Do You Understand Levi's Name?

One thing I love about my church is its evangelistic focus and outreach. We care so much about the souls of people in our town that late every Sunday afternoon, the church gathers together at our pastor's house for prayer. Then. we pick up materials and go door-to-door throughout the town, giving them to people or sticking them on their front porches along the way.

I love doing this with my family, especially. It's great having time to relax and take a walk around town, doing God's work. We usually split into two groups to hit both sides of the street at once and make games out of giving out tracts to keep the kids going.

And, yesterday was a perfect day to go out. It was warm and sunny, and tons of people were sitting on their front porches, chatting with neighbors, and watching their kids play in their front yards. I was surprised by how many people were taking walks or taking their children to the local parks. For every two or three houses we visited, there was at least one person nearby.

After we finished one cul-de-sac, there was a family coming up the hill to where we just were. Mom and dad were walking along while a very proud grandma was pushing her new grandson in a stroller. When they came near, we greeted them and gave them some cards inviting them to our church's two year anniversary service next weekend (Hey, free lunch!).

We started making some small talk about their baby, because for being just three months old, that kid had a head of hair that would make some newscasters and weathermen jealous. I mean, Rod Blagojevich would say, "Wow, that is a lot of hair." Then we asked what they decided to name him. His mom said that they named him, "Levi."

I asked the mom if she knew the origin of her child's name. She knew it was a Bible name, but said that her mom (grandma) would be able to answer it better. God couldn't have teed up a more perfect opportunity to share the Gospel, and grandma was smiling because I think she, too, as a believer, knew what was going to happen next.

I explained how Levi was one of the sons of Jacob, along with his eleven other brothers. And I told her about how the tribe of Levi had such and important role in offering the sacrifices for the people of Israel. When I asked mom if she knew why they did this, she said, "No."

(Image courtesy Wikipedia)

I shared how the sacrifices were a covering for sin for those people at that time. But I made it relevant to mom because I talked about sins like lying, stealing, blasphemy, and adulterous thoughts--things that people still commit today. And I explained how God's justice means that when He judges people, it will be against His perfect standard.

Then I transitioned the message into Jesus Christ, and how He wasn't just the sacrifice to cover sins, but the sacrifice that forgave sins and took God's wrath on His shoulders. And I finished up by explaining how people who believe this need to repent of their sins and trust in Christ.

It was a great, pleasant conversation, and wonderful being able to explain it to her family. They had just moved into the neighborhood and had been attending another church in town, but were checking things out overall. I recommended that they should come to my church to hear more preaching like this and get to learn the Bible more. They thanked all of us, and went on their way to their home.

I always recommend finding those great areas to bridge off and share the Gospel. Sometimes God serves them up so easily like they did with Levi's name, and sometimes you might just have to interrupt and say, "Hey, I want to share something completely unrelated with you." But know that we're always called to share the Gospel (Mark 16:15) and don't wait for the, "perfect opportunity," that may never come.