God's omniscience and sovereignty never fail to amaze me, neither should it you! A few weeks ago we were evangelizing at a festival, and as I was wrapping up an open air a young man walks up and stands in front of me. Mockingly he points and laughs, he waves to his friends and gets them to join in on the foolish gesturing. I pointed back at the teenager and proclaimed "You ought to be ashamed of your self. You ought to be ashamed of your self! Your parents raised you better than that. I pray that this same gospel message you mock, that you would one day preach it!" The young guy turns and walks away in a laughing manner with his followers.
About 5 minutes pass and as I was standing next to a friend--we were chatting--that same young guy who mocked ferociously when I was speaking about Jesus came walking towards me with a friend. This time he wasn't mocking. He apologized to me and said that he was wrong for doing what he did. I asked him his name, he responded "Christian."
Ironic huh? This little glimpse in time is just one instance of God revealing his omniscience and sovereignty. God knew exactly what this young man needed to hear, and God controlled my mouth to say it.
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Saturday, September 11, 2010
Canned Gospel Presentations
Some Christians are adamantly opposed to canned gospel presentations but I stand in defense of them. Of course I don't support all canned messages, especially ones that are void of God's Law and Jesus as the all sufficient savior.
Christians must learn how to share the gospel clearly and effectively. I think the Way of the Master is an excellent starting point for Christians to learn the gospel message in preparation for sharing it with others. Sharing the gospel takes practice, just like anything else; pastors who deliver good messages go over their sermons many times. Why shouldn't the Christian who's going to share the gospel with someone, practice what he or she is going to say? Having some points to go by, how you're going to get into the conversation, how you're going to bring up God's standard of righteousness, the sinner's imperfection, Christ's perfection, repentance and faith . . .and so on. Practice, practice, practice.
A canned message gives direction during the conversation and gives confidence to the one sharing the message. Don't miss what I'm saying. Canned messages that present the gospel clearly are simply a foundation for a believer to encourage them to share the gospel. It's a starting point. And as a Christian grows and shares his or her faith more, a canned message is tweaked and crafted for different situations.
Christians must learn how to share the gospel clearly and effectively. I think the Way of the Master is an excellent starting point for Christians to learn the gospel message in preparation for sharing it with others. Sharing the gospel takes practice, just like anything else; pastors who deliver good messages go over their sermons many times. Why shouldn't the Christian who's going to share the gospel with someone, practice what he or she is going to say? Having some points to go by, how you're going to get into the conversation, how you're going to bring up God's standard of righteousness, the sinner's imperfection, Christ's perfection, repentance and faith . . .and so on. Practice, practice, practice.
A canned message gives direction during the conversation and gives confidence to the one sharing the message. Don't miss what I'm saying. Canned messages that present the gospel clearly are simply a foundation for a believer to encourage them to share the gospel. It's a starting point. And as a Christian grows and shares his or her faith more, a canned message is tweaked and crafted for different situations.
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