These days, its not hard to find plenty of things to do. Even as Christians, we may find ourselves under constant pressure to do so many things. Bills to pay, business to do and family commitments all take time. The worries of life may be crowding into our minds.
Meanwhile, the emphasis of the church is normally upon attending more meetings. Church services, prayer meetings, conventions, choir practice, youth nights, board meetings - the list goes on and on. Somehow into our hectic schedule we may squeeze time for personal devotions and a brief read of the Scriptures.
If we manage to do these things, and somehow hold it all together, we
breathe a sigh of relief. However, it is my contention that we may do all
these things, and yet have missed THE MAIN BUSINESS OF LIFE - soulwinning.
This manual is designed to help you to please God in that most vital area
of service and life, soulwinning.
- Because of Calvary. A love so great, a punishment so great, a suffering so great. Look upon the wounds of your dying Saviour. He bled for you, but not for you only, but for the whole world. When you see His suffering, you will account your own suffering a small thing. Your own problems will pale into insignificance if you can but grasp the intense misery, pain, heartache and physical agony that Christ endured for you. When you see his love expressed there on the cross, can you not abhor your own selfishness? "Be as constrained by the love of God in preaching the gospel as your Saviour was in providing the gospel."
- For the glory, honour and praise of God. Does it not pain your heart that the one to whom angels bow down and worship is so blasphemed on earth. There is a policy in the world of suppressing the knowledge of the true God? How many people give thanks to God for all the good things he has given? Their minds are blinded by Satan, the prince of darkness.
- God's love has been poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit (Romans 5:5). We ought to care enough to act. To do something. Don't just ask God to save them. Before anyone else cared, God gave his only begotten Son to be led away to die for your most horrible sins.
- The Gospel is Good News. We like to bring good news. God has done something for the needs of the world. This is good news. Can you dare to believe that God would do something good for those you know, bound by satanic chains of sin, disease and death? Then boldly proclaim this news and set the prisoners free!
- You are the body of Christ.
- Jesus Christ is in you. You are to abide in Him, and He in you. You must walk as He walked. Jesus came to seek and save that which was lost. (Luke 19:10). He did not call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.
- If Jesus Christ is the greatest lover of your soul, the light of your life, your Lord and master, your leader, your friend and the substance of your new life, how is it that you could keep Him out of your conversation? You'll want to introduce your friend Jesus to the people you know.
- Christ commanded all his disciples to preach (preach = communicate) the gospel. (Mk 16:15; Matt 28:19; John 20:22; Acts 1:8). Matthew 28:18 means you have the right, or aauthority to do it; Jesus in Acts 1:8 promises you the POWER to do it.
- Men are lost without Christ.
a. They are going to hell ( 2 Thess. 1:8,9). Ask yourself - how can I remain silent when so many of my friends and acquaintances are heading for hell?
b. They are like sheep without a shepherd. (Matt. 9:36)
c. They are spiritually unfulfilled without Christ.
- We don't want to have the blood of sinners on our hands. (Read Ezekial 3:17-20; 33:8. Acts 18:6; 20:26-27; 1 Cor. 9:16)
- He who wins souls is wise. (Prov. 11:30)
- Great rewards are promised now and in eternity. (Dan. 12:3; 1 Thess 2:19-20)
- Our joy is made full when we testify to what we really know of God. (1 John 1:3,4; John 15:11; Luke 15:5)
1. That's not my ministry.
All Christians are given the great commission. Winning people to Christ is part of the Christian life. Not that other ministries are to be neglected. (Acts 1:8)
2. I CAN'T
Php 4:13 - I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Jesus would never ask you to do something you cannot do. He promises you the power (Acts 1:8). Be filled with the Holy Spirit (Eph. 5:18)
3. I've no right to tell others they need to be saved.
You are Christ's ambassador. (2 Cor 5:17-21). He has all authority (Matt. 28:18). You are his hands and feet on this earth (Eph. 5:30)
4. I'm too busy.
In reality you still meet many people whom you could talk to about Christ or invite to church. This is a poor excuse. It shows your priorities are wrong. You have made YOUR business is more important to you than Christ's. In reality, everything you do should be done for Him, His way, in His name, and according to His revealed priorities. 1 Cor 10.31. If you do things in a way which grieves the Holy Spirit you will lose the fire for evangelism and even if you get busy with many projects, you are walking in disobedience to Christ.
Witnessing is a great adventure where we are at the cutting edge of God's kingdom and can expect to see the miraculous occurring. Because God is so interested in winning people over he will give you, his soldier, great resources to use. There can be a great sense of fun and action in witnessing, and there is no greater joy than really leading a person into the Kingdom of God. Satan hates all this. One of his main weapons is fear, whereby he aims to prevent Christians from even setting out on this great adventure. Here are some keys to overcoming.
- Fears of others ridicule or rejection
Prov 29:25 - Fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord will be kept safe. Remember that we belong to Jesus now. He is with us by His Spirit. (Matthew 28:20; 1 Cor. 6:19) Trusting God and his resources will destroy this fear.
"So we say with confidence, The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can men do to me?" (Hebrews13:6)
We must fear God more than people. See 2 Cor. 5:11; John 5:44; John 12:40-4.
- Fears of Embarrassment (Self-consciousness)
To overcome this we must be conscious of the fact that God is in us by His Spirit. Be filled with the Spirit. Pray for boldness. (Acts 4:29-31; Prov. 28:1)
- Fear of Failure
This can be overcome if you get TRAINED TO WITNESS and prepare yourself adequately. Believe what God says about you and His purpose for you. (John 15:8,16; 2 Tim. 1:6-8) We ought to realize that God has given us all we need to succeed. (2 Peter 1:3). We must receive by faith what we need from God.
Study who you are in Christ. We are who God says we are! We can do what God says we can do! We can possess all that God has given us! Read 2 Cor. 5:17; Gal. 3:26; Eph 2:4-10; 1 Peter 4:10; Eph 1:3 Eph 6:10-18; Mark 16:17-18). Meditate on these and other Scriptures. Confess them aloud. Then you will be prosperous and successful. Read also Joshua 1:8-9.
It is the will of God for you to succeed, and bear much fruit.
Fear is just one of Satan's weapons to prevent the spread of the good news of Christ's salvation plan. Others include pride, deception, unbelief, laziness and rebellion. To understand why this is so, you must understand that Satan has a kingdom. Satan wants the glory, and his kingdom is threatened when the message of Jesus Christ goes out. Behind many of the negative thoughts and emotions which have stopped you from witnessing effectively there is an evil spirit or group of evil spirits. Until Jesus came, God's Kingdom was not obvious on the earth. But Jesus came and demonstrated a greater power than the power of Satan. Demons were driven out, sin and sickness were rebuked.
Then the cross came. What Satan thought was his greatest triumph turned for him into catastrophic defeat. For Jesus disarmed principalities and powers through the cross, and rose again in the greatest demonstration of God's kingly power man has ever witnessed. He told his disciples to preach repentance and the forgiveness of sins to all that believed, promising that the same power which he exercised over the kingdom of darkness would be available to them as believers. See Mark 16:15-18; Luke 24:47-49.
The ministry of Jesus Christ is multiplied through his disciples. Our message also is the Kingdom of Heaven. We are to pray "Thy Kingdom Come". Every time demons are cast out, or people repent of their sins and give their lives to Jesus, God's Kingdom of love is extended in the world. The result will be "righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit." (Romans 14:17).
Behind many of the negative thoughts and emotions which have stopped you from witnessing effectively there is an evil spirit or group of evil spirits. If you continue to obey Jesus you will learn to overcome every attack by Satan's spiritual forces. God gave you superior armour, weaponry and greater spiritual firepower than the devil has. However, only through the patient teaching of the Holy Spirit will you learn to use this power consistently in the preaching of the gospel, the healing of the sick and the casting out of demons.
Understand then, that the source of many of the problems that an active soldier of Jesus Christ encounters is the opposing Kingdom of Darkness - Satan and his demons working through people and circumstances to create problems to produce discouragement and hindrances. However, God has given us weapons such as praise, prayer, the confession of God's Word, the blood of Jesus, the name of Jesus and the gifts and graces of the Holy Spirit for us to use in order to overcome these obstacles and successfully evangelise the world.
PRACTICAL WITNESSING - METHODOLOGY
Important Points:
As T.L. Osborn says: "You can memorize the mechanics [of personal evangelism]. But the dynamics must be born in you. It must be a revelation - a miracle." Remember that above all your witnessing is the expression of Christ in you to a lost and dying world. So let Jesus live through you. Without Him you can do nothing. (John 15:4-5)
The best way to learn to witness effectively is to work with someone else who you can watch in action and who can later supervise you as you begin to share Christ. The twelve apostles learnt how to function by watching Jesus do it first. Later they were sent out under Jesus' direction and supervision. You cannot learn how to win souls just by reading books and manuals, as valuable as this may be. You must associate with other soul-winners and learn from them as you work with them.
The Holy Spirit is putting renewed emphasis on team ministry today. Learning to work with others requires humility. We should allow others to correct us, encourage us and teach us. By fellowshipping with other soul-winners, we can keep the fire alive in our hearts. However, you should always be ready, willing and able to share just one on one with an unbeliever. Jesus didn't always have disciples with him when he witnessed. See John 4.
A SIMPLE SCHEME OF THE EVANGELISM PROCESS
Preparation -- Get Attention -- Create Interest -- Bring Understanding -- Holy Spirit Convicts -- Conversion - Addition.
Generally speaking whenever we evangelise we aim to move from left to right along this scheme. With different people we may spend more or less time in each area, depending on their openness to God. Do not try to skip stages - it will lead to frustrated witness for you.
For example, if you try to bring understanding of the message before the person is even listening to you, your words will fall on deaf ears. The person may hear the sounds you make but in many cases Satan will steal the word quickly because their heart is hardened to the Word at that time.
Again, if you try to bring a person to Christ when they are not really convinced of sin you are likely to find that they have misunderstood God's message. Perhaps they are willing to "try Jesus" to see what he will do for them. Not feeling the great guilt of their sin, they are unlikely to resist Satan's next temptation. They may in fact come to wonder "What on earth did I do praying that prayer? How embarrassing." On the other hand, a true convert will normally feel grateful to God, joyful and relieved of his burden of sin. The new convert may be fearful of falling into sin, but will have a newborn desire to please God and a trust in their newfound Saviour.
Its always good to try to bring the people you witness to to Church. Maybe they are one of the 10% of sinners that are willing to come to church. If they come to church it does not mean they have been added to the church. Only a true Christian is part of the true church, which is the body of Christ. However, if they come into a church where the gospel is faithfully preached and they hear the Word of God, they are more likely to eventually come to an understanding and a knowledge of God for salvation.
Mental Preparation
1. Set your mind on the things that the Spirit desires (Romans 8:15). Think about the destiny of those who don't know Christ and God's love for them.
(Step 2. is especially relevant for beginners that have rarely, if ever, shared the message of the gospel with unbelievers, especially for those that battle with fear.)
2. Determine to do something about it - determine to share the gospel with someone. Genuinely make yourself available to God. Make a plan as to how and when you will witness. Decide who you will go with (if anyone). Be definite!
3. You should discipline yourself like this until evangelism becomes a way of life for you, and you find yourself frequently sharing God's message with those you meet even without pre-meditation.
Physical Preparation
These things apply where you have opportunity and are planning a time of witnessing.
1. Make sure you have washed and cleaned your teeth recently (1 Cor. 9:12b). Don't hinder the gospel.
2. Avoid extremes in dress. Try to fit in. Be tasteful, but modest. We want to be able to draw attention only to Christ. Try not to be a slob. You are Christ's ambassador (2 Cor. 5:20). On the other hand don't worry or become inhibited because of your clothes.
3. Get any witnessing tools ready. These might include:
tracts pencil and paper (important for follow up) survey forms advertising handbills Bible
Spiritual Preparation
1. Prayer is vital to successful evangelism because it puts you in a place to receive God's resources for your work. Bathe your witnessing in prayer. Learn to operate out of relationship to God.
Also ask God for boldness (Acts 4:29), direction and wisdom. Prov. 11:30. God is very willing to give a supernatural wisdom to us and put His Word in our mouths! (James 1:5, Isaiah 59:21).
2. Be filled with the Spirit (Eph. 5:18). Seek God for this from your base or home first if necessary. Do not underestimate the difference this will truly make in operating the gifts of the Spirit and in making the truth of God's message penetrate the hearts of the unbelieving and doubters.
3. Bind demonic power over the people you are about to talk to. Ask God to specifically reval what to bind. This will work for you if you are a praying, Spirit filled, Spirit led, obedient Christian. You have authority over the devil's works. Through your positive words of faith and your statements of divine authority over the world of spirits, you will get better results. Its like dropping a bomb on the enemy before engaging in hand to hand combat.
No matter what approach you use, there are normally a few critical and difficult points where courage and firmness are needed to press through against a build up of psychological pressure. Evil spirits will also accuse us at these points with such suggestions as:
"Wait for another opportunity." "You've done a good jopb so far, no need to go further now." "If you continue he/she will be put off"
We could call these points of tension "../apologetics/faith-unbelief barriers" and liken then to the "sound barrier". Just as an aeroplane approaching the sound barrier begins to shake and vibrate - you may shake and be afraid and feel you can't go on as you approach these faith barriers.
However, when the aeroplane breaks through the sound barrier it experiences on the other side a complete calmness, smoothness and lack of vibration. The Christian who presses through these points of tension by a deliberate act of faith based on the Word of God will likewise experience a new inner peace of mind and freedom of speech. The more often one does this, the easier it will be on the next occasion. Witnessing will become an increasing joy.
These faith barriers generally occur just before you move onto the next phase of the above scheme (preparation, get attention, create interest, bring understanding, conversion, addition to church). Don't worry about them, if it happens it's just the devil. He is trying to stop you preaching the gospel so he can destroy the people. You, on your part, must submit yourself to God, resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
1. You must demonstrate love in the way you witness. See Gal. 5:22 for a full description.
2. Be positive and friendly. Then the person you talk with is going to be more positive to you (Luke 6:35). Treat the person KINDLY. "Let him see that you address him, not because you seek a quarrel with him, but because you love his soul and desire his best good in time and eternity" - Charles Finney.
3. Be very plain. Speak the truth. Let them see their spiritual condition before God. The Holy Spirit will work with you to convict of sin, righteousness and judgement, which is a necessary work before true conversion.
4. Be gentle and respectful (1 Pet. 3:15).
If you have the right attitude, you will never turn anyone off. You will draw them to God, not drive them away.
HOW TO GET THE CONVERSATION STARTED
The Direct Approach
This is where one goes up to a stranger and initiates a conversation with him or her. Jesus and the apostles used this approach at times (e.g. Matthew 4:19; Acts 3:1-8). It works best with religious people (e.g. Roman Catholics).
Deciding Who to Talk To
Jesus commanded us to preach the gospel to every creature (Mark 16:15). We could talk with anyone, anytime, anywhere. But be wise. Its usually far easier in personal evangelism to talk to a single individual of the same sex who is not to much older than yourself. Aim, however, to be all things to all men, to win more. (1 Cor 9:22).
Also, it can be very difficult to lead someone to Christ when they are with a group of friends, because of peer group pressure. That doesn't mean you shouldn't explain the gospel to small groups at a time, of course. You may be able to lead them all to Christ at the same time!
Use spiritual discernemnt, as well as thoughtful common sense in deciding who to talk with. Be like God (Eph. 5:1), who looks on the heart, not on external appearance (John 2:24-25). It is best to talk with someone whose heart is open to God, but don't give up if you talk to someone with a closed heart. God's word in your heart and mouth can be a fire, and a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces.
Learn to obey the inner nudge or impression of the Holy Spirit.
The Best Time to Talk
It is important to wisely choose the time to talk with unsaved people. The best (NOT the only) time is:
1. When they're not really doing anything important.
2. When they are not strongly excited about something else.
3. When they are sober (not drunk or high on drugs).
4. When they are in a relatively good mood.
5. When they are alone.
6. When they are aware of some need in their life, or they have a problem they can't find an answer for.
7. AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. Make appointments to see them, so they know it's important.
ONCE AGAIN BE SURE TO GO AT TIMES THE HOLY SPIRIT IS URGING YOU TO GO.
Possible Direct Approaches
Here are some suggestions to get you started. Adapt them according to what evangelistic tools you are using, and most importantlhy, what you feel comfortable with.
1. (If using advertising or tract) Excuse me, I thought you might be interested in this. (Show advertising or give the tract - wait for response, playing it by ear). Then perhaps ask something like: Have you ever considered the claims of Jesus Christ?.
2. Hi, I'm ..........., a Christian from [name your organisation if applicable] . Every now and then I like to talk with people and find out what they think of God. May I have a few minutes of your time?
3. [If you are working in a pair]. Hello. I'm ............. (and this is [your partner].). As Christians, we wanted to meet others who may be interested in spiritual things.
(If using survey) We're doinhg a survey, and we'd like to get your opinion on some questions we have been asking people, related to Christianity. Would that be O.K.?
(If using a tract) We have this little booklet called ....... that we've been asking people to look at with us [produce booklet], and we'd like to know what you think about it?
(If sharing testimony) I wonder, would you allow me to tell you about what God has done in my life?
4. Many other approaches exist. Think about it, and then use something that works well for you. You must realise that many people's lives are so dull that they find a sudden shock sometimes refreshing.
If the person clearly understands your intentions and is not interested in talking about the Gospel or about the things of God, be polite and, in most cases, thank them for their time, excusing yourself in a friendly manner.
This method differs from the direct approach primarily in that you don't begin the conversation talking about something spiritual, but rather something natural which the person you relate to understands well and is interested in. Jesus used this method with the woman at the well, (John 4:7-26). He started by talking about water and used that as a starting point to bring the conversation round to her spiritual need.
You can use an indirect approach at parties. Begin by asking the other person all about themselves. Most people like that subject! Then when they ask you about yourself and your activities, you can share Christ with them.
This approach is useful in chatting with people over a cup of coffee, when you visit someone's place. This method is better than the direct approach when witnessing to someone you are acquainted with, perhaps a classmate or a workmate. There are no formulas, but here are some helpful principles.
1. Be yourself. If you change your voice or act strangely you will give the wrong idea about Jesus.
2. Arouse curiosity. Let them see that you have a different perspective that comes from knowing God. Do not immediately blurt out everything you know about something. Give them a puzzle, or an intriguing question.
3. Show an interest in that person. Let them see you think they are important.
4. A key to all this is asking questions. These will not only help to direct the conversation but also help you to adapt your message to where that person is at. Remember people love to give their opinions - they also love to hear their own name.
Sample Questions
- Hello. How are you? (This may reveal some needs a person has. Any
answer but "great"
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