Rev. David Holwick Z First Baptist Church [highlight positiveness of sharing gospel] Ledgewood, New Jersey August 24, 1997 1 Peter 3:13-16 WHAT'S YOUR REASON? =================== I. Mom, the Jehovah's Witnesses are here! A. Strikes fear into all our hearts. 1) Pushy religious person. 2) Highlights our ignorance of Bible, confuses us with obscure beliefs. B. Surprisingly, they are highly successful and growing. II. Are Christians supposed to be pushy like this? A. Jesus commands us to share our faith. 1) He says we are witnesses of his power. 2) He says he'll be ashamed of anyone who is ashamed to stand up for him. B. We hate to do it. 1) We don't feel competent. Researcher George Barna asked Christians about their witnessing experiences. He found that 9 out of 10 individuals who attempt to explain their beliefs and theology to other people come away from those experiences feeling as if they had failed. The reality of human behavior is that most people avoid those activities in which they perceive themselves to be failures. #1263 2) Typical to believe in heart, but be timid. C. If you really believe something, you'll want to share it. 1) Not pushy, but honest sharing. a) Early Christians had to be put in jail to stop witnessing. -2- b) Our motivation is not to "sell" something or impose our beliefs on outsiders. The primary motivation for evangelism for evangelism is generosity. There is a basic human concern to share the good things of life with those we love. It does not reflect a desire to sell or dominate; it arises from love and compassion. We have found something wonderful and want others to share in its joy. Evangelism is, as the old adage has it, like one beggar telling another where to find bread. #3550 2) My sharing Christ with a drug-user in Heidelberg. a) I didn't want to, but felt compelled to. b) Another young kid prays to receive Jesus, flies to States the next day. III. Getting over fear. A. Original thrust is fear of opposition from pagans. 3:13 1) Christians then - and in third world today - are in danger when they stick their necks out. 2) Our fear is different in magnitude only - we don't want to be rejected. a) We have a hard message to sell. 1> Non-believers don't want to admit sin. 2> They don't want to admit weakness, need for a Higher Power. 3> Our only positive part is that gospel is true. A> (Liberals water it down, are dying.) b) We are by nature cowards. B. "He who is in us is greater than he who is in world." 1 Jn 4:4 1) Don't be afraid. 3:14 2) God will look out for his own. -3- IV. The main consideration. A. Christian faith can be a hobby or a commitment. 1) Hobbyists won't risk anything. 2) They also gain nothing. a) Sitting in a church doesn't make you a Christian anymore than sitting in a garage will make you a car. B. Is Jesus Christ your lord? 3:15 1) Debate over lordship salvation.... 2) Real Christianity is discipleship. C. Honor him in every area of your life. 1) "Set him apart" refers to conscious action. V. Be prepared to answer people. A. Non-believers are naturally curious. 1) Israeli guide, Uri, asking me why I became a Christian. 2) Doesn't mean we have to wait for them to ask, however. a) Dangers of "silent witnessing." Moshe Rosen became a Christian at a high cost. He converted from Judaism to Christianity and his own parents disowned him. His father said to him, "You are never to mention Christ, the Bible, or your religion to your mother or to me, or to any of the family." A deacon in his church told him to be a "silent witness," and that a time would come when they would ask about his faith. Seventeen years after he accepted the reconciliation with his parents, his mother died without ever believing. His father followed in another decade. "They never asked." There is no such thing as a "silent witness." Being a silent witness doesn't work because the focus is on whether we can be good and righteous. Our message should not be who we are but who He is. #1798 -4- B. They deserve a reasonable answer. 1) Alister McGrath says a central task of evangelism is to make Christianity credible in the modern world. In seminary they call this APOLOGETICS - the "defense of the faith," to give a rough translation of the Greek word apologia, used in 1 Peter 3:15. #3550 2) You should be able to tell people what a Christian is, and why you are one. a) "Four Spiritual Laws," etc. b) Witnessing=being a witness that God has done something (...in my life). VI. Give them a reason for your hope. A. Christians have something to look forward to. 1) Do you?? a) If you died right now, would you be satisfied with the life you have lived? b) If you died right now, do you know with certainty what would happen to you? 2) "Faith must be a first-hand discovery and not a second-hand story." B. Be positive in witnessing. 1) Hellfire may motivate some, but hope is better. Christian writer Mrs. Robbie Castleman heard a Christian physics professor defend Christianity on a state university campus a few years ago. He had been nominated for the Nobel Prize more than once, had pages of academic accolades, and became a Christian well into his faculty career. After listening to his brilliant multi-point presentation of why he found Christianity credible, Castleman spoke to this professor and his wife. She asked him what first got him to consider the Christian faith. His answer was very different from what he had shared that night. -5- His journey to faith began after the death of his child. He noticed that his wife's grief began to give way to some hope and healing that he could not understand nor experience. When he asked her about it, she confessed that she had been attending a Bible study with friends and had become a Christian. He was surprised, intrigued, and open to anything that would comfort his pain and emptiness. He, too, began to share his grief within his new circle of friends. They opened their hearts and their Bibles to this professor and his wife. The professor felt free to ask questions, seek the truth of the Christian faith, and express doubts. He finally trusted in the Lord, because his feelings of grief were accepted and shared. Compassion preceded answers. His evangelists were first listeners. After the professor finished, Castleman thanked him for this personal story of faith. And she suggested that this part of his life's story be included in what he shared with others about the Christian faith. She encouraged him to remember that grace opened the door of truth for him. This is true in the hearts and lives of most people who need to hear the gospel. #3376 C. Be gentle and respectful. 1) Harsh Christians (I have the TRUTH) turn people off. 2) Discern the real needs of people. For example, someone may say, "Well, I don't understand how you can say 'God loves us' when the world is in such a mess." There are five possible responses from Christians: 1. Launch into an earnest sermonette on the existence of God and the reality of original sin. [apologetics] 2. Mumble an ambivalent argument and change the subject. [mumble] 3. Speak slowly and loudly on the blessing of justification, sanctification and the glorification of the Christian. Talk down to them. [religious language] -6- *4. Ask about "the mess." Where is this person's unhappiness with the messy world? Listen for hints or confessions of an inner, personal mess. *5. Just keep listening as the person continues to talk. The last two are the best responses. Information is not what people usually look for first when they are hurting, vulnerable, or sharing feelings. They want to know you care for them, and God does too. #3263 VII. Words must be backed up by your character. (consistent love) A. Lack of consistency in life may be greatest hurdle to witnessing. B. Rather than not witnessing, clean up life first. Joseph Aldrich says that God's evangelistic strategy is beauty. He desires to build into us the beauty of own character, and then put us on display. Many training programs concentrate on the words, the tools (i.e., 4 Spiritual Laws). Few teach us how to play the music: that beauty of character God wants to suffuse through our lives. Basically, evangelism is less something we do - a project - than something we are. Others need to see us as people of integrity. #1255 C. Converts earn us a crown in heaven. 1 Thessalonians 2:19 ==================== 1PE 3:13 Who is going to harm you if you are eager to do good? 1PE 3:14 But even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed. "Do not fear what they fear; do not be frightened." 1PE 3:15 But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, 1PE 3:16 keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander. 1PE 3:17 It is better, if it is God's will, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil.