In this post I am wrapping up the story of the discussion I held with my ‘devil’s advocate’ friend and the student worker ‘Ned’ in my office. You can read the first part of the dialogue here. The bulk of the discussion had thus far been dominated by Barney and I. After he left, the door stood wide open for Ned and I to continue speaking about religious matters.

I quickly discovered Ned staunchly believes in the ‘all roads lead to God’ approach to salvation. I tried to sum up his worldview with the following analogy. I said, “So God has set up the religions of the world as a kind of buffet of beliefs, where people can choose what system best fits their tastes. All God requires in return is sincerity and adherence to the commands and dictates of that faith.”

Ned shrugged, “Sure. Why not?”

I replied, “Jesus plainly said, ‘I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.’ The word proclaims there is ‘no other name under Heaven given among men by which we must be saved’. ‘Whoever calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved’. ” Continue reading →

Last Friday at work was simply another average, run-of-the-mill routine day. The week was notable only for a severe case of discouragement I inflicted on myself due to my inability to fix a couple of laserjet printers. I took them apart, replaced vital components and reassembled them only to find that neither worked!

AAARRRRGHHH!!!!

As my depressing week drew to a close, I had a surprise visitor walk through my office door at around 2:00. ‘Barney’, a fellow computer tech and friend for the last 15 years or so, came by for a chat. Now, Barney is a fellow who by his own admission is not a Christian, nor does he give any pretense to become one. He has resolutely shrugged off my preaching and pleadings for the last decade. The interesting thing about him is, this past year he regularly attended an evening bible study I had held weekly. The group was dissolved last fall for personal reasons. However, even more fascinating is, of all the students who participated in my class, he has been the most insistent on getting the group back together. He has teased me that since the breakup he has been intrigued by Scientology and is considering joining up with them. The first time he told me I was appalled, but when he followed up by saying “You should really start that bible study again so I don’t go astray”, I realized he really missed the teachings and was prodding me. I truly believe the Holy Spirit is doing a great work in him. Continue reading →

The most difficult element in evangelizing the lost for me is introducing the subject of the gospel. In every conversation I’ve ever had with someone who needs to hear the message of saving grace, I have envisioned in my fevered imagination the worst case scenario possible. I could just see the jovial countenance of the individual darken to a piercing glower, his eyes boiling with black clouds and streaks of lightning when I mention the name of Jesus. I imagine peals of thundering condemnation bursting forth from his mouth as the cackling demons controlling him urge on an endless barrage of paint-peeling insults.

But when I actually engage someone in dialogue I often find that is not the case. The person is usually open to the subject, no matter where he might stand. I breathe a sigh of relief and plunge forward. Once a person appears willing to talk about religion that is my green light to gun the pedal, squeal my tires and see how fast I can get from zero to saved! I’m sure some people have regretted granting me audience. I allow my pent up passion for the gospel to rush from my lips like the ocean at high tide. Nonetheless, once the wall of timidity has crumbled I transform into a different creature altogether.

Since my conversion to the Doctrines of Grace I have noticed another difficult part of witnessing now is in proving to people that they are depraved, corrupt and hopelessly sinful. That their only hope lies outside themselves completely and depends only on the mercy of God through Jesus Christ. It can get uncomfortable telling someone how bad he is. I don’t dare present it as my opinion but rather as fact. The perfect law of God embodied in the Ten Commandments acts as a mirror, reflecting the ugly truth of man’s sinfulness. The mortal blow to human pride is blunted by not isolating a sinner’s fallenness as his own personal problem, but as the plague of everyone who has ever taken a breath. It is not a ‘you’ issue but an ‘us’ issue.

I’m introducing a new section to my blog entitled “Adventures in Evangelism.” In the tradition of great men of God such as Ichabod Spencer, I plan to chronicle my interactions with unbelievers (and ‘professing’ believers) as I share the gospel message with them. I sincerely hope that this is an area that I can journal on with consistent frequency over the years. Evangelism of the lost should be an essential staple in the believer’s diet of daily living. Admittedly, if I had kept a journal of all my evangelical efforts over the past 11 years, it would amount to little more than a puny pamphlet of pathetic pronouncements.

Oh, don’t get me wrong, I’ve witnessed to many people since I’ve been redeemed, with mixed results, but it has never been consistent and ongoing. I would often times feel frustrated and discouraged in my efforts. This would lead to long droughts of ‘mime evangelism’. That is, letting my actions do the witnessing for me. I wrongly believed that this in itself was just as effective as public proclamation of the gospel.

I have now come to understand the source of my frustrations. For 10 years I don’t believe I had a firm, well-rounded understanding of the gospel message. This made it difficult for me to convincingly convey the weightiness of man’s condenmation through the law. In fact I was taught to avoid making people feel bad about themselves and their fallen state! Continue reading →