Category Archives: Evangelism

Should You Invite Jesus Into Your Heart?

Posted by Dan C. on

An article by By Jim Eliff

Is it useful to critique any person’s or ministry’s method of evangelism? For one thing, there are not enough people calling on others to follow Christ. Should I attempt to cripple their efforts in the slightest way, even for the few who might listen to me? I hope I will not. I would rather think that I’m improving our evangelism. And it does need improving. 

The apparent results of the method of evangelistic appeal built upon the verse in question (John 1:12, along with Rev. 3:20) surely cannot be argued with. I think I could say with ease that almost all the evangelistic results coming out of America are rooted in a method that emerges from the problematic view of John 1:12 which I will unfold. One campus organization whose workers almost always use this verse, with what I believe is an errant understanding of it, claims that tens of thousands are won to Christ each year through their multiple worldwide ministries. I’ve known many involved in this ministry, and can attest to the sincerity of these workers, and their willingness to be bold for Christ. Surely the majority of evangelistic workers cannot be wrong. Surely pastors who have taught this particular view cannot be in error.  At least from the ad hominem side of the argument, I’m going to look pretty silly if I’m opposing such faithful people and am in error myself. So, I’ll tread gently. I’m talking to friends who care as strongly as I do about good evangelism.

Since I have, in the past, made much use of John 1:12 with what I consider a wrong interpretation of it, I think I have the right to speak openly about how I see it now. I have watched as scores of people have responded positively to my wrong use of this verse over several years of my earlier ministry. There is something haunting about that. I asked them to do what I assumed this verse was calling for, and they did it. In earlier days, one motivation for abandoning this concept had to do with observing that so many of my converts coming through the wrong use of John 1:12 appeared to be false converts. I could not live comfortably with that.

I hope you understand me when I say that I also “miss” this verse as a mainstay evangelistic tool. The old way was easier, produced what appeared to be more instant results, received the approbation of almost all my friends, and called forth many colorful illustrations to support it. As soon as I understood the verse in another light, I lost my main conceptual weapon. It took some time to work out how I was going to present the gospel from then on.

A Look at the Verse in Context

I haven’t told you the concept many wrongly derive from this verse. I’ll do so after I quote the verse in its context (1:11-13).

He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.

What is the wrong use of John 1:12 that I’ve been alluding to? It has to do with the use of the word “receive” which is taken to mean that an unconverted person is to “ask Jesus into his heart” as the invitation of the gospel. The wrong use of this word, in tandem with Revelation 3:20 (“Behold I stand at the door and knock. If any man opens the door . . .”) has shaped Western evangelism (and beyond), making our evangelism look a lot different than the apostles.

What then is this verse, with its surrounding context, actually saying?

1. First, it declares that the world, and Jews in particular, were blind to Jesus. They did not understand who He was. They did not know Him even though He created them all. On their own, they were incapable of perceiving who Christ was. They did not “receive” or “welcome” or “accept” or “properly acknowledge” Him. Although a full blown doctrine of depravity is not taught here, it is implied because of the universality of their rejection of Christ apart from the special case John will mention.

2. Second, it teaches us that some people, regardless of the general blindness, do have the power (or actual right) to become children of God. It is those who receive Him. That is, it is those who welcome, accept, or favorably acknowledge Him. So, in the midst of general rejection there are some who receive. This word “receive” does not mean “those who invite Christ into their hearts” but rather those who welcome Him for who He is, truly God. A simple comparison with the word “receive” in verse 11 and in verse 12 will yield that this word could not possibly have the meaning of inviting Christ in, as is commonly used by Western evangelism. Here is the error that has spawned much confusion in evangelism.

3. Third, it teaches that reception of Jesus must be qualified further. In other words, not mere welcoming of Christ is enough, but those who receive must believe, “even to those who believe in His name.” There are two ways to take this. John might mean that this “receiving” is the same as “believing.” In other words, the two words could be used interchangeably. Or, John may be saying that reception of Christ must include faith. It would be as if John is saying, “Those who receive him have the right to become his children, but I mean receiving plus true believing or faith.” Either nuance leads us ultimately to faith. We know that faith is more than the mere reception of Christ in truth, or as He is actually. That is its beginning. But it is more. It is reliance upon the Christ who came into the world on His intended mission, to die for us. Those who believe (which starts with their welcoming of Him) have the right of sonship.

4. Fourth, the child of God experiences something beyond (and I contend, before) his faith. God, in other words, is doing something to make him a child of His that could not be done simply on man’s initiative. In fact, these people’s sonship has nothing to do with bloodline, human decision, or the will of others on his behalf. When John says that a person must receive and believe, yet his birth into the family has nothing to do with blood, human decision or the will of another, then he is acknowledging something mysterious and profound. Salvation, as much as we would like to say otherwise, cannot be ultimately attributed to man in any way even in his believing, but is an act of God first of all.

Verse 13 may convey the idea that the order for attaining sonship begins with the birth (“who were born,” emphasis mine) which results in the faith that is said to be necessary for sonship. (“those who believe in His name, who were born . . . of God”). If this order is correct, we can say that regeneration, at least in a kind of philosophical order, precedes faith. If we do not say this, we would have to say John is teaching that it is at least concurrent to a man’s faith. While the man is believing, he is being born; while he is being born, he is believing. But since John asserts that “human decision” could not initiate this birth necessary to be a child, it appears that placing it before the exercise of the will in belief is the right way to view the chronology.

Where Does This Leave Us?

Modern evangelism almost never recognizes verse 11 and verse 13 of the passage, and therefore uses verse 12 persistently and wrongly. By not recognizing verse 11, it fails to understand “receive” correctly, leading to all kinds of problems. Because modern evangelism fails to think of verse 13, we see less than adequate dependence on God and acknowledgment of God as the author of salvation. That may explain, in part, why so much pride can be found in evangelism.

The idea that receiving means “inviting Christ into the heart” causes huge problems for us. It is an easy concept to convey, granted. I used to say that I would never talk to people about believing in Christ, which has difficulties in explanation because of varied levels of meaning, but would only use the idea of “inviting Christ in.” Even a child can get that. But, when the Scriptures as a whole do not support this idea, am I free to make my wrong concept the centerpiece of the response to the gospel? Other than Revelation 3:20, also misunderstood, no place in the Bible appears to promote this idea of “inviting Christ into the heart.” Over 500 times the idea of belief in Christ is expressed, but no mention is made of “inviting Christ in.” Ninety-eight times “belief” and its various forms are used in the evangelistic book of John. We grant that many times the idea of faith is spoken of in the light of the Christian’s walk, but many other times faith is discussed in terms of the initial entrance into God’s family.

When we use the concept of “inviting Christ into the heart” we are robbing faith of its richness. Salvation is reduced to an act more than a life. There is no formulaic prayer (“I now invite you into my heart”) that automatically saves. A man can only be saved through faith. Though we talk about something called “the sinner’s prayer,” it is not found in the Bible. You will have to go to the booklets that promote the idea of “inviting Christ in” to find such a prayer. Think of how much evangelism you have been exposed to rests on the idea that such a prayer be prayed before a person could be saved.

When the Bible speaks of calling on the name of the Lord, it might mean something like evoking Christ’s name in order to be received by God—a sound concept. But regardless what you might think about the wisdom of using a prayer for becoming a child of God, it could not be ultimately necessary. It is certainly only ancillary at best. It is “belief in Christ” that is held out to be the link between the lost man and Christ as seen in so many commands and experiences in the Bible. Paul and Peter did not say, “repeat this prayer after me” at the end of their messages. Rather, people heard and believed, most often during their preaching of the gospel. Granted, some may have prayed as a way to express their faith (though we don’t have records of such outside of Luke 18:13, a prayer unlike the typical “sinner’s prayer”), but such a prayer could not be said to be required by the apostles or God.

Some who doubt their salvation have stated (I have heard this many times myself) that they must surely not be a true Christian because “I did not ask Jesus into my heart.” They would do far better by examining the faith they say they have. They would do better than that by examining for the evidence of life within the soul; and perhaps better than that by looking away from themselves to Christ first, then figuring out when they first believed.

Here is what we should do:

1. We should forever bury the idea of “inviting Christ into the life.” Even if two verses could be interpreted to say that this is a possibility, the sheer number of other verses plainly stating that belief in Christ is the gospel invitation, should lead us to abandon the concept in almost every case. I know that Christ is in the believer, but the believer is also in Christ. The second concept may be mentioned in the New Testament more than the first, but we don’t have people pray to get in Christ? No, we must tell them to believe. We mean a repenting belief and a belief that affects our life from then on.

2. We should abandon the “praying the prayer” method for our appeal. You may pray for people, and even with people, but do not even intimate that praying a certain prayer saves. It does not. No prayer automatically forces God to receive a sinner. God is personal and is sought and talked to, I grant. But when we are asked what He expects, it is to be stated that God demands that we believe. “Do so and live!” Again, by “believe” we are meaning more than just acknowledgment of Christ; no, we mean trust in Christ and what He has done for sinners, a transfer of trust that affects our lives and behavior forever.

3. We should use the biblical terminology of “belief” in Christ. There are other ways of expressing this found in the NT, but “belief” is consistently displayed as the essence of our response. I will not list verses here, but nothing could be easier to find in the New Testament. Read John to see this repeated scores of times. Or read through Acts with this in mind. Ask, “What did the apostles expect people to do in response to their message?” Remember that the booklets give you verse after verse about belief, and then, at the end of the presentation, make a bee-line to John 1:12 and Revelation 3:20, wrongly interpreted. They finalize the deal with a formulaic prayer. Don’t follow that pattern any longer. It is enough to instruct people to believe in Christ, with a sound repenting faith.

4. We should also spend far more time talking about the awfulness of sin and the work of Christ for sinners. Our main work is not so much to explain the sinner’s response to Christ (that is important mainly for pretending believers), but to labor on the gospel itself. When we are brutally honest with people about their sin, and lucid about the only answer being in Christ, His death and resurrection, then we have preached the gospel. We have done what is necessary to cooperate with the Spirit in their conversion. We will actually work against the Spirit when we get caught up in a formulaic approach to the gospel as opposed to a content-filled proclamation. Get the message right and depend on God to convict and convert. You will know someone is saved, not when they “pray the prayer,” but when they repent and believe in Christ, with the evidence of truly following Him. Ask, “Do you believe?”

If We Continue

If we continue with the current pattern of evangelism, we will persist in seeing the results that such a pattern automatically brings. That is, we will see people who sincerely pray a little prayer who have, for the most part, not really believed in Christ. Now, we will always experience fallout on some level even if we are true to the biblical words, for even Jesus had his false converts, as did Paul and the others. This explains why so often the New Testament says, “Do not be deceived.” Yet, when we promote the idea that praying a pray, inviting Christ in, or receiving Christ, is what God requires, we augment the problem, producing massive numbers of unbelieving “believers.” We will continue to have far more tares than wheat. Who would not want to change that sad reality?

I’m embarrassed at my paltry manner of explaining what I’m trying to help us see. But perhaps you will be able to take these concepts further. At a minimum, I’m calling for a purer evangelism, regulated by the Bible and not by ease or history or practicality. Do not back down in your fervor, but use the right method. It stands to reason, even if numbers are smaller, that more true converts will come from good methodology. I know that God ultimately saves, and that He can use anything He wishes to do, but surely we are right to continually purify our evangelism for His glory.

Distributed by www.ChristianWorldviewNetwork.com

_____________________

Comments, anyone?

The Main Thing is STILL the MAIN THING

Posted by Dan C. on

“Now I want to make clear for you, brothers and sisters, the gospel that I preached to you, that you received and on which you stand, and by which you are being saved, if you hold firmly to the message I preached to you – unless you believed in vain.  For I passed on to you as of first importance  what I also received – that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures,  and that he was buried, and that he was raised on the third day according to the scriptures,” – 1 Cor 15:1-4

From a blog post at Pyromaniacs called The Christian’s Priority and Presence: Things We Agree On:

  • Among other things, the Christian is the person who boasts only in the Cross; to whom the world has been crucified, and he to the world (Galatians 6:14).
  • The sole unique possession that every Christian has, that all his neighbors most desperately need, is the Gospel (Romans 1:16).
  • The Gospel is itself not actions nor outreaches nor programs; the Gospel is a message, communicated in words that express propositional truths (Romans 10:14-17).
  • While what we do may at best adorn the Gospel, it must never supplant or eclipse the Gospel (cf. 1 Timothy 2:10; Titus 2:10).
  • The message and aim of the gospel is redemption (Galatians 4:5; Titus 2:14) not merely reform.
  • The gospel itself is the only instrument of redemption; it “is the power of God unto salvation” (Romans 1:16).

The life of the believer in Christ begins at, and ought to revolve around the Cross of Christ, His death and resurrection. Too many times we remember that our lives began at the Cross, but in the conduct of our lives, and in the sharing of our lives and testimony with others we seem to go right back to focusing on ourselves. Instead of dying to ‘self’ as Jesus and the Apostles taught, we get wrapped up in ourselves in more subtle ways. Sure we talk about Christ, but mostly with terms and in ways that seem to include a lot of personal pronouns, betraying who is REALLY at the center of our lives. I call it the tyranny of self and I suffer from it as much as anyone else.

In our Bible studies, wherever and however they are conducted, we get wrapped up in ‘our’ insights, whether they be in the text or not, even patting ourselves and each other on the back for being so ‘deep’. In our conversations with those who do not yet know Christ, we are apt to spend a lot of time ‘proving our spiritual points’ and omit the very message of the Cross that we are to convey (1 Cor 15:1-4). Or, we present our ‘transformed lives’ as proof of the power of the Gospel, but fail to share the message itself!

Interestingly enough, I don’t see much of the ‘us’ described above, in the pages of the New Testament. The Apostle Paul, with the equivalent of several post-graduate degrees, refused to draw on his own intellectual prowess and preached the simple message of the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ (1 Corinthians 2:1-5). When conversing with the intellectuals of his day, he (Paul) unashamedly brought the discourse to the foot of the Cross and the power of the Resurrection (Acts 17).

Should we who profess Christ act otherwise?

Have a blessed weekend,

Dan

Has the Holy Spirit Left the Building?

Posted by Dan C. on

You probably think that’s a silly question. I mean it in all seriousness, so I guess I need to explain why I ask it. We need only look to a short passage in the Gospel of John for a clue to the answer.

“Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you. And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: concerning sin, because they do not believe in me; concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer; concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged. – John 16:7-11 (ESV)

The context of this passage is the conversation Jesus had with His disciples after they had supped for the last time and before His betrayal and arrest that were soon to follow. Jesus is preparing the disciples for His departure and comforting them with the promise of the Helper to come, the Holy Spirit. For some, the Holy Spirit would be ‘another comforter’ in Jesus absence (John, Ch 14). For others, the Holy Spirit would be the One who would ‘convict’ of sin, righteousness, and judgment. It is to the matter of the conviction concerning sin, that we now turn.

First, who is it that would be convicted? The passage tells us ‘the world’, the kosmos, and that paints a broad picture. We can say with certainty that ‘the world’ must include those in it that have an issue with sin. We can further propose that the sin of which Jesus speaks is the sin of ‘unbelief’ that He spoke of repeatedly in John’s Gospel; that He was indeed the One sent by God to ‘save His people from their sins’. The ‘world’ refers at least to all those remain in unbelief and stand condemned from birth (John 3:18).

What about our question, then? To what does it refer?  Allow me to explain in terms of ‘modern’ evangelistic practices. To a great extent, “today’s church believes it must win the lost to Christ by winning their favor, it no longer teaches the biblical doctrines of sin, hell, repentance, or the cross because those would offend the lost or make them feel uncomfortable,” (John MacArthur). The gospel according to the ‘Beatles’ has replaced the Gospel according to inspired Scripture. “Love, love, love” is the drawing card, instead of confronting sinners with their perilous condition of being DEAD in sin (Eph 2), and allowing the Holy Spirit to convict of sin ‘draw’ sinners to the Cross.

Are people saved if a sinless gospel is preached? I would say yes, but IN SPITE OF a powerless message, NOT because of it!

So, since people ARE saved when a sinless gospel is preached, HAS the Holy Spirit left the building?  “Technically’, NO. Without the presence of the Holy Spirit regenerating and drawing lost souls to Christ, no person would EVER be saved.

I propose that there is something far more serious taking place wherever and whenever a ‘sinless’ gospel is preached,  You see, it takes intentionality to preach the gospel without mentioning sin, the need for repentance, and judgment, unless the preacher/messenger is so ignorant that he/she doesn’t know that SIN is in fact the central issue. There was a time when I would never have dreamed such ignorance exists, but I fear that in today’s evangelical climate, that which was once unimaginable is now common place.

Well, if the Holy Spirit has not left the building (technically), what’s the issue? The issue is simply this:

Although the Holy Spirit is still in the building, regenerating and drawing to the Cross those whom God has mercifully elected for salvation, the Holy Spirit has actually been asked to leave!  Hear me out. Any church, or any person, who would dare claim to present the Gospel of Jesus Christ without addressing the very issues the Holy Spirit came to address – sin, righteousness, and judgment – has in effect pointed to the ‘front door’ and said “Leave the building, we don’t need you!”

What we are left with, no matter how many or how few people attend a particular church, are pews and/or stadium seats filled with a lot of ‘tares’ with a few stalks of ‘wheat’ scattered here and there, hungry for doctrine and ‘hard’ truth they may never be served.

Think about it. . .

________________

Relevant and scripturally supported comments are encouraged, whether you agree or disagree.

Why do we believers hesitate to evangelize?

Posted by Dan C. on

Have you ever met someone who just got a great deal on a new car (the one they REALLY wanted to buy) who didn’t tell everyone they knew about it? Not only do they tell everyone about it, they usually broadcast the news with a tremendous amount of enthusiasm. What’s going on with believers who find it hard to share the gospel? Wouldn’t being spared the wrath of a just God and having received the gift of eternal life toss having bought the car of our dreams under the bus?

Mark Dever, in The Gospel and Personal Evangelism, presents 12 reasons believers hesitate in sharing the gospel, summarized below:

1. Pray.
Our weakness is evangelism is often related to an absence of prayer. When we neglect praying about evangelism we see the task as too big for us, or opportunities too scarce. Mark says if we pray for opportunities we’ll be amazed at the ways God answers.

2. Plan.
Because we don’t plan to evangelize it generally doesn’t happen. Many of us tend to think we are presently too busy, and think time will materialize later. It will not. Make time, develop a plan.

3. Accept.
We have to accept that God has given us the responsibility of sharing the gospel. It is not the calling of a few, not limited to the “gifted.” Mark says, quite dodging your responsibility and make the necessary adjustments.

4. Understand.
Part of the problem for many is a misunderstanding of what makes our evangelism effective. Success in evangelism is related to faithfulness, not fruit. Fruit is the work of God, not man.

5. Be Faithful.
Mark says, “Maybe we are too polite to be faithful to God in this area. Maybe we are more concerned about people’s response than God’s glory.” For many the desire to be polite and not offend people (or in my case, not wanting to come off like a salesman) is an excuse to remain unfaithful to the call of God.

6. Risk.
Some people are shy. We often do not know what a person’s response will be when we present the gospel. In my own recent experience, I fear losing a potential relationship by throwing out the gospel too soon, or too awkwardly. We will often have to risk (a relationship, embarrassment, etc.) in order to be faithful to God.

7. Prepare.
Give your evangelistic work some thought. What potential objection or question might your hear? You are more likely to engage if you have prepared yourself in advance.

8. Look.
Apathy, laziness and busyness can keep us from seeing the opportunities God provides. So can unbelief. Pray for opportunities and then anticipate God’s provision.

9. Love.
If we love people we will seek their good, and this of course includes sharing the gospel with them.

10. Fear.
– of God, not man. When we refuse to share the gospel with others we “are not regarding him or his will as the final and ultimate rule of our actions.”

11. Stop.
Mark says, “We should stop excusing ourselves from evangelism on the basis that God is sovereign. We should not conclude from his omnipotence that our obedience is therefore pointless.” We must affirm both God’s sovereignty and man’s responsibility as it relates to conversion and evangelism.

12. Consider.
Pointing to Hebrews 12:3 Mark points us back to the gospel itself. He says that when we aren’t considering the cross of Christ we lose the heart to proclaim the good news. True gospel-centeredness will compel us to evangelize.

I have only one item to add, but not to the above list. These reasons for hesitation in sharing the gospel assume one has a saving relationship with Jesus Christ.  There are many who claim to know Christ and bear His name, but have never met Him. You don’t share what you don’t have.

NOTE: I found the above summary at a Web site here and might need to find the book.

Evangelism – The Method

Posted by Dan C. on

The Message of the gospel is specific and clear – Christ died for our sins. God’s designated Means of transmitting the message is ‘preaching’, or ‘telling’ others the message – it requires words. What about the Method, or ‘process’? Guess what? There isn’t ONE! There a multitudes of ‘tools’ like the ‘Romans Road’, ‘The Four Spiritual Laws’ (Campus Crusade for Christ), ‘The Bridge’ diagram (The Navigators) and countless evangelism pamphlets and tracts. There are also different approaches from the ‘cold’ approach used in door-to-door and street evangelism, group evangelism in a corporate setting, to one-on-one relationship based evangelism. I would also offer that although there are those are called and gifted for the ‘office’ of evangelist in the church, we are all called to ‘be ready to give an account for the hope that is within us’ (2 Peter 3:15).

Although there is no single method that is to be used for sharing the good news, we can examine the growth of the church in the New Testament and find some invaluable guidance concerning ‘how’ we are to share the good news.  The following two sections of this post are excerpted from The Stewardship of God’s Truth Through Evangelism, by J. Hampton Keathley, III , Th.M.

Oikos Evangelism

What is oikos evangelism? Oikos is the Greek word most often translated house or household in the New Testament. But let’s be careful and not assume we know what that means. In the culture of New Testament times, oikos described not only the immediate family, but it included servants, servants’ families, friends, and even business associates. One’s oikos was one’s sphere of influence, his/her social system composed of those related to each other through common kinship ties, common tasks, and common territory. The New Testament oikos included members of the nuclear family, but extended to dependents, slaves and employees. The oikos was the basic social unit by which the church grew.

An oikos was the fundamental and natural unit of society, and consisted of one’s sphere of influence—his family, friends and associates. And equally important, the early church spread through oikos—circles of influence and association. With only a moment of reflection, we begin to realize a significant difference of thrust, tone, and tenor between much contemporary evangelism and early church outreach.

As we turn to the New Testament, Scripture focuses us on the household (family, friends, and associates) in the spread of the Gospel to mankind. The Gospels, Acts, and Epistles illustrate that the link of communication from person to person was the oikos. Here was the bridge used regularly as a natural means for spreading the message of Jesus Christ.

The following passages are illustrations of Oikos evangelism

· Mark 5:19. “Go home to your people (oikos) and report …”

· Luke 19:9. “Today salvation has come to this house (oikos).”

· John 4:53. “… and he himself believed, and his whole household (oikos).”

· Mark 2:14-15. We can’t be certain, but “his house” probably refers to Levi’s. If so, Levi invited his friends to come and meet and hear Jesus. Here is a typical household bridge—the inclusion of associates within the confines of Levi’s own home.

· John 1:40-45. The Apostle Peter came to Christ as a result of someone in his oikos. And Nathanael came to Christ because his friend Philip told him about the Savior.

Following Christ’s resurrection and ascension, it was this same pattern of the Gospel moving through the oikos which caused the early church to explode. Noted church historian Kenneth Scott Latourette has observed that, “the primary change agents in the spread of faith … were the men and women who earned their livelihood in some purely secular manner, and spoke of their faith to those whom they met in this natural fashion.”

· Acts 10:22f. Cornelius invited his relatives and close friends (his oikos) to come to his own home to hear Peter tell about the Lord.

· Acts 10:15 and 31. Here two households came to know the Savior through the influence of Lydia, a business woman, and the jailer at Philippi. When most people read about these two incidences, they normally think of just the immediate family. It was probably much more.

It seems that Oikos evangelism is the God-given and God-ordained means (method) and key for naturally sharing our supernatural message. This is the way the early church spread and it is the way the Gospel is most naturally shared today. Research and statistics back up this claim. (75-90% of new believers come to Christ because of a family member, friend, or associate having shared the ‘good news’).

The Spiritual Principles at Work in Evangelism

As the Bible uses analogies to teach spiritual truth, so it also uses analogies to portray the process of reaching men for the Lord. These include pictures taken from the harvest—the seed, the sower, the soil, and reaping the harvest. The soil is the human heart, the seed is the Word of God, the sower is the believer with the seed of the Word, and the reaping is when a person comes to Christ by faith. Based on this analogy, there are four things involved in the process:

Preparing the Soil

The soil of the human heart must be prepared. This is done through:

(1) Walking by the Spirit (Acts 1:8; 4:31; Eph. 5:18)

(2) Praying for four things: (a) for laborers for the harvest (Luke 10:2); (b) for open doors or opportunities (another analogy) for the Word (Col. 4:3); (c) for courage to share the Gospel at the right time (Eph. 6:18; 4:29); and (d) for clarity: the ability to make the Gospel clear (Col. 4:4)

Living to Demonstrate the Power of Christ

Simply put, the problem is this: You can’t give away what you don’t have. If we as Christians lead lives of frustration, neurosis, moral lapse or failure, strife and division, we cannot expect to be too effective at convincing others of the truth of the Christian faith. (Cf. Col. 4:5-6; 1 Pet. 3:15-17.)

Sowing and Watering the Seed

We have the responsibility to share the message, to communicate the truth of Scripture in accord with specific needs knowing and believing that the Word is alive and powerful and will do the work God has sent it to do (Isa. 55:8-11). While a good testimony is essential and is often used by God to give an open door for the Gospel, no one can be saved without hearing the Gospel message. (Cf. Mk. 4:1-20, 26-29; John 4:35-42.)

Reaping the Harvest

The harvest is people receiving Christ by personal faith. Evangelism is a process that brings a person to a decision to trust in Jesus Christ, but evangelism is not just a decision. In our work with people, we become a part of the process of preparing, sowing, watering, or reaping, but we can’t hurry the process. We must learn to care about people just as did the Lord. Then, when the right time comes, as led by the Spirit, begin to tell them about the person and work of the Savior. We must remember that, in the final analysis, God uses the Word and the transformed life, but it is the Spirit of God alone who can break through the barriers of the blindness and hardness of the human heart to bring a person to faith in Christ. (Cf. John 4:35-42.)

I don’t think there is much I can add to that except ask you to read through the above post again and highlight all of the references to the work of God in salvation, whether it is the Father, the Son, or the Holy Spirit. When you have done that, with a ‘here I am send me’ heart, seek God concerning His specific plan for you in sharing His Good News.

“Salvation is of the Lord.”—Jonah 2:9.

Evangelism: The Means

Posted by Dan C. on

While there are many ways of spreading the gospel in the larger context of everything that might take place leading up to sharing the specific message that Christ died for our sins, Scripture provides us with God’s designated means for transmitting the message from one person to another:

“Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent?“ – Romans 10:13-15

In a few brief sentences, the Apostle Paul describes the ‘process’ by which anyone is saved! He tells us that the message must be ‘preached’.  Somebody has to ‘tell’ somebody something.

We are all quite familiar with the axiom “Actions speak louder than words.” Some of us are also familiar with a famous quote attributed to St. Francis of Assisi “Preach the gospel at all times and when necessary use words.” While there is certainly practical truth in both the axiom and the quote, how can you convey the specific message that “Christ died for our sins.” without words?

What does it mean ‘to preach’ the Gospel?  I submit to you that although a kind word spoken, a loving deed done, a physical need met (or any other non-verbal communication) can, and many times does, pave the way for sharing the specific message, all of them are ‘done’ every day, by every sort of person, and often for the vilest of motives, and none of them can save a single soul!

What is the example of New Testament Scripture?

“In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea,” – Matthew 3:1

“Now after John had been taken into custody, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, Mark 1:14

“From that time Jesus began to preach,. . .” Matthew 4:17a

“They (the disciples) went out and preached that men should repent.” – Mark 6:12

“The gospel must first be preached to all the nations.” Mark 13:10

“Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: “Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say.” – Acts 2:14

The Apostle Paul again:

“But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumbling block, and unto the Greeks foolishness;” – 1 Corinthians 1:23

“Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, – 1 Corinthians 15:1

“For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus sake.” – 2 Corinthians 4:5

“Yet when I preach the gospel, I cannot boast, for I am compelled to preach. Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel!.” – 1 Corinthians 9:16

Strip away all the non-verbal activity involved before specifying what must ‘believed’ in order to be saved, and all that is involved in the making of disciples after someone has believed, and we have the message that Christ died for our sins and the need for it’s proclamation by word of mouth.

Furthermore, not only did God designate preaching as the means through which He would save men, it pleased Him to do so!

“It pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe“ -1 Corinthians 1:21

Have people been saved without hearing the ‘spoken’ proclamation? Of course they have, but as the exception, not the rule. I am not saying that every believer is supposed to be a ‘called by God’ pastor, teacher, or evangelist. I am saying that ‘preaching’ is God’s designated means of getting the message on the streets. In other words, if I can open my lips and speak, I can tell somebody something about my Jesus! And ‘woe is me’ if I don’t!

Evangelism: The Message – Part II

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CHRIST DIED FOR OUR SINS

If we are to faithfully deliver the message that Christ died for our sins (1 Cor 15:3), we must be able to explain exactly what that short statement means. We must be able to 1) properly define ‘our sin’ and 2) explain what Christ’s death means with respect to ‘our sin’.

“For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins…” – 1 Cor 15:3

SIN is the issue and the SIN is OURS!

If you were to conduct a man-on-the-street interview outside of just about any church in America on any given Sunday and asked the question: “How did the sin of Adam effect the human race?”, you would probably hear, as the overwhelming answer: “Sin separates us from God.” If the answer is further defined, you might hear sin described as a great gulf or cloud between us and God. You would also hear sin defined as ‘wrong actions’ on our part. But while it is eminently true that sin separates us from God, and we ‘do’ sin, Scripture tells us that the sin problem is more than just an ‘impersonal’ gulf/cloud/wall of separation or wrong action. Listen carefully to ‘the rest of the story’.

Because of the sin of Adam, the following is true about all of us unless, and until, we are found in Christ by the gracious work of God in our salvation,through the shed blood of His Son:

“For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life.” – Romans 5:10

And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience–among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. – Ephesians 2:1-3

Not only were we God’s enemies, dead in trespasses and sin, and by nature objects of His wrath; we were headed for Hell:

“Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.” John 3:18

Is there anyone who, prior to their believing in Christ, isn’t in a ‘not believing’ state of existence?  If that isn’t enough about the state of anyone apart from Christ, we have this:

“As it is written: “None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God. All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one.” – Romans 3:10-12

“How did the sin of Adam effect the human race?” Sin turned us into God’s enemies, dead in trespasses and sin, by nature objects of His wrath, headed for Hell, and completely unwilling to seek Him on our own! That’s quite a different picture of sin than the one painted by postmodern evangelicalism.

What then does Christ’s death mean with respect to OUR SIN?

Hear the words of Jesus to His disciples just before they departed the room where ate their last meal together:

“I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming. He has no claim on me, but I do as the Father has commanded me, so that the world may know that I love the Father. Rise, let us go from here.” – John 14:30-31

What did God do for sinners? He sent His own Sin to die! Christ’s death for our sin was God’s plan. And the Son went obediently to the Cross to show the world how much He loved His Father.

“For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith.” – Romans 3:22b-25

“What, then, does the phrase “a propitiation. . .by his blood” express? It expresses, in the context of Paul’s argument, precisely this thought: that by his sacrificial death for our sins Christ pacified the wrath of God.” . . . “The doctrine of the propitiation is precisely this: That God so loved the objects of his wrath so much that He gave His own Son to the end that He by His blood should make provision for the removal of His wrath.” J.I. Packer – Knowing God

“Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God.” – Romans 5:9

Not only did Christ die for our sin, He died IN OUR PLACE. Christ’s death for our sins means that when we deserved the full weight of God’s just wrath against sin, ‘our sin’, He drank the cup of His own Father’s wrath in our stead! There is no greater expression of love in all of human history!

We mortals probably cannot even comprehend the gospel message in it’s entirety. Whatever message we communicate, with whatever words we use, the truth that Christ died for our sins MUST be part of our message. The more we can explain about what that really means, Christ’s substitutionary sacrifice on our behalf, the better messengers we will be.

Evangelism: The Message

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“To evangelize is to declare on the authority of God what he has done to save sinners, to warn men of their lost condition, to direct them to repent, and to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.” (John Cheesman, The Grace of God in the Gospel [Edinburgh: Banner of Truth, 1972], 119)

The Authority

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made . . . . And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory. . .” – John 1:1-3, 14

I know of no clearer declaration of the Deity of Christ in all of Scripture than these verses. What did God do to save sinners? God sent His Son to die that we might live! There was no other way to satisfy the just requirements of God’s own Law. There is no other way of salvation! There is no greater authority than the Word made flesh!

“I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. “ – Jesus

The Declaration

“Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you–unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. – 1 Cor 15:1-5 (Emphasis mine)

The message we are to declare is quite simple. There are two central points, two things ‘of first importance’: “Christ died for our sins” and “he was raised on the third day”. Both of these facts were “in accordance with the Scriptures” – they fulfilled Old Testament prophesy. Both events, the death and resurrection, were validated. Christ’s dead body was laid in a tomb and he was seen by many – His closest disciples in these passages, with over 500 mentioned elsewhere in Scripture.

This is the Message we are to declare – the message that is the “power of God unto salvation” that Paul was not ashamed of. No matter what else we say, no matter what else we ‘do’ without words, no matter what ‘words’ we wrap around these two truths, they must be at the core of our message or we have failed. Any other message, any other message, that omits these truths, is NOT the gospel.

The M&M&M’s of Evangelism

Posted by Dan C. on

We’ve been discussing evangelism here at the The Battle Cry – on another post where it was not exactly on point for that post. Therefore, due to the significance of the topic, I felt it wise to devote some space specifically to the topic. After all, it’s why we who profess Christ are still on planet Earth instead of having been translated (ala Star Trek?) to the presence of the Lord immediately after the moment we truly believed the Gospel and received God’s totally unmerited and most merciful gift of salvation by grace through faith (Eph 2:8-9).

There is far too much to discuss in a single post, so I’ve decided to divide the discussion into three general areas represented by, and easily remembered by…you guessed it – three ‘M’s.  I’m not a great fan of inventing cute little memory aids, but these are already common concepts and it didn’t require any excessive use of valuable brain cells to to discover. It wouldn’t surprise me if you haven’t already realized what they represent. In case you haven’t figured them out yet (and I’m sure some of you have), we’ll use the topics of the Message, the Means, and the Method of evangelism. Further, we will discuss them in the order presented for very specific reasons:

The Message is the highest priority topic of the three. If we are to share the gospel we have to get the message right or we might as well stay home. If we have it wrong, we will do tremendous damage to the Kingdom of our Savior, not to mention trample on the honor and glory due His Name.

The Means of delivering the Message refers to the ‘mechanism’ by which the right message is transmitted to those who need to hear it, believe it, and receive the free gift of salvation for themselves, to the glory of God and to their eternal benefit.

It is important to note that both the message and the means of proper evangelism are articulated quite clearly in Scripture. We need only to have understood and believed the message and be available to transmit the message using the God appointed means.

The Method (how we deliver the message) is not as clearly defined in Scripture, however the New Testament is filled with evangelistic encounters from which we can learn and receive valuable guidance. In addition to biblical examples of Jesus, His disciples and those who followed them as the early church grew, we have the Holy Spirit to lead us and guide us as we carry the only Message that contains the power to save to the lost and dying all around us.

Why do I think it’s important to approach the discussion in this fashion? Well, to a large extent across the landscape of postmodern Protestant evangelicalism, the Message has been lost in the deadly swamp of secular humanism, relegating the appointed Means to the dust bin of irrelevancy and the discussions about Methods a whole lot of wasted effort unless our gums are in need of exercise.

With that said, on to the Message!

Rom 1:16  “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.” – The Apostle Paul

Is the contemporary Gospel "Another Gospel"? – Part 4

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This is a continuation of the series that started here and continued here (Part 2) and here (Part 3).

THE BIBLICAL GOSPEL SOUNDS A CLEAR NOTE OF REPENTANCE.

Thirdly, the Biblical Gospel sounds a clear note of repentance. Summarizing 3 years of ministry in Ephesus, Paul stated that he had preached “repentance toward God and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ” (Acts 20:21). Summarizing his whole life, he stated that he had preached that men should “repent and turn to God, and do works” answering to that repentance (Acts 26:20). Nowhere in the Bible did any apostle or evangelist preach that, “all you need to do is accept that Jesus died and rose again, ask Him to be your Saviour and you will go to heaven.” Why? Because the Lord Jesus had commissioned them to preach three things: firstly, Christ died; secondly, He rose again; and, thirdly, repentance for the remissible of sins (Luke 24:45). Would we be happy with a cross-less gospel or a resurrection-less gospel? How then can we be content to preach a repentance-less gospel?

Contrary to contemporary thinking, salvation is not just mental assent or a mere nodding of the head to the death and resurrection of Christ. There is no saving faith without repentance. If you are a stranger to conviction, you are a stranger to repentance and therefore a stranger to salvation, for no one ever truly believed without repenting and vice versa. The first sentence the Lord Jesus uttered in His public ministry was, “Repent and believe the gospel ” (Mark 1:15); and He continued to repeatedly warn that unless sinners repent they will perish. Jesus said “believe or perish” (John 3:16) and “repent or perish” (Luke 13:3. See also 2 Pet 3:9). All that will matter a million years from today is, did I repent and believe the gospel?

Only one sentence in the Bible states that God loves the world (John 3:16). A handful of other verses speak of God’s love for undeserving sinners. Yet this precious and sublime truth is cheapened today, by its overemphasis at the expense of repentance, a subject which is mentioned 58 times in the New Testament alone. That is the reason why there is little or no true convicting power and blessing in the preaching of the gospel today. The Holy Spirit will not endue with power a message He has not authorized. A gospel without a clear note of repentance is another (false) gospel that brings God’s curse on those who preach it (Gal 1:6-10). Why would God curse a ‘preacher of the gospel’ (one who adds or takes away from the essence of the true message)? Because his repentance-less message is damning souls, corrupting local churches and hindering revival.

But what is repentance? It is not penance or restitution (Judas paid the money back – he regretted, but never repented, Matt 27:3). It is not merely tears, fear of judgment (Felix trembled) or sorrow for sin (godly sorrow may lead to repentance, but is not the same as repentance, 2 Cor 7:10). It is not mere confession or admission of sin. The Greek word for repentance is metanoia (from meta, ‘after’, and nous, ‘mind’). It means a complete change of mind – involving turning from sin to God, which resuIts in a change of life. It is illustrated by David in Psalm 51 and the Prodigal Son in Luke 15. It is defined in the following text: “Let the wicked for-sake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him” (Isaiah 55:7). Let us be sure to sound a clear note of repentance every time we preach the gospel.

NEXT – THE CONCLUSION: THE BIBLICAL GOSPEL PRESENTS A WHOLE CHRIST FOR THE WHOLE MAN.