I recently came across this video that is about how people think about abortion, and how they can change their mind about it when they are helped to think about it in new and reasonable ways. It is a powerful presentation of how to talk to people about this difficult subject in convincing ways.

It is rather long (33 minutes), but well worth the time to go through the whole thing. Especially when you consider it as an example of how to witness to people about the person of Jesus, and how everyone should submit to Him in faith. Watch it carefully as an example of how to do evangelism.

This video provides some examples of how to reasonably speak to people about the truth claims of the Bible – in a way that gets them to agree with your assumptions about the world, ethics and the need for God. Talking about ethics is a most effective method of beginning an evangelistic conversation. It often seems difficult to know how to get people to come to grips with their need for salvation from their sinfulness. But if you can get them to agree on some basic ethical principles, it leads to the subject of the ultimate source of ethical standards – God and His word.

““Come now, and let us reason together,” Says the Lord, “Though your sins are like scarlet, They shall be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, They shall be as wool.” (Isaiah 1:18, NKJV)

“Then Paul, as his custom was, went in to them, and for three Sabbaths reasoned with them from the Scriptures, explaining and demonstrating that the Christ had to suffer and rise again from the dead, and saying, “This Jesus whom I preach to you is the Christ.” And some of them were persuaded; and a great multitude of the devout Greeks, and not a few of the leading women, joined Paul and Silas. But the Jews who were not persuaded, becoming envious, took some of the evil men from the marketplace, and gathering a mob, set all the city in an uproar and attacked the house of Jason, and sought to bring them out to the people.” (Acts 17:2–5, NKJV)

“Therefore he [Paul] reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and with the Gentile worshipers, and in the marketplace daily with those who happened to be there.” (Acts 17:17, NKJV)

“And he [Paul] reasoned in the synagogue every Sabbath, and persuaded both Jews and Greeks. When Silas and Timothy had come from Macedonia, Paul was compelled by the Spirit, and testified to the Jews that Jesus is the Christ. But when they opposed him and blasphemed, he shook his garments and said to them, “Your blood be upon your own heads; I am clean. From now on I will go to the Gentiles.”” (Acts 18:4–6, NKJV)

“But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear;” (1 Peter 3:15, NKJV)

“For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ,” (2 Corinthians 10:4–5, NKJV)

Tags: Abortion, ethics, evangelism, Holocost, Racism, reason

Christ the Conqueror - Christ the Savior

As a follow up to my post on The Gospel In All Its Forms, I wanted to make all seven of my blog followers aware of a great post by Peter Leithart Good news in which he show how the Greek word for “gospel” is use in the Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Hebrew Old Testament). The Gospel takes on new dimensions when the word is studied in its wider Jewish context, dimensions that are helpful to us as we consider what good news we are to announce in our modern world.  I quote it in full:

” The Septuagint uses the word-group euaggel- primarily in military and political contexts to describe the proclamation of victory.    This is not invariable (cf. Jeremiah 20:15).

The Philistines cut off Saul’s head and strip his gear so that they can carry the “good news” to idols and people (1 Samuel 31:9).  In his lament over Saul and Jonathan, David warns Israel not to evangelize Philistia with the news of the fall of Israel’s heroes (2 Samuel 1:20).  When David later describes what he did to the Amalekite who thought that the death of Saul would be “good news” to David, he uses the same term (2 Samuel 4:10).  2 Samuel 18, where David awaits news of the battle with Absalom, is studded with the word (vv. 19, 20, 22, 25, 26, 27, 31).

Adonijah expects Jonathan the son of Abiathar to bring him good news (1 Kings 1:42), but he doesn’t.  The lepers who find the Aramean camp abandoned realize after eating their fill that they shouldn’t keep the “good news” from the rest of the people in the city (2 Kings 7:9).

This meaning is in the background of the more “theological” uses elsewhere in the LXX.  The “new song” of Psalm 96 is the “good news” (v. 2) of Yahweh’s s salvation, which comes when He judges the world in righteousness (v. 13).  Good news comes because Yahweh the Divine Warrior gains His victory.  The same goes for the good news of Yahweh’s reign announced in Isaiah 40:9, 52:7.  The good news that the Spirit-anointed servant brings to the afflicted is good news of rescue and deliverance, liberty to captives and freedom to prisoners (Isaiah 61:1).  The good news is good news of peace (cf. Nahum 1:15; 2:1 in LXX), a peace gained by righteous victory.”

posted by Peter J. Leithart on Tuesday, March 29, 2011 at 4:21 am  http://www.leithart.com/2011/03/29/good-news-2/

What most people conceive of as “the gospel” seldom contains an image of the Lord as Divine Warrior. And yet, the New Testament does (Rev. 19). To truncate the good news to ‘Jesus died to save sinners’ is to so compartmentalize and minimize what God has and will do in the world to make it almost no news at all to the hearts and minds of moderns.

How small has become our view of what Jesus came to do, what He accomplished, and what He has promised to do in our world. Do we have the faith to believe, let alone to announce, that our God, Jesus, is progressively judging the world in righteousness? Is our confidence in God’s word sufficient that we can take for granted as true, and declare openly, that the reign of King Jesus does in fact bring “rescue and deliverance, liberty to captives and freedom to prisoners?” Do we true believe that the only hope and good news for a world in turmoil (you name the turmoil: international finacial meltdown, terrorism, the impact of the collapse of middle-eastern governments, etc) is Jesus?  Or is that just a little too simplistic to say outloud? Isn’t it possible that all of these culamities are in fact part of the work of God to gain the victory on behalf of His people? Is that too much to believe? Is it a bit too religiously edgy to actually tell someone that the good news is that God is using all of these things to bring salvation to the world?

Anything short of this kind of conception of the gospel does an injustice to what God has done through our Lord Jesus.

Tags: evangelism, gospel, LXX, Old Testament, Peter Leithart, Septuagint

From Canon Wired we have available to us this excellent video of Dr. Steve Jeffery giving an example of how to lead an evangelistic Bible study.

Tags: bible study, evangelism, steve Jeffery

The word “evangelism” comes from the Greek word euangelion, which means “good news.” Evangelism has been defined as the conscious attempt, through word and deed, to share the Good News of Jesus Christ with others, so that they can become disciples of Christ. It is the proclamation of the good news that Jesus, the Son of God, has come not only to save us by His sacrificial death on the cross, but also that we are raised with Him to newness of life, and that by the power of the Holy Spirit we are assured that we will be fully transformed into the image of Christ in the world and throughout eternity. Christ is ruling all things so that the curse of sin will be rolled back through the course of history, and that He will bring all things into submission to the Father.

Too often evangelism is reduced to formulas and techniques that will bring the unbeliever to faith. It is thought of as something that we do to bring sinner to repentance. The reality is that sinners are only brought to faith by the grace of God and His enablement to believe. We, in our work of evangelism, are only the instruments by which God does His work of saving people. Salvation, first to last, is a work of God.

Some people are especially gifted at evangelism – the rest of us stumble about trying to communicate the good news. But what a blessing it is for us to see that, even with our imperfect and awkward presentations of the gospel, God uses us in ways that we could never imagine. People come to faith by the work of the Spirit in their lives – even when we stutter and bumble our way through our presentations of the gospel.

All praise to God for His marvelous grace!

Faith is the evidence that someone has come to salvation. Not the “sinners prayer” (not that there is anything wrong with that). Not necessarily seeing a tearful repentance (although that will sometimes be the way of it). Not walking the aisle or raising your hand in an evangelist service. Not saying just the right words. It is by grace, through faith, that anyone is saved – Grace and faith given by God.

When a person believes the gospel and turns from their former life to live for Jesus – that person has been brought to saving faith. When they are baptized Christ marks them as His special, chosen, holy-one; a child of God.

May God increase our faith to pray for the lost, to proclaim the gospel and to trust Him to use us in the lives of those whom we come into contact with.

Tags: evangelism

This is an interesting and informative video that I wanted to make available as a way to stir up creative thinking about how we can reach out to Muslims.  Obedience to and fulfillment of the Great Commission of the Lord Jesus to disciple the nations means learning to minister to the Muslims in our communities and around the world.

I have been reading and thinking about what God has been doing throughout the world in the recent decades, and about urban missions.

One book I can recommend is Muslims and Christians at the Table: Promoting Biblical Understanding Among North American Muslims.  I found it a useful resource for a Muslim history, doctrine, and worldview – And a biblical response.  It also provides very helpful and practical ways to reach out to Muslims.

Another very helpful book is The Next Christendom, by Philip Jenkins. Jenkins provides convincing evidence that the center of Christian influence in the world is shifting from the West and North to the East and South.  The implications of this and other demographic trends are profoundly important for the Great Commission.

Tags: demographics, evangelism, Islam, mission-missions, muslims, urban mission