When I first saw this my blood pressure spiked, then I realized this is an amazing opportunity for pastors, teachers and evangelists around the U.S. and beyond to make the most of God-ordained "kairos*" window of opportunity.

I had nearly finished my weekly article for The Church Report daily ezine for this week when I happened to catch a story shown in the early part of NBC’s Today Show regarding the "Bone Box" that allegedly contains the remains of Jesus’ FAMILY!

In short, Archaeologist Jacabovich and veteran film producer James Cameron ( The Titanic) have investigated the discovery of what is commonly called a "Bone Box" that was found in 1980 by archaeologists in Jerusalem under a condo development. Etched on the stone box were the names "Jesus", "Mary", "Mary Magdelene", and the name of a fourth person that was said to be the child of Jesus. Borrowing a page from the DaVinci Code, the filmmakers are attempting to arouse the natural curiosity of the American television viewer.

On Sunday evening, March 4th on the Discovery Channel the Cameron "documentary" "The Jesus Family Tomb" will be aired. It might be worth watching in order to understand what others are going to see and be talking about. As a viewing note, I have seen and heard enough that this is filled with the equivalent of The Weekly World News of archeology.

This is certainly going to spark conversation. In 1980 when the original archaeologists made the discovery, they made the point that all of these names were incredibly common and therefore there was no reason to get excited about this. To make any claims about this being the biblical Jesus was ridiculous.

Here are some points I encourage you to pass on to your people giving them the chance to make the most of this opportunity to connect to others who have seen the film and whose curiosity will be peaked by the media hoopla.

1. The idea of Jesus being married to Mary Magdelene has been floated around by doubters since the Middle Ages.
This is not a new idea that was somehow created by Dan Brown in The Da Vinci Code. When I first read his book and understood the structure of his "novel argument" I laughed aloud and said, "This is it? People really need to get out more! This is incredibly old news." Even in his day, Jesus was accused of being something of a low life for spending time with people of low repute, the rejects of his day. You too will experience the same as a follower of Jesus, especially by religious people.

2. It is highly likely that DNA testing will reveal that these bones are from family members. That’s fine. The inscription has the name "Jesus" "Mary" and what they are claiming was Jesus’ son on the "Bone Box" as well. Keep in mind that the name "Jesus" was incredibly common in his day. Part of the fulfillment of prophesy is that he would be common. The fact these remains are related means nothing. There were certainly many named Mary from Magdala.

3. When connecting with those asking questions or discussing issues, discuss, yes, don’t argue in the least! There are more and more books being released these days that fall under the category of "apologetics" and that can be a good thing or a bad thing depending on the way the information is conveyed.
I have never lost an argument with a not-yet believer, seriously, never! But very few of those I have won arguments with have eventually come to Christ after being defeated in the debate. Even though I have diligently tried to "speak the truth in love," most don’t like to be shown that their assumptions about faith have been incorrect.

One person who does an outstanding job as an apologist for the faith is Lee Stroebel. Lee smiles from the moment he gets up in the morning until his head hits the pillow at night. He is not only super bright, he is super loving! Even when his point is better than yours, you feel highly loved in the process. The way he conveys his points is the key to Lee’s success. Hide that insight in your heart.

Encourage your people to take this attitude. Leave defensiveness behind. Engage people at work, during Bridge night, with neighbors, at Gold’s Gym or whenever or wherever, with conversations about the "Bone Box." This is a hot topic. People will readily talk about this for a few months to come. Preachers, you might even consider doing a series on this. Something beginning on Easter and the three weeks following that date would be brilliant!

Steve Sjogren is the author of over a dozen books on outflow evangelism. He is also the head of ServeCoach.com, a group that equips leaders who are looking for mentoring relationships to increase their leadership effectiveness.