People of Peace

Jesus’ Way of Evangelism

People of peace are described in the Gospels, particularly in Luke, chapter 10.


Jesus sent out his disciples to "go ahead of Him to every town and place where He was about to go." Jesus instructed His disciples that when they find someone who "promotes peace" to stay there. When you read through the chapter, you see amazing things happen which still happen today. It's simply Jesus' way of teaching us evangelism.

What Do People of Peace Look Like?

According to the gospel of Luke, People of Peace welcome you, like you and serve you. In other words, “peace is promoted” between you and People of Peace and they listen to you. When you find these things playing out in front of you, Jesus’ simple words are “Stay There”.


What we read in Luke 10 was always Jesus’ strategy for evangelism. Luke 10 shows us how the Lord planned on spreading His gospel message. The plan was always for us to be the hands and feet of Jesus.


A Person of Peace is simply someone that God has prepared ahead of time to hear the message of the gospel through you. We recognize People of Peace as those who welcome us, like to be with us, and attempt to serve us in some way.


What we’ve noticed upon finding People of Peace is also the reality that you must be willing to risk meeting a person of “unpeace”.


When Jesus sent them out he told them that they would experience welcome and rejection. And he gave us instructions on how to handle both situations.


This is evangelism in real time. We are outing ourselves as followers of Jesus and seeing how a person responds. We are not “hanging out” with unbelievers. The disciples didn’t wander into random towns pretending to be travelers. They were SENT by Jesus!


Look at verse 3 & 4: Culturally, in that day this is how priests would travel. And Jesus is sending them out in the exact same way. Even though these men weren’t taught in the synagogue or they weren’t disciples of a Jewish Pharisee or Sadducee, it didn’t matter. Jesus was going against cultural norms and sending them out as a royal priesthood.


The Lord gave them authority to walk in the same manner of priesthood as the laity. And he sends us out with that same authority. Jesus is sending you out as part of the royal priesthood.


Now let’s look at verse 5-8: This is where we get the person of peace concept. This is how the gospel moves. The most fascinating aspect of the Person of Peace concept comes from verse 2. Take heart in this, because what we see is a beautiful representation of the Lord preparing the way for you. God has already done the work by preparing their hearts for your message. The Spirit of God has gone before you.


Jesus sends us out AFTER the Spirit has prepared the harvest and we are called to simply sit with them. The Lord is very clear when he says, “Stay there”. He’s telling us that when we find a Person of Peace, do not move because He is doing a very real work in that person and He’s calling us to be His hands and feet.

How do You Find Them?

  • 1. Pray Earnestly
    • If Jesus spent the whole night praying, why would we do it any differently? Do not skip this part; ask the Lord to bring People of Peace to you


    • Make a list and pray and fast over them; make room for the Holy Spirit to do the choosing
  • 2. Receives You (Peace)
    • Example: Zacchaeus in Luke 19


    • Task Them: Give them something to do and see if they come back to you having done what you asked


    • HORSE Acronym:

    Heart – is their heart ready for the gospel?

    Open – Are they open to you relationally? Do they want to listen to you? Do your words carry weight? Do they want to be around you?

    Receptive – Are they receptive to the way you speak truth into their lives? Do they receive the way you speak scripture over them?

    Servants – Do they serve you? Do they serve others?

    Engaged – Are they engaged with the process? Do they show interest in the mission of making disciples who can make disciples?

  • 3. Build Relationship
    • Stay there and do not move


    • Go to their turf, where they’re comfortable (Luke 19: 5)


    • Allow them to serve you/show you hospitality (Luke 19:6)


    • Spend intentional time with them


    • Be ready to speak truth & grace in appropriate ways and observe if your words carry weight in their lives (Luke 19:8)
  • 4. Change the Environment and Invite them In
    • The invitation will look different depending on where the person is at in their walk with the Lord


    • Tailor your invitation to the individual’s understanding of the gospel or discipleship process


    • Look back on the “Come and Follow” tool to help build your invitation
HEALTHY TIP

People of Peace Versus People of Proximity

One of the largest pitfalls of the invitation process is inviting "people of proximity" instead of people of peace. People of proximity give the appearance of a person of peace yet they have no desire to grow up under you. This will cause future problems, but rest assured, the Lord will continue to work in this and will teach you His ways. He will be more than faithful. If you find yourself in this situation, seek out your parent for wisdom and encouragement.