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HOW

TO SHARE YOUR FAITH

EFFECTIVELY

1. The Motivation – Why must I?

2. The Method – When, Where, Who?

3. The Message – What must I say about man’s problem?

4. The Message – What must I say about God’s character?

5. The Message – What must I say about Jesus Christ?

6. The Message – What must I say about man’s response?

7. The Making of a Commitment – Coming to a decision

8. The Maternal Care and Nurture – How can I help someone grow

spiritually?

1

OUTLINE FOR GOSPEL PRESENTATION

IN PERSONAL EVANGELISM

MAN’S PROBLEM

The ideal

The reality

Gen 1:26

Rom 5:18

Dealing with the problem

Who man is?

What man did?

What happened to man?

SIN

What is sin?

Rom 3:23

1 John 3:4

James 4:17

What are the effects of sin?

Separates

Man’s inability to help himself

Isaiah 59:2

Rom 6:23

Eph 2:8 and 9

GOD’S CHARACTER

God is a God of love

1 John 4:8

Rom 5:8

JESUS CHRIST

Who is Jesus Christ?

The difference

What he did?

Matt 16:16

John 20:28

Hebrews 4:15

1 Peter 2:24

2 Cor 5:21

What He offers

� Declared righteous

� Restoring our broken relationship

� Being set free by the payment of a price

� What must I do?

MAN’S RESPONSE

1. Confess

2. Change – What is repentance

3. Commit – The need to put my trust in

Jesus – What it is not / What is it

4. Control

1 John 1:9

Luke 13:3

Acts 17:30

James 2:19

John 1:12; John

3:16; Rev 3:20

COUNTING THE COST

Price for a privilege

Public or private

COMING TO A DECISION

Personal commitment

Rev 3:20

Rom 10:9

THE MATERNAL CARE AND NUTURE

New Life

2 Cor 5:17

2

RECOMMENDED READING

I believe in Evangelism David Watson

How to give away your faith Paul E. Little

Evangelism: Now and Then Michael Green

Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God J.I. Packer

Out of the Saltshaker Rebecca Manley Pippert

Soul winner’s guide - an invaluable aid to all Christian workers.

Compiled by Max E. Zimmermann, published by Immanuel Mission to

Shut-ins Inc.

SUGGESTED TRACTS FOR USE IN EVANGELISM

Ultimate Questions John Blanchard

Becoming a Christian John Stott

Coming to faith in Christ John Benton

Journey into life Norman Warren

The way ahead Norman Warren

Stop and think ….. Victor Jack

Living Christian lives series Published by Scripture

Union

EXCELLENT BOOKS TO RECOMMEND FOR NEW CHRISTIANS

Basic Christianity John Stott

Right with God John Blanchard

Learning and living the Christian life. John Blanchard

New life, New lifestyle. Michael Green

3

MEMORY VERSES

WEEK VERSE

1 Romans 5:18

Romans 3:23

1 John 3:4

James 4:17

2 Isaiah 59:2

Romans 6:23

Ephesians 2:8&9

3 1 John 4:8

Romans 5:8

Matthew 16:16

John 20:28

4 Hebrews 4:15

1 Peter 2:24

2 Corinthians 5:21

5 1 John 1:9

Luke 13:3

Acts 17:30

6 John 3:16

John 1:12

James 2:19

7 Revelation 3:20

Romans 10:9

2 Corinthians 5:17

4

THE MOTIVATION

Why must I?

Proverbs 11:30

10 REASONS

1. Created for relationship

Gen.1:26 1Peter 2:10

Man has been separated from God

Isa. 59:2

2. Command of God

The Great Commission

Matt. 28:18-20

Acts 1:8

Matt. 4:19

3. Christ’s love compels us

2 Cor. 5:14

1 Cor. 9:16

“No matter what apathy or opposition to be faced, no matter how tiring or

painful the work might be, `the love of Christ leaves us no choice`. (New

English Bible translation”) David Watson

John Stott once wrote, “Nothing shuts the mouth, seals the lips, ties the tongue,

like the poverty of our own spiritual experience. We do not bear witness for

the simple reason that we have no witness to bear. For too long, Christian

witness has been seen in terms of `giving them the gospel’ But until we are

willing to give ourselves to people in loving, sacrificial service, we have no

right to give them the gospel.”

1 Thes. 2 : 8 David Watson

4. Cross of Christ

Col. 1: 20

The purpose of Christ’s considerable sacrifice was to make possible a new

relationship with God, which was previously impossible because of man’s

sin.

Rom. 5 : 8.

`Christ is the only adequate basis for life now and eternity`.

5. Called to Witness

As ambassadors 2 Cor. 5:20

As disciples Acts 4: 19, 20

As forgiven sinners Matt 9: 31, Mark 5:20, John 4:29, 39-42

6. Christ’s example

The ministry of reconciliation

2 Cor 5 : 11-20

5

“We must at all costs keep close to God, trusting in his power and

preaching His Word. In the second place, evangelism will fail if we do not

keep close to man. Again, Leighton Ford makes the point well:

Christian isolation has been a constant barrier to evangelism. Many Christians have

been so afraid of being contaminated by worldliness that they have avoided any

social contacts with unconverted persons., As a result, they have no natural bridges

for evangelism; what witnessing they do is usually artificial and forced rather than

the spontaneous outgrowth of genuine friendship. Part of Jesus’ attractiveness,

which drew secular people like a magnet, was his wonderful love of life, his natural

appealing friendliness. Luke shows Jesus going from dinner party to dinner party,

teaching the gospel to the guests. If Jesus came back today and mingled with

gamblers, the skid-row crowd and the cocktail set, a lot of shocked Christians would

throw up their hands and say He was too worldly!”

David Watson

Matt 5 :13 – 16

Mark 2 : 16,17

7. Conscious of the need

There are people living in this world that will go to a Christless eternity. Their need

is to hear the good news of the gospel and accept Christ as Lord of their

lives.

John 4 : 35 – 38

Matt. 9 : 35 – 38

Eph. 2 : 12, 13

8. Coming judgement

2 Cor. 5 : 10f

Rom. 14 :12

- for Christians (what have we done since our conversion 1 Cor. 3 : 10-15)

- for non-Christians (the fearful consequence of God’s wrath)

“A clear understanding of the judgement of Christ has been one of the great

motivating forces in evangelistic and missionary work. Of course, it would be better

if we were spurred into action simply by the love of Christ; of course, it is more

honouring to Christ if men respond gladly to His love, instead of choosing Him as the

only alternative to judgement. But such is the love of Christ that he is willing to

accept our service, or our repentance, even when it springs only out of fear of

judgement.”

2 Cor 5: 11 David Watson

Recognizing the needs in people’s lives:

The problem The solution

i. inner emptiness Jn. 6:35

ii. purposelessness Jn. 8:12, 14:6

iii fear of death Jn 11: 25, 26

iv desire for inner peace Jn. 14 :27

v. loneliness Heb. 13:5b.

6

9. Caring about people

Matt. 9 : 36 Luke 19 : 10

2 Peter 3 : 9b

God’s supreme care for people can be seen in His provision of full salvation through

the cross of Christ.

10. Confirmation promise

“Bishop: ‘Will you proclaim by word and example the good news of God in

Christ?’

Response: ‘I will, with God’s help’

(Worship ‘85 pg 64)

Our duty!

“Evangelism, we have learned, is a task appointed to all God’s people everywhere. It

is the task of communicating a message from the Creator to rebel mankind. The

message begins with information and ends with an invitation. The information

concerns God’s work of making His Son a perfect Saviour for sinners. The invitation

is God’s summons to mankind generally to come to the Saviour and find life. God

commands all men everywhere to repent, and promises forgiveness and restoration to

all who do. The Christian is sent into the world as God’s herald and Christ’s

ambassador, to broadcast this message as widely as he can. This is both his duty

(because God commands it, and love to our neighbour requires it) and his privilege

(because it is a great thing to speak for God, and to take our neighbour the remedy -

the only remedy - that can save him from the terrors of spiritual death). Our job,

then, is to go to our fellow men and tell them the gospel of Christ, and try by every

means to make it clear to them; to remove as best we can any difficulties that they

may find in it, to impress them with its seriousness, and to urge them to respond to it.

This is our abiding responsibility; it is a basic part of our Christian calling”

J.I. Packer

“Soul winning is a definite effort to lead a person to Christ

- not to change denominations

- not to change people’s opinions.”

7

THE METHOD

When, where and who ….?

“Evangelism is an act of communication with a view to conversion”.

J.I. Packer

“There is only one method: faithful explanation and application

of the gospel message”. J.I. Packer

“Christians are sent to convert, and they should not allow themselves, as Christ’s

representatives in the world, to aim at anything less. Evangelizing, therefore, is not

simply a matter of teaching, and instructing, and imparting information to the mind.

There is more to it then that. Evangelizing includes the endeavour to elicit a response

to the truth taught. It is communication with a view to conversion. It is a matter, not

merely of informing, but also of inviting. It is an attempt to gain, or win, or catch,

our fellow men for Christ. Our Lord depicts it as fishermen’s work.”

J.I. Packer

WHEN?

Every opportunity

Planned or unplanned

1 Peter 3 : 15

Beware of becoming a Bible puncher!

Ecclesiastes 3:7b

WHERE?

1. Conversation

Luke 24 : 13 – 25 The disciples on the road to Emmaus

Note: they were not intimidated with the presence of the ‘visitor’

- they never changed the topic of conversation.

Helpful ways to initiate discussion

i. Expose your faith.

ii. Ask leading questions: For example

Q.1. Do you think you’ll go to heaven when you die?

Q.2 Suppose you wanted to go to heaven, why do you think God should

let you in’

Q.3 Do you think that, before you could go to heaven God would have

to change anything about the way you live right now?

iii. Help people see holes in their own belief system

8

“Challenging our non Christian friends on whether they live consistently by their own

self-acknowledged principles is an effective way of casting doubt on their present

beliefs. Francis Schaeffer has explained much about this in The God Who Is There.

So if you are naturally drawn to thinking or find you need help in straightening out

the issues, reading that book is a good next step. You may find yourself going back

again and again to it and to other books like Os Quiness’s In Two Minds, or James

Sire’s The Universe Next Door or C.S. Lewis’s Mere Christianity and Miracles

The point is that the Christian world view gives solid, intellectually profound answers

to the very questions most people ask when they find their own answers are

inadequate”.

Rebecca Manley Pippert

Remember never force a discussion.

2. Contact

John 4 : 1 – 26 The Master at work

Acts 17: 16 – 34 Paul reasoning with the Athenians

The Biblical model: Acts 1 : 8

Areas of contact:

Work/Business

Neighbourhood

Friendships/ families

Travel

Leisure time activities e.g., sport …..

“To love the world to me is no chore,

My big trouble’s the man next door”

3. Complete lifestyle

Our lives are the best witnesses of what we believe

Matt 5:16

“There is a danger of our being so ‘contemporary’ that we may lose the

cutting-edge of the gospel. Jesus mixed freely with all sections of society,

thieves, crooks, prostitutes and drop-outs. Yet he himself was utterly different,

and the truth of his message was uncompromising.”

David Watson

“To witness effectively we must be realistic: genuine in our knowledge

of people in today’s world and genuine in our total commitment to Jesus

Christ”

Paul E. Little

9

“You cannot pretend to be a man of God. Our lives have got to manifest such

a new quality, such marks of transformation, that people will be intrigued and

will want to know why. Only then will they be impressed by the good news

that we tell them.”

Michael Green

“By our withdrawal (from society) we deprive many of their only hope to hear

the gospel.”

Paul E. Little.

WHO?

1 Tim. 2:4 – 7 Appointed as a herald

Acts 8:1, 4 All inclusive “As disciples “they were to abide and to serve, to worship and witness. They

were called in and sent out - and so is every Christian in the world today”

John Blanchard

“In evangelism as we saw, we are important; we depend wholly upon God to

make our witness effective; only because He is able to give men new hearts

can we hope that through our preaching of the gospel sinners will be born

again. These facts ought to drive us to prayer”

J.I. Packer

Reasons why Christians hesitate to witness

1. Labelled as a fanatic/religious freak!

2. Fear of failure

3. Doubt in their ability

4. Not living committed Christian lives

10

THE MESSAGE (Part 1)

What must I say about ….. man’s problem

The problem of man and sin

A common problem is GUILT

The need is to deal effectively with guilt.

Discover the source of the problem.

The need to face up to their real problem, which is SIN

The ideal

1. Man is created in the image of God.

2. Man should have a love relationship with God.

3. Man should live a pure life.

The reality

1. Man lives to please himself

2. Man has developed evil habits and spoilt his life.

3. Man is separated from God.

It is our job to stop people in their headlong flight away from God, away from their feelings

of guilt, to stop them and help them face up to reality – that they have sinned and have

separated themselves from God.

Dealing with the problem

Recognition of … who man is:

1. Made in the image of God Gen 1:26

… what man did …

2. Rebelled against God Gen 3:1-6

… what happened to man …

3. The result : man became sinful Romans 3:23

What is sin?

1. Doing/saying/thinking the wrong things 1 John 3:4

2. Neglecting to do/say/think the right things James 4:17

What are the effects of sin?

It SPOILS and SPREADS into bad habits but the most serious is that it SEPARATES us

from God - Isaiah 59:2 and Romans 6:23

11

Remember:

It is the Holy Spirit’s task to convict men of their sin – John 16:8

Response:

People were cut to the heart – Acts 2:37

Man’s inability to help himself

Man cannot be faulted on his attempts to help himself … BUT they are futile.

The seriousness of sin

“Left to himself, man is guilty, lost and separated from God and utterly helpless.”

John Blanchard

Typical examples of man’s attempts to save himself:

Try to be a better person

Tries to read the Bible

Attends Church

Prays more frequently

….. BUT ALL IN VAIN!

Two examples to get this point across:

o Crumpled paper – (can’t take the creases out)

o One bad egg – (one bad egg spoils the cake – you can’t take it out)

“It is not good enough to just tell people about the Saviour, they must be made aware of the

seriousness of their sin to realize the importance of their need of a Saviour.”

Eph. 2:8, 9

No amount of “good deeds” will win the favour of God.

The Cross

1 Peter 2:24

2 Corinthians 5:21

12

THE MESSAGE (PART 2)

What must I say about ….. God’s Character?

As a sinner you are condemned by God – John 3:17 / Rom 5:18

1. God is a God of love

1 John 4:8; John 3:16; Rom 5:8

2. God is a God of justice

Isaiah 30:18; Rom 1:18 and 2:23b

Sin cannot be taken lightly!

Remember

SIN CAUSED DEATH – even just ONE sin is enough is to condemn us to hell!

Sin must be punished.

1 John 4:14

The death of Christ on the Cross paid the penalty for sin – Heb 10:22b and 26b – 28

Helpful example to get this point across

Two-sided coin one side = God’s love; the other side = God’s justice.

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THE MESSAGE (PART 3)

What must I say about Jesus Christ?

Who is Jesus Christ?

Jesus Christ is God Himself

Matt 16 : 16 John 20 : 28

(see Appendix 1)

Jesus Christ is God in the flesh

1 John 4 : 2 Colossians 2 : 9

Jesus Christ is sinless

Hebrews 4 : 15

Jesus is the God-man : 100% God and 100% man. Colossians 2:9

Although He was a man and subject to temptation, He never sinned.

What He did?

Jesus Christ died on the cross to pay the penalty for sin

1 Peter 2:24

He became our substitute by dying for our sins.

Remember: He never had any sin Himself.

Jesus died in my place on the cross.

I deserved the punishment of my own sin.

He paid in full the price of my sin.

“It is essential to anchor our faith in objective, historical events. It is not enough to

say that “Jesus gives you peace”; that is also the claim of Guru Maharaj Ji and a

host of other prophets today. Concentrating on the purely subjective side of the

Christian faith (feelings of love, joy, peace, etc) is but one step away from confusion,

deception, agnosticism, or even atheism. The strength of God’s message is that it is

firmly rooted in the true historical events of Golgotha and the empty tomb. This is the

solid foundation on which everything else rests. Today there is an increasing

tendency to ignore the historical basis of the Christian faith, and to try and build a

superstructure of spiritual experience.”

David Watson

Illustration:

A business account when fully settled gets the stamp PAID on the account

– there is nothing further owing – paid-up in full.

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What He offers?

1. He offers us the opportunity of being declared righteous

Man is guilty because of sin and condemned by God

“Since Christ has died in our place to bear the guilt and judgement of our sin,

it is possible for us, guilty though we are, to step out of the court of God free

from guilt and without a penny to pay. When we trust in Christ we are

declared righteous, we ‘become the righteousness of God’. We cannot be

condemned in the future. As far as our eternal standing before God is

concerned, the case is closed; nothing can ever separate us from His love.”

David Watson

2. He offers us the opportunity of restoring our broken relationship.

There is an urgent need to be reconciled to God.

Man has been separated from God because of his sin.

“Jesus came as perfect God and perfect man, and reconciled us to God by the

blood of His cross”.

Colossians 1:20 2 Corinthians 5:20

“Since God by his very nature is vigorously opposed to all that is evil, the only way

possible for reconciliation is to take away the cause of estrangement. It was for this

reason that Jesus ‘appeared once for all…. to put away sin by the sacrifice of

himself’. The barrier or sin being now removed, it is possible for man to be

accepted into God’s presence when, before, this would have been totally

unacceptable. Through our self-willed rebellion, we had made ourselves enemies of

God. But such was His love that even ‘while we were enemies we were reconciled to

God by the death of His Son.”

David Watson

3. He offers us the opportunity of being set free by the payment of a price

Jesus Christ has paid the ransom price by His death on the cross,

Matthew 20:28

Illustration: Law Court - a non-guilty party may settle the debt of the

guilty. The guilty parties’ “debt” is settled and he is free.

(Justification: Just as if I’d never sinned)

Rom 3:24

15

“Indeed, because that ransom has been fully paid for us by Jesus, there are two

obvious consequences. In the first place, we are free to enjoy the ‘glorious liberty of

the children of God’: free from guilt and power of sin, and free from the righteous

judgement of God. In the second place, we are no longer our own: we have been

bought with a price. And instead of our self- centred existence, which leads only to

slavery, we are to live to the glory of God. And that brings perfect freedom”.

David Watson

There is no value in knowing about God’s offer of salvation if we do not

appreciate it in our own lives. It does not happen automatically.

What then must I do?

Illustration:- A slave that is bought at a price to be liberated

Galatians 4 : 4 – 6

16

THE MESSAGE (Part 4)

What must I say about ….. man’s response?

It must be pointed out that man needs to respond to God’s offer.

Remember: “Good deeds cannot save man from his sin

Eph. 2:8-9

God’s salvation is a free gift (cannot be earned!)

“In the life, death, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ, God has

provided the perfect answer to man’s greatest need. Yet not everyone has

found that answer. Most men are still lost in their sin, and away from God.”

John Blanchard

What is the appropriate response to God’s offer of salvation?

1. Confess.

1 John 1 : 9

The need to acknowledge that I am a sinner

“….. That you are a guilty, lost, and helpless sinner….”

2. Change

Luke 13:3 Acts 17:30

The need to recognize that I must repent

What is repentance?

“Repentance is not merely regret, or feeling sorry for yourself. This is often no more

than self-pity or personal annoyance that some wrong action has led to inconvenience

or disappointment.

Repentance is not mere resolution, or a determination to do better in the future. That

can be so futile. Promising either yourself or God that you will try harder from now

on is not repentance.

To repent is to turn from sin and this involves a change of mind, a change of heart,

and a change of will.”

John Blanchard

“They saw that people could not come to receive God’s gifts with dirty hands. They

needed to drop the mud with which they were playing and come with empty hands to

be washed and receive. Repentance is not primarily an exercise in remorse about

the past. It is an attitude of turning back to God: a change of mind, resulting in a

change of direction. It was to ….. ‘repentance towards God’ as well as ‘faith in our

Lord Jesus Christ’ that Paul urged his hearers (Acts 20:21).

The basic human failure is not in our peccadilloes but in our relationship with God,

ruptured through years, decades even, of rebellion and neglect. Repentance is the

willingness to have this put right, and the determination to remove any hindrances on

our side to its repair.”

Michael Green

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3. Commit

Hebrews 11:6

The need to put my trust in Christ Jesus.

What it is not?

- Just knowledge

James 2:19

- Just requesting assistance

Acts 14: 15-17

What is it?

Total commitment to Jesus Christ

“To have true faith, you must first look at WHO God is. He is to be obeyed. If He is to be

our God, then we must belong to Him, with everything we have. You allow Him to come into

your life and change you. You trust your life and your eternal future to Him.”

Evangelism Manuel

“Faith rests on a person. Faith is that act by which one person, a sinner, commits himself to

another Person, a Saviour.

It is the attitude of complete trust in Christ, of reliance on Him alone for all that salvation

means. What is it to believe in Christ? It is to feel your need of Him, to believe that He is

able and willing to save you now, and to cast yourself unreservedly upon His mercy, and trust

in Him alone for salvation.

These confirm the Bible’s teaching that faith is an act of personal commitment, and not

merely a combination of knowledge and feelings.”

John Blanchard

4. Control

John 1:12 Romans 10:9.13 Revelation 3:20

The need to ask Jesus Christ to be my personal Saviour.

Illustration: Our lives are like driving a car:

Jesus wants the steering wheel and we must move across into the

passenger seat.

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THE MAKING OF A COMMITMENT

What must I say about …. Coming to a decision?

1. COUNTING THE COST

Price for a privilege

Jesus never turned people away, He never stopped them following Him, He simply

made the cost clear, so that they could first consider the implications before making

their decision.

“A demand (obedience) as well as an offer (salvation)”

John Stott

- the demand of total submission.

Luke 14:25 – 30 consider the cost

Mark 8: 34 – 38 deny himself

Public or private?

“We are commanded not only to follow Christ privately, but to confess Him

publicly”.

John Stott

Matt. 10:32 - 33 Mark 8:38

“If then you suffer from moral anaemia, take my advice and steer clear of

Christianity. If you want to live a life of easy-going self-indulgence, whatever you

do, do not become a Christian. But if you want a life of self-discovery, deeply

satisfying to the nature God has given you; if you want a life of adventure in which

you have the privilege of serving him and your fellow men; if you want a life in which

to express something of the overwhelming gratitude you are beginning to feel for him

who dies for you, then I would urge you to yield your life, without reserve and without

delay to your Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.”

John Stott

Renunciation of Sin - repentance

Renunciation of self - take up your cross

- lose your life

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2. COMING TO A DECISION

“We have to make a personal response to Jesus Christ, committing ourselves

unreservedly to Him as our Lord and Saviour”.

John Stott

Make up your mind! …… a personal decision Revelation 3:20

“The house is a picture of my life. Christ stands outside the front door. He will not

put His shoulder to it. He does not use a battering ram. He waits patiently until I

open the door. Then he will come in, and on entering He will have become to me a

Saviour, I have acknowledged I need, and I shall find myself reconciled to God,

enjoying that fellowship with Him for which I was created”.

John Stott

What is involved in this decision?

A definite act (Christ knocks, we open)

A unique act (only once!)

An individual act (only you can do it)

A deliberate act (not by chance or assumption)

An urgent act (Time never waits, it goes by; never know the end)

An indispensable act (cannot afford not to make it)

“You can believe in Christ intellectually and admire him; you can say your prayers to

him through the keyhole (I did for many years); you can push coins at him under the

door to keep him quiet; you can be moral, decent, upright and good; you can be

religious; you can have been baptized and confirmed; you can be deeply versed in the

philosophy of religion - and still not have opened the door to Christ. There is no

substitute for this.”

John Stott

How can I make it?

The sinner’s prayer

“Lord Jesus Christ, I acknowledge I have gone my own way. I have sinned in

thought, word, and deed. I am sorry for my sins. I turn from them in

repentance.

I believe that you died for me, bearing my sins in your own body. I thank you

for your great love. Now I open the door. Come in Lord Jesus. Come in as

my Saviour and cleanse me. Come in as my Lord, and take control of me.

And I will serve as you give me strength, all my life. Amen.”

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For further help.

‘How to give away your Faith’ Paul Little

(Deals with seven basic questions non-Christians ask)

‘Answers to Tough Questions’ Josh McDowell and Don Stewart

Common problems encountered with regard to the making of the decision

1. Procrastination

Solution:

2. Perfecting our lives first

Solution:

3. Pretending not to hear

Solution:

4. Putting our dependence upon our feelings

Solution:

21

THE MATERNAL CARE AND NURTURE

How can I help someone to grow spiritually?

There are quite a number of things that need to be pointed out to a New Christian.

As a result of his commitment to Christ, he now has:

New birth John 3:3 2 Corinthians 5:17

New enemy Eph. 6:12

New family Eph. 2:19 -22 1 Peter 2:9 – 10

New relationship John 14:23 Galatians 4:6 1. Peter 5:7

New lifestyle Galatians 2 : 20

(obedience)

Needs in the new Christians life: 1. Prayer The need to develop our relationship with God

Matt. 6:5 – 15 2. Word The need for instruction 2 Timothy 3:16 -17

3. Fellowship The need of encouragement and communal worship

Heb. 10:25 4. Witness The need to tell others about Christ.

The new Christian must be taught the value of developing his Spiritual life.

DIFFICULTIES IN DEVELOPMENT

1. The issue of Assurance of Salvation

The single “greatest” area of set back in a Christians life

Learn to ask 2 vital questions:

i) Who does your salvation depend on?

ii) What does the Bible teach about …..?

2. What happens if I …….. Sin again - 1 John 1: 9

Remember: you will be more aware of your sins

because the Holy Spirit lives within you convicting

you of your sin.

……. Don’t feel different?

Remember: you cannot depend upon your feelings as they

will fluctuate but depend upon God and His

Word

Example: Rev 3:20

a) What does this verse teach?

…………………………………………………

b) What did you do?

…………………………………………………

c) According to this verse what happened?

…………………………………………………

d) How do you know?

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22

APPENDIX ONE

“I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say

about Him. ‘I am ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept His

claim to be God.’ That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and

said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a

lunatic - on a level with the man who says he is a poached egg - or else he would be the

Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God; or

else a madman or something worse. You can shut Him up for a fool, you can spit at Him

and kill Him as a demon; or you can fall at His feet and call Him Lord and God. But let us

not come with any patronizing nonsense about His being a great human teacher. He has not

left that open to us. He did not intend to.” C.S. Lewis – “Mere Christianity”

a) WHAT DID JESUS HAVE TO SAY ABOUT HIMSELF

What are His claims?

i. John 5:17, 18 to be equal to God.

ii. John 8: 58 (background Exodus 3:14) to be God himself

iii. John 3: 13 to have come from God to this world (heavenly origin)

iv. John 20: 28 to receive worship as God

v. John 8: 46 to be sinless

From these it is obvious that He could not have been just a good moral teacher. A

good moral teacher would not make these claims! What are His claims?

b) WHO IS JESUS?

Jesus claims to be God.

Two alternatives

False True

Liar lunatic Lord

Implications

i. Could He have been a liar?

Note: He told “lies” even when the result was crucifixion. The character of

His teaching.

“How in the name of logic commonsense and experience could an

imposter ….. have invented, and consistently maintained from the beginning

to end, the purest and noblest character known in history with the most perfect

air of truth and reality” Schaffer.

ii. Could He have been a lunatic?

Note: We know nowadays the characteristics of lunacy.

Jesus shows none of these.

“The discrepancy between the depth and sanity of His moral teaching and the

rampant megalomania which must lie behind His theological teaching unless

He is indeed God has never been satisfactorily explained.”

iii. Jesus - Lord

This is the only alternative left if you are prepared to face the evidence. Jesus

is God, God became man.