could do through an army of fired up teenagers (there were 2,000 of them or so at this particular camp.) It was there that God moved my heart to make a difference with my life by investing in teenagers.

To be honest this change of perspective began before I ever got to Hollywood. It started on the bus ride. Driving from Denver to south Florida was a two day extravaganza and Kenny Sanchez, the bus driver and my youth pastor, asked me to stay up with him to talk as he drove into the late hours of the night. As teenagers snored and snoozed all around us we had a deep conversation about the power of the gospel and the difference that one teenager could make. Kenny believed in the power of the gospel and the potential of young people. Kenny believed in me. When I walked off that bus two days later I wasn’t just soaked in sweat I was drenched in faith. I knew that God wanted to use me, and other teenagers, to make a difference

That road trip changed my life.

Youth ministry is like a road trip. It’s full of twists and turns and lots of late night conversations. And it’s on this road trip that youth leaders often encounter some big problems:

Flat tires

What’s your flat tire? In other words what are your personal and ministry capacity challenges? Of course you could ride on the rims all the way to your destination but if you want to make it to your destination as safely and quickly as possible you probably want to fix that flat before you step on the accelerator.

Maybe that flat is a relational challenge that you have with another member of the youth staff. It could be a nagging sin in your personal life that is holding you back. Maybe you just need to pump up your prayer life by going on a spiritual retreat. Flat tires could range from physical challenges to spiritual hang ups to emotional break downs. Whatever is holding you back from driving that church van all the way to San Jose is your “flat tire.” Fix it.

Bad directions

Youth leaders who are using a typical youth group curriculum may be unknowingly using a flawed map to get to where they really want to go. In a way publishing groups are determining the ultimate destination of many youth groups by default. Whatever the philosophy of the writer becomes the road map for the youth group and although I’m sure there are many good maps out there there are most likely some very flawed ones at well. My challenge to youth leaders is to refuse to delagate, abdicate or relegate the direction your youth ministry takes to some person whose theology/philosophy you are not sure of. Why? Because bad directions are a stinking waste of your time, your life and your youth ministry potential. Ask the hard questions. Evaluate youth ministry curriculum before you buy. Make whatever adjustments you need to make to their maps before you teach them to your teenagers. How? Evaluate whatever map you use by the compass of God’s Word and make sure it is leading you to lead your young passengers in the right direction.

Unreached destinations

After all this talk of bad maps and lousy directions I have to tell you something that may surprise you. I believe that most youth ministries are headed in the right direction, they are just not going far enough! If we make our ultimate destination as a youth group “Survival City” (i.e. to the place where our teen don’t bag their faith after high school) then we may have missed the better city just down the road (i.e. serious commitment to Christ!) And, although “Serious City” is a great destination, an even better one may be one more city down the road…The town called “Multiply.” Not all the kids will make it there but some will. And those who do will do more than just survive they will thrive and spiritually multiply by making disciples who make disciples.

This is where Jesus drove his disciples. Although plenty of people got off his bus after they were converted, and some rung the bell for Jesus to pull over after they got filled up with loaves and fishes, he had a handful (eleven of the twelve disciples) who make it all the way to “Multiply.”

What’s the lesson for us here? Simple. If we don’t have Multiply as our ultimate destination none of our kids will make it there. Most will likely hop off the bus before it ever rolls into town. But if we can get a handful the whole way then these road warriors will produce 30, 60 and a hundred fold (see Mark 4 and the Parable of the Sower for proof of this.)

Let’s choose our ultimate destination, fix our flats and get driving. As we do let’s make sure we are using the compass of God’s Word to make sure our maps are leading us in the right direction.

Oh yeah, and don’t forget the Red Bull.

Move over lions, tigers and bears ’cause there’s a few, new boogeymen in town. Depending on where you are at politically it’s either the leftist media elite, them hand-holding same sexers and a President who has “Hussein” as his middle name or, you betcha, Sarah Palin.

Someone please stop the crazy train so that I can get off! And, whether or not you choose the right or left side of the tracks, I’m inviting you to jump off with me.

Don’t get me wrong. Although I am deep red in my politics as an American I am pretty blue in my face as a Christian. Why? Because I’m tired of holding my breath waiting for American evangelicals to realize that this country is not going to be converted to Christ politically. If just half of the tight, right and mostly white Republican believers devoted a quarter as much time reaching their neighbors for Christ as they did watching Fox News then maybe we could make some real progress as a church and as a nation. And the same goes for you Christian Democrats out there (although you can insert MSNBC or CNN in this analogy if you’d like.)

Our politics flow out of our worldview which flows out of our theology which flows out of our relationship with Christ. So if we want to truly influence politics then we must, first and foremost, influence others to embrace Jesus as their Savior. Then we must plunge them into a passionate pursuit of God through prayer, worship and obedience to His Word.

The real boogeyman is not the President, a political party, the homosexuals or an Alaskan icon in high heels who can see Russia from her front porch. Satan is the real boogeyman. And I believe that he is doing everything he can in his power to get Christians distracted. For the right-leaning Christians (like me) he is trying to get us to worship at the altar of Glenn Beck rather than Jesus Christ. He is seeking to get us to hate the President instead of pray for him. He is trying to get us to seek a political solution to a spiritual problem.

For the left-leaning Christians (like, not me) he is seeking to get them to worship a political agenda instead of a risen Savior. He is seeking to get them to mock the right instead of pray for them. He is seeking to get them to replace the power of the gospel message with a green lifestyle.

Can true Christians differ politically? Yes! Should these Christians discuss, debate and dialogue on the important issues of politics? Of course! But let us never forsake the true “weapons of righteousness in our right hands and in our left.” The Word of God, prayer, love and the gospel message are more important and influential than any ballot box, news station or political affiliation. They have divine power to change hearts and not just pass bills.

Wherever you are politically my prayer is that your true hero is Jesus, that your ultimate mission is the proclamation of His message with your life and with your lips and that the only real boogeyman in your world is the Devil.

Remember Paul’s words in Philippians 3:20, “But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ.”Let us rivet our eyes to Him who gives us the audacity of ultimate and everlasting hope.

Yes we can!