witnessing
08/January/2010 12:32 PM Filed in: Faith and God
WITNESSING AND EVANGELISM - a shunned discipline
Imagine being a Christian for 20 years and one day being convicted in a huge area of disobedience and pathetic growth in your life. For example, lets say you never gave any of your money or resources to the ministry of the church, or to God’s work in any way. Or perhaps you’ve never obeyed the Lord by being baptized. Or maybe you have not been exercising faith in a certain area of your life. Most Christians, when confronted with scripture that shows them an area of growth they are weak in, will want to, by God’s grace, seek to obey and grow in that area of their walk.
About two years ago my wife and I became quite aware of the sad state of our witnessing lives, as we began to regularly listen to a radio ministry that shared the gospel with people on the street day after day. In my case, I realized that my 8 months of missionary efforts in Lithuania were ill trained, ill-equipped and poorly executed. It’s hard not to think of my time there as a waste now, and that the sharing of the gospel I had done publicly for the last several years was poorly presented (more on that later). In my wife’s case, she summed it up by saying; “To my shame I’ve been a Christian in full time ministry on staff at a church for 10 years, and have never once gone out of my way to witness to a stranger.”
Most Christians reading this article won’t need much convincing that evangelism is something that they should be doing, and is expected of every Christian. But lets start by defining what evangelism is. Evangelism is to present Jesus Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit to sinful people, in order that they may come to put their trust in God through Him, to receive Him as their Saviour, and serve Him as their King in the fellowship of His Church.1
To put it simply, it is communicating the gospel. So if you are sharing the gospel, you are evangelizing. This can include various methods such as the spoken word, text, prerecorded messages, sign language or many other ways. Evangelism is not just for missionaries! Pastor John Piper has made the distinction that missions is evangelism in another culture.
Why should a Christian witness? Jesus Christ commanded it.
Matthew 28:19-20 19Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."
Mark 16:15 15He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.
Luke 24:47 47and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.
John 20:21 21Again Jesus said, "Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you."
Acts 1:8 8But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."
Some other verses of interest:
Proverbs 11:30 30 The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, and he who wins souls is wise.
2 Corinthians 5:11 11Since, then, we know what it is to fear the Lord, we try to persuade men. What we are is plain to God, and I hope it is also plain to your conscience.
Romans 10:14 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?
2 Timothy 4:1-2 In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction.
1 Peter 2:9 9But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.
Why Don’t We Witness?
There are hundreds of reasons and excuses why Christians will not open their mouths and speak to non-believers about Christ. One of them is that a person will say “I don’t have the gift of evangelism.” Author Ray Comfort says “Saying I don’t have the gift of evangelism is like saying I don’t have the gift of feeding the poor.”
Some Christians believe that evangelism is a gift and the responsibility of only those with that gift. They appeal to Ephesians. 4:11 for support: “It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers.” While it is true that God gifts some for ministry as evangelists, He calls all believers to be His witnesses and provides them with both the power to witness and a powerful message. Every evangelist is called to be a witness, but only a few witnesses are called to the vocational ministry of an evangelist. Just as each Christian, regardless of spiritual gift or ministry, is to love others, so each believer is to evangelize whether or not his or her gift is that of evangelist.2
Luis Palau said “I find that the people who most argue against evangelism as a priority haven't won a soul to Christ in decades. They are afraid of the nonbeliever. In almost every case, they stay within their closed circles. We scream at the world with our magazines and our microphones, but we don't mingle with the people in the world to bring them to Jesus Christ. Sometimes we hide behind theological statements that go beyond Scripture. Sometimes we hide by saying, "I'm just much too busy carrying on my gift." And we forget that witnessing is not an option. We are all supposed to be witnesses.”
When it comes down to the core of it, pride is the most common sin that stops us from witnessing in the end. We are afraid of what people will think of us. We are afraid that we will look stupid. But by fearing men and not God we are sinning. By not loving people enough to share with them that Jesus Christ can save them from their sin which will result in their eternal punishment in hell, we are showing that we either don’t really love them, or we don’t really believe the Bible. Even Penn Jillette, the God hating atheist from the magic duo “Penn & Teller” surprisingly admits:
"How much do you have to hate somebody to not proselytize?" Jillette asked. "How much do you have to hate somebody to believe that everlasting life is possible and not tell them that? If I believed beyond a shadow of a doubt that a truck was coming at you and you didn't believe it, and that truck was bearing down on you, there's a certain point where I tackle you. And this is more important than that."
Methods of Evangelism
There are probably as many “methods” and mediums of evangelism as you can think of. By methods, I mean the context or situation. (as opposed to the message itself). Methods could include a whole spectrum such as sermons, kid’s club, soup kitchen ministries, outreach events involving music or comedy, men’s breakfasts, camps, or Christian sports leagues. The list is endless. There are many mediums as well, such as: speaking to a person one on one, through literature such as books or tracts, door to door, open air preaching, radio, internet, television, or sermons.
It’s important to realize that things like comedy, drama, juggling, music, or “living the Christian life” in and of themselves are not evangelism. However, if the gospel message is proclaimed through those mediums then you could call it evangelism. Personally, I think those who rely on “lifestyle evangelism” as their only form of evangelism are doing themselves, God, and the lost a big disservice, since it necessitates the lost “coming,” rather than you “going.” And seriously, how often does a non believer come up to you and say, “Why are you so loving?”
Career evangelist Luis Palau points out “You have not been a true witness to Jesus Christ until you have openly, clearly, lovingly presented the message of John 3:16. Witnessing for Jesus Christ is done through one's life, but the life has no meaning if the lips do not speak. Until you've done that, you have not been a full witness to Jesus Christ. People cannot guess why you're such a good neighbor unless you openly, clearly express your faith in Christ.”
OK, Where do I start?
I have found that even when I’m committed to making evangelism a part of life, it’s so very easy to slip back into my self focused life; keeping my lips closed, gospel tracts, books or dvds to myself and not going out of my way to share the greatest news in the world. One of the reasons for this I believe, is because it is a discipline. To become good at anything you have to practice it, and prepare for it. Having someone teach, train and encourage you (disciple you!) is of great importance. I can teach the worst klutz to juggle in far less time that I taught myself to juggle because I had no experience or knowledge about it. I would never be able to juggle six balls today if I never practiced juggling. I used to wonder how I could grow up in a church with such great Bible preaching and teaching, and never learn how to witness? It’s because I never saw anyone do it, and hence never learned how to do it. Therefore I never placed the proper importance on it. I think it’s safe to say that if there is no one in your church regularly involved in sharing the gospel with friends or strangers, you probably won’t be either. So, if you are interested in learning how to witness more effectively, and regularly, get prepared and get some people together! In my church situation I can’t tell you how blessed I am to know that there are people I can call (including my wife) that will take a few hours to go out to the mall, or the market, or the park and talk to people. It’s always the same for everyone - you go dragging your feet, quite nervous, and after having the honour of sharing the gospel with someone, your heart beats with joy, and you go home with a skip in your step!
So how does the believer plan and prepare? For starters, let me say that you will never “feel” ready. So don’t plan on doing a 1 year course before you decide to open your mouth. Begin to practice saying and sharing the gospel with a friend or family member. You will soon discover that even though you may have sat in church for years, if you’ve never done it, it can be hard to share the gospel clearly in just a few minutes. Don’t believe it? Try it!
There are a lot of good ice breakers and tracts with the gospel message on them available today. I used to think lowly of tracts, but not anymore. They can be so helpful to start a conversation, and they can go where you cannot - home with people. I even met a woman whose husband become a Christian from a tract he found in a port-a-potty. He then led her to Christ and now the two of them train thousands of other believers every year how to share their faith. All that from one tract not even handed directly to someone. There are plenty of resources that can help you get prepared. One of the ministries that changed our evangelistic lives was Way of the Master, which did two things for my wife and I.
First, it showed us that we didn’t need to have a Bible College degree or seminary education to have a strategy for our witnessing conversation. We heard people of all faiths (or lack of faiths) being witnessed to over and over again, and realized that with some practice, you can get to the point where you know how to get a conversation started, and where to take it. We are empowered by the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:8), and whether the conversation goes “well” or you are completely rejected, it’s a win win situation! 1 Peter 4:14 says: If you are insulted because of the name of Christ, you are blessed, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you. Remember, you don’t do the converting, God does! Your job is to faithfully plant the seeds and let God work on the soil.
Secondly, it showed us that by not presenting God’s moral law to the sinner before the gospel of grace, we cripple and weaken the effectiveness of the gospel, and are in danger of creating a false convert, who never actually repented of his sin, because he never knew what sin was. (Romans 7:7) By helping a non-believer to see how they personally have broken God’s moral law (the Ten Commandments), and that a holy God must punish law breakers, then punishment (hell) is reasonable and the gospel makes sense. (Gal. 3:24). About one hundred years ago, the evangelical church at large began to abandon the use of the law in evangelism, to our great peril. The topic of using the law in evangelism is an important one and my space is short so for more information on this subject read, “The Way of the Master” by Ray Comfort, or for a crash course listen to the two sermons listed below in the resource section.
Please take the time this new year to think about your witness for Christ. If it hasn’t happened already, it won’t be long before, like me, you have a friend die that you did not share the gospel with, and then it will be too late. Take a lesson from this event that happened in New York. On December 19 2009, a pregnant woman in a coffee shop had a fatal seizure in front of two paramedics who refused to help her. According to media reports, 25-year-old Eutisha Rennix, of Brooklyn, was in Au Bon Pain when she began to complain of severe pain and shortness of breath. Rennix later fell to the ground with convulsions and foaming of the mouth. Two paramedics who were in the coffee shop told patrons to call 911 because they were on their break, according to witnesses. When an ambulance finally arrived, it was too late. Rennix died shortly after being transported to the hospital. Sadly, doctors were not able to save the life of her infant daughter, Jahniya Woodson who died about two hours after her mother. How do you feel about the paramedics who stood by and did nothing, when it was in their ability to help? As Christians, we know that there are people all around us who are terminal, with the sickness of sin. We have the medicine. Will you offer it to them or stand by and do nothing?
3 Questions For Application
Since evangelism is expected, will you obey the Lord and witness?
Since evangelism is empowered, will you believe that God can use your words in the salvation of others?
Since evangelism is a discipline, will you plan for it?
Helpful Resources
Books
Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life, (Evangelism Chapter). Donald S. Whitney
One Thing You Can’t Do in Heaven, Mark Cahill
The Way of the Master, Ray Comfort (A must-read for every Christian interested in evangelism)
Sermons
Hells Best Kept Secret & True and False Conversion by Ray Comfort, www.wayofthemaster.com/audiolessons.shtml
Radio
Wretched Radio, On FamilyNet Sirius Satellite Radio Channel 161 3-5pm weekdays. Download or listen live at www.wretchedradio.com (“witness Wednesdays&rdquo
The Cross Current Radio, http://tccradio.com/
Web Sites
http://www.thecrosscurrent.com An excellent evangelism ministry lead by Rev. Cory McKenna, based in London Ontario. Get involved in street witnessing in different Ontario cities.
http://www.wayofthemaster.com
www.livingwaterscanada.com (also a great source for tracts - click on “Store&rdquo
Courses
School of Biblical Evangelism, www.biblicalevangelism.com
Evangelism Basic Training Course www.livingwaterscanada.com - Click “Store”
Resources to give Non-Believers
An excellent Canadian-themed website that shares the gospel, www.greatnewscanada.com
One Heartbeat Away, Mark Cahill - A great book to give to a non-believer
www.livingwaterscanada.com Click on “store” for some great tracts from a Canadian supplier
The Big Question, An evangelistic DVD “tract.” www.wretchedradio.com/store
1 J.I.Packer, Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1979), pages 37-57
2 Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life, (Evangelism Chapter). Donald S. Whitney, Page 95
Imagine being a Christian for 20 years and one day being convicted in a huge area of disobedience and pathetic growth in your life. For example, lets say you never gave any of your money or resources to the ministry of the church, or to God’s work in any way. Or perhaps you’ve never obeyed the Lord by being baptized. Or maybe you have not been exercising faith in a certain area of your life. Most Christians, when confronted with scripture that shows them an area of growth they are weak in, will want to, by God’s grace, seek to obey and grow in that area of their walk.
About two years ago my wife and I became quite aware of the sad state of our witnessing lives, as we began to regularly listen to a radio ministry that shared the gospel with people on the street day after day. In my case, I realized that my 8 months of missionary efforts in Lithuania were ill trained, ill-equipped and poorly executed. It’s hard not to think of my time there as a waste now, and that the sharing of the gospel I had done publicly for the last several years was poorly presented (more on that later). In my wife’s case, she summed it up by saying; “To my shame I’ve been a Christian in full time ministry on staff at a church for 10 years, and have never once gone out of my way to witness to a stranger.”
Most Christians reading this article won’t need much convincing that evangelism is something that they should be doing, and is expected of every Christian. But lets start by defining what evangelism is. Evangelism is to present Jesus Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit to sinful people, in order that they may come to put their trust in God through Him, to receive Him as their Saviour, and serve Him as their King in the fellowship of His Church.1
To put it simply, it is communicating the gospel. So if you are sharing the gospel, you are evangelizing. This can include various methods such as the spoken word, text, prerecorded messages, sign language or many other ways. Evangelism is not just for missionaries! Pastor John Piper has made the distinction that missions is evangelism in another culture.
Why should a Christian witness? Jesus Christ commanded it.
Matthew 28:19-20 19Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."
Mark 16:15 15He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.
Luke 24:47 47and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.
John 20:21 21Again Jesus said, "Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you."
Acts 1:8 8But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."
Some other verses of interest:
Proverbs 11:30 30 The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, and he who wins souls is wise.
2 Corinthians 5:11 11Since, then, we know what it is to fear the Lord, we try to persuade men. What we are is plain to God, and I hope it is also plain to your conscience.
Romans 10:14 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?
2 Timothy 4:1-2 In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction.
1 Peter 2:9 9But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.
Why Don’t We Witness?
There are hundreds of reasons and excuses why Christians will not open their mouths and speak to non-believers about Christ. One of them is that a person will say “I don’t have the gift of evangelism.” Author Ray Comfort says “Saying I don’t have the gift of evangelism is like saying I don’t have the gift of feeding the poor.”
Some Christians believe that evangelism is a gift and the responsibility of only those with that gift. They appeal to Ephesians. 4:11 for support: “It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers.” While it is true that God gifts some for ministry as evangelists, He calls all believers to be His witnesses and provides them with both the power to witness and a powerful message. Every evangelist is called to be a witness, but only a few witnesses are called to the vocational ministry of an evangelist. Just as each Christian, regardless of spiritual gift or ministry, is to love others, so each believer is to evangelize whether or not his or her gift is that of evangelist.2
Luis Palau said “I find that the people who most argue against evangelism as a priority haven't won a soul to Christ in decades. They are afraid of the nonbeliever. In almost every case, they stay within their closed circles. We scream at the world with our magazines and our microphones, but we don't mingle with the people in the world to bring them to Jesus Christ. Sometimes we hide behind theological statements that go beyond Scripture. Sometimes we hide by saying, "I'm just much too busy carrying on my gift." And we forget that witnessing is not an option. We are all supposed to be witnesses.”
When it comes down to the core of it, pride is the most common sin that stops us from witnessing in the end. We are afraid of what people will think of us. We are afraid that we will look stupid. But by fearing men and not God we are sinning. By not loving people enough to share with them that Jesus Christ can save them from their sin which will result in their eternal punishment in hell, we are showing that we either don’t really love them, or we don’t really believe the Bible. Even Penn Jillette, the God hating atheist from the magic duo “Penn & Teller” surprisingly admits:
"How much do you have to hate somebody to not proselytize?" Jillette asked. "How much do you have to hate somebody to believe that everlasting life is possible and not tell them that? If I believed beyond a shadow of a doubt that a truck was coming at you and you didn't believe it, and that truck was bearing down on you, there's a certain point where I tackle you. And this is more important than that."
Methods of Evangelism
There are probably as many “methods” and mediums of evangelism as you can think of. By methods, I mean the context or situation. (as opposed to the message itself). Methods could include a whole spectrum such as sermons, kid’s club, soup kitchen ministries, outreach events involving music or comedy, men’s breakfasts, camps, or Christian sports leagues. The list is endless. There are many mediums as well, such as: speaking to a person one on one, through literature such as books or tracts, door to door, open air preaching, radio, internet, television, or sermons.
It’s important to realize that things like comedy, drama, juggling, music, or “living the Christian life” in and of themselves are not evangelism. However, if the gospel message is proclaimed through those mediums then you could call it evangelism. Personally, I think those who rely on “lifestyle evangelism” as their only form of evangelism are doing themselves, God, and the lost a big disservice, since it necessitates the lost “coming,” rather than you “going.” And seriously, how often does a non believer come up to you and say, “Why are you so loving?”
Career evangelist Luis Palau points out “You have not been a true witness to Jesus Christ until you have openly, clearly, lovingly presented the message of John 3:16. Witnessing for Jesus Christ is done through one's life, but the life has no meaning if the lips do not speak. Until you've done that, you have not been a full witness to Jesus Christ. People cannot guess why you're such a good neighbor unless you openly, clearly express your faith in Christ.”
OK, Where do I start?
I have found that even when I’m committed to making evangelism a part of life, it’s so very easy to slip back into my self focused life; keeping my lips closed, gospel tracts, books or dvds to myself and not going out of my way to share the greatest news in the world. One of the reasons for this I believe, is because it is a discipline. To become good at anything you have to practice it, and prepare for it. Having someone teach, train and encourage you (disciple you!) is of great importance. I can teach the worst klutz to juggle in far less time that I taught myself to juggle because I had no experience or knowledge about it. I would never be able to juggle six balls today if I never practiced juggling. I used to wonder how I could grow up in a church with such great Bible preaching and teaching, and never learn how to witness? It’s because I never saw anyone do it, and hence never learned how to do it. Therefore I never placed the proper importance on it. I think it’s safe to say that if there is no one in your church regularly involved in sharing the gospel with friends or strangers, you probably won’t be either. So, if you are interested in learning how to witness more effectively, and regularly, get prepared and get some people together! In my church situation I can’t tell you how blessed I am to know that there are people I can call (including my wife) that will take a few hours to go out to the mall, or the market, or the park and talk to people. It’s always the same for everyone - you go dragging your feet, quite nervous, and after having the honour of sharing the gospel with someone, your heart beats with joy, and you go home with a skip in your step!
So how does the believer plan and prepare? For starters, let me say that you will never “feel” ready. So don’t plan on doing a 1 year course before you decide to open your mouth. Begin to practice saying and sharing the gospel with a friend or family member. You will soon discover that even though you may have sat in church for years, if you’ve never done it, it can be hard to share the gospel clearly in just a few minutes. Don’t believe it? Try it!
There are a lot of good ice breakers and tracts with the gospel message on them available today. I used to think lowly of tracts, but not anymore. They can be so helpful to start a conversation, and they can go where you cannot - home with people. I even met a woman whose husband become a Christian from a tract he found in a port-a-potty. He then led her to Christ and now the two of them train thousands of other believers every year how to share their faith. All that from one tract not even handed directly to someone. There are plenty of resources that can help you get prepared. One of the ministries that changed our evangelistic lives was Way of the Master, which did two things for my wife and I.
First, it showed us that we didn’t need to have a Bible College degree or seminary education to have a strategy for our witnessing conversation. We heard people of all faiths (or lack of faiths) being witnessed to over and over again, and realized that with some practice, you can get to the point where you know how to get a conversation started, and where to take it. We are empowered by the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:8), and whether the conversation goes “well” or you are completely rejected, it’s a win win situation! 1 Peter 4:14 says: If you are insulted because of the name of Christ, you are blessed, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you. Remember, you don’t do the converting, God does! Your job is to faithfully plant the seeds and let God work on the soil.
Secondly, it showed us that by not presenting God’s moral law to the sinner before the gospel of grace, we cripple and weaken the effectiveness of the gospel, and are in danger of creating a false convert, who never actually repented of his sin, because he never knew what sin was. (Romans 7:7) By helping a non-believer to see how they personally have broken God’s moral law (the Ten Commandments), and that a holy God must punish law breakers, then punishment (hell) is reasonable and the gospel makes sense. (Gal. 3:24). About one hundred years ago, the evangelical church at large began to abandon the use of the law in evangelism, to our great peril. The topic of using the law in evangelism is an important one and my space is short so for more information on this subject read, “The Way of the Master” by Ray Comfort, or for a crash course listen to the two sermons listed below in the resource section.
Please take the time this new year to think about your witness for Christ. If it hasn’t happened already, it won’t be long before, like me, you have a friend die that you did not share the gospel with, and then it will be too late. Take a lesson from this event that happened in New York. On December 19 2009, a pregnant woman in a coffee shop had a fatal seizure in front of two paramedics who refused to help her. According to media reports, 25-year-old Eutisha Rennix, of Brooklyn, was in Au Bon Pain when she began to complain of severe pain and shortness of breath. Rennix later fell to the ground with convulsions and foaming of the mouth. Two paramedics who were in the coffee shop told patrons to call 911 because they were on their break, according to witnesses. When an ambulance finally arrived, it was too late. Rennix died shortly after being transported to the hospital. Sadly, doctors were not able to save the life of her infant daughter, Jahniya Woodson who died about two hours after her mother. How do you feel about the paramedics who stood by and did nothing, when it was in their ability to help? As Christians, we know that there are people all around us who are terminal, with the sickness of sin. We have the medicine. Will you offer it to them or stand by and do nothing?
3 Questions For Application
Since evangelism is expected, will you obey the Lord and witness?
Since evangelism is empowered, will you believe that God can use your words in the salvation of others?
Since evangelism is a discipline, will you plan for it?
Helpful Resources
Books
Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life, (Evangelism Chapter). Donald S. Whitney
One Thing You Can’t Do in Heaven, Mark Cahill
The Way of the Master, Ray Comfort (A must-read for every Christian interested in evangelism)
Sermons
Hells Best Kept Secret & True and False Conversion by Ray Comfort, www.wayofthemaster.com/audiolessons.shtml
Radio
Wretched Radio, On FamilyNet Sirius Satellite Radio Channel 161 3-5pm weekdays. Download or listen live at www.wretchedradio.com (“witness Wednesdays&rdquo
The Cross Current Radio, http://tccradio.com/
Web Sites
http://www.thecrosscurrent.com An excellent evangelism ministry lead by Rev. Cory McKenna, based in London Ontario. Get involved in street witnessing in different Ontario cities.
http://www.wayofthemaster.com
www.livingwaterscanada.com (also a great source for tracts - click on “Store&rdquo
Courses
School of Biblical Evangelism, www.biblicalevangelism.com
Evangelism Basic Training Course www.livingwaterscanada.com - Click “Store”
Resources to give Non-Believers
An excellent Canadian-themed website that shares the gospel, www.greatnewscanada.com
One Heartbeat Away, Mark Cahill - A great book to give to a non-believer
www.livingwaterscanada.com Click on “store” for some great tracts from a Canadian supplier
The Big Question, An evangelistic DVD “tract.” www.wretchedradio.com/store
1 J.I.Packer, Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1979), pages 37-57
2 Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life, (Evangelism Chapter). Donald S. Whitney, Page 95
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Witnessing at the St. Jacobs Farmers Market
17/July/2008 06:00 PM Filed in: Faith and God
Mark 16:15 "Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.”
Bob & Jane face their fear and grow their faith. Would you like to join us?
It all started about 6 months ago when we were in Alberta and rented a car that had Sirius Satellite Radio. We heard a Christian talk show program called Way of the Master Radio. We thought it was so good I looked it up on the internet when I got home. I knew that they would likely have a pod cast and sure enough they did. You can listen live at www.wayofthemasterradio.com or just use itunes to download the free programs every day.
The Way of the Master radio turned out to be part of a larger ministry, Way of the Master and Living Waters and Living Waters Canada. I had vaguely heard of these ministries before from hearing that Kirk Cameron was a Christian ("Mike Seaver" from the old hit sitcom "Growing Pains").
In the radio Show, Todd Friel and Ray Comfort witness to people on the air at least once a day. They have a few people out on the street who approach people and ask them about their beliefs and if they would be willing to talk to the hosts live on air. One of the "Street Fishers" is a pastor's wife in Texas named Trish (see www.fishwithtrish.com for a great site about how things go after the witness encounters).
They use the Law (the Ten Commandments) to show people their utter sinfulness and hence their need for a saviour. Everyone has lied, stolen, coveted, etc, and people's own conscience convicts them. They use the Law as a schoolmaster to lead people to Christ. (Galatians 3:24 (KJV) "Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.")
Many times that Jane and I have been afraid to witness, it has because we don't know what to say. We think we have to know every answer to all possible questions, and that is just not the case. But by making your final witnessing destination the heart and not the head, you will always have an ally in their conscience. You can witness the same way to an atheist, a muslim, a catholic or a homosexual, without having to know by heart the Qu’ran, the 800 page catechism of the Catholic Church, Philosophy, or what “Rosie’s Family Cruise” is.
As we listened to witness encounters again and again we were challenged by our own apathy to the spiritual state of non-believers, and our own pride and apathy towards witnessing. Our research into the ministry revealed two sermons that would change our life. These two sermons, "Hell's Best Kept Secret" and "True and False Conversion" are mind blowers if you have been a Christian for any length of time. I suspect that if you are a believer you also will be changed by what you hear. These can both be listened to for free, or downloaded and burned to CD for free here: http://www.wayofthemaster.com/audiolessons.shtml
If you do only one thing after reading this, please listen to these sermons.
So, summoning the courage, Jane and I decided to "hit the streets" with our soap box (juggling box), tracts, and faith. The most logical place we thought was St. Jacob's Farmers market because there are always lots of people on Thursdays and Saturdays. Thursdays fit our schedule best and so starting in late May we went there in faith looking to witness. As I have lots of experience in busking from my earlier days I signed in as a busker. The evangelistic “methods” we take are three-fold:
1) one on one witnessing with people we approach or strike up conversations with, usually right near where we are set up
2). Handing out tracts, which includes the unique "million dollar bill" gospel tract which totally opens the door to talk to people about faith
Ray Comfort said that a good open air preacher can reach more lost people in one day that an average church does in a year! I didn't believe this at first, it is such a radical a statement. However, I do now! This afternoon, I open air preached to about 50 people, and we witnessed one on one to another several people. And that was in just one hour! I believe a good open air preacher could therefore expose the Gospel to over 1000 people in a day. Does your church present the full and clear gospel message to that many run of the mill non-believers in a year?
I start by getting a small crowd with juggling and comedy, and the goal is to build it to about 15-40 people, although some times more or less are in the audience. I try not to spend more than 10 minutes on the show, although it sometimes goes longer. Then I say after the finale, "If I were busking today I would now put out my hat and ask for money. But today I'm reverse busking - I'm going to give out money! I then bring out the million dollar bill (tract) and say I'm going to give everyone one of these million dollar bills after I share a short message. (today I actually gave out the bills and said I was going to explain the gospel message that is on the back, after everyone had received one. Surprisingly, about three quarters of the crowd stayed to hear the message. I'll experiment with this).
Often we go to the market dragging our feet and leave skipping. It is a thrill share the gospel - to know that you can't rely on your own skills, but only the Holy Spirit to open someone's heart. It is a joy to share the gospel, without watering it down. And to realize that all we can do is plant seeds: we can't convert anyone!
We have discovered that sometimes it can be discouraging to see just how lost some people are. And to meet so many false converts. For example today Jane and I talked to this dear old white haired grandmother named Maria who, in the past, I would have probably thought to be saved without giving it a second thought. She said that she grew up in the church and knew the gospel and "all that." She said she went to the presbyterian church every now and then in Port Rowan to “make the pastor feel better," because they only have 12 people in the congregation. So after wading through a lot of self righteousness the scary truth came out. (Jane's gentle questioning revealed that the only one of the 10 commandments she thought that she had ever broken - in her WHOLE life - was lying... ) apparently in her 70 years she had never dishonoured her parents, stole anything, used the Lord's name in vain, lusted, coveted, etc). But she said that she was "ready to go" and started to tell us about her sickness recently which saw her go to the hospital. So I asked her if she died, and stood before God, why should He let her in. She replied with the heartbreaking old standard, "because I've been a good person." You will not believe how often you hear this. Pray for Maria from Port Rowan (and her husband John) if you think of it.
So since some people have expressed interest in coming out to show moral support, hand out tracks, or learn how / practice witnessing, we decided we'd better put a date and time on the next outings planned.
We work near the south entrance. Here is a map with the location marked with a pin. Click Here
Set aside some time to follow some of the above links, and download or listen to those two sermons over the next week if you can. If you are planning to join us please phone or email us - it would be great. And don’t worry, you never stop trembling!
Bob Cates
See Video Clip:
Bob & Jane face their fear and grow their faith. Would you like to join us?
It all started about 6 months ago when we were in Alberta and rented a car that had Sirius Satellite Radio. We heard a Christian talk show program called Way of the Master Radio. We thought it was so good I looked it up on the internet when I got home. I knew that they would likely have a pod cast and sure enough they did. You can listen live at www.wayofthemasterradio.com or just use itunes to download the free programs every day.
The Way of the Master radio turned out to be part of a larger ministry, Way of the Master and Living Waters and Living Waters Canada. I had vaguely heard of these ministries before from hearing that Kirk Cameron was a Christian ("Mike Seaver" from the old hit sitcom "Growing Pains").
In the radio Show, Todd Friel and Ray Comfort witness to people on the air at least once a day. They have a few people out on the street who approach people and ask them about their beliefs and if they would be willing to talk to the hosts live on air. One of the "Street Fishers" is a pastor's wife in Texas named Trish (see www.fishwithtrish.com for a great site about how things go after the witness encounters).
They use the Law (the Ten Commandments) to show people their utter sinfulness and hence their need for a saviour. Everyone has lied, stolen, coveted, etc, and people's own conscience convicts them. They use the Law as a schoolmaster to lead people to Christ. (Galatians 3:24 (KJV) "Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.")
Many times that Jane and I have been afraid to witness, it has because we don't know what to say. We think we have to know every answer to all possible questions, and that is just not the case. But by making your final witnessing destination the heart and not the head, you will always have an ally in their conscience. You can witness the same way to an atheist, a muslim, a catholic or a homosexual, without having to know by heart the Qu’ran, the 800 page catechism of the Catholic Church, Philosophy, or what “Rosie’s Family Cruise” is.
As we listened to witness encounters again and again we were challenged by our own apathy to the spiritual state of non-believers, and our own pride and apathy towards witnessing. Our research into the ministry revealed two sermons that would change our life. These two sermons, "Hell's Best Kept Secret" and "True and False Conversion" are mind blowers if you have been a Christian for any length of time. I suspect that if you are a believer you also will be changed by what you hear. These can both be listened to for free, or downloaded and burned to CD for free here: http://www.wayofthemaster.com/audiolessons.shtml
If you do only one thing after reading this, please listen to these sermons.
So, summoning the courage, Jane and I decided to "hit the streets" with our soap box (juggling box), tracts, and faith. The most logical place we thought was St. Jacob's Farmers market because there are always lots of people on Thursdays and Saturdays. Thursdays fit our schedule best and so starting in late May we went there in faith looking to witness. As I have lots of experience in busking from my earlier days I signed in as a busker. The evangelistic “methods” we take are three-fold:
1) one on one witnessing with people we approach or strike up conversations with, usually right near where we are set up
2). Handing out tracts, which includes the unique "million dollar bill" gospel tract which totally opens the door to talk to people about faith
Ray Comfort said that a good open air preacher can reach more lost people in one day that an average church does in a year! I didn't believe this at first, it is such a radical a statement. However, I do now! This afternoon, I open air preached to about 50 people, and we witnessed one on one to another several people. And that was in just one hour! I believe a good open air preacher could therefore expose the Gospel to over 1000 people in a day. Does your church present the full and clear gospel message to that many run of the mill non-believers in a year?
I start by getting a small crowd with juggling and comedy, and the goal is to build it to about 15-40 people, although some times more or less are in the audience. I try not to spend more than 10 minutes on the show, although it sometimes goes longer. Then I say after the finale, "If I were busking today I would now put out my hat and ask for money. But today I'm reverse busking - I'm going to give out money! I then bring out the million dollar bill (tract) and say I'm going to give everyone one of these million dollar bills after I share a short message. (today I actually gave out the bills and said I was going to explain the gospel message that is on the back, after everyone had received one. Surprisingly, about three quarters of the crowd stayed to hear the message. I'll experiment with this).
Often we go to the market dragging our feet and leave skipping. It is a thrill share the gospel - to know that you can't rely on your own skills, but only the Holy Spirit to open someone's heart. It is a joy to share the gospel, without watering it down. And to realize that all we can do is plant seeds: we can't convert anyone!
We have discovered that sometimes it can be discouraging to see just how lost some people are. And to meet so many false converts. For example today Jane and I talked to this dear old white haired grandmother named Maria who, in the past, I would have probably thought to be saved without giving it a second thought. She said that she grew up in the church and knew the gospel and "all that." She said she went to the presbyterian church every now and then in Port Rowan to “make the pastor feel better," because they only have 12 people in the congregation. So after wading through a lot of self righteousness the scary truth came out. (Jane's gentle questioning revealed that the only one of the 10 commandments she thought that she had ever broken - in her WHOLE life - was lying... ) apparently in her 70 years she had never dishonoured her parents, stole anything, used the Lord's name in vain, lusted, coveted, etc). But she said that she was "ready to go" and started to tell us about her sickness recently which saw her go to the hospital. So I asked her if she died, and stood before God, why should He let her in. She replied with the heartbreaking old standard, "because I've been a good person." You will not believe how often you hear this. Pray for Maria from Port Rowan (and her husband John) if you think of it.
So since some people have expressed interest in coming out to show moral support, hand out tracks, or learn how / practice witnessing, we decided we'd better put a date and time on the next outings planned.
We work near the south entrance. Here is a map with the location marked with a pin. Click Here
Set aside some time to follow some of the above links, and download or listen to those two sermons over the next week if you can. If you are planning to join us please phone or email us - it would be great. And don’t worry, you never stop trembling!
Bob Cates
See Video Clip: