“You know, I used to be an ‘evangelistic chicken’. I was a Christian who wanted to share my faith with other people, especially my family and my good friends, but I didn’t know what to say. I was afraid I’d say the wrong thing, or I wouldn’t be able to answer difficult questions, and I certainly didn’t want to offend anyone. The last thing I wanted was for someone to look at me like I was a religious fanatic. So, consequently, I kind of resorted to a style of ‘friendship evangelism’, and was never articulating the gospel to people, but the truth is, it’s not becoming friends with someone that will save them. It’s the gospel that’s the power of God (that leads) to salvation, and I learned that ultimately, we never know when a person’s life is going to end. We can make friends with people very quickly, but we need to share the gospel with them faithfully.
…The way that Jesus talks about the things of God is radically different from what I learned in my ‘Discipleship Evangelism’ course. An example is in Mark Chapter 10. There it says, ‘The rich young ruler came running up to Jesus, got down on his knees, and said, ‘Good Master, what must I do to inherit eternal life?’ Now, I don’t know about you, but if that ever happened to me, if someone just ran up to me and asked me that question, I would be very excited – it’s the opportunity of a lifetime… But notice what Jesus said. Notice he didn’t address his felt needs. Notice that he didn’t say, ‘Oh, my friend! I’m so glad you asked! Listen, you have a God-shaped hole in your heart that only I can fill, and in a little while, I’m going to die on a cross, and if you just believe in me and say this prayer, you’ll be forgiven of your sins and have eternal life.’ No. Jesus didn’t say that. Listen to what He said. He said, ‘Why do you call me good? There is none good, except one, and that is God.’ So He corrected this man’s understanding of what good was, and then He directed him to the ten commandments. He gave him five of them. He said, ‘You know the commandments: you shall not lie, you shall not steal, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not murder, and honor your faither and mother (in the Lord).’ The man said, ‘I’ve kept all these since my youth.’ And then He pointed him to the essense of the first and second commandment; told him he lacked one thing: he must got sell all his goods and give the money to the poor and then he’ll have treasure in heaven. Then come follow Jesus. The man went away very sad. What Jesus was pointing out was that his god is his money, and that you can’t serve both God and money (mammon).
Now when I read that passage, I was scratching my head thinking, ‘What was Jesus doing!? I mean he wasn’t going through the four steps I was taught to go through! Didn’t Jesus know that no one that no one can keep the ten commandments? We’re not saved by keeping the law. We’re saved by grace! Why did He talk to him that way? I mean He didn’t talk to him about God’s love, God’s grace. He didn’t pray with him. He didn’t even say something like, ‘Wait! Come back! Would you like to come to my house this weekend for a lamb barbecue where I can establish a no-strings-attached, non-confrontational relationship with you?’ It seemed to me that Jesus could have benefited from a ‘Friendship Evangelism’ course. …But that was my shallow and immature understanding of what he was doing. He was using the principle that is extremely effective and neccessary to prepare a sinners heart for the grace of the gospel. (By the law is the knowledge of sin. (Romans 3:20) ) It converts the soul, according to the Bible. It shows the person why they need the Savior. It’s a key that changes everything, and that is why the enemy does not want you to get ahold of it. “
(The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple. Psalms 19:7)
- Kirk Cameron
Thanks Lane for posting this as a note on Facebook.
![468 ad]()
“You know, I used to be an ‘evangelistic chicken’. I was a Christian who wanted to share my faith with other people, especially my family and my good friends, but I didn’t know what to say. I was afraid I’d say the wrong thing, or I wouldn’t be able to answer difficult questions, and I certainly didn’t want to offend anyone. The last thing I wanted was for someone to look at me like I was a religious fanatic. So, consequently, I kind of resorted to a style of ‘friendship evangelism’, and was never articulating the gospel to people, but the truth is, it’s not becoming friends with someone that will save them. It’s the gospel that’s the power of God (that leads) to salvation, and I learned that ultimately, we never know when a person’s life is going to end. We can make friends with people very quickly, but we need to share the gospel with them faithfully.
@RayComfort I think someone may have hacked the 180 facebook page. Something weird was posted. Wanted to let you know just in case.
The Christian-Leaders Daily is out! http://t.co/c66wBda1 ▸ Top stories today via @terrystorch @paulluna @raycomfort @frank_turk
RT @RayComfort: Here's a picture of a baby born at 24 weeks, Approx 30,000 of these babies are killed in the USA alone, every Year. http://t.co/GpGRr7jT...