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Evangelism Daily Readings

EVANGELISM Daily Readings

Evangelism Daily Readings

Copyright © 2016 Julian Batchelor Requests for information should be addressed to: Evangelism Strategies International (NEW ZEALAND) Phone: + 64 274 76 44 30 Email: seeyouatthetop@xtra.co.nz Web: www.esisite.com

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means – electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any other – except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of Evangelism Strategies International Inc.

Evangelism Daily Readings

Why a set of Evangelism Readings? The Church as we know it has existed for over 2000 years. In this time, many outstanding Christians have lived and died. Like shooting stars, they blazed a brilliant trail across the sky in their day. Though dead physically, their light continues to burn brightly through their writings. One purpose of these readings is to expose today’s generation of Christians to their light. The authors of some of the readings in this volume are still alive today: J.I Packer, Don Carson, John Piper and others. Whether contemporary or historical, all are remembered for different reasons - their intellectual brilliance, or courage, or tenacity, or faithfulness, or bravery, or passion, or love, or eloquence - or even a combination of some or all of these factors. Their attitudes, their thoughts, the trials they endured, their battles with sin within and without, their love for God and His purposes, are truly inspirational. They all bring great glory to Jesus. What they all have in common is a commitment to Jesus and His mandate to evangelise the world. We could call them “God’s evangelism heroes from history.” My prayer is that by reading about these valiant men and women, we might catch something of their spirit and heart which the Holy Spirit will use to propel us into mighty evangelism exploits today. And here’s the thing - when one gathers the writings of so many different giants in history into one volume, there flowers a richness, depth and beauty which could never be derived from studying one particular person. The grandeur and majesty is in the variety. It was Theodore Roosevelt who said, “Never throughout history has a man who lived a life of ease left a name worth remembering.” Truly, these evangelism heroes lived (or are still living) lives worth remembering. The only one who doesn’t fit this description of an ‘evangelism hero from history’ is me! I am just the collator and editor of the readings. From time to time over the 84 readings, I felt inspired to write, so some of the devotions are my own thoughts. There are many others Christians in history who didn’t make it into the volume. I look forward to sharing their thoughts with you in the next volume.

How to use the readings.

In the Evangelism Strategies International small group DVD series, there are 12 foundational studies, which take a maximum of 12 weeks to view, one study per week. 12 weeks is 84 days, so there is one reading for each day of the 12 weeks. A week between DVD studies can seem like a long time. The readings will not only help you maintain momentum, but they will also complement and enrich what you are learning in the DVD studies.

Evangelism Daily Readings

We urge you to set aside 30 minutes a day for each reading. This will give you time to read and meditate. You’ll also have time to respond to how God speaks to you. Some readings end with a simple prayer, others with comment from me, or application questions, or even specific suggestions about what do to as a result of what you have read. Other readings are not by ‘heroes of evangelism from history.’ They are readings written by great Christians which relate to evangelism in some way. Their purpose is none the less the same as the other readings - to encourage and inspire you to personally engage in evangelism. Yet other readings are exercises, where I ask you to critique a reading to look for the devices of the enemy. In these exercises, I am asking you to think critically and Biblically, so that you can increasingly be used by the Holy Spirit to help purge the Church of the devil’s devices. These critiquing exercises will only make sense if you have read my book, ‘Strategies from Heaven in the War for Souls.’ 1 If you haven’t read this book, please do! The evangelisation of the world since the time of Jesus can be likened to a long relay race. Each generation of Christians has run a leg of the race to complete the Great Commission. As they die, they hand the baton onto the next generation. This is our time. This is our leg of the race. The whole purpose of the readings is for the Holy Spirit to work through them to inspire you to take the baton from those in history who have run the evangelism race before you! The world, its people, and life itself are gifts from God. Don’t fritter away the opportunity to join in with God’s mission, sidetracked by the trivial and the eternally worthless. This is YOUR time in history, YOUR opportunity. Take the baton with both hands and run! Leave everything on the track - run as one who wants to win the prize! (1 Corinthians 9:24).

1 You can view a thumb nail description of all our resources at the back of this book, or by going on-line to www.esisite.com. I also recommend you look at another of our sites at www.biblein11. com and register your church on this site.

Evangelism Daily Readings

CONTENTS WHY A SET OF EVANGELISM READINGS?

Day 1 Julian Batchelor The Power of Vision Day 2 Julian Batchelor The Price Of Being Naive Day 3 Julian Batchelor Faith Is Precious To God Day 4 Anonymous medical doctor Fear Not Day 5 Dr Gary Gilley Christians Who Doubt The Authority of Scripture Will Stop Evangelising

Day 6 Dr Maryn Lloyd-Jones The Authority Of Scripture Day 7 Paul Cook, Baptist Pastor The Authority Of Scripture And Evangelism

Day 8 Anonymous Author Which Are You? A Wagon Master Or An Engineer

Day 9 Dr John McArthur Getting A Heart Of Compassion For The Lost Day 10 Dr Gary Gilley Are We Influencing The World Or Is It Influencing Us? Day 11 Theodore Wedel, Episcopal Priest A Club Or A Life Saving Station?

Day 12 Anonymous Author Woe Is Me If I Preach Not The Gospel

Day 13 Dr John Piper Perishing Day 14 Dr J.I. Packer The Sovereignty Of God And The Free Will Of Man In Evangelism Day 15 Anonymous Author Don’t Let A Sense Of Failure Put You Off Evangelism Day 16 Dr John Stott The ‘Cannot’ and ‘The Will Not’ Day 17 A.W Tozer Proper Prayer Day 18 Bishop J.C Ryle Are You Born Again? Day 19 Bishop J.C Ryle Hell

Evangelism Daily Readings

12 14 16 18

31 33

40 42 44 46 48 51

Day 20 Bishop J.C Ryle Counting The Cost Day 21 C.H Spurgeon When We Sense Our Weakness, God Releases His Power Day 22 C.H Spurgeon How To Woo Sinners To Christ With The Gospel Day 23 D.L Moody Where Are You?

Day 24 D.L Moody Be Filled With The Spirit Day 25 C.T Studd Christian Courage

Day 26 Charles Finney How To Preach Without Converting Anyone Day 27 C.T Studd Not Loving Our Lives To The Death

Day 28 Andrew Murray It’s Not All Up To You

Day 29 Andrew Murray How To Renew Your Energy Day 30 Dr Mark Dever What Evangelism Is And Isn’t. We Must Stop Mistaking Other Christian Activities For The Spreading Of The Gospel Day 31 Billy Sunday Every Believer Evangelism

Day 32 Julian Batchelor Power Evangelism

Day 33 Dr John Piper How to Have Beautiful Feet Day 34 Norman Geisler Can Those Who Have Never Heard The Gospel Be Saved Day 35 Dr John Piper Readiness Day 36 Dr John MacArthur Join Hands Day 37 Anonymous Being A Good Listener Day 38 Bishop J.C Ryle True Christianity Is A Fight Day 39 Andrew Bonar Oh, The Sweet Work Of The Holy Spirit In Evangelism

58 60 62

79 81

90 93 97 99 101 105

Evangelism Daily Readings

Day 40 Basilea Schlink Taking Up Our Cross And Following After Him Day 41 Fred Markert Active And Passive Lordship Day 42 Beryl Amos Woman To Woman Evangelism Day 43 F.B Meyer Power Ploughing And Watering

108

Day 44 Hudson Taylor Go In Faith! The Lord Is With You! Day 45 Hudson Taylor The Adventure Of Evangelism

118

Day 46 D.L Moody Children And Evangelism Day 47 Hudson Taylor Lord, Soften Our Hearts To The Reality Of Eternal Things

127

Day 48 Hudson Taylor Preparing The Inner Man For Evangelism

133

Day 49 Dr Martyn Lloyd-Jones The Wrath Of God And Evangelism Day 50 John R.Rice We Need More Evangelists In The Church Day 51 Karina Social Action And Evangelism (Critiquing another person’s writing)

137

Day 52 Linda The Mother Who Blogs Teenagers. Letting Your Light Shine (Critiquing another person’s writing) Day 53 Anonymous Author Are You An Evangelist? (Critiquing another person’s writing) Day 54 Julian Batchelor Jesus The Genie? Day 55 Julian Batchelor The Rewards Of Evangelism

146

Day 56 Dr Don Carson How Do We Work for Justice and Not Undermine Evangelism? Day 57 Anonymous Fifty Years Later Day 58 Lex Loizides How Spurgeon Was Converted Day 59 Julian Batchelor The Power Of Spiritual Disciplines And How They Help Evangelism

158

Evangelism Daily Readings

111 114 116

122

130

142 144

148 152 155

160 161 163

Day 60 J.C Ryle How England Was Revived In The Eighteenth Century Day 61 George Whitefield Satan’s Devices Day 62 A.W Tozer Causes Of A Dozing Church

167

Day 63 Joseph DeShezer The Untold Story Of Pearl Harbour Day 64 Anonymous The Martyrdom Of Polycarp

177

Day 65 J.I Packer How To Overcome Sin

184

Day 66 A.B Simpson How God Gave One Man A Passion For Evangelism Day 67 Wiliam Carey The Father Of Modern Missions

186

Day 68 John Wesley Awakening Sinners From Their Sleep

192

Day 69 Jonathan Edwards Sinners In The Hands Of An Angry God Day 70 Julian Batchelor Evangelism: Are we to go to strangers, or only to people we already know? Day 71 Gary Bates Why don’t Christians evangelise? Church Survey reveals Ignorance to blame

195

Day 72 John Stott The Relationship Between Evangelism And Social Responsibility

213

Day 73 Matt Slick The Importance Of Prayer In Evangelism Day 74 Michael Wells (Counsellor) God’s Tens Day 75 Dr Mark Dever Apologetics Is Not Evangelism Day 76 Dr Don Carson When Tolerance Works Against Evangelism Day 77 Julian Batchelor Does Preaching About Hell Move People Towards The Point Of Conversion Or Not? Day 78 Matthew Paris Atheist Reluctantly Promotes Evangelism Day 79 Thom Rainer Factors Which Create An Evangelistic Church

218

172 175

180

192

Evangelism Daily Readings

206 209

221 223 225 227 229 232

Day 80 David Livingstone Counting The Cost Of Evangelising The World Day 81 C.H Spurgeon A Promise Of Revival Day 82 Anonymous Evangelism (Critiquing Another Person’s Writing) Day 83 George Barna How The Church Was In 2010

235

Day 84 Anonymous Evangelism! Just Do It Now! (Critiquing Another Person’s Writing)

255

Evangelism Daily Readings

247 250 252

Day One The Power Of Vision Proverbs 29:18 “Without a vision the people perish.” Today’s reading is about vision. If we want to be used by God in evangelism, each of us must develop our own vision of how we want God to use us. Without such a vision, it’s highly unlikely we are going to be fruitful.

A Young Astronaut’s Vision It started like so many evenings. Mum and Dad at home and Jimmy playing after dinner. Mum and Dad were absorbed with jobs and did not notice the time. It was a full moon and some of the light seeped through the windows. Then Mum glanced at the clock. “Jimmy, it’s time to go to bed. Go up now and I’ll come and settle you later.” Unlike usual, Jimmy went straight upstairs to his room. An hour or so later his mother came up to check if all was well, and to her astonishment found that her son was staring quietly out of his window at the moonlit scenery. “What are you doing, Jimmy?” “I’m looking at the moon, Mummy.” “Well, it’s time to go to bed now.” As one reluctant boy settled down, he said, “Mummy, you know one day I’m going to walk on the moon.” Who could have known that the boy in whom the dream was planted that night would survive a near fatal motorbike crash which broke almost every bone in his body, and would bring to fruition this dream 32 years later when James Irwin stepped on the moon’s surface, just one of the 12 representatives of the human race to have done so?

Action is all important James Irwin had a dream to go to the moon. His dream became a vision when he began to take action i.e. He went to college, received aerospace training etc. Eventually, his vision was fulfilled. Jesus has a vision too. He too took action to birth His vision (He came to earth, died on a cross etc).

His vision is that everyone in the world would hear the gospel (Luke 19:10; Mark 16:15). When His vision is realised, one of the conditions for the Second Coming of Jesus will have been fulfilled. Unlike Irwin, Jesus’ vision has not yet been fulfilled.

Identifying with the heart of Jesus We ask ‘how can Jesus’ vision possibly be fulfilled?’ Only if each of us gets our own personal vision about becoming regularly active in personal evangelism. His vision ought to become our personal vision! When this happens, we are identifying with the very heart of Jesus.

Dreams versus Visions How will you achieve this? First, be sure about what ‘evangelism’ is and is not. Second, dream. Dream about what you could do. Dream about your street, neighbourhood, city, country. Dream about your school, university, place of work. Third, take action! Our dreams turn into a vision when we take action. What about putting a tract in every letter box in your street - that’s a vision! In every letter box in your neighbourhood - that’s a bigger vision! If our dream doesn’t go beyond the dream stage, we’re just dreamers. We have lost our saltiness (Matthew 5:13). But if our dream turns into a vision and then into action, we’re up there with Irwin - visionaries! And remember, Irwin had some challenges on the way to realising his vision - don’t expect any less for the fulfilment of your personal evangelism vision! God is with us. He promises to never leave Evangelism Daily Readings

or forsake us (Hebrews 13:5).

Prayer: “Dear Lord Jesus, you are the one who gives vision and who can change my heart. Your word says ‘the heart of the king is in the hands of the Lord. He moves it like a water course where ever He pleases’ (Proverbs 20:1). Ezekiel 26:36 says ‘Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.’ Lord I ask you to make these verses a reality for me so that I would active for evangelism and began to form a vision for it in my own life. Thank you that I can rely on you Jesus to help me with this. Make my vision big enough that I would never do it on my own. I want a vision that is so big I will need to you come through to fulfil it! Amen.” Download a document called ‘The Benefits of Using Tracts’ from our web site at www.esisite.com/ resources

Evangelism Daily Readings

Day Two The Price Of Being Naive Galatians 6:7 “Don’t be misled; remember that you can’t ignore God and get away with it: a man will always reap just the kind of crop he sows!”(Living Bible)

A Naive Teenager A teenager brought home her new boyfriend to meet her parents, and they were appalled by his appearance: leather jacket, motorcycle boots, tattoos and a pierced nose. Later, the parents pulled their daughter aside and said “He doesn’t seem very nice.” “Mom,” replied the daughter, “if he wasn’t so nice, why would he be doing 5000 hours of community service?” The dictionary defines ‘naive’ in this way: “Too willing to believe that someone is telling the truth, that people’s intentions in general are good, or that life is simple and fair. People are often naive because they are young and/or have not had much experience of life.”

Are we naive too? I, like you, had a chuckle when I read this anecdote. Then I asked myself ‘why did I laugh?’ I laughed because the daughter in this story was so naive. She thought the new boyfriend was doing community service as a volunteer, unaware of the true motivation which was a punishment for a crime! I wonder if God sees us as naive when it comes to evangelism and growing the Church numerically? Every pastor and every Christian on the face of the earth wants to see non-Christians saved and the rapid expansion of the Church. We long to see non-Christians running into church to hear the word of God on Sunday, and services overflowing. We expend hours praying for this, singing about this, believing for this, preaching about this, and having conferences about this. Yet the rapid influx of non-Christians coming to find salvation hasn’t happened - yet. Why is this?

Something vital is missing.

What’s missing? In the first DVD session this week, we learned the difference between the words, the works, and the effects of the gospel. The words of the gospel are a likened in the Bible to a seed (Mark 4:26). Jesus commanded us to ‘go into all the world and proclaim the gospel’ (Mark 16:15). The God appointed power to save people is in this seed (Romans 1:16). Any farmer will tell you that unless he sows seed, there is absolutely no possibility of a harvest. It’s the same with the Church. If we expect to see unprecedented harvest without sowing the words of the gospel, we, like the daughter in the anecdote - are naive. Except God doesn’t chuckle at our naivety - He weeps. If only 2% of the Church are currently engaging in Biblical evangelism, is it any wonder harvest is only a pitiful handful of grain? As the Living Bible would put it in Galatians 6:7, we can’t ignore the command of God to evangelise the world and get away with it. Are we so naive to believe that through prayer and social action (as important as both these are in the mix) that God will somehow honour us, and grant us a harvest?

God honours obedience Prayer, social action and proclamation must go together. Some say ‘But what about in times of revival? Doesn’t God just move by a sovereign act of grace?” The answer is, ‘Yes, revival is a sovereign act of grace, but this grace is preceded

Evangelism Daily Readings

by God’s people labouring in proclamation and travailing in prayer.’ This is the pattern. If God brought revival in the complete absence of any attempt on our part to obey the great commission, He’d be breaking one of His own rules which he established in Genesis 8:22. To understand His mind about this, meditate on 1 Samuel 15:22 “But Samuel replied: ‘Does the LORD delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the

voice of the LORD? To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams.”

Prayer: “Jesus, help us to always keep social action, prayer, and proclamation hitched together. And if either of these are weak, help us a church to strengthen the weakness. Above all Lord, help me to become active in evangelism so that I can become part of the solution to the tragic problem of a church which has all but stopped evangelising.”

Evangelism Daily Readings

Day Three Faith Is Precious To God Hebrews 11:6 ‘.........it’s impossible to please God without faith.’

A Sparrow with a great attitude A spindly little sparrow is lying on his back in the middle of the road. A horseman comes by, dismounts and asks the sparrow what he’s doing lying upside down like that. “I heard the heavens are going to fall today,” said the sparrow. “Oh,” said the horseman, “and I suppose your spindly little legs can hold up the heavens.” “One does what one can,” said the sparrow. “One does what one can!”

We need the faith of this sparrow There are now over 6 billion people on the earth and many of them have not even heard the word ‘Jesus’ let alone heard the gospel. When we consider this in light of the command of Jesus to reach every person on the earth with the gospel, the task can seem overwhelming. We can easily be intimidated, buckle at the knees and end up doing nothing at all! If only we had the faith of the sparrow! Faith believes in spite of the odds! Even a trillion little sparrows would not hold up the heavens if they fell!

One at a time is all it takes So why is the attitude of the sparrow so wonderful? Firstly, he didn’t focus on what he couldn’t do but what he could. His little legs couldn’t hold up the entire weight of the heavens, but they could hold up a minute portion of it! If he was a Christian sparrow, he would know that if he did his bit, God would do the rest. So it is with world evangelism. If we do what we can, our bit, God will do the rest. You are not going to be the one who can reach a billion people with the gospel this is most probably what you can’t do. But what you can do is reach the people in your street, your school, your family, the people you brush with in shops, gas stations, and as you go about your day.

One at a time!

Doing the numbers Think about this - if you lived to the age of 80 and you started handing out tracts when you were 5 (and I have met such a person in Sydney, Australia who goes out evangelising with his dad regularly), just one per day, that’s 75 years of evangelism activity. Not counting leap years, that’s 365 days a year for 75 years or 27,375 days! Let’s say the Holy Spirit decided to convert 10% of the people who read the tract you gave out. You’d end your life having been used by God to save 2,737 people! What a fruitful life you would have led! Not only that, but think about all the glory that went to Jesus as a result of your efforts! But not only that, think of the joy you would have had doing it! And the great friends you would have made along the way!

Everyone can be fruitful in evangelism But let’s say your faith is like a mustard seed and you could only believe for 1% of that seed you sowed to be touched by the Holy Spirit. i.e. only 27 people came to faith through your efforts. Still, what phenomenal fruitfullness! The sad truth is most Christians pass through this life never having been used by God for the salvation of anyone! The reason? They have never gone about their life sowing the gospel. You see, it’s like this - if you don’t sow, you have absolutely no chance of reaping. One can’t win the lottery if one doesn’t have a ticket.

Evangelism Daily Readings

Plan for a great day at Judgement At the final judgement, an event all of us will have to go through, we are not going to be assessed according to how many people we saved (because salvation is from first to last the Lord’s work - John 6:65) but on how obedient we were to the command of Jesus to evangelise. Even if our minds and the devil tell us ‘what good will giving out tracts to strangers and people I know do?’ to put us off, we must overrule them both with faith. What does this mean? It means go and do it anyway. What pleases God is obedience, faithfulness and faith, not cynicism, skepticism,

and doubt, three great marks of the ‘old man’ (Romans 6:6). Luke 18:8 says “When the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?” Determine today to start your evangelism journey by adopting the fantastic attitude of the sparrow, doing a little bit each day, and doing what you can - by faith!

Application: “What’s your action plan? Here is a sample action plan. Step 1: Go to the Christian bookstore and buy some good tracts Step 2: put some in your handbag or briefcase. Step 3: When you go anywhere tomorrow in a public place, take one out and give one to someone. Just say ‘Excuse me, did you get one of these?’, smile, and keep walking, unless you feel the door is open to have a chat Step 4: When you get home, put a big tick on the wall calendar and a smiley face, for this is what Jesus thinks of your evangelism efforts today Step 5: Do this for the rest of your life and look forward to judgement knowing God is going to pronounce over you ‘Well done, good and faithful servant!’ Go to www.esisite.com/resources and download Frank Jenner’s audio testimony and be blessed! It’s the account of how someone faithfully gave out tracts all his life and the incredible results he discovered at the end.

Evangelism Daily Readings

Day Four Fear Not Isaiah 41:10 “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” Today’s reading is written by a medical doctor.

Our God is Big God A couple of days ago I was running on my treadmill, watching a DVD sermon by Louie Giglio. And I was BLOWN AWAY! I want to share what I learned. He (Louie) was talking about how inconceivably BIG our God is. How He spoke the universe into being, how He breathes stars out of His mouth that are huge raging balls of fire etc. Then He went on to speak of how this star-breathing, universe creating God ALSO knitted our human bodies together with amazing detail and wonder.

How can anyone deny there is a Creator? At this point I am LOVING it because I am fascinated from a medical standpoint. And I was remembering how I was constantly amazed during medical school as I learned more and more about God's handiwork. I remember so many times thinking, 'How can ANYONE deny that a Creator did all of this?' Louie went on to talk about how we can trust that the God who created all this, also has the power to hold it all together when things seem to be falling apart, and how our loving Creator is also our sustainer.

together - LITERALLY. They are cell adhesion molecules. They are what holds one cell of our bodies to the next cell. Without them, we would literally fall apart. But what I didn't know is what they LOOKED like! But now I do. And I have thought about it a thousand times since. The picture below is what the structure of laminin looks like. This is NOT a ‘Christian portrayal’ of it. If you look up laminin in any scientific/medical piece of literature, this is what you will see. Now tell me that our God is not the coolest! Amazing. The glue that holds us together, all of us, is in the shape of the cross. Immediately Colossians

God made Laminin! It was because he started talking about proteins in the body called laminin. Here is how Wikipedia describes them: 'Laminins are a family of proteins that are an integral part of the structural scaffolding of basement membranes in almost every animal tissue' You see, laminins are what hold us Evangelism Daily Readings

1:15-17 comes to mind. ‘He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by him all things were created; things in heaven and on earth, visible And invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or Authorities; All things were created by him and for him. He is before all things, and in him All things HOLD TOGETHER.’ Call me crazy, but I just think that is very, very, very cool.

anything about laminin, Paul penned those words. And now we see that from a very LITERAL standpoint,we are held together, one cell to another, by the cross. You would never in a quadrillion years convince me that is anything other than the mark of a Creator who knew EXACTLY what laminin ‘glue’ would look like long before Adam breathed his first breath!”

Did the Apostle Paul know? Thousands of years before the world knew

Prayer: “Dear Jesus, fear of evangelising is something I am asking you to eliminate from my life. I know you are not the author of fear. I know you are the one who holds the whole world in your hands, and you hold each of it’s part together by your almighty power. I know I am a child of God, and special to you. I know that nothing can separate me from you love and protective power. Your words says ‘Psalm 27:1 The LORD is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of whom shall I be afraid?’ Today, I trust you to keep me, protect me, lead me, guide me, empower me, uphold me in evangelism. You said in your word ‘I am with you, even to the ends of the world.’ Today I willingly stand on these promises in your word as I go into the world with the gospel, for your glory. Amen’.

Evangelism Daily Readings

Day Five Christians Who Doubt The Authority Of The Bible Will Stop Evangelising “All Scripture is God breathed.....” 2 Timothy 3:16 The reading today is my summary of a terrific book called ‘The Little Church Stayed Home,’ by Dr Gary Gilley. A pastor with some 35 years experience, and a graduate of Cambridge Graduate School, he is also on the advisory board of the Brazil Gospel Mission. I recommend you get a copy of this book and study it, especially if you are in a leadership capacity in a church. According to Gary, many churches, riding the faddish waves of our times, have ‘gone to market. But not all have done this. Some churches are trying to ‘stay home.’ That is, remain firmly grounded in the Scriptures. Still, the pressures mount, the temptations are repackaged, and the schemes of the word become more and more persuasive. In his book, Gary explores the manifold pressures of conservative churches to sell out to modern trends and innovations, including the present temptation towards mystical theology. Churches toying with ‘new measures’ will be challenged to remain true to the historic doctrines of the Christian faith and to remain faithful to God’s chosen means of converting sinners to himself: the gospel of Jesus Christ. I am going to attempt to condense a 100 page book into 3 pages, so here goes!

A short history of Western thinking. Over the last 2000 years, people in the Western

World have lived through three distinct periods of thinking. The way they thought about their world was called their ‘world view.’ The first period was the ‘Pre-Modern’ period.

The truth about life was found in the Bible In the Pre-modern Period (from Jesus to the French Revolution in 1789), no one doubted the existence of God, spirits, demons, and other beings. During this period the Western World’s authority (the criteria it used to measure truth, the knowledge of right and wrong etc) was found primarily in the Church (Roman Catholicism) or in the Scriptures (Protestantism). If you wanted to know where ‘truth’ was to be found, this is where you would look. The challenge of the Christians in this period of history was to convince people that Jesus was the one true God. After the PreModern period came the Modern Period.

God and the Bible pushed out

Then came the Modern Period (from 1789 to the 1970’s and 1980’s). In this period, philosophers began to question the pre-modern sources of authority (i.e. The Scriptures and the Church) and instead offered human reasoning, science, and rational inquiry became the answer to the world’s problems. Science became the new God. Science viewed Christians as being naively committed to ancient myths, unable to see past their bias and to take an objective and neutral look at the world. With the Bible and the Church Evangelism Daily Readings

‘out of the way,’ and armed with rationalism and science, the people of the world could make unlimited progress towards a better life. Or so they thought.

Science and rational thinking disappoint However, as with all world views other than the Biblical one, this ‘modern’ world view began to disappoint. People became disenchanted with reason and science, and neither was able to deliver on the promises to solve human problems and reshape society into Utopia (i.e. the ideal world). Then came the Post Modern Period.

The Postmodern Period (1970’s and 80’s until now) Having discarded the Bible as the source of truth, and having tried science and rational thought as the answers to life, but seeing these fail, the philosophers of the Modern Period had no where to turn except to the pessimism of nothingness, emptiness, and uncertainty. The book of Ecclesiastes became very relevant! Out of the ashes of the Modern Period has come the Postmodern Period. This is the period in which we are now living. To the average postmodern person, ‘truth’ is not found (indeed it is not capable of being found), it is created. Absolute truth is a fable. Postmoderns create their own truth. They assert it is not possible to find universal truth that is applicable to all people. For them, the only absolute truth is that there is no absolute truth. At the end of the day, truth is simply what each individuals make it to be and nothing more. What is the postmodern criteria for truth? Simply what works. If it makes me feel good or solves my problems, says the postmodernist, then this is ‘my’ truth. So cheating on taxes, adultery, sex before marriage, being deceitful in business and personal dealings are all ‘Ok’ as long as the outcome ‘works for me’ or ‘makes me feel good’ or ‘is attractive to me.’

Here is the interesting bit According to research, only 22% of Americans believe in absolute truth. Yet 33% of Americans say they are committed Christians. Other research shows these proportions are about the same for other Western Countries as well. What does this mean? It means for one thing that a

Evangelism Daily Readings

significant proportion of the Church in the West no longer believe in absolute truth. They have taken on the spirit of the age and are now postmodern in their thinking. What’s worse, Gary Gilley contents that many church leaders are becoming postmodern in their thinking and are going with the flow of postmodern thinking. These leaders have decided that the only way to win postmodern people is to give them what they think they need in the hope of giving them what they really need. What are the marks of a postmodern thinking church? Its members: • Question the reality of truth and are suspicious of anyone who claims to possess it. • Deliberately tone down any emphasis on the objective truth of Christian doctrine because postmodern people in their congregations have short attention spans and are only interested in having their felt needs met. • Place a big emphasis on the creation of ‘the experience’ and ‘being entertained’ not on preaching of the Word. • Don’t believe the Bible can be interpreted objectively. The ‘meaning’ of any particular verse finally resides in the mind of the interpreter. And since there are many interpreters, there are also many meanings. As such, according to the postmodern mind, no one meaning can ever be thought to be superior to any other meaning. There is no objective basis on which to evaluate interpretations. When we hear someone deny the obvious interpretation of a passage or verse of scripture with ‘Well, this is your interpretation’ we are in the presence of a postmodern Christian, whether they have ever heard the term or not. The purpose of the postmodern church is to bring people into ‘success’ and ‘personal fulfillment’ rather than glorifying God and enjoying Him forever. Someone once said, ‘In leaning over to speak to the postmodern world, I fear we may have fallen in.’ If so, let’s climb out, open the Word, and powerfully proclaim it from the housetops.

Application: This is an extremely serious issue facing the church . If we ‘adjust’ the teaching of the Bible to accommodate the whims and felt needs of postmodern people, all we are doing is leading them further into deception and away from Jesus who is the Truth. We are like irresponsible weak parents who feed their children an endless supply of sweets and lollies instead of healthy food, just to keep them happy. But in the end, we make them sick and ill and they will curse us for being so irresponsible as parents. The most serious rebuke of the Apostle Paul in the New Testament was reserved for those in the Early Church who were tampering with the gospel (Galatians 1:6-9). Postmodern church leaders are tampering with the gospel. The truth is, unregenerate people do not know their real needs (they don’t know what they don’t know - Romans 1:21), so their real needs must be awakened in them through the power of the Holy Spirit and the preaching of the Word of God. How does all this effect evangelism? It is having a catastrophic effect. Postmodern churches won’t proclaim the truth of the gospel because it’s politically incorrect to do so. They fear that to proclaim the gospel would put postmodern people off coming to church. The truth is, however, that people are attracted to Church when the word of God is expounded in it’s purest form, and is made alive by the Holy Spirit. It draws people like a magnet. Example: Jesus preached the gospel and crowds came to hear. Not only do the leaders of postmodern churches shy away from proclaiming the truth of the gospel inside their churches, but they are repulsed by the idea of training and equipping their people to proclaim the gospel outside of it. At this point, these leaders are moving into full blown heresy, for Jesus clearly commanded the whole church to take the whole gospel to the whole world. At the root of this heresy are doubts about this command of Jesus in Mark 16:15.

What do to:

1. If you are a church leader, timetable in serious time every year preaching from the front on Sunday, via evening classes, or via the internet on-line, the reliability and infallibility of the Bible. Develop in your people a love for the Word of God, it fathomless depths, and it’s unsearchable riches. 2. Undertake a serious personal study of how the Bible came to be, and the arguments put forward as to why it is infallible and reliable. 3. The criteria for truth is God’s Word, not personal opinion. Teach your people who are contend for the faith. They will be able to do this ably and powerfully if 1-2 above are done well. 4. Boldly proclaim the truth in church. The giants of the faith in EVERY generation never soft-peddled or minimised the message of the gospel to avoid offending the insensitivities of the masses. 5. Teach the Word of God systematically on Sundays. There is a place for topical preaching, but not every Sunday. 6. Keep the balance. Let’s not become so full of the Word that we forget the work and ministry of the Holy Spirit. Nothing is more powerful and life changing as a power personal encounter with the Holy Spirit. As someone rightly said, Christians who are all full of the Word and no Spirit dry up, and Christians who are full of the Spirit but no Word blow up.

Evangelism Daily Readings

Day Six The Authority Of Scripture ‘Stand therefore having your loins girt about with truth’ Ephesians 6.14 The reading today is written by Dr Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899 – 1981) was a Welsh Protestant minister, preacher and medical doctor who was influential in the Reformed wing of the British evangelical movement in the 20th century. For almost 30 years, he was the minister of Westminster Chapel in London. Lloyd-Jones was strongly opposed to the liberal theology that had become a part of many Christian denominations, regarding it as aberrant. He disagreed with the broad church approach and encouraged evangelical Christians (particularly Anglicans) to leave their existing denominations, taking the view that true Christian fellowship was only possible amongst those who shared common convictions regarding the nature of the faith. Lloyd-Jones was well-known for his style of expository preaching, and the Sunday morning and evening meetings at which he officiated drew crowds of several thousand, as did the Friday evening Bible studies – which were, in effect, sermons in the same style. He would take many months – even years – to expound a chapter of the Bible verse by verse. His sermons would often be around fifty minutes to an hour in length, attracting many students from universities and colleges in London. His sermons were also transcribed and printed (virtually verbatim) in the weekly Westminster Record, which was read avidly by those who enjoyed his preaching.

Where the Church went wrong There can be no doubt whatsoever that all the troubles in the Church to-day, and most of the troubles in the world, are due to a departure from the authority of the Bible. And, alas, it was the Church herself that led in the so-called ‘Higher

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Criticism’ that came from Germany just over a hundred years ago. With ‘Higher Criticism.’ Human philosophy took the place of revelation, man’s opinions were exalted and Church leaders talked about ‘the advance of knowledge and science’, and ‘the assured results’ of such knowledge. The Bible then became a book just like any other book, out-of-date in certain respects, wrong in other respects, and so on. It was no longer a book on which you could rely implicitly. There is no question at all that the falling away, even in Church attendance, in this country is the direct consequence of the Higher Criticism. The man in the street says, ‘What do these Christians know? It is only their opinion, they are just perpetrating something that the real thinkers and scientists have long since seen through and have stopped considering’. Such is the attitude of the man in the street! He does not listen any longer. He has lost all interest. The whole situation is one of drift; and very largely, I say, it is the direct and immediate outcome of the doubt that has been cast by the Church herself upon her only real authority. Men’s opinions have taken the place of God’s truth, and the people in their need are turning to the cults, and are listening to any false authority that offers itself to them.

Is the all the Bible the Word of God or not? We all therefore have to face this ultimate and final question: Do we accept the Bible as the Word of God, as the sole authority in all matters of faith and practice, or do we not? Is the whole of my thinking governed by Scripture, or do I come with my reason and pick and choose out of Scripture and sit in judgment upon it, putting myself and modern knowledge forward as the ultimate standard and authority? The issue is crystal clear. Do I accept Scripture as a revelation from God, or do I trust to speculation, human knowledge, human learning, human understanding and human reasons. Or, putting it still more simply, do I pin my faith to, and subject all my thinking to, what I read in the Bible? Or do I defer to modern knowledge, to modern learning, to what people think today, to what we know at this present time which was not known in the past? It is inevitable that we occupy one or the other of those two positions.

The Early Church and the Bible The Protestant position, as was the position of the early Church in the first centuries, is that the Bible is the Word of God. Not that it ‘contains’ it, but that it is the Word of God, uniquely inspired and inerrant. The Protestant Reformers believed not only that the Bible contained the revelation of God’s truth to men, but that God safeguarded the truth by controlling the men who wrote it by the Holy Spirit, and that He kept them from error and from blemishes and from anything that was wrong. That is the traditional Protestant position, and the moment we abandon it we have already started on the road that leads back to one of the false authorities, and probably ultimately to Rome (i.e. The Roman Catholic Church) itself. In the last analysis it is the only alternative. People will have authority; and they are right in so thinking. They need authority because they are bewildered; and if they do not find it in the

right way they will take it in the wrong way. They can be persuaded even though they do not know the source of the authority; in their utter bewilderment they are ready to be persuaded by any authoritative statement. So that it comes to this, that we are back exactly where Christians were 400 years ago. The world talks about its advance in knowledge, its science, and so on, but actually we are going round in cycles, and we are back exactly where Christians were 400 years ago. We are having to fight once more the whole battle of the Protestant Reformation. It is either this Book, or else it is ultimately the authority of the Church of Rome and her ‘tradition’! That was the great issue at the Protestant Reformation. It was because of what they found in the Bible that those men stood up against, and queried and questioned and finally condemned the Church of Rome. It was that alone that enabled Luther to stand, just one man, defying all those twelve centuries of tradition. ‘I can do no other’ he says, because of what he had found in the Bible. He could see that Rome was wrong. It did not matter that he was alone, and that all the big battalions were against him. He had the authority of the Word of God, and he judged the Church and her tradition and all else by this external authority. We are back again in that exact position, and I am concerned about the matter, not only from the standpoint of the Church in general, but also from the standpoint of our own individual experiences. How can we fight the devil? How can we know how we are to live? How can we answer the things we hear, the things we read, and all the subtle suggestions of the devil? Where can I find this truth that I must gird on, as I put on all this armour of God? Where can I find it if I cannot find it in the Bible? Either my foundation is one of sand that gives way beneath my feet, and I do not know where I am, or else I stand on what W. E. Gladstone called ‘The Impregnable Rock of Holy Scripture’.

Application: What do we as born again believers believe about the Authority of Scripture? First, we believe in it out of necessity. We will not understand God rightly if we do not turn to Scripture. Calvin believed that creation itself ought to reveal God to us, but that sin so distorted our vision that we could not see how clearly the world points to its creator. We need the Bible to function like eyeglasses, to help us see God at work in the world. The light of nature, the Westminster Confession of Faith explained, is “not sufficient to give that knowledge of God, and of Evangelism Daily Readings

his will, which is necessary unto salvation” (Book of Confessions 6.001), and therefore we need the Bible to guide us. Second, we must hold onto the Authority of Scripture because it provides all we need for living a successful Christian life. In the face of Catholic Churches appeals to the authority of the church and its tradition alongside Scripture, the Scots Confession emphasized that the Scriptures alone are “sufficient to instruct and make perfect the man of God” (3.19). Likewise, the Second Helvetic Confession began by declaring that in Scripture the church “has the most complete exposition of all that pertains to a saving faith, and also to the framing of a life acceptable to God” (5.002). We do not need other authorities to provide additional information. Moreover, we do not need any human authorities to vouch for Scripture’s authority—its authority (quoting the Scots Confession) comes “from God” and does not “depend on men or angels” (3.19) Third, we must hold onto the authority of Scripture because of the witness in our Spirit. The Holy Spirit, Calvin taught, inspired those who wrote Scripture, and the decisive reason to accept Scripture’s authority comes not from “human reasons, judgments, or conjectures” but from “the secret testimony of the Spirit.” Just as “God himself spoke to the fathers, prophets, [and] apostles,” the Second Helvetic Confession confirmed, so God “still speaks to us through the Holy Scriptures” (5.001). “Our full persuasion and assurance of the infallible truth and divine authority thereof,” according to the Westminster Confession of Faith, is “from the inward work of the Holy Spirit, bearing witness by and with the Word in our hearts” (6.005). Conclusion. We must not pick out the parts of the Bible we like and ignore the rest. Scripture speaks with authority. When we doubt this authority, we move into a mirky world of shadows, smoke and mirrors, not knowing what is true and what is not. All the anchors for our faith and belief are cut away. We begin to doubt God’s will and way, and when this happens, we allow the devil to infiltrate our thinking. One of the casualties is evangelism. The evidence of the truth of this fact are the 84 devices I detail in my book.

What do to:

1. The devil will use whatever means possible to undermine the authority of Scripture. He’ll work through scholars, authors, church leaders, the media...anything and anyone to try and weaken and poo poo our belief in the reliability and inerrancy of the Bible. Sometimes his attacks are extremely subtle. If you sense in your spirit, someone or something is knocking on the door of your heart to put you off trusting in God’s Word, resist. Remember in the Garden of Eden the serpent tried and succeeded to put doubts into the mind of Eve about what God had said (Genesis 3:4-5). So this strategy of the devil to undermine God’s work is as old and ancient as the world itself. 2. Memorise Scripture. As you read your Bible each day, expect God to speak to you. When a verse jumps off the page at you, and resonates deeply with you and your circumstances, memorise that scripture. You’ll be amazed how doing this will convince you more and more of the Authority of Scripture. This is because the word of God is living and active. When you internalise it, it affirms and confirms itself in your heart that it is indeed the truth. 3. Study how the Bible came to be and how it has survived. The more your delve into this, the more you’ll be convinced that God supernaturally and marvelously guided its compilation every step of the way. For example, did you know that the middle verse of the Bible is Psalm 118:8. Look this verse up and you’ll be encouraged! Voltaire, the French philosopher was an atheist. He threatened that he would see to the destruction of the Bible and its removal from the face of the earth. What happened is that the Bible Society bought the house where he was born after his death and today that building is one of the biggest sales centers of the Bible.

Evangelism Daily Readings

Day Seven The Authority Of Scripture And Evangelism “The Scripture cannot be broken” (John 10:35) The reading today is an edited version of a paper by Reverand Paul Cook, a retired Southern Baptist Pastor.

What is ‘the authority of Scripture?’ The authority of Scripture is the authority it possesses by reason of its divine origin and inspiration; by reason of it being the Word of God. “The Scriptures come from God, not from men,” declared Zwingle. They carry, therefore, the authority of God Himself. A person’s words cannot be separated from the character of the person who speaks them; they do, in fact, reveal and convey that character. The Scripture partakes of the attributes of the One whose Word it is. To hear the Scripture is to hear God. This was our Lord’s view of the Old Testament. It was also that of the apostles and the writers of the New Testament (e.g. the phrases, “God said”, “the Holy Ghost said” in Acts 13:34-35; Hebrews 3:7; 10:1517, etc). In the Bible we are confronted with God. The Word of God constitutes the authority of Scripture, and the Spirit of God within believers confirms it ( 1 Corinthians 2:12-16). The authority of the Bible is an infallible authority just as God, whose Word it is, is infallible. This is how the Reformers understood biblical infallibility. The Scriptures are infallible in as much as they are the Word of God. And all Scripture, they taught, is the Word of God, though some parts of Scripture may make that Word more evident than others. But the Word of God is in every part of Scripture. To depart from the authority of the

Scripture, therefore, is to depart from God. To disobey Scripture is to disobey God. To accept the Scripture is to accept God’s Person. It is nonsense to talk, as some do, about obeying “the will of God” and being guided by “the voice of the Spirit” whilst at the same time being unwilling to accept the Scripture where that will is found and where the Spirit speaks. To reject the authority of Scripture is to reject the authority of God who gave it, of Jesus Christ to whom it points, and the Holy Spirit who inspired it. “The Scripture cannot be broken,” declared our Lord (John 10:35).

Church Growth Depends on the Authority of Scripture Many churches today give the impression that they believe that their expansion depends upon something other than the authority of the Scriptures. But the divine commission to evangelise the world comes to the Church through the Scriptures. The authority to evangelise is a Scriptural authority. And the evangel we are called to spread abroad is none other than the Word of the living God. Although preaching from the pulpit still plays a significant part in evangelism the impression is often given that confidence for the success of evangelism is really in other things. There are those who seem to think that our spiritual heritage can be preserved by force of law and acts of Parliament. Others think they are advancing Christ’s kingdom in meeting the intellectual objections of the unbeliever by rationalising the faith in terms of the modern scientific method. Then there are those today who are supremely confident that the cause of the gospel will prevail Evangelism Daily Readings

because in their movement or denomination they now have many more scholars than formerly. And the hopes of others are without doubt pinned to new strategies for reaching the lost including worship, good works, excellence in all things, etc. These things have a place in drawing non-Christians to Christians to Christ but should always take second place to the authority of Scripture.

The Word must be central If we take the Scriptures seriously and believe that they possess the very authority of God Himself our confidence will surely be in God’s Word. It will occupy a unique place in our thinking, so that all other things will seem quite insignificant compared with it. The point of contact between the Church and the world is the Word of God because nothing reaches the unbeliever with more relevance and authority. In many evangelistic meetings today the preaching of the Word has actually been replaced by music, dramas, films, testimonies, humour and the creation of the “right atmosphere.” These things, however important they may be, can never be a substitute for the preaching of the Word. The risen Christ commissioned the Church to preach the gospel in all the world, because it is by the authority of God’s Word and the ordained instrumentality of preaching that men are brought to repentance and faith. The replacement of the Word by other things in

our churches is a clear indication that the Church is no longer confident that “faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.” Only those who have felt for themselves in their own spiritual experience the overwhelming authority of the Scriptures will retain a belief in that authority. This is one reason why we so desperately need revival. It will reassert the supreme importance of the Word of God as the instrument of evangelism and give us all a far greater confidence in its authority and power.

The biggest revival in history The Protestant Reformation (1517-1648) took place as people accepted the authority of God’s Word. It was not a mistake, but one of the greatest and most glorious revivals of Christianity this world has ever seen. It blasted a false Church in two and created a holy division in the Church of the Middle Ages. As the flail of the Word of God moved across the threshing-floor of Europe, so a wind from heaven came to separate the chaff from the wheat. The Reformation brought people back to the Word of God and to the feet of Christ. Unity for unity’s sake is a pagan notion. It is a legacy in the Church inherited from Constantine. The unity we need to strive after is a unity brought about by a recognition of the authority of the Word of God.

Application: What is the situation in your own church? Is the Word of God central or has something else central? By central, I don’t mean the Word of God is used in the sermon. If this was how we defined ‘central’ the Word of God would be central in every church on earth! By central I mean this: Generally speaking, does your pastor preach and teach systematically through one book at a time in the Bible, book by book? Does he or she ever teach what each verse is saying in a passage of scripture, one verse at a time? Do you have a sense that the Word of God is central in your church? Does the Bible come alive by the Power of the Holy Spirit when he or she preaches? Is there a sense of the power of the Holy Spirit present when the Word is preached? Has there ever been a sermon on the importance of holding to the authority of Scripture in your church? Does your pastor or leader talk about the Bible as being the authority? Do they reverence the Word? i.e. do you have a sense that they treat the Word with honour? Is Jesus being glorified when the Word is preached? These are just some of the marks of a church which holds to the authority of Scripture.

What do to:

1. Begin to study the Bible personally. Memorise Scripture. Study one book at a time, and one chapter at a time. Use commentaries to help you understand what God is saying. The more time you spend in the Word, the more you’ll come to appreciate its authority, power, and wonder. Your faith in Jesus will soar. After all, “faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Romans 10:17).

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Day Eight Which Are You? A Wagon Master Or An Engineer? James 1:22.... “Be doers of the word and not merely hearers only.”

Jackson’s Army Dr. J.B. Gambrel tells a story from General Stonewall Jackson’s famous “ValleyCampaign.” Jackson’s army, being pressed by the enemy behind, found itself on one side of a river when it needed to be on the other side. After telling his engineers to plan and build a bridge so the army could cross, he called his wagon master in to tell him that it was urgent the wagon train cross the river as soon as possible. The wagon master started gathering all the logs, rocks and fence rails he could find and built a bridge. Long before day light General Jackson was told by his wagon master all the wagons and artillery had crossed the river. General Jackson asked where are the engineers and what are they doing? The wagon master’s only reply was that they were in their tent drawing up plans for a bridge!

Jesus and General Stonewall Jackson In the story above, General Stonewall Jackson and Jesus have things in common. They both have an urgent task they want ‘their men’ to complete. One building a bridge, the other world evangelism. Both General Stonewall Jackson and Jesus are on a mission to save people - the General his soldiers and Jesus the souls of men and women. The General involves two types of people: the doers (i.e. the wagon master and his men) and the theorist engineers. Jesus too wants to involve people - everyone in His Church. We know what happened in the case of the general and his men. The wagon master and his men could see the urgency of the task to build the bridge and they built it.

Always planning but never doing But what of the tragic history of those theorist engineers!? They retreated to their tent to plan and draw and speculate how to build the bridge. Oh to be a fly on the wall of the tent where they were planning! No doubt they would have argued over calculations and designs, and dangers, and risks, and costs, and even probably aesthetics! They would have had to talk with this person and that person. Oh, don’t get me wrong - they believed in the bridge! In spite of all their efforts, in the end, they contributed not one thing to the building of it. They delayed, dilly dallied around, became bogged down in detail and ended up failing in their mission! They didn’t understand the gravity of the situation. The parallels with the Church are too obvious to mention.

What might have happened? Consider what might have happened if the theorist engineers were the only ones available to build the bridge. General Stonewall Jackson’s enemy was moment by moment closing in on him from behind, potentially pinning him and his men into a hopeless situation with the river behind them and no where to go. Certain death would have been their fate if the wagon master and his men had not stepped up to the plate.

How this relates to evangelism Now consider world evangelism. Moment by moment the experience of death is closing in on Evangelism Daily Readings

countless millions of non-Christians who have never heard the gospel, and eternal conscious hell is their fate. Sadly, the stats show 98% of the Church are ‘theorist engineers’ who are busy preparing, planning, visiting friends and family, shopping, watching TV, going to movies, Christian conferences, working, saving, singing, praising, giving - doing everything - EXCEPT building the gospel bridge! It isn’t that each of these things isn’t legitimate. They are all part of the mix. It’s

just that they are not the main thing. The main thing is‘building the bridge.’ We never make it out of our tent to actually go and do evangelism. Anglican historian Dr David Barrett wrote: “The greatest enemy of world evangelisation is Christian rhetoric - the continual discussing and arguing, the endless talking and preaching about evangelising the world without any crucial implementation.”1 1 Cited in George B. Duncan. One Race One Gospel. One Task. World Congress on Evangelism. World Wide Publications. 1967, p58

Prayer: “Jesus, I pray to you today that I when I die I may not be charged by You of being a Christian theorist engineer when I was on earth. I sincerely ask you to show me what part I am to play in the process of bringing people to Christ, and that once you have shown me, I want to take action, not just for a day or two but for the rest of my life. Your will is for me to do your will, so I now you will empower me. Amen.”.

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Day Nine Getting A Heart Of Compassion For The Lost Luke 10:2 “The harvest is plentiful but the labourers are few. Therefore beseech the Lord of the harvest to send out labourers into His harvest.” Today’s reading is written by Dr John McArthur, a United States evangelical writer and minister, noted for his radio program entitled Grace to You. MacArthur is a fifth-generation pastor, a popular author and conference speaker and has served as the pastor-teacher of Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, California since 1969. He has been acknowledged by Christianity Today as one of the most influential preachers of his time, and is a frequent guest on Larry King Live as representative of an evangelical Christian perspective. MacArthur has authored or edited more than 150 books, most notably the MacArthur Study Bible, which has sold more than 1 million copies and received a Gold Medallion Book Award.

What is ‘the harvest’ is Luke 10:2? Now what are we talking about when we talk about harvest here? What does Jesus have in mind? What does He mean ‘the harvest is plentiful?’ This is not the field of John 4:35 where Jesus says ‘the fields are white for harvest.’ That’s a different picture all together. What is this harvest that He is talking about here in Luke 10:2? The Jews knew about a harvest. The prophets had talked about a harvest. In fact, Joel 3:12 says: “Let the nations be aroused and come to the valley of Jehoshaphat. I’ll sit to judge and all the surrounding nations, put in the sickle for the harvest is ripe. Come tread for the winepress is full, the vats overflow for their wickedness is great. Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision for the

day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision. The sun and the moon grew dark. The stars lost their brightness as the Lord roars from Zion.” That’s the harvest. It’s the harvest of the final judgment.

The compassion of Jesus excited And that’s why the compassion of the Lord is excited in Matthew 9:36 (i.e. ‘When He saw the multitudes He was moved with compassion’) because He sees these people on a path to devastation. He sees them not only in their stricken condition, but in their disastrous future. He looks ahead, down human history, as it were, and He sees many who will be literally devastated, depressed and destroyed by false religious and ideological leaders who have wrong ideas about God, life and living. And His heart aches over them because they’re headed for the final harvest and it is a harvest of judgment. The New Testament follows that imagery. The Lord Himself in Matthew 13:30 talks about the wheat and the tares growing together and He says they will grow together until the harvest. He says “I’ll say to the reapers, ‘Gather up the tares, bind them in bundles to burn them. But gather the wheat into My barn.”’ Again, the harvest is the end of the age when the angels gather together God’s people and put them into His Kingdom - that’s the barn. He also gathers together the ungodly and they burn forever in hell. That Evangelism Daily Readings

is clearly explained later in Matthew 13:39. “The enemy who sowed the tares is the devil, the harvest is the end of the age and the reapers are angels. Therefore just as the tares are gathered up and burned with fire, so shall it be at the end of the age. The Son of Man will send forth His angels, they’ll gather out of His Kingdom all stumbling blocks, all those who commit lawlessness, cast them into the furnace of fire. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” That’s the harvest.

Not the harvest we often think of It’s not a harvest that we often think about. We often think the harvest is all about those souls that need to be harvested for Jesus. That’s not the imagery here. The imagery is this - these unredeemed, unconverted, deceived people are headed toward a harvest of judgment and it is a massive harvest. It is a worldwide harvest. It reminds us again that few there be that find the narrow way. The massive humanity are headed toward a divine harvest.

The harvest in Revelation In Revelation 14:14 we read further and more specifically about that harvest. Listen to these gripping words: “I looked and behold, a white cloud, sitting on the cloud was one like a Son of Man, having a golden crown on His head and a sharp sickle in His hand.” That was the tool of harvest. “And another angel came out of the temple crying with a loud voice to Him who sat on the cloud, ‘Put in your sickle and reap because the hour to reap has come because the harvest of the earth is ripe.’ And He who sat on the cloud swung His sickle over the earth and the earth was reaped.” The next few verses carry the imagery. “Another angel came out of the temple which is in heaven, he also had a sharp sickle and another angel, one who had the power over fire came out of the altar and called with a loud voice to the one who had the sharp sickle and said, ‘Put in your sharp sickle and gather the clusters from the vine of the earth because the grapes are ripe.’ And the angel swung his sickle to the earth and gathered the clusters from the vine of the earth and threw them into the great winepress of the wrath of God.”

The wrath of God The harvest is associated with the wrath of God.

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This wrath will be unleashed at the coming of Jesus Christ. It is the wrath of God at the end of time. And so the Lord looks at the people and His heart is just overturned with compassion for them. He is literally sick in His stomach because He sees the future all the way out to the great horrific wrath of the final harvest. And to compound the matter, the labourers are few. You’ve got this mass of humanity moving toward judgment and only a few labourers.

Why evangelism is so critical So this is where evangelism begins. You understand the massive issue. How can you be content to do nothing? How can you be content to sit idly by? Evangelism begins with a compassion born of a proper assessment of the massive character of the problem. Unbelievers flayed and stripped and depressed and destitute and made so by false religions all over the face of the earth, lying as it were on the highways and byways of the earth destitute, desolate, bewildered, confused and headed toward divine wrath, destroyed by false shepherds and on their way to a fiery hell. You know, you have people in the Church today who don’t even want to talk about hell, but that’s where all evangelism starts as to its motivation.

Feeling how Jesus felt about the lost We have to understand the eternal plight. Instead of the Church owning up to that and proclaiming that in its seeker-friendly new environment, it wants to eliminate the doctrine of hell and invent a new doctrine that says, “Well, just about everybody on the planet is going to heaven.” It’s just the opposite of what responsibility we should have. The Lord was wrenching in His stomach, feeling physical agony over the hell that the mass of humanity was headed toward. Father, thank You for this reminder of our need to have a heart of compassion, a heart that Christ had toward the lost headed for the harvest. That we need to pray, plead with you to send out messengers. That we need to have a sense of urgency that dispatches us immediately to evangelize. That we need to be vigilant knowing that we are like lambs in a wolf pack and be wise and not say things that exacerbate our enemies. And we certainly need to trust You to meet all our needs and to give us favour and blessing as we go. I pray

that You’ll make out of this church a great force or labourers into the harvest. Give us all the joy of serving You in this most important way. What

a privilege. We thank You in our Saviour’s name. Amen.

Prayer: “Jesus, open my eyes to the tragedy of and horror of the harvest Jesus is talking about here. I want to see with your eyes, and feel with your heart, the full weight of the tragedy of the state of the lost in my street, in my school, in my neighbourhood, city, and country. Holy Spirit, I need more than information and just another sermon. I need revelation. Break me out of my chronic apathy and pitiful unconcern. Lord, I need a miracle. I feel so dead to the plight of the lost, and to the terror of their plight. I sincerely want to be awakened so that I might be gripped with love and concern for them, just like you were in this passage in Luke. So help me God. Amen.”

John MaArthur Quote “Since Scripture imparts salvation, effective evangelism depends on the faithful proclamation of the Word. God will prepare the soil and bring forth the fruit. We must be faithful to plant the seed.”

Evangelism Daily Readings

Day Ten Are We Influencing The World Or Is It Influencing Us? Matthew 5:13 “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men.” The reading today is taken from a terrific book called ‘The Little Church Stayed Home,’ by Dr Gary Gilley. A pastor with some 35 years experience, and a graduate of Cambridge Graduate School, he is also on the advisory board of the Brazil Gospel Mission. I recommend you get a copy of this book and study it, especially if you are in a leadership capacity in a church.

A church that wanted to grow numerically Gene Veith tells the story of a church which wanted to grow numerically and decided to use a ‘new modern strategy.’ First came the market survey, which pinpointed the number of steps necessary to implement such growth in a modern world. For example, it was determined that the church must change its name because the term ‘Baptist’ was a turn off in the community. Next they decided that people would only come to church if it was convenient so it was decided to re-locate to a prime position just off the freeway (motorway in countries other than America!). Next, a modern facility was erected with all the bells and whistles that reflect a materialistic society. Religious symbols such as the cross, were offensive to some, so were removed. It became necessary to remove certain words as well, because they too might offend: hell, saved, lost, conversion, repentance, judgement and so on. The language of the church was therefore carefully sanitised and scripted. The church decided that if they were going to reach the world for Jesus, they

Evangelism Daily Readings

must give the world what it perceives it wanted. And what do they want? They want to have their perceived needs met and they want a religious experience. Instead of preaching that leads to conviction of sin and salvation through the cross of Jesus, the church decided to preach ‘feel good’ messages to cheer up people. The church became a therapy centre where psychological well being not Biblical truth became the controlling factor.

Therapy not theology Theology was replaced with therapy. What the Bible truly said did not determine the content of sermons preached in this church. Rather, preachers wrote out what they wanted to say first, and then found verses in the Bible to back up their thoughts and support their arguments. The preachers became the authority, not the Bible. In this environment, evangelism did not involve proclaiming God’s judgement against sinners and His gracious offer of salvation through faith in Christ. Rather the word ‘evangelism’ was redefined.

Evangelism re-defined It came to mean ‘educating people about how much God loves them’; about ‘how God isn’t going to punish anyone’; about ‘how God wants people to feel good about themselves and lead a

full happy life and to be happy.’ Instead of covering specific historical biblical content (i.e why we must be saved, how Jesus can save us, what we must do to be saved, and the cost of being a disciple), ‘the gospel’ in this modern church portrayed Jesus as one who fixes marriages, ensures our dreams come true, cancels loneliness, gives us power, health and wealth, and generally makes us happy. 1

What you have just read today comes largely from a book by Pastor Gary Gilley. I have weaved in some of my own thoughts. Have all churches today become like the church he describes? Or is what he is saying only describing one or two isolated churches? What about your own church? If he is describing a wide spread problem, is this a worry? Why? Why not? What would Jesus think of this ‘modern strategy?’ What was His strategy? The strategy of the Early Church? Will this modern church meet the real needs of the people in the world? What are their real needs?

1 Gary E. Gilley. This Little Church Stayed Home. A Faithful Church In Deceptive Times. Evangelical Press. 2008. 38-41

Application: I believe Gary’s assessment describes many churches today. How can you be part of the solution without being critical of church leaders? Go to prayer and ask the Holy Spirit for specific strategies. For example, take today’s reading to your leadership (this will take courage, tact, and timing, and prayer), and ask them for their assessment of it. If this ‘modern church’ describes your own church, don’t criticise the leadership from afar and behind their backs. Go to them one on one and begin to dialogue with them. Seek solutions together with them. Pray for them and have others pray for them. If your church is not like the church described at all, congratulate your leadership! Determine to be an influence and not be influenced.

Gary Gilley Quote “The truth is [in much of today’s church] the gospel message has been gutted of its power.” .” ” .” ”

Evangelism Daily Readings

Day Eleven A Club Or A Life Saving Station?

Luke 19:10 “I came to seek and save the lost.” The reading today is written by Theodore Wedel (1953), and Episcopal Priest. The photo at right is of an Episcopal priest, but this is not Theodore. There was no photo of him available.

The life saving station On a dangerous seacoast where shipwrecks often occur, there was once a crude little life saving station. The building was just a hut and there was only one boat but the few devoted members kept a constant watch over the sea and with no thought for themselves they went out day and night tirelessly searching for the lost. Many lives were saved by this wonderful little life saving station and it became famous. Some of those who were saved and various

others in the surrounding area wanted to become associated with the station and wanted to give their time and money and effort for the support of its work. So new boats were bought and new crews were trained and the little life saving station grew. Some of the members of the life saving station were unhappy that the building was so crude and poorly equipped. They felt a little more comfortable place should be provided as the first refuge

Evangelism Daily Readings

of those saved from the sea. So they replaced the emergency cots and beds and put better furniture in the enlarged building. Now the life saving station became a popular gathering place for its members and they decorated it beautifully and furnished it exquisitely because they used it as sort of a club. Fewer members were now interested in going to sea on life saving missions so they hired life boat crews to do the work.

From life saving station to club happened very very slowly The life saving motif still prevailed in the club’s decorations and there was a liturgical lifeboat in the room where club initiations were held. About this time a large ship was wrecked off the coast and the hired crews brought in loads of cold, wet, half-drowned people. They were dirty and sick and some of them had black skin and some had yellow skin. And the beautiful new club was considerably messed up. So the property committee immediately had a shower house built outside the club where the victims of shipwreck could be cleaned up before coming inside.

Then life saving became a hassle At the next meeting there was a split in the club membership. Most of the members wanted to stop the club’s life saving activities as being unpleasant and a hindrance to the normal social life.

Some members insisted on life saving as their primary purpose, pointed out they were still called a life saving station. They were finally voted down and told if they wanted to save the lives of various kinds of people who were shipwrecked in those waters, they could begin their own life saving station down the coast, which they did.

Clubs multiply and so do the shipwrecks As the years went by, the new station experienced the same changes that occurred in the old one. It evolved into a club and yet another life saving station was founded. History continued to repeat itself. And if you visit that coast today, you will

Prayer:

find a number of exclusive clubs along the shore. Shipwrecks are still frequent in those waters but most of the people drown.” It’s not hard to see that this is a parable of the Church. And we have to ask ourselves the question: where has the passion for life saving gone? Where is the burden for evangelism? Why is it that evangelism seems to be a distraction for the Church rather than its central function? Has the Church settled for a self-indulgent kind of Christianity that makes of the Church nothing more than activity centre? Are we all content with comfort and personal prosperity? Has the Church become a place where the lost are invited, rather than a place from where life savers are relentlessly trained and constantly sent?

“Jesus, I pray for my own church as much as I do for myself. Show me if my Christianity has become self indulgent, and my vision nothing more than my comfort and personal prosperity. If my church has lost its vision and purpose, and has become nothing more than an activity centre, or a club for nice people who believe in God, help me be part of the solution. Give me a personal vision to see my church return to a true, Biblical status as a life saving station. Amen.”

Evangelism Daily Readings

Day Twelve Woe Is Me If I Preach Not The Gospel 1 Corinthians 9:16 “Woe is me if I preach not the gospel.....”

The zealous Christian farmer There was once a zealous Christian farmer who wanted to use different words than “giddyup” and “woah” as commands for his horse. So he taught the horse to respond to “Praise the Lord” and “Hallelujah”. When the farmer shouted “Praise the Lord”, the horse would take off in a fast gallop. When he wanted the horse to stop, he would shout “Hallelujah”. All went well until the day he was riding his horse at full gallop across a field when suddenly the farmer remembered that there was a cliff just a short distance ahead. In his excitement, he temporarily forgot what he had taught the horse, and he yelled, “Woah!”, but the horse didn’t stop. He yelled “Stop!”, but the horse kept running straight for the cliff. At the last possible minute the farmer remembered he had taught the horse to stop at the command, “Hallelujah”. When he shouted it out, sure enough, the horse obediently came to a sudden stop, just inches before the horse and rider would have plunged over the cliff. Totally relieved, the farmer exclaimed, “Praise the Lord!” These might be funny stories, but actually there’s something serious about these words.

Woe is me This expression “Woe is me” is found several times throughout the Bible. It literally means, “how horrible it will be.” The expression has to do with “horror”, “disaster”, or “calamity.” Paul uses “Woe is me” as he describes his duty before God to declare the gospel. “Woe is unto

Evangelism Daily Readings

me, if I preach not the gospel!” (1 Corinthians 9:16). Paul wanted the church at Corinth to understand that he had a very strong motivation for preaching the Gospel. It was God’s call. It was divine commission. Jesus had called Paul audibly to the task of preaching the gospel (Acts 26:1217). In light of this, Paul was especially sensitive to this idea of “woe.” After all, he had been a Pharisee, and had heard Jesus speaking words of “woe” to the Pharisees (Matthew 23:13). He knew the gravity of those words.

Evangelism and Divine Judgement One commentator, Dr Gordon Fee, points out that when Paul uses this expression, he is not referring to a mere ‘inner distress’ if he were to cease preaching the Gospel. Rather what is implied here is that “Paul believes he would stand under divine judgment if he were to fail to fulfil his divine destiny of preaching theGospel.” So how does this apply to us? At times the Church has lost its way. Perhaps we could be likened to the children of Israel wandering in the wilderness. We have forgotten what our purpose for being is, forgotten our true destination, our true calling. To us today the message is still “Woe to us if we preach not the Gospel.”

A pastor who is taking ‘woe is me’ seriously Not long ago I spoke with a Pastor friend who serves an Assembly of God church in a small city of 40,000 people. He told me that his church was in the midst of a campaign to reach every household with the gospel, by going to each home with

a gospel tract. Already part of the city had been covered by four teams which were going out each week. This may not be the strategy for the next city, or for ours, but we can believe that the Lord

will guide His church if they sincerely seek His will. Our calling is to preach the Gospel. This is our duty. This is our divine destiny. “Woe to us if we preach not the Gospel.”

Prayer: “Jesus, I know the ‘woe is me’ does not just apply to Paul the apostle. It applies to me as well. I know that part of my duty and call in this life is to preach the gospel, and part of my divine destiny. One day I will stand before you at The Judgement about this. I ask you to empower me and strengthen me for the task. Strip away all my excuses. Show me what it is that is stopping me from proclaiming the gospel. I need a breakthrough Lord. Today I come to you as a willing humble servant, willing and wanting to do your will. Amen.’

Evangelism Daily Readings

Day Thirteen Perishing John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life.” John Piper is the Pastor for Preaching at Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He is the author of more than 30 books and more than 25 years of his preaching and teaching. In this reading, John expands on one aspect of this verse, which is Jesus’ mention of ‘perishing’.

The Danger: Perishing The truth from this verse for us today is simple; and is probably the third or fourth most important thing anybody could tell you in all your life. Namely: you and I and everyone will perish if we don’t trust Christ. We are all perishing—apart from Christ. I have three questions: What is perishing? Why are we all perishing if we do not believe in Christ? Is it helpful to hear this threatening news? What Is Perishing? Of all the things that the Bible teaches about what happens when unbelievers die, let me mention four.

1. Perishing Means Being Under the Wrath of God. See John 3:18, “He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already.” The issue is not merely dying, but being judged by God. John 3:36 is the most sobering of all in this gospel: “He who believes in the

Evangelism Daily Readings

Son has eternal life; but he who does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.” What John 3:16 shows us is that if we are rescued from perishing, it is because the love of God has rescued us from the wrath of God. To perish means that we remain under the wrath of God because we will not trust Christ. And that is a terrifying place to be.

2. Perishing Means Fiery Torment. In one of John’s other books, the Revelation (14:10), he describes the one who is perishing like this: “He will drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is mixed in full strength in the cup of His anger; and he will be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb.” Perishing is not, as some say, going out of existence. It is staying in existence and suffering in the fiery torments of hell. One celebrity joked last week that he did not want to go to heaven because he couldn’t improve anything there. It’s too perfect. He preferred hell because he could make a contribution. Let’s pray that God wakes him up before that kind of levity will become unredeemable hardness. It’s hard to make improvements when you are in agony.

3. Perishing Means Separation from the Glory of God. Paul describes the perishing in 2 Thessalonians 1:9: “These

will pay the penalty of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power.” Here in this world God reveals himself in a thousand ways every day, if we would see. In hell the perishing will be cut off from all his work— except the work of wrath.

4. Perishing Is Everlasting and Irreversible. Here in John 3:16 it’s the opposite of eternal life. Jesus calls it “eternal punishment” in Matthew 25:46. In Luke 16:26 he says there is a great chasm fixed between heaven and hell, so that no one goes from one to the other. Perishing is eternal and irreversible. Perishing means wrath; it means fiery torment; it means separation from God; and it lasts forever. Now I tell you this plainly as a warning to flee from the wrath of God to the love of God through the door of Jesus Christ.

No excuse This is an awesome moment for us in this service. Because what this moment means is that any of us who stands before the throne of judgment unbelieving will not be able to say to the Lord, “Nobody ever told me what was at stake.” The Lord will say, “On December 4, 1994, at Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, I appointed you to be there and I appointed my servant John Piper to warn you. You were there and he did warn you.” Now is the acceptable time, today is the day of salvation (2 Corinthians 6:2). The great news of John 3:16 is that the love of God rescues us from the wrath of God through faith in Jesus Christ. Why Are We All Perishing If We Don’t Trust in Christ? The simplest way to answer this is to quote the apostle Paul in Romans 3:23, “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” And Romans 6:23, “The wages of sin is death,” that is, perishing. We have all sinned. And sin deserves perishing. But there is a less simple, but utterly crucial and biblical way to go a step deeper.

Why sin is so serious Why is sin so serious as to deserve perishing? The answer is that God is the most worthy person in the universe. His greatness and his value are infinite. All things are measured by him. He is the beginning and the ending of all things. Every person depends on him for everything. We owe him perfect trust and allegiance and love and worship and honour and respect and obedience, because he made us and owns us and sustains us. Therefore rejecting him, and distrusting him, and disobeying him, and neglecting him, and enjoying other things more than him—all these are infinite insults because he is an infinite treasure. And an infinite insult—or a life of infinite insults—deserves infinite punishment. The more you dwell on that the more precious John 3:16 becomes: God loved us enough to give his own Son to rescue us from this perishing.

Is news of hell helpful? Finally, is it helpful to hear this threatening news? Many of us could testify of how the wrath of God drove us to the gospel where the love of God relieved our fear. John Newton, who was born in 1725 and became a sea captain and slave trader and generally perverse rebel against God, was brought to faith in Christ through a series of fearful dangers that shocked him into spiritual seriousness, and made him take heaven and hell seriously. He was almost shipwrecked. And while God was dealing with him after that, he was in Londonderry, Ireland, hunting: “As I climbed up a steep bank, pulling my shotgun after me, in a perpendicular direction, it went off so near my face as to burn away the corner of my hat. (Out of the Depths: Autobiography, p. 70) Newton came to see these experiences as God’s way of getting his attention and teaching him to fear so that he would look for relief in the only place it can be found: Christ. So he finally wrote the great hymn:

T’was grace that taught my heart to fear And grace my fears relieved, How precious did that grace appear, The hour I first believed. Evangelism Daily Readings

It was a turning point in my life, and I May God do that for some this morning. Like have wanted to thank you and tell you he did for a young woman in my office nine years that ever since. I assured my Mom that ago. Here’s what she wrote to me in 1992: a warning such as the one you gave me in 1985 made me feel all the more loved. “It was 1985—I wonder whether you I heard what you really thought of hell. remember a very much younger me, sit- That you cared enough to tell me, a ting in your office and telling you I was stranger at that time, means the world afraid God would have to use a car acto me. It echoes in my ears.” cident or some other awful event to get So, yes, it is helpful to warn people about what my attention? You pointed out that the is at stake in life. I pray that your experience may consequences of my deliberate choice to be the same as this young woman’s and the same continue sinning would be nothing short as John Newton’s. There is no reason to delay. of hell itself. No one had ever before told For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him me I was headed for hell, missionary’s should not perish, but have eternal life. kid that I was, “saved” at the age of 6.

Application: We don’t need to be apologetic when talking about hell. Jesus talked about it openly, frankly, and without shame because He was fully aware of what was coming for unbelievers after death. He also talked about it with a tear in His eye. Determine today not water down the gospel by leaving hell out. And when you are discussing the gospel with Christians, stand with Jesus and the New Testament by explaining how important it is to leave the subject of hell in the gospel message. Finally, think on this: if it isn’t helpful to warn people about hell, as many Christians today advocate, then was Jesus being unhelpful when he warned people? Had He, the God of the universe, got it wrong? Absolutely not. And neither should we think we have got it wrong when we include hell in our gospel presentations. We are to take the whole gospel to the whole world, not just the bits we think non-Christians will like. For more on John Piper, please visit www.desiringGod.org

John Piper Quote “ Evangelism can never be finished, but missions can be finished. The reason is this: missions has the unique task of crossing language and culture barriers to penetrate a people group and establish a church movement; but evangelism is the ongoing task of sharing the gospel among people within the same culture.”.” ”

Evangelism Daily Readings

Day Fourteen The Sovereignty Of God And The Free Will Of Man In Evangelism Romans 8:33 “Who shall bring a charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies.” J. I. Packer is Board of Governors Professor of Theology at Regent College in Vancouver, British Columbia

Are all people elect or just some? Can the elect resist God’s drawing power? It is a Biblical truth that God has elected (called the doctrine of election) a certain group of people in the world to be saved. According to some, salvation for this group is irresistible i.e. God will save them no matter what. How big this group is, only God knows. Some argue all people are elect. With this thought in mind, some may conclude ‘If they are going to be saved whether they are evangelised or not, what’s the point of doing evangelism?’

Evangelism pointless without God’s sovereign hand being involved J.I. Packer, in his excellent treatise Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God answers this question: “Some fear that belief in the sovereign grace of God leads to the conclusion that evangelism is pointless, since God will save His elect anyway, whether they hear the gospel or not. This is a false conclusion based on a false assumption. So far from making evangelism pointless, the sovereignty of God in grace is the one thing that prevents evangelism from being pointless. For it creates the possibility–indeed, the certainty–that

evangelism will be fruitful. Apart from it, there is not even a possibility of evangelism being fruitful. Were it not for the sovereign grace of God, evangelism would be the most futile and useless enterprise that the world has ever seen, and there would be no more complete waste of time under the sun than to preach the Christian gospel.” The effects of such confidence in the sovereign grace of God should, according to Packer, produce three things:

1. It should make us bold. “You are not on a fool’s errand. You are not wasting either your time or theirs. You have no reason to be ashamed of your message, or half-hearted and apologetic in delivering it. You have every reason to be bold, and free, and natural, and hopeful of success. For God can give His truth and effectiveness that you and I cannot give it. God can make His truth triumphant to the conversion of the most seemingly hardened unbeliever. You and I will never write off anyone as hopeless and beyond the reach of God if we believe in the sovereignty of His grace.”

2. It should make us patient. It should keep us from being daunted when we find that our evangelistic endeavours meet with no immediate response. God saves in His own time, and we ought not to Evangelism Daily Readings

suppose that He is in such a hurry as we are. . . . We are tempted to be in a great hurry with those whom we would win to Christ, and then, when we see no immediate response in them, to become impatient and downcast, and then to lose interest in them, and feel that it is useless to spend more time on them; and so we abandon our efforts forthwith, and let them drop out of our ken. But this is utterly wrong. It is a failure both of love for man and faith in God.”

3. It should make us prayerful. “Prayer . . . is a confessing of impotence and need, and acknowledging of helplessness and dependence, and an invoking of the mighty power of God to do for us what we cannot do for ourselves. In evangelism, we are impotent; we depend wholly upon God to make our gospel proclamation 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. The knowledge, then, that God is sovereign in grace, and that we are impotent to win souls, should make us pray, and keep us praying. What should be the burden of our prayers? We should pray for those whom we seek to win, that the Holy Spirit will open their hearts; and we should pray for ourselves in our own witness, and for all who preach the gospel, that the power and authority of the Holy Spirit may rest upon them.”

It’s God’s will that all are saved But the doctrine of election is not the only doctrine with which those who engage in evangelism ought to be concerned. We must also be

Application:

concerned with the doctrine of the free will of man (e.g. Deuteronomy 30:19; Joshua 24:15) which clearly teaches all of us have free will to choose. We also know it is a biblical truth that God wants everyone saved (e.g. 2 Peter 3:9; 1 Corinthians 15:22) and has made provision for everyone to be saved (John 3:16). This is why we are commanded to reach everyone with the gospel (Mark 16:15). They must hear before they can be saved (Romans 10:14-15). How can the doctrine of free will and the doctrine of election both be true at the same time? For the answer read Isaiah 55:8. Surely, if we can reconcile these two great doctrines, then we would be God! To be faithful to God as a Christian is to obey Jesus on the basis of what we can understand (i.e. Mark 16:15 ‘Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel), rather than disobeying Him on the basis of what we can’t. i.e. giving up on evangelism because we can’t reconcile these two great Biblical truths of election and free will. Sadly, this is not the only reason people give up on evangelism. Some supporters of the doctrine of election are so extreme in their views, they don’t participate in evangelism at all. This is tragic disobedience. Think about it - if any interpretation of any scripture (s) leads us to give up on evangelism, this is the surest sign our interpretation is faulty. These faulty extremist theologians are hiding behind the their doctrine as an excuse not to evangelise. Anyone who is not participating in evangelism is a delight to the devil, a source of sorrow to Jesus, disobedient to the priority of the Church, and a robber of their own joy.

There are six great truths here: The Bible teaches God does elect people to be saved. God also desires to save everyone (2 Peter 3:9) No one can come to the Son unless the Father draws him (John 6:65) Anyone can make a free will choice to come to Jesus (John 5:40) Lost people must hear the gospel (Romans 10:13-14) The whole church (that’s you and me) is commanded to take the whole gospel to the whole world (Mark 16:15) To be true to God and the Bible, we must hold all these truths in tension, even thought some seem contradictory, combining patient trust and complete dependence on God for ‘results’, yet at the same time serving God in evangelism with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. Spurgeon was asked by one of his students regarding the balance between our efforts and God’s grace in evangelism. Spurgeon’s reply was ‘It’s 100% of both!’

Evangelism Daily Readings

Day Fifteen Don’t Let A Sense Of Being Inadequate Stop You Doing Evangelism 2 Corinthians 12:9-10 “But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’’

Don’t Panic. You are not alone Some Christians read the words of the great commission and panic. They feel woefully inadequate, and not up to the task. “I’m not a great theologian,” they might say. “I’m not an educated apologist, or a great speaker.” For them, the call to evangelise seems daunting. Take, for example, the following email we received from someone called Gene :

“I am too old to have the learning necessary to "argue" for the Gospel in an evangelical way. I don't view myself capable to formulate answers to questions in a way that would give me any credibility. I might end up looking like a fool instead of accomplishing accurate dissipation of the WORD. Also.........I haven't lived the life that would testify to any sincerity on my part. Have you advice for me?”

There are great tools to help us Gene expressed some fairly common reservations. There is a wonderful, hopeful answer for Gene though, and for all those that share his concerns. First, Gene feels inadequate when it comes to being able to make an educated case for the truth of the gospel. We’re not all great theologians. Very few of us are educated apologists like Josh McDowell or C.S. Lewis. We aren’t all

great orators with the ability to uplift and inspire with the spoken word. The good news is that we don’t have to be any of those things! Why? Well, firstly we now have wonderful tools to be able to deliver the gospel through technology or the web.

The web and Social Networks See www.biblein11.com for example. All the hard questions people ask are answered on this site. In this case, at the very least, all we have to do is point people to the web address, or download the gospel onto our phone or computer. Then there are things like Facebook. I know people who are actively evangelising on Facebook by directing people to www.biblein11.com. This is making the most of technology and using it for God’s purposes. Evangelising like this means you don’t even have to leave your home! Secondly, if we don’t want to use any of these tools, the gospel message is simple and uncomplicated. It can be learned quite easily. Third, we can learn some good answers to the hard questions people ask. Fourth, we must keep remembering that it is not we through our cleverness and eloquence who saves people. In fact, those who are feeling weak and inadequate have a distinct advantage when it comes to evangelism. Think about this - throughout history, God has often chosen the least among us to show His power. He magnifies Himself through weak and imperfect people. Abraham was too old; Moses wasn’t a great speaker; Jonah kept trying to run the wrong way. Evangelism Daily Readings

In 2 Corinthians 12:9-10, Paul shared what the Lord told him about how to view weakness: “But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’’

A radiant example of Christ? Then there is the issue of Gene feeling like his Christian life is not a radiant shining example. Honestly, how many of us could boast we have lived such a life? Certainly not me. I am too aware of my weaknesses to even think about boasting! The devil loves to attack us with his fiery darts, taunting us with accusations that we are hypocritical if we share the gospel because our lives don’t match up. How should we respond? Firstly, if we are sharing the gospel with strangers, they will not know of our struggles and failings. This is one great advantage of reaching people we don’t know. Secondly, we can take tracts with us and leave them in places or give them to people. We can let them do the talking. Again, those we give them to, if they are strangers, will not have seen our struggles and failings. Third, we go to the lost with Christ’s authority, not our own. This is very important. Jesus said ‘all authority under heaven and earth has been given to me, therefore, go!’ (Matthew 28:1819). We are not evangelising on the basis of our

Prayer:

authority (i.e. our perceived quality of our Christian life, our qualifications, or oratory ability), but on the facts of God’s promise! This makes all the difference. There is therefore no reason why someone who thinks they are not a shining example of a Christian can’t still participate in evangelism. You see, it’s not all about you. It’s about God working through you.

Work on our example, yes, by all means, but keep don’t stop evangelising. Yes, if we have been a poor example at work, or in our family, it’s going to be tough sharing the gospel in those circles and we ought to seek God about changing this. Jesus exhorts us in Matthew 5:16 to ‘let our light shine.’ For the reasons outlined above, it is imperative we all obey Jesus and go to strangers with the gospel. If you have been a poor example, I will reach your workmates and family. If I have been a poor example, you will reach mine. I believe Jesus experienced what I am talking about here when he went to His own home town and they didn’t accept Him. He even said ‘A prophet is not accepted in his own home town.’ (Luke 4:24). Coming from the God of the universe, that should be encouraging people like you and I who don’t have it all together!

“Jesus, you know I often feel like I am failing in my Christian life. When I look at the life you led, and the life I am leading, the gap between the two sometimes seems enormous. Empower me to do your will in evangelism inspite of my perceived weaknesses and failings. I ask you today to do two things. First, I ask you to help me be a better example that my light might shine. Second, I ask you to prove your word true that your strength is made perfect in my weakness, especially when it comes to evangelism. Amen.”

Evangelism Daily Readings

Day Sixteen The ‘Cannot’ And The ‘Will Not’ John 6:65 ‘No-one can come to me unless the Father draws him ...’ Today’s reading comes from Dr John Stott, CBE. Born 27 April 1921, Stott is an English Christian leader and Anglican clergyman who is noted as a leader of the worldwide evangelical movement. He is notable as one of the principal authors of the Lausanne Covenant in 1974. In 2005, Time magazine ranked Stott among the 100 most influential people in the world.

Only God can do it, but we can choose In this reading, Stott discusses one of the great puzzles of evangelism. This is to say, trying to reconcile two seemingly equal and opposite truths. On the one hand, when someone is saved we learn from Scripture that this miracle is all the work of God. For example, in John 6:65, Jesus said “no one can come to the Son unless the Father draws him.” On the other hand, the Bible also says all of us must make a decision of our own free will to come to Christ. For example, Jesus in John 5:40 said ‘...you are not willing to come to me that you may have life’. So how do we reconcile the ‘cannot’ of John 6:44 with the ‘will not’ of John 5:40? This is what John Stott has to say: “It is grievously mistaken to suggest that the purpose of evangelism is to cajole sinners into doing what they can perfectly well do if only they put their minds to it and pull themselves together. This the Bible emphatically denies.” Consider these two statements: ‘No one can say “Jesus is Lord” except by the Holy Spirit’ (1 Corinthians 12:3). ‘No one can come to me unless the

Father ... draws him’ (John. 6:44). We need to hear much more in the church of this ‘no-one can’, this natural inability of men to believe in Christ or to come to Christ. Only the Spirit can reveal Christ to men; only the Father can draw men to Christ. And without this double work of the Father and the Spirit no one can reach the Son.” It is quite true that Jesus also said ‘you are not willing to come to me that you may have life’ (John. 5:40), and that the human mind finds it impossible to resolve neatly the tension between this ‘cannot’ and this ‘will not’. But both are true, and man’s refusal to come does not cancel out his inability without grace to do so.” So says John Stott. And I agree with him.

A second opinion Now let’s hear a slightly different perspective from another anonymous author. Let’s call him the second writer. “Any discussion of man’s free will must begin with an understanding of his nature because man’s will is bound by that nature. A prisoner has the freedom to pace up and down in his cell, but he is constrained by the walls of that cell and can go no further, no matter how much his will might desire it. So it is with man. Because of sin, man is imprisoned within a cell of corruption and wickedness which permeates to the very core of Evangelism Daily Readings

our being. Every part of man is in bondage to sin – our bodies, our minds, and our wills. Jeremiah 17:9 tells us the state of man’s heart: it is “deceitful and desperately wicked.” In our natural, unregenerate state, we are carnally minded, not spiritually minded. “For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace because the carnal mind is enmity against God, for it is not subject to the Law of God, neither indeed can it be” (Romans 8:6-7). These verses tell us that before we are saved, we are at enmity (war) with God, we do not submit to God and His law, neither can we. The Bible is clear that, in his natural state, man is incapable of choosing that which is good and holy. In other words, he does not have the “free will” to choose God because his will is not free. It is constrained by his nature, just as the prisoner is constrained by his cell. How then can anyone be saved? Ephesians 2:1 describes the process. We who are “dead in our trespasses and sins” have been “made alive” through Christ. A dead man cannot make himself alive because he lacks the necessary power to do so. Lazarus lay in his tomb four days unable to do a thing to resurrect himself. Christ came along and commanded him to come to life (John 11). So it is with us. We are spiritually dead, unable to rise. But “while we were yet sinners Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). He calls us out of our spiritual graves and gives us a completely new nature, one undefiled by sin as the old nature was (2 Corinthians 5:17). God saw the desperate and helpless state of our souls, and in His great love and mercy, He sovereignly chose to send His Son to the cross to redeem us. By His grace we are saved through the gift of faith which He gives us so that we can believe in Jesus. His grace is a free gift, our faith is a free gift, and our salvation is a free gift given to those whom God has chosen “before the

Prayer:

foundation of the world” (Ephesians 1:4). Why did He chose to do it this way? Because it was “according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace” (Ephesians 1:5-6). It’s important to understand that the plan of salvation is designed to glorify God, not man. Our response is to praise Him for the “glory of His grace.” If we chose our own salvation, who would get the glory? We would, and God has made it clear that He will not give the glory due to Him to anyone else (Isaiah 48:11). The question naturally arises, how do we know who has been saved “from the foundation of the world”? We don’t. That is why we take the gospel to the ends of the earth, telling all to repent and receive God’s gift of grace. Second Corinthians 5:20 tells us we are to be pleading with others to be reconciled to God before it is too late. We cannot know who God will choose to release from their prison cells of sin. We leave that choice to Him and present the Gospel to all. The ones who come to Jesus He “will in no way cast out” (John 6:37).

Conclusion Both Stott and this second writer agree that no one can come to the Son unless the Father draws him. However, this second writer goes further than Stott by suggesting that the unconverted person does not even have to ability to or desire to come to Christ. In other words, if he makes a decision to come to Christ, it is not really done with free will, because even the will to come was given by God i.e. there is no free will involved. I believe this goes too far and I side with Stott and his assessment. People have free will to accept or reject Jesus.

Our challenge is to be obedient to what we do know, and not to be paralysed into inactivity because we can’t solve the puzzles. Many Christians, unable to work out how to reconcile the free will of man and the sovereignty of God, end up not evangelising. This is a great tragedy. Furthermore, we must never ever let doctrinal disagreement between ourselves and other Christians stop evangelising. When I was in Sydney, I remember phoning pastors of a particular denomination about evangelism. All they wanted to do was tell me about what they believed and how right they were about this and that and how wrong everyone else was. When I asked them if they were doing evangelism, there was a long silence the other end. If ‘right theology’ doesn’t lead to right action, it’s wrong theology. The test of the rightness of our theology is to ask ‘Does what I believe lead me to be passionate about evangelism?’ If the answer is ‘no’, change your theology.

Evangelism Daily Readings

Day Seventeen Proper Prayer Luke 18:1 “Then He spoke a parable to them, that men always ought to pray and not lose heart...” Todays reading is written by A.W. Tozer (April 21, 1897 - May 12, 1963). He was an American Christian pastor, preacher, author, magazine editor, Bible conference speaker, and spiritual mentor. For his work, he received two honorary doctorate degrees.

Prayer and Evangelism? Think Bicycle Evangelism and prayer ought to be like two wheels on a bicycle - never separated. It is easy to neglect prayer altogether, or to pray quick prayers before we go out to evangelise, thinking God will just bless the sowing of the seed of the gospel because ‘...my word will not return void’ (Isaiah 55:10-11). No doubt God can and does bless the gospel even when the sowing of it has not been preceded or followed by prayer. But we are fools if we camp on this thought and make it a rule. It is not a rule. It is an exception. The truth is, we simply can’t afford to do evangelism without prayer. When we pray we are acknowledging, among other things, our utter dependence on God for success. Having reached over 20,000 people personally with the gospel, I can testify to the difference prayer makes. I have found there is always a marked difference in the quality of my encounters in evangelism when I have prayed ‘properly’ before I have gone out to evangelise. In this reading, I want to pick up the thought of ‘praying properly.’ It’s an idea the great Christian writer A.W Tozer had much to say about. On this

subject, he writes:

Pray till you pray “Dr. Moody Stuart, a great praying man of a past generation, once drew up a set of rules to guide him in his prayers. Among these rules is this one: “Pray till you pray.” The difference between praying till you quit and praying till you pray is illustrated by the American evangelist John Wesley Lee. He often likened a prayer meeting to a church service, and insisted that many of us close the meeting before the service is over. He confessed that once he arose too soon from a prayer session and started down the street to take care of some pressing business. He had only gone a short distance when an inner voice reproached him. “Son,” the voice seemed to say, “did you not pronounce the benediction before the meeting was ended?” He understood, and at once hurried back to the place of prayer where he tarried till the burden lifted and the blessing came down.

Effective prayer takes time The habit of breaking off our prayers before we have truly prayed is as common as it is unfortunate. Often the last ten minutes may mean more to us than the first half hour, because we must spend a long time getting into the proper mood to pray effectively. We may need to struggle with Evangelism Daily Readings

our thoughts to draw them in from where they have been scattered through the multitude of distractions that result from the task of living in a disordered world.

prevailing mood.

Praying our way through Whatever a dreamy idealism may say, we are forced to deal with things down on the level of practical reality. If when we come to prayer our hearts feel dull and unspiritual, we should not try to argue ourselves out of it. Rather, we should admit it frankly and pray our way through. Some Christians smile at the thought of “praying through,” but something of the same idea is found in the writings of practically every great praying saint from Daniel to the present day. We cannot afford to stop praying till we have actually prayed.”

Being ‘real’ Here, as elsewhere in spiritual matters, we must be sure to distinguish the ideal from the real. Ideally we should be living moment-by-moment in a state of such perfect union with God that no special preparation is necessary. But actually there are few who can honestly say that this is their experience. Candor will compel most of us to admit that we often experience a struggle before we can escape from the emotional alienation and sense of unreality that sometimes settle over us as a sort of

Prayer:

“Dear Lord, we know EXACTLY what Tozer is saying here. It is our experience as well. We know what it is like to pray and break through and we know what it’s like when we don’t. There is a big difference. We know too that prayer is so indispensable to evangelism but often we struggle to pray until we’ve prayed through. Help us to practice this, praying through, and make us better at it. Let us not rush from our prayer meetings or our private times of prayer with you, but let us persevere until we really sense we have broken through into your presence and the distractions of the day and the world have been vanquished from our minds. Grant us the patience and perseverance to pray like this, for your glory, and for the sake of the lost whom we are reaching. In Jesus name, Amen.”

A.W Tozer Quote “Christians don’t tell lies they just go to church and sing them.” .” ”

Evangelism Daily Readings

Day Eighteen Are You Born Again? Jesus Christ said, “Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God” (John 3:3). This reading comes from Bishop J.C Ryle (10 May 1816 - 10 June 1900). In 1880, at age 64, he became the first bishop of Liverpool, at the recommendation of Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli. A scholar and Oxford educated, he was a writer, pastor and a powerful preacher with world wide influence.

The most important question Are you born again? This is one of life’s most important questions. Jesus Christ said, “Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God” (John 3:3). It is not enough to reply, “I belong to the church; I suppose I’m a Christian.” Thousands of nominal Christians show none of the signs of being born again which the Scriptures have given us—many listed in the First Epistle of John. First of all, John wrote: “Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin” (I John 3:9). “Whosoever is born of God sinneth not” (5:18). A person who has been born again, or regenerated, does not habitually commit sin. He no longer sins with his heart and will and whole inclination. There was probably a time when he did not think about whether his actions were sinful or not, and he did not always feel grieved after doing evil. There was no quarrel between him and sin; they were friends. But the true Christian hates sin, flees from it, fights against it, considers it his greatest plague, resents the burden of its presence, mourns when he falls under its influence, and longs to be completely delivered from it. Sin no longer pleases

him, nor is it even a matter of indifference to him; it has become a horrible thing which he hates. However, he cannot eliminate its presence within him.

A true Christian hates sin If he said that he had no sin, he would be lying (I John 1:8). But he can say that he hates sin and that the great desire of his soul is not to commit sin at all. He cannot prevent bad thoughts from entering his mind, or shortcomings, omissions, and defects from appealing in both his words and his actions. He knows that “in many things we offend all” (James 3:2). But he can truly say, in the sight of God, that these things cause him grief and sorrow and that his whole nature does not consent to them. What would the apostle say about you? Are you born again?

A true Christian is born again Second, John wrote: “Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God” (I John 5:1). A man who is born again, or regenerated, believes that Jesus Christ is the only Saviour who can pardon his soul, that He is the divine person appointed by God the Father for this very purpose, and beside Him there is no Saviour at all. In himself he sees nothing but unworthiness. But Evangelism Daily Readings

he has full confidence in Christ, and trusting in Him, he believes that his sins are all forgiven. He believes that, because he has accepted Christ’s finished work and death on the cross, he is considered righteous in God’s sight, and he may look forward to death and judgment without alarm.

A true Christian trusts only in Christ He may have fears and doubts. He may sometimes tell you that he feels as if he had no faith at all. But ask him if he is willing to trust in anything instead of Christ, and see what he will say. Ask him if he will rest his hope of eternal life on his own goodness, his own works, his prayers, his minister, or his church, and listen to his reply. He may have fears and doubts. He may sometimes tell you that he feels as if he had no faith at all. But ask him if he is willing to trust in anything instead of Christ, and see what he will say. What would the apostle say about you? Are you born again? Third, John wrote: “Every one that does righteousness is born of Him” (I John 2:29).

A true Christian will lead a holy life The man who is born again, or regenerated, is a holy man. He endeavours to live according to God’s will, to do the things that please God and to avoid the things that God hates. He wishes to continually look to Christ as his example as well as his Saviour and to prove himself to be Christ’s friend by doing whatever He commands. He knows he is not perfect. He is painfully aware of his indwelling corruption. He finds an evil principle within himself that is constantly warring against grace and trying to draw him away from God. But he does not consent to it, though he cannot prevent John Newton, ex its presence. slave trader who Though he may somewrote the famous times feel so low that he hymn ‘Amazing questions whether or not he is a Christian at all, he will Grace’ be able to say with John

Evangelism Daily Readings

Newton, “I am not what I ought to be, I am not what I want to be, I am not what I hope to be in another world; but still I am not what I once used to be, and by the grace of God I am what I am.” What would the apostle say about you? Are you born again? Fourth, John wrote: “We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren” (I John 3:14).

A true Christian love other Christians A man who is born again has a special love for all true disciples of Christ. Like his Father in heaven, he loves all men with a great general love, but he has a special love for those who share his faith in Christ. Like his Lord and Saviour, he loves the worst of sinners and could weep over them; but he has a peculiar love for those who are believers. He is never so much at home as when he is in their company. He feels they are all members of the same family. They are his fellow soldiers, fighting against the same enemy. They are his fellow travellers, journeying along the same road. He understands them, and they understand him. They may be very different from himself in many ways—in rank, in station and in wealth. But that does not matter. They are his Father’s sons and daughters and he cannot help loving them. What would the apostle say about you? Are you born again? Fifth, John wrote: “Whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world” (I John 5:4).

A true Christian uses the Bible as the standard to judge right and wrong A man who is born again does not use the world’s opinion as his standard of right and wrong. He does not mind going against the world’s ways, ideas and customs. What men think or say no longer concerns him. He overcomes the love of the world. He finds no pleasure in things which seem to bring happiness to most people. To him they seem foolish and unworthy of an immortal being. He loves God’s praise more than man’s praise. He fears offending God more than offending man. It is unimportant to him whether he is

blamed or praised; his first aim is to please God. What would the apostle say about you? Are you born again? Sixth, John wrote: “He that is begotten of God keepeth himself’ (I John 5:18).

A true Christian feels he is an enemy living in a foreign land A man who is born again is careful of his own soul. He tries not only to avoid sin but also to avoid everything which may lead to it. He is careful about the company he keeps. He knows that evil communications corrupt the heart and that evil is more catching than good, just as disease is more infectious than health. He is careful about the use of his time; his chief desire is to spend it profitable. He desires to live like a soldier in an enemy country—to wear his armour continually and to be prepared for temptation. He is diligent to be a watchful, humble, prayerful man. What would the apostle say about you? Are you born again? These are the six great marks of a born again Christian.

distinctness of these marks in different people. In some they are faint and hardly noticeable. In others they are bold, plain and unmistakable, so anyone may read them. Some of these marks are more visible than others in each individual. Seldom are all equally evident in any one person. But still, after every allowance, here we find boldly painted six marks of being born of God. How should we react to these things? We can logically come to only one conclusion—only those who are born again have these six characteristics, and those who do not have these marks are not born again. This seems to be the conclusion to which the apostle intended us to come. Do you have these characteristics? Are you born again?”

The editor’s footnote:

I would add one more mark to Bishop Ryle’s list of six. John 14:21 says ‘He who has these commands of mine and obeys them, he is the one who loves me.’ We know from our study that evangelism is Biblically the priority of the Church. Any truly born again Christian will from their heart want to align themselves with this priority.

All marks may not be obvious in any person all at once There is a vast difference in the depth and

Prayer: “Lord Jesus, you know our hearts. They are desperately wicked above all things (Jeremiah 17:9). We delight to think we are much better than we really are. Show us the truth about these seven areas. Show us where we are not doing so well, that we might be more fruitful as Christians, and bring more glory to your name. We trust in you Holy Spirit to change us and mold us, to make us into the people you want us to be. You delight to have us lean and rely on you to change us, for your word says ‘He delights not in the strength of the horse: he takes not pleasure in the legs of a man. The Lord delights in those who fear him, who put their hope in their unfailing love’ (Psalm 147:10-11). Amen.”

J.C Ryle Quote “ If we have anything to tell others about Christ, let us resolve to tell it. Let us not be silent, if we have found peace and rest in the Gospel. Let us speak to our relations, friends, families and neighbors, according as we have opportunity, and tell them what the Lord has done for our souls. All are not called to be ministers. All are not intended to preach. But all can walk in the steps of the man of whom we have been reading, and in the steps of Andrew, and Philip, and the Samaritan woman. (John 1:41, 45; 4:29.) Happy is he who is not ashamed to say to others, “Come and hear what the Lord has done for my soul.” (Psalm. 66:16.) Evangelism Daily Readings

Day Nineteen Hell Jesus Christ said, “Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God” (John 3:3). The reading today is another from Bishop J.C Ryle.

A good neighbour gives the alarm When a house is on fire, what ought to be done first? We ought to give the alarm and wake the inhabitants. This is true love to our neighbour. This is true charity. Reader, I love your soul, and want it to be saved. I am therefore going to tell you something about hell. There is such a place as hell. Let no one deceive you with vain words. What men do not like, they try hard not to believe. When the Lord Jesus Christ comes to judge the world, he will punish all who are not his disciples with a fearful punishment. All who are found impenitent and unbelieving; all who have clung to sin, stuck to the world, and set their affections on things below; all who are without Christ; all such shall come to an awful end. Whosoever is not written in the book of life shall be “cast into the lake of fire.” Rev 20:15.

Hell a severe place The punishment of hell shall be most severe. There is no pain like that of burning. Put your finger in the candle for a moment if you doubt this, and try. Fire is the most destructive and devouring of all elements. Look into the mouth of a blast furnace, and think what it would be to be there. Fire is of all elements most opposed to life. Creatures can live in air, and earth, and water; but nothing can live in fire. Yet fire is the portion to which the Christless and unbelieving will come. They will be “cast

Evangelism Daily Readings

into the lake of fire.” The punishment of hell will be eternal. Millions of ages will pass away, and the fire will never burn low and become dim. The fuel of that fire will never waste away and be consumed. It is “unquenchable fire.” O reader, these are the sad and painful things to speak of. I have no-pleasure in dwelling on them.

Christ spoke of it often Who would desire to speak of hell-fire if God has not spoken of it? When God has spoken of it so plainly, who can safely hold his peace? I dare not shut my eyes to the fact, that a deep rooted infidelity lurks in men’s minds on the subject of hell. I see it oozing out in the utter apathy of some: they eat, and drink, and sleep, as if there was no wrath to come. I see it creeping forth in the coldness of the hearts of my fellows Christians: they show little anxiety to awaken the unconverted, and pluck brands from the fire. I desire to denounce such infidelity with all my might, believing that there are “terrors of the Lord.”

Wrong ideas of hell abound I call on all who profess to believe the Bible, to be on their guard. I know that some do not believe there is any hell at all. They think it impossible there can be such a place. They call it inconsistent with the mercy of God. They say it is too awful

an idea to be really true. The devil of course, rejoices in the views of such people. They help his kingdom mightily. They are preaching up his old favourite doctrine, “Ye shall not surely die.” I know furthermore, that some do not believe that hell is eternal. They tell us it is incredible that a compassionate God will punish men for ever. He will surely open the prison doors at last. This also is a mighty help to the devil’s cause. “Take your ease, “he whispers to sinners-” if you do make a mistake, never mind, it is not for ever.” I know also that some believe there is a hell, but never allow that anybody is going there. All people with them are good, as soon as they die, all were sincere, all meant well, and all, they hope, got to heaven. Alas! what a common delusion is this! I can well understand the feeling of the little girl who asked her mother where all the wicked people were buried, for she found no mention on the gravestones of any except of the good.

The devil desires silence about hell And I know very well that some believe there is a hell, but never like to hear it spoken of. It is a subject that should always be kept back, in their opinion. They see no profit in bringing it forward, and are rather shocked when it is mentioned. This also is an immense help to the devil. “Hush! hush!” says Satan, “say nothing about hell.” The fowler wishes no noise to be made when he has laid his, snares. The wolf would like the shepherd to sleep, while he prowls round the fold. The devil rejoices when Christians are silent about hell.

What does the Bible say about hell? Reader, all these notions are the opinions of man. What is it to you and me what man thinks of religion? Man will not judge us at the last day. There is but one point to be settled, “what says the word of God?” Do you believe the Bible? Then depend upon it, hell is real and true. It is a true as heaven, as true as justification by faith, as true as the fact that Christ died upon the cross. There is not a fact or doctrine which you may not lawfully doubt, if you doubt hell. Disbelieve

hell, you unscrew, unsettle, and unpin everything in the Scripture. You may as well throw your Bible aside at once. From “no hell” to “no God” is but a series of steps. Do you believe the Bible? Then depend upon it, hell will have inhabitants. The wicked shall certainly be turned into hell, and all the people that forget God. The same blessed Saviour who now sits on a throne of grace, will one day sit on a throne of judgement, and men will see there is such a thing as “the wrath of the Lamb.” The same, lips which now say, Come, come unto me,” will one day say, “Depart, ye cursed” Alas! how awful the thought of being condemned by Christ himself, judged by the Saviour, sentenced to misery by the lamb! Do you believe the Bible? Then depend upon it, hell will be intense and inalterable woe.

Hell not a figure of speech It is vain to talk of all the expressions about it being figures of speech, the pit, the prison, the worm, the fire, the thirst, the blackness, the darkness, the weeping, the gnashing of teeth, the second death, all these may be figures of speech if you please. But Bible figures mean something beyond all questions, and here they mean something which man’s mind can never fully conceive. O reader, the miseries of mind and conscience are far worse than those of the body. The whole extent of hell, the present suffering, the bitter recollection of the past, the hopeless prospect of the future, will never be thoroughly known except by those who go there.

Believe what the Bible says about it Do you believe the Bible? Then depend upon it, hell is eternal. It must be eternal, or words have no meaning at all. “For ever and ever,” “everlasting,” “unquenchable,” “never-dying” all these are expressions used about hell, and expressions that cannot be explained away. It must be eternal, or the very foundations of heaven are cast down. If hell has an end, heaven has an end too. They both stand or fall together. It must be eternal, or every doctrine of the gospel is undermined. If a man may escape hell at length without faith in Christ, or sanctification of the Spirit, sin is no longer an infinite evil, and Evangelism Daily Readings

What kind of neighbours are we?

there was no such great need of Christ’s making an atonement. And where is the warrant for saying that hell can ever change a heart, or make it fit for heaven? It must be eternal, or hell would cease to be hell altogether. Give a man hope, and he will bear any thing. Grant a hope of deliverance, however distant, and hell is but a drop of water.

What would you say of the man who saw his neighbour’s house in danger of being burned down, and never raised the cry of “fire?” What ought to be said of us as ministers if we call ourselves watchmen for souls, and yet see fires of hell raging in distance, and never give the alarm?

Application: The doctrine of hell is a vital part of the gospel message. Don’t omit to tell non-Christians about this place, and why it exists. It exists because of the justice of God. And don’t be ashamed of talking about it openly and honestly with Christians either. Jesus was not ashamed to mention it or preach about it, so we ought not to be ashamed. Did He make a mistake by preaching, teaching, and warning about hell? I don’t think so. There is a great pressure not to mention hell in many church circles today because it is not fashionable or trendy. But since when are we to take our lead from what is fashionable or trendy? We are to hold fast to take our lead from none other than the Bible and Jesus. Friend, hold fast to the truth about hell. 1 Corinthians 16:13 “Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of courage; be strong.” Philippians 1:27 “Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in one spirit, contending as one man for the faith of the gospel.” And remember, when we speak about hell, let’s follow the example of Jesus and do it with tears in our eyes.

J.C Ryle Quote

“A genuine Gospel-faith has nothing selfish about it – it never makes a man think only of his own salvation. It stirs him up, on the contrary, to concern about the souls of others. I always suspect that those who care nothing whether their brethren are saved or not, must in reality be ignorant or thoughtless about their own state.” .” ”

Evangelism Daily Readings

Day Twenty Counting The Cost Luke 14:28 “Which of you, intending to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost?” The reading today is another from Bishop J.C Ryle.

Look forward and consider The text which heads this page is one of great importance. Few are the people who are not often obliged to ask themselves, “What does it cost?” In buying property, in building houses, in furnishing rooms, in forming plans, in changing dwellings, in educating children, it is wise and prudent to look forward and consider. Many would save themselves much sorrow and trouble if they would only remember the question: “What does it cost?”

The cost of the salvation of a soul But there is one subject on which it is specially important to count the cost. That subject is the salvation of our souls. What does it cost to be a true Christian? Let there be no mistake about my meaning. I am not examining what it costs to save a Christian’s soul. I know well that it costs nothing less than the blood of the Son of God to provide an atonement and to redeem man from hell. The price paid for our redemption was nothing less than the death of Jesus Christ at Calvary. We “are bought with a price.” “Christ gave Himself a ransom for all” (1 Corinthians 6:20; 1 Timothy 2:6). But all this is wide of the question. The point I want to consider is another one altogether. It is the amount of sacrifice a man must submit to if he intends to serve Christ. It is in this sense that I raise the question: “What does it cost?” And I believe firmly that it is a most important one.

Outward Christianity costs nothing I grant freely that it costs little to be a mere outward Christian. A man has only got to attend a place of worship twice on Sunday and to be tolerably moral during the week, and he has gone as far as thousands around him ever go in religion. All this is cheap and easy work: it entails no self– denial or self–sacrifice. If this is saving Christianity and will take us to heaven when we die, we must alter the description of the way of life, and write, “Wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to heaven!”

Genuine Christianity costly But it does cost something to be a real Christian, according to the standard of the Bible. There are enemies to be overcome, battles to be fought, sacrifices to be made, an Egypt to be forsaken, a wilderness to be passed through, a cross to be carried, a race to be run. Conversion is not putting a man in an armchair and taking him easily to heaven. It is the beginning of a mighty conflict, in which it costs much to win the victory. Hence arises the unspeakable importance of “counting the cost.” Let us see particularly, one by one, the things Evangelism Daily Readings

that true Christianity will cost a man.

yet be saved!

Cast off self righteousness

No cross, no crown

1. True Christianity will cost one his self–righteousness. He must cast away all pride and high thoughts and conceit of his own goodness. He must be willing to give up all trust in his own morality, respectability, praying, Bible reading, church–going, and sacrament receiving, and to trust in nothing but Jesus Christ.

Moreover, I grant it costs much to be a true Christian. But what sane man or woman can doubt that it is worth any cost to have the soul saved? When the ship is in danger of sinking, the crew think nothing of casting overboard the precious cargo. When a limb is mortified, a man will submit to any severe operation, and even to amputation, to save life. Surely a Christian should be willing to give up anything which stands between him and heaven. A religion that costs nothing is worth nothing! A cheap Christianity, without a cross, will prove in the end a useless Christianity, without a crown. But there is a certain group of people to whom especially I wish to address myself in handling this part of my subject. It is a large class, an increasing class, and a class which in these days is in peculiar danger. Let me in a few plain words try to describe this class. It deserves our best attention.

Going to war against sin 2. True Christianity will cost a man his sins. He must be willing to give up every habit and practice which is wrong in God’s sight. He must set his face against it, quarrel with it, break off from it, fight with it, crucify it and labour to keep it under, whatever the world around him may say or think. The parting must come. “Though wickedness be sweet in the sinner’s mouth, though he hide it under his tongue; though he spare it, and forsake it not,” yet it must be given up, if he wishes to be saved (Job 20:12, 13).

Taking the path of sacrifice 3. Also, Christianity will cost a man his love of ease. He must take pains and trouble if he means to run a successful race toward heaven. “The soul of the sluggard desires, and has nothing: but the soul of the diligent shall be made fat” (Prov. 13:4). This also sounds hard. Anything that requires exertion and labour is entirely against the grain of our hearts. But the soul can have “no gains without pains.”

Losing the favour of the world 4. Lastly, true Christianity will cost a man the favour of the world. He must be content to be thought ill of by man if he pleases God. He must count it no strange thing to be mocked, ridiculed, slandered, persecuted and even hated. The Master says, “Remember the word that I said unto you, ‘The servant is not greater than his Lord.’ If they have persecuted Me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept My saying, they will keep yours also” (John 15:20). Considering the weight of this great cost, bold indeed must that man be who would dare to say that we may keep our self–righteousness, our sins, our laziness and our love of the world, and

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Fake Christians not rooted or grounded The people I speak of are not thoughtless about religion; they think a good deal about it. They are not ignorant of religion; they know the outlines of it pretty well. But their great defect is that they are not “rooted and grounded” in their faith. Too often they have picked up their knowledge second– hand, from being in religious families, or from being trained in religious ways, but have never worked it out by their own inward experience. Too often they have hastily taken up a profession of religion under the pressure of circumstances, from sentimental feelings, from animal excitement or from a vague desire to do like others around them, but without any solid work of grace in their hearts. People like these are in a position of immense danger. They are precisely those, if Bible examples are worth anything, who need to be exhorted to count the cost.

The Israelites didn’t count the cost For want of counting the cost, myriads of the children of Israel perished miserably in the wilderness between Egypt and Canaan. They left Egypt full of zeal and fervour as if nothing could stop

them. But when they found dangers and difficulties in the way, their courage soon cooled down. They had never reckoned on trouble. They had thought the promised land would be all before them in a few days. And so when enemies, privations, hunger and thirst began to try them, they murmured against Moses and God and would sincerely have gone back to Egypt. In a word, they had not counted the cost and so lost everything and died in their sins.

The example of Demas For want of counting the cost, Demas forsook the company of Paul, forsook the gospel, forsook Christ, forsook heaven. For a long time he journeyed with the great apostle of the Gentiles and was actually a “fellow–labourer.” But when he found he could not have the friendship of this world as well as the friendship of God, he gave up his Christianity and cleaved to the world. “Demas has forsaken me,” says Paul, “having loved this present world” (2 Timothy 4:10). He had not “counted the cost.” These are solemn and painful truths. But they are truths.

No cheap grace I am bold to say that it would be well if the duty of counting the cost were more frequently taught than it is. Impatient hurry is the order of the day with many religionists. Instantaneous conversions, and immediate sensible peace, are the only results they seem to care for from the gospel. Compared with these, all other things are thrown into the shade. I say without hesitation that such a naked, one–sided mode of teaching Christianity is mischievous in the extreme. Let no one mistake my meaning. I thoroughly approve of offering men a full, free, present, immediate salvation in Christ Jesus. I thoroughly approve of urging on man the possibility and the duty of immediate instantaneous conversion. In these matters I give place to no one. But I do say that these truths ought not to be set before men nakedly, singly and alone. They ought to be told honestly what it is they are taking up if they profess a desire to come out from the world and serve Christ. They ought not to be pressed into the ranks of Christ’s army without being told what the warfare entails. In a word, they should be told honestly to

count the cost.

The serious challenge Now, let us make the serious inquiry: “What does your Christianity cost you?” Very likely it costs you nothing. Very probably it neither costs you trouble, nor time, nor thought, nor care, nor pains, nor reading, nor praying, nor self–denial, nor conflict, nor working, nor labour of any kind. Now mark what I say. Such a religion as this will never save your soul. It will never give you peace while you live, nor hope while you die. It will not support you in the day of affliction, nor cheer you in the hour of death. A religion which costs nothing is worth nothing. Awake before it is too late. Awake and repent. Awake and be converted. Awake and believe. Awake and pray. Rest not until you can give a satisfactory answer to my question: “What does it cost?”

The power of reflection Think, if you want stirring motives for serving God, what it cost to provide a salvation for your soul. Think how the Son of God left heaven and became Man, suffered on the cross and lay in the grave, to pay your debt to God, and work out for you a complete redemption. Think of all this and learn that it is no light matter to possess an immortal soul. It is worthwhile to take some trouble about one’s soul. Ah, lazy man or woman, has it really come to this, that you will miss heaven for lack of trouble? Are you really determined to make shipwreck forever, from mere dislike to exertion? Away with the cowardly, unworthy thought. Arise and play the man. Say to yourself, “Whatever it may cost, I will, at any rate, strive to enter in at the strait gate.” Look at the cross of Christ and take fresh courage. Look forward to death, judgment and eternity, and be in earnest. It may cost much to be a Christian, but you may be sure it pays.

Final exhortations The time is very short. A few more years of watching and praying, a few more tossings on the sea of this world, a few more deaths and changes, a few more winters and summers, and all will be over. We shall have fought our last battle and shall need to fight no more. It may cost much to be a true Christian and a consistent holy man; but it pays. Evangelism Daily Readings

Prayer: “Dear Jesus, you paid a great price to secure my forgiveness and what is writing by this great man of God here in this reading rings true. We know that your cause will never be furthered unless men and women in this generation count the cost and pay the price. Lord, if I am not someone counting the cost in a particular area of my life, please show me that area that I may not miss the mark. Whether the cost is trouble, or time, or thought, or care, or pains, or reading, or praying, or self–denial, or conflict, or working, or labour of any kind, or giving my resources to your cause, Lord show me where and how I need to count the cost. I want my life to truly count for you and know what it never will until it starts to really cost me something. Amen.”

J.C Ryle Quote

“We are not to be ashamed to confess Christ before men, and to let others know what He has done for our souls. If we have found peace through His blood and been renewed by His Spirit, we must not shrink from avowing it, on every proper occasion. It is not necessary to blow a trumpet in the streets, and force our experience on everybody’s notice.” “All that is required is a willingness to acknowledge Christ as our Master, without flinching from the ridicule or persecution which by so doing we may bring on ourselves. More than this is not required; but less than this ought not to content us. If we are ashamed of Jesus before men, He will one day be ashamed of us before His Father and the angels.” ” .” ”

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Day Twenty One When We Sense Our Weakness, God Releases His Power 2 Corinthians 12:9 “But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.” Charles Haddon (C.H.) Spurgeon (June 19, 1834 – January 31, 1892) was a British Baptist preacher who remains highly influential among Christians of different denominations, among whom he is still known as the “Prince of Preachers”. In his lifetime, Spurgeon preached to around 10,000,000 people, often up to 10 times each week at different places. His sermons have been translated into many languages. He was a prolific author of many types of works including sermons, an autobiography, a commentary, books on prayer, a reading, a magazine, poetry, hymns, and more. Many sermons were transcribed as he spoke and were translated into many languages during his lifetime.

What God is looking for A primary qualification for serving God with any amount of success, and for doing God’s work well and triumphantly, is a sense of our own weakness. When God’s warrior marches forth to battle, strong in his own might, when he boasts, “I know that I shall conquer, my own right arm and my conquering sword shall get unto me the

victory,” defeat is not far distant. God will not go forth with that man who marches in his own strength. He who reckons on victory thus has reckoned wrongly, for “it is not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of hosts.” They who go forth to fight, boasting of their prowess, shall return with their bright banners trailed in the dust, and their armour stained with disgrace.

God’s way or no way Those who serve God must serve Him in His own way, and in His strength, or He will never accept their service. That which man does, unaided by divine strength, God can never own. The mere fruits of the earth He casts away; He will only reap that corn, the seed of which was sown from heaven, watered by grace, and ripened by the sun of divine love. God will empty out all that you have before He will put His own into you; He will first clean out thy granaries before He will fill them with the finest of the wheat. The river of God is full of water; but not one drop of it flows from earthly springs. God will have no strength used in His battles but the strength which He Himself imparts. Are you mourning over your own weakness? Take courage, for there must be a consciousness of weakness before the Lord will give you victory. Your emptiness is but the preparation for your being filled, and your casting Evangelism Daily Readings

Grace is my shield and Christ my song.”

down is but the making ready for your lifting up.

“When I am weak then am I strong,

Application: I have been an evangelist for nearly 30 years. When I first knew I had this gift, people used to say I had ‘the gift of the gab.’ I was proud of this accolade. I felt good about being able to talk to anyone anywhere about the Lord. I enjoyed flexing my personality and ability ‘for the Lord.’ When people came to the Lord, I thought that it was me and my personality which had done it. How foolish and ignorant. Now I realise that something quite different is needed for real success in evangelism. Thankfully, I pray, my attitude has shifted a mile from where it used to be in the early days. Now I know that only what the Lord does through me is of any worth. I am only the conduit of His grace. Even if I were the most charming, intelligent, charismatic, lovable person on the earth, and the Lord decided not to save the person I was talking to, they would not be saved. What the Lord loves is a humble person who relies utterly and completely on Him for success in evangelism. In fact, the more “I” get out of the way, the better my evangelism becomes. It seems to me now that the more I rely on Him, and the less I rely on me, the more He delights to exercise His saving power and strength. So if you are feeling weak, timid, afraid, and unable to evangelise, you are prime candidate to be used by God to win souls for Him. You are the kind of vessel He delights to work through. You have a 30 year advantage over me, for it’s taken me so long to learn this vital lesson.

Psalm 20: 7-8

Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God. They are brought to their knees and fall, but we rise up and stand firm.

C.H Spurgeon Quote

“To be a soul winner is the happiest thing in this world. And with every soul you bring to Jesus Christ, you seem to get a new heaven here upon earth.” ”

Evangelism Daily Readings

Day Twenty Two How To Woo Sinners To Christ With The Gospel 2 Timothy 2:15 “Rightly dividing the word of truth.”

Charles Haddon (C.H.) Spurgeon

How to rightly handle the gospel What is the right way, then, to handle the Word of Truth? It is like a sword and it was not meant to be played with. That is not rightly to handle the Gospel. It must be used in earnest and pushed home. Are you converted, my Friends? Do you believe in Jesus Christ? Are you saved, or not? Swords are meant to cut and hack, wound and kill—and the Word of God is for pricking men in the heart and killing their sins. The Word of God is not committed to God’s ministers to amuse men with its glitter, nor to charm them with the jewels in its hilt, but to conquer their souls for Jesus!

Telling the truth about sin He that rightly handles the Word of God will never use it to defend men in their sins, but to slay their sins! If there is a professing Christian here who is living in known sin, shame upon him! And if there is a non-Christian man who is living in sin, let his conscience upbraid him! What will he do in that day when Christ comes to judge the hearts of men? Remember, the books shall be opened and every thought shall be read out before an assembled universe! I desire to handle the Word of God so that no man may ever find an excuse in my ministry for his living without Christ and living in sin, but may know clearly that sin is a deadly evil and unbelief the sure

destroyer of the soul! He has, indeed, been made to handle the word aright who plunges it like a two-edged sword into the very heart of sin!

Woo by sweet assurance The Gospel ought never to be used for frightening sinners from Christ. I believe it is so handled sometimes. Sublime doctrines are rolled like rocks in the sinner’s way and dark experiences set up as a standard of horror which must be reached before a man may believe in Jesus—but to rightly handle the Word of Life is to frighten men to Christ rather than from Him—yes, to woo them to Him by the sweet assurance that He will cast out none that come! That He asks no preparations of them, but if they come at once, as they are, He will assuredly receive them. Have I not handled the Word of Truth in this way hundreds of times in this house? Has it not been a great magnet attracting sinners? As a magnet has two poles, and with one pole it repels, so, no doubt, the Truth of God repels the prejudiced, rebellious heart—and thus it is a savour of death unto death. But our object is so to handle it that the attractive pole may come into operation through the power of the Spirit of God—and men may be drawn to Christ.

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Are you standing on the Rock? If you are not converted, do not pretend that you are. If you have not known what it is to be brought down to see your own nothingness and then to be built up by the power of the Spirit upon Christ as the only foundation, O, remember that whatever is built upon the quicksand will fall with a crash in the hour of trial! Do not be satisfied with anything short of a deep foundation, cut in the solid rock of the work of Jesus Christ. Ask for real vital godliness, for nothing else will serve your turn at the Last Great Day. Now, this is rightly to handle the Word of God—to use it to push the Truth of God home upon men for their present conversion, to use it for the striking down of their sins—to use it to draw men to Christ, to use it to arouse sinners and to use it to produce, not mere profession, but a real work of Grace in the hearts of men.

Proclaim the plain gospel There are preachers who are always dealing with the deep things, the very deep things. For them the coral caves of mystery and the far descending shafts of metaphysics have a mighty charm. I have no quarrel with their tastes, but I do not think the Word of God was given us to be a riddle book.

To me the plain Gospel is the part which I cut out and rightly cut out of the Word of God.

Seek first the souls of men There is a soul that needs to know how to find peace with God. Some other Brother can tell him where predestination falls in with free agency, I do not pretend to know. But I do know that faith in Jesus brings peace to the heart. My business is to bring forth that which will save souls, build

up saints and set Christians to work for Christ. I leave the mysteries, not because I despise them, but because the times demand that we, first, and above all other things, seek the souls of men! Some Truths of God press to be heard. They must be heard now, or men will be lost. This is what the preacher has to do—leaving certain parts of the Truth of God for other times, he is now rightly dividing the Word of Truth when he brings out that which is of pressing importance. In the Bible there are some things that are essential, without which a man cannot be saved at all. There are other things which are important, but still, men are saved, notwithstanding their ignorance of those things. Is it not clear that the essentials must have prominence?

Don’t give first place to second truth Every Truth ought to be preached in its turn and place, but we must never give the first place to a second Truth, or push that to the front which was meant to be in the background of the picture. “We preach Christ,” said the Apostle, “Christ and Him crucified.” And I believe that if the preacher is rightly to divide the Word, he will say to the sinner, “Sinner, Christ died, Christ rose again, Christ intercedes. Look to Him. As for the difficult questions and nice points, leave them for awhile. You shall discuss them by-and-by, so far as they are profitable to you, but just now, believing in the Lord Jesus Christ is the main matter.” The preacher must, thus, separate the vital from the secondary, the practical from the speculative and the pressing and immediate from that which may be lawfully delayed. And in that sense he will rightly divide the Word of Truth.

Prayer:

“Jesus, I pray for myself and my friends who are praying this prayer that we would be people who put first things first. Let this be so also for the way we use our resources, our time, and our talents. Let the advance of the plain gospel be first in all we do, and let us be people who ‘cut out the gospel’ and proclaim it everywhere. Amen.”

C.H Spurgeon Quote

“The man who is all aglow with love to Jesus finds little need for amusement. He has no time for trifling. He is in dead earnest to save souls, and establish the truth, and enlarge the kingdom of his Lord.”

Evangelism Daily Readings

Day Twenty Three Where Are You? Genesis 3:9 “But the LORD God called to the man, “Where are you?”’

D. L. Moody (1837 – 1899 ) was an American evangelist who founded the Northfield Schools in Massachusetts, Moody Church and Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, and the Colportage Association.

If the Lord appeared in your bedroom? I have heard of a great many people who think if they are united to the Church, and have made one profession, that will do for all the rest of their days. But there is a cross for everyone of us daily. Oh, child of God, where are you? If God should appear to you tonight in your bedroom and put the question, what would be your answer? Could you say, “Lord, I am serving Thee with my whole heart and strength; I am improving my talents and preparing for the kingdom to come?”

Are you an ‘O O’ Christian? When I was in England in 1867, there was a merchant who came over from Dublin, and was talking with a business man in London; and as I happened to look in, he introduced me to the man from Dublin. Alluding to me, the latter said to the former, “Is this young man all O O?” Said the London man, “What do you mean by O O?” Replied the Dublin man, “Is he Out-and-Out for

Christ?” I tell you it burned down into my soul. It means a good deal to be O O for Christ; but that is what all Christians ought to be, and their influence would be felt in the world very soon, if men who are on the Lord’s side would come out and take their stand, and lift up their voices in season and out of season.

Would any one know you are a Christian? As I have said, there are a great many in the church who make one profession, and that is about all you hear of them; and when they come to die you have to go and hunt up some musty old church records to know whether they were Christians or not. God won’t do that. I have an idea that when Daniel died, all the men in Babylon knew whom he served. There was no need for them to hunt up old books. His life told his story.

What it takes to advance the gospel What we want is men with a little courage to stand up for Christ. When Christianity wakes up, and every child that belongs to the Lord is willing to speak for Him, is willing to work for Him, and, if need be, willing to die for Him, then Christianity will advance, and we shall see the work of the Lord prosper. There is one thing which I fear more than Evangelism Daily Readings

anything else, and that is the dead cold formalism of the Church of God. There is none so dangerous as this dead, cold formalism, which has come right into the heart of the Church. There are so many of us just sleeping and slumbering while souls all around are perishing. I believe honestly that we professed Christians are all half asleep. Some of us are beginning to rub our eyes and to get them half-opened, but as a whole we are asleep!

While the Church sleeps, millions are perishing There was a little story going the round of the American press that made a great impression upon me as a father. A father took his little child out into the field one Sabbath, and, it being a hot day, he lay down under a beautiful shady tree. The little child ran about gathering wild flowers

and little blades of grass, and coming to its father and saying, “Pretty! pretty!” At last the father fell asleep, and while he was sleeping the little child wandered away. When he awoke, his first thought was, “Where is my child?” He looked all around, but he could not see him. He shouted at the top of his voice, but all he heard was the echo of his own voice. Running to a little hill, he looked around and shouted again. No response! Then going to a precipice at some distance, he looked down, and there upon the rocks and briars, he saw the mangled form of his loved child. He rushed to the spot, took up the lifeless corpse and hugged it to his bosom, and accused himself of being the murderer of his child. While he was sleeping his child had wandered over the precipice. I thought as I heard that, what a picture of the Church of God and it’s relationship with those who don’t yet know Christ!

Prayer: “Lord, I want to be an O O Christian. I ask you to forgive me for not being this in the past, but today is a new day. When you return I want you to find me serving you with all my heart, soul, mind, and strength. And Lord, let me never be one in the Church who has fallen asleep under the tree! Amen.”

D.L Moody Quote

“When a man is filled with the Word of God you cannot keep him still, If a man has got the Word, he must speak or die.”

Evangelism Daily Readings

Day Twenty Four Be Filled With The Spirit! Ephesians 5:18 “Be filled with the Spirit”.

D. L. Moody (1837 – 1899 ) I SUPPOSE if I could put the question and ask those who are filled with the Spirit to respond, very few if any would.

power from on high.”

Being filled with the Spirit is a command

We can be Christians but not be filled with the Spirit

And yet we read in Ephesians 5:18 that this is a command: “Be ye filled with the Spirit.” God commands us to be filled with the Spirit; and if we are not filled, it is because we are living beneath our privileges. I think that is the great trouble with Christendom today: we are not living up on the plane where God would have us live. In the 20th chapter of John’s Gospel, and the 22nd verse, are these words: “And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and said unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost.” Now, those men had already the Holy Ghost dwelling in them. They would never have left their fishing smacks and followed Christ during those three years of humiliation and suffering if it hadn’t been for the Spirit of God working in them.

If those men needed to be endued with power, do you think we are going to be used without it? The great trouble with many of us is, that we are working for God without power. We are sons of God - no doubt about that - and daughters of God. We can “read our titles clear to mansions in the skies,” but we are sons and daughters without power. That is the trouble.

Jesus breathed on His disciples But almost the first thing after the resurrection, when our Lord appeared to His disciples and showed them His pierced hands and His wounded side, He breathed upon them and said: “Receive ye the Holy Ghost.” Yet again, after that, as we see in Luke 24:49, He said: “Behold, I send the promise of My Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with

Two ways the Spirit comes Now look at Acts 1:8: “Ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you.” Notice, Christ said that to the Apostles after they had been with Him three years, and after He had breathed upon them and said: “Receive ye the Holy Ghost.” There are two ways in which the Holy Spirit comes to a man. The Spirit dwelling in him is one thing, and the Spirit on him for power is another thing. I think that is where Christian people are misled. The trouble is, they are not looking for the Spirit of God for service. When the disciples were about to begin their great work, our Lord said: “Ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you.” How many, do you suppose, would have been Evangelism Daily Readings

converted on the day of Pentecost if Peter had gone and preached without this power? Not one. How quickly this whole world would be reached if we were just looking to God for this same Apostolic power!

Turn to the second chapter of Acts and see how the promise was “Our Gospel that we are preaching is a supernatural Gospel, and we have got to have supernatural power to preach it.” When the power came upon the Apostles, they did greater things than the Master ever did. There was a time when I thought the raising of Lazarus was the greatest work ever done on this earth. But I think the conversion of those 3,000 Jews on the day of Pentecost was more wonderful still. Those hard-hearted Jews were full of hatred and unbelief; many, no doubt, were the same men who murdered Christ. And yet they were swept down by the mighty power of the Spirit. We have got the same obstacles to contend with as the Apostles had. Our Gospel that we are preaching is a supernatural Gospel, and we have got to have supernatural power to preach it.

fourth of Acts, it says again, “they were all filled with the Holy Ghost.” They had either lost their power or had got greater capacity - I don’t know which. There are a great many men who had power five years ago that haven’t got it now. They are like Samson robbed of his strength, or like fishermen working with old, broken nets. Notice, again, that about ten years after, Peter went out to Caesarea and told Cornelius the words whereby he and his house were saved. While he was speaking, what happened? “The Holy Ghost fell on all them that heard the word.” That was about ten years after the day of Pentecost, and yet they received the special gift of the Holy Ghost. I firmly believe that if we had this building filled with men and women expecting the Pentecostal power, we would get it. I believe if this building was filled with men and women hungry for the Spirit of God, we would have this place shaken, and there would be an influence felt not only in this land, but in foreign lands. It wouldn’t take long to reach the whole world. Talk about twenty years. It needn’t take twenty years if the Church of God is baptized and quickened.

Is the Baptism in the Spirit for today?

Example of people being filled in the Bible

There is a class of people who say: “Yes; I know the Spirit came on the day of Pentecost, but He came in miraculous power; and we are not warranted in looking for anything like that today.” If you turn to the fourth chapter of Acts you will find that this wonderful work went right on after the day of Pentecost. Peter and John were cast into prison, and brought before the Sanhedrim. The Council didn’t dare to stone them to death because there were so many young converts. So they gave them this order: “Now, you can preach in the Temple or wherever you like, but upon one condition - don’t you preach any more in this man’s name.” The Apostles went forth from the Sanhedrim to the other disciples, and they had a little prayer meeting. What was the result? “The place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spoke the word of God with boldness.” In the second of Acts it says that “they were all filled with the Holy Ghost,” and here, in the

Notice that those who are filled with the Holy Ghost immediately begin to testify of Jesus Christ. Elisabeth, when visited by the Virgin, was “filled with the Holy Ghost,” and spoke of the coming Lord. Zacharias also was “filled with the Holy Ghost,” and quoted Scripture in reference to the Messiah. Stephen was “filled with the Spirit,” and received such unction that the men of the synagogue “were not able to resist the wisdom and the spirit by which he spoke.” He was able to stand before the whole Sanhedrin, and the power of God was on him in a wonderful degree while he testified of Christ.

3000 swept into the Kingdom by the Spirit of God

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The filling was over and over When Peter was “filled with the Spirit” he went out to preach Christ - he couldn’t help it. All through the New Testament we are told that the Apostles were again and again filled with the Spirit. And as they preached “much people were added to the church.” That always follows. There will be conversions breaking out in all the

churches if we are filled with the Spirit.

Pray to be filled with the Spirit Let us pray that we may receive power for service. Let us not be satisfied with only the power by which we are “sealed unto the day of redemption;” but let us pray that we may be baptized with that power from on high by which we can do great things for the Master.

Evangelists - stay with your calling! It is important to know whether the work we are doing is the work God would have us do. I remember that one time when Dr. Kirk came to Chicago, his old power came back upon him, and he just shook that city as I had never seen it shaken. I suppose if he had stayed, there would have been thousands and thousands converted. The Mayor of the city and the leading men all came to hear him, and they said: “If we could have that kind of preaching we would be glad to hear it.” But he went back to his pastoral work. I believe that man was meant for an evangelist; yet he went back to visit the widow and the fatherless. That was an important work, but others could have done it.

Are you in the right place? Some men are gifted one way and some another. One man has got gifts as a pastor, and another has got gifts as an evangelist, while another is specially qualified to stir up Christians. Let every one ask, “Am I in the right place? Am I where God wants me to be?”

How to receive power for service If you want this power for service God will give

it to you. Just say: “Here I am, Lord. Send me where you please - only give me souls. Give me power to win souls for Jesus Christ.” When that is the uppermost thought in our hearts He won’t disappoint us. “He that spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things.” If He gave us His Son, will He withhold the Spirit? “Herein is My Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit.” Are you toiling all night and catching nothing? Cast the net on the right side. Come, my friend, are you ready to go anywhere? Can you say: “Lord, send me to whom you will - only send me. Let that power come upon me, that I may proclaim the gospel for Jesus Christ?” May we have no will but God’s sweet will. Oh, that our wills may be swallowed up in God’s will.

Don’t live without power May we say: “Here we are, Lord; take us - take us - fill us - use us.” I think, if I know my own heart, I would rather die at once and be buried right off than to live without power. Oh, it is an awfully sad thing for a man to outlive his usefulness - to be laid aside as a vessel no longer fit for the Master’s use. There are a good many Christians God can’t use as He used them once.

Final prayer He has got a good many children that were full of power a year ago or five years ago, but they are not right now. How He wants to use them! Oh, I pray from the depths of my soul that as long as I live I may be filled with the Holy Ghost. Let us pray that we may be filled with this power from on high; and that we may be always ready - ready for anything.

Prayer: “Jesus, you say in your Word that if we want this power for service God will give it. Here I am, Lord. Send me where you please - only give power in my evangelism. Give me power to not only evangelise, but to win souls for You. Jesus, may we have no will but your sweet will. Oh, that our wills may be swallowed up in your will. We are not satisfied with the Holy Spirit in us. Holy Spirit we want you to come upon us! Amen.”

C.T Studd Quote

“Some day you will read in the papers that D.L. Moody of East Northfield, is dead. Don’t you believe a word of it! At that moment I shall be more alive than I am now; I shall have gone up higher, that is all, out of this old clay tenement into a house that is immortal- a body that death cannot touch, that sin cannot taint; a body fashioned like unto His glorious body.” Evangelism Daily Readings

Day Twenty Five Christian Courage Joshua 1:6“Be strong and of good courage...!” C.T. Studd (1860-1931) was an English missionary who faithfully served His Saviour in China, India, and Africa. His motto was: “If Jesus Christ is God and died for me, then no sacrifice can be too great for me to make for Him.” He was an outstanding County and All-England Cricketer, a freshman at Trinity College Cambridge in 1879-1880, taking a degree in law. He forsook his cricketing fame and the family fortune to evangelise the world.

death, whom he counts among his bosom friends. The otherwise Christian is a chocolate Christian! Dissolving in water and melting at the smell of fire. Sweet they are! Bonbons, lollipops! Living their lives on a glass dish or in a cardboard box, each clad in his soft clothing, a little frilled white paper to preserve his dear little delicate constitution. Here are some portraits of Chocolate Soldiers taken by the Lord Jesus Christ Himself:

The marks of chocolate soldiers Heroism in Christianity has been lost Heroism is the lost chord, the missing note of present day Christianity! Every true soldier is a hero! A Soldier without heroism is a Chocolate Soldier! In peace true soldiers are captive lions, fretting in their cages. War gives them their liberty and sends them, like boys bounding out of school, to obtain their hearts desire or perish in the attempt. Battle is the soldiers vital breath! Peace turns him into a stooping asthmatic. War makes a whole man again, and gives him the heart, strength and vigour of a hero.

True and false soldiers Every true Christian is a soldier of Christ a hero par excellence! Braver than the bravest, scorning the soft seductions of peace and her oft-repeated warnings against hardship, disease, danger and

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They tell others to go, and yet do not go themselves. Never, said General Gordon to a corporal in the midst of a battle, tell another man to do what you are afraid to do yourself. To the Chocolate Soldier the very thought of war brings a violent attack of sickness, while the call to battle always finds him paralysed. I really cannot move, he says. I only wish I could, but I can sing, and here are some of my favourite lines:

I must be carried to the skies On a flowery bed of ease Let others fight to win the prize, Or sail thro bloody seas Mark time, Christian heroes, Never go to war; Stop and mind the babies Playing on the floor. Wash and dress and feed them Forty times a week.

Till they’re roly poly Puddings so to speak. Round and round the nursery Let us ambulate Sugar and spice and all that’s nice Must be on our slate. Go where you will through the Scriptures or history, you find that men who really knew God, and didn’t merely say they did, were invariably Paragons of Pluck; Dare-devil Desperadoes for Jesus; Gamblers for God. Fools and Madmen.

Nobly they fought to win their prize, Climbing the steep ascents of heaven, Thro peril, toil, and pain O God, to us let grace be given, to follow in their train.

The ten spies in Canaan The ten spies were chocolates. They melted and ran over the whole congregation of Israel, turning them into chocolate cream softies, afraid to face the fire and water before them. God put them all into the saucepan again and boiled them for forty years in the desert, and left them there. He has no use for Chocolates. Its not small things He despises, but Chocolates; for He said, Your little ones shall inherit the promise land which you have forfeited through listening to men and despising Me. (Numbers 13)

Chocolate Soldiers speak out against those they perceive as fanatics Chocolates are very fond of talking loud and long against some whom they call fanatics, as though there were any danger of Christians being fanatics nowadays! Why, fanatics among Christians are now rare! Now, if they spoke out against lukewarmness, they would talk sense. Gods real people have always been called fanatics. Jesus was called mad; so was Paul; so was Whitfield, Wesley, Moody, Spurgeon. No one has graduated far in Gods School who has not been paid the compliment of being called a fanatic. We Christians of today are indeed a tepid bunch. Had we but half the fire and enthusiasm, we would have the world evangelized and Christ back among us

in no time. We could have every soul on earth knowing the salvation of Jesus Christ in less than ten years.

Chocolate soldiers substitute prayer for evangelism We Christians too often substitute prayer for playing the game. Prayer is good, but when used as a substitute for obedience, it is naught but a blatant hypocrisy, a despicable Pharisaism. We need as many meetings for action as for prayer perhaps more. Every orthodox prayer meeting is opened by God saying to His people, “Go work today; pray that labourers be sent into My vineyard.” It is continued by the Christians response, “I go, Lord, I will go where ever you send me, that your Name may be hallowed everywhere, that your Kingdom may come speedily, that your Will may be come on earth as in heaven”. But if it ends in nobody going anywhere, it had better never been held at all. Like faith, prayer without works is dead.

Chocolate soldiers waste time and money We are frittering away time and money in a multiplicity of conventions, conferences and retreats, when the real need is to go straight and full steam into battle! Will you fear or will you fight? Shall your brethren go to war and shall you sit here? When He comes, shall He find faith on earth? A thousand times you have admitted: Christ’s -

Love so amazing, so divine, Demands your life, your soul, your all.

Final exhortations To your knees, man or woman! And to your Bible! Decide at once! Don’t hedge! Time flies! Cease your insults to God, quit consulting flesh and blood. Stop your lame, lying, and cowardly excuses. Let us not glide through this world and then slip quietly into heaven, without having blown the trumpet loud and long for our Redeemer, Jesus Christ. Let us see to it that the devil will hold a thanksgiving service in hell, when he gets the news of our departure from the field of battle.

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Prayer: “Jesus, your servant C.T Studd. was used mightily by you and he brought much glory to you through his life. His fire and zeal for you house was nothing short of inspirational. Grant us, O Lord, that same zeal and fire that you might be pleased to use our lives in the same way as you used his. Jesus, thank you for this mans courage and commitment to your purposes, that he literally gave up everything to serve you in his life time. Do it again through us Lord! Amen.”

C.T Studd Quote “We Christians too often substitute prayer for playing the game. Prayer is good; but when used as a substitute for obedience, it is nothing but a blatant hypocrisy, a despicable Pharisaism...To your knees, man! and to your Bible! Decide at once! Don’t hedge! Time flies! Cease your insults to God, quit consulting flesh and blood. Stop your lame, lying, and cowardly excuses. Enlist! [in the cause of world evangelism]

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Day Twenty Six How To Preach Without Converting Anybody Joshua 1:6“Be strong and of good courage...!” Charles Grandison Finney (August 29, 1792 – August 16, 1875) was a Presbyterian and Congregationalist figure in the Second Great Awakening. His influence during this period was enough that he has been called The Father of Modern Revivalism. Finney is probably best known for his contribution to the religious movement known as the Second Great Awakening during the 1830s. At the heart of this movement was a series of revivals. Finney was an evangelist who spoke at these revivals, using powerful sermons to urge his audiences to devote their lives to God. He was extremely successful in obtaining converts. Today I am going to talk about how to preach without converting anybody.

Don’t preach about Jesus Preach on every doctrine that centres the attention on man rather than Jesus. Teach every doctrine that makes man the centre of God’s attention rather than God the centre of man’s reading. Tell people only what God will do for them. Avoid preaching about the necessity of a radical change of heart, through the truth revealed to the heart by the agency of the Holy Spirit.

Try to be popular with the people Let your supreme motive to be popular with all people, then, of course, your preaching will be suited for that purpose, and not to convert souls to Christ. Avoid preaching doctrines that are offensive to the carnal mind, so that no one should say to you, as they did of Christ, “This is a hard saying, who can hear it?”

Don’t give the impression you believe what you say Make no distinct points, and do not disturb the consciences of your hearers so that they may become truly alarmed about their souls. Avoid all illustrations, repetitions, and expressive sentences that may compel people to remember what you say. Avoid all heat and enthusiasm in your delivery, so that you never make the impression that you really believe what you say.

Don’t make people feel uncomfortable Make appeals to the emotions, and not the conscience, of your hearers. Be careful not to testify from your own personal experience of the power of the gospel, so that you never should produce the conviction upon your hearers that you have something which they need. Do not stir up uncomfortable memories by reminding your hearers of their past sins. Evangelism Daily Readings

Do not talk about specific sins Denounce sin in a general way, but make no reference to the specific sins of your present audience.

Do not call for an immediate decision Do not make the impression that God commands your listeners here and now to obey the truth. Do not let them think that you expect them to commit themselves right on the spot to give their hearts to God.1 Give the impression that they are expected to go away in their sins, and to consider the matter at later time of their convenience.

Preach grace, but not why you need it Preach salvation by grace; but ignore the condemned and lost condition of the sinner so that he never should understand what you mean by grace, and know his need of it. Preach the gospel as a remedy or a cure, but conceal or ignore the fatal disease of the sinner. Do not speak of the spirituality of God’s holy law (by which comes the knowledge of sin), so that the sinner never should see his lost condition and repent. Make no appeals to the fears of sinners; but give them the impression that they have no reason to fear. Preach Christ as an infinitely friendly and goodnatured being. Ignore those scathing rebukes of sinners and hypocrites which so often made His hearers tremble.

Do not confront sin in any way Do not rebuke the worldly tendencies of the church, so that you should never hurt their feelings, and finally convert some of them. Admit, either obviously or casually, that all men have some moral goodness in them; so that sinners should never understand that they need a radical change of heart, from sin to holiness.

Never mention hell Say so little of hell that your people will think that 1 In the Leader’s Study Guide, study 5, question (4), I discuss how to discern whether it’s right to invite someone to Christ ‘on the spot’ or not. Finney was a mass evangelist so he would naturally teach ‘always invite an immediate response,’ for this is expected of a stage evangelist. This is not the case with personal evangelism.

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you do not believe in its existence yourself. Make the impression that, if God is as good as you are, He could not send anyone to hell. Make no disagreeable reference to the teachings of self-denial, cross-bearing, and crucifixion to the world, so that you should never convict and convert some of your church members. Do not rebuke extravagance in dress, so that you should never make an uncomfortable impression on your vain and worldly church members. Encourage lots of church socials, and attend them yourself. Aim to make your hearers pleased with themselves and pleased with you, and be careful especially not to wound the feelings of anyone.

When talking about sinners, use ‘them’ not ‘us.’ Make sure you avoid preaching to those who are present. Preach about sinners, but not to them. Say “they,” and not “us,” so that anyone should never take your subject personally, and apply it to their own life, securing the salvation of their soul. Preach that the new birth is something God deposits in people, not a fundamental change in the ultimate purpose of our lives.

Tell them ‘Lordship’ is not necessary Never tell people that they must cease from serving self and serve God and do His will. Never tell them that repentance is man’s ability and responsibility to turn from his sin to God! Teach them to delay turning away from all known sin toward God.

Teach extreme Calvinism Preach predestination in such a way that results in fatalism and apathy on the part of all people. Make each person believe that God has already determined who shall be saved, and nothing can change His will. You never want anyone to think that their actions can make any difference. Preach that man is totally unable to obey God. Teach him that no one can turn to God, but he must wait upon God to turn (change) him. Make sure that no one realizes his true responsibility requiring him to repent in order to be saved. You never want anyone to know that man can turn from sin to God but the real problem is that he will not!

Teach the holiness is just an option Teach that holiness is just an option and not a requirement of the gospel. Teach them that they can be Christian without becoming true disciples. Preach eternal security in such a way that requires no perseverance in faith or continuance in holiness on the part of the believer. Make every person think he has his ticket to heaven that is all paid for so that he will always safely scoff at all calls for repentance and righteousness.

Teach Christians that sin is a normal and natural part of their every day life and that they can never truly expect to ever overcome sin through the power of Christ. Preach that no Christian needs to do anything. Teach them that they are safe and heaven bound even if their lives are disobedient and rebellious. To preach like this, dear friends, is to preach so as to not convert anyone!

Teach that sin cannot be overcome Application: Ouch! Although this reading applies mainly to mass evangelists, and stage preachers, this reading is still challenging for anyone who preaches. How did you measure up? Were you guilty, like me, of doing/thinking some of the very things Finney is warning we ought not to do/say? Were there any points which really stood out to you? Where do you need to make some adjustments? How would your church fare if it was measured against these standards? Many churches donâ€™t see many conversions over an entire year. Could this be the reason why? Which of his suggestions would not be politically correct today? Next time you verbalise the gospel with someone, take into account what Finney is saying. Refuse to compromise.

Charles Finney Quote â€œWhen sinners are careless and stupid, and sinking into hell unconcerned, it is time the church should bestir themselves. It is as much the duty of the church to awake, as it is for the firemen to awake when a fire breaks out in the night in a great city.â€?

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Day Twenty Seven Not Loving Our Lives To The Death Galatians 2:20 “I have been crucified with Christ....” C.T. Studd (1860-1931)

How to train a soldier in Christ for battle The best training for a soldier of Christ is not merely a theological college. They always seem to turn out sausages of varying lengths, tied at each end, without the glorious freedom a Christian ought to abound and rejoice in. You see, when in hand-to-hand conflict with the world and the devil, neat little biblical confectionery is like shooting lions with a pea-shooter: one needs a man who will let himself go and deliver blows right and left as hard as he can hit, trusting in the Holy Ghost. It’s experience, not preaching that hurts the devil and confounds the world. The training is not that of the schools but of the market:

It’s the hot, free heart and not the balanced head that knocks the devil out.

Not loving their lives to the death Nothing but forked-lightning Christians will count. A lost reputation is the best degree for Christ’s service. It is not so much the degree of arts that is needed, but that of hearts, loyal and true, that love not their lives to the death: large and loving hearts which seek to save the lost multitudes, rather than guard the ninety-nine well-fed sheep in the

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British pen. I can easily see why the folks at home want to eliminate Hell from their theology, preaching and thought. Hell is indeed awful unless its preaching is joined to a life laid down by the preacher. How can a man believe in Hell unless he throws away his life to rescue others from its torment? If there is no Hell, the Bible is a lie.

Stop procrastinating Too long have we been waiting for one another to begin! The time of waiting is past! The hour of God has struck! War is declared! In God’s Holy Name let us arise and build! ‘The God of Heaven, He will fight for us’, as we for Him. We will not build on the sand, but on the bedrock of the sayings of Christ, and the gates and minions of hell shall not prevail against us.

Being willing to die for Jesus Should such men as we fear? Before the world, aye, before the sleepy, lukewarm, faithless, namby-pamby Christian world, we will dare to trust our God, we will venture our all for Him, we will live and we will die for Him, and we will do it with His joy unspeakable singing aloud in our hearts. We will a thousand times sooner die trusting only our God, than live trusting in man. And when we come to this position the battle is already won, and the end of the glorious campaign

in sight. We will have the real Holiness of God, not the sickly stuff of talk and dainty words and pretty thoughts; we will have a Masculine Holiness, one of daring faith and works for Jesus Christ.

Being a missionary not romantic The “romance” of a missionary is often made up of monotony and drudgery; there often is no glamour in it; it doesn’t stir a man’s spirit or blood. So don’t come out to be a missionary as an experiment. It is useless and dangerous. Only come if you feel you would rather die than not

come. Lord Wolsey was right: “A missionary ought to be a fanatic or he encumbers the ground.” There are many trials and hardships. Disappointments are numerous and the time of learning the language is especially trying. Don’t come if you want to make a great name or want to live long. Come if you feel there is no greater honour, after living for Christ, than to die for Him. That does the trick in the end. It’s not the flash in the pan but the steady giving forth of light, it’s shining on and on that we need out here.

Our job is to make all hear the Word. God’s job is to give penetration to His Word.

Application:

There are so many truths for me in this reading today (and maybe they are different for you) but here is one on which I would like to comment. ‘It’s not the flash in the pan, but the steady giving forth of light that we need out there’. My prayer for you is that as you process the Evangelism Discipleship DVD series, the Holy Spirit would speak to you about NOT being a ‘flash in the pan’ evangeliser. The real work of the Kingdom is carried out by the steady, faithful people who work tirelessly and consistently over a life time to accomplish the mission of Jesus to evangelise His world. Today, determine in your heart to be one of these people, and not a ‘flash in the pan’ person who changes tack when someone new and more exciting comes along.

Prayer: “Lord, turn us into fanatics, as CT uses the word, so that I will be able to handle hardships, trials, and disappointments, so that our lives will really count on earth. I am not wanting to make a name for myself or to live a long life. What matters to me is that I serve you with all my heart in this life time. Amen.”

C.T Studd Quote “Some wish to live within the sound of a chapel bell; I wish to run a rescue mission within a yard of hell.”

Evangelism Daily Readings

Day Twenty Eight It’s Not All Up To You Luke 22:42 “Not my will, but yours be done....” Andrew Murray (May 9, 1828 – January 18, 1917) was a South African writer, teacher, and Christian pastor. He considered missions to be “the chief end of the church.” Murray is best known today for his reading writings, which place great emphasis on the need for a rich, personal reading life. Many of his 240 publications explain how he saw this reading and its outworking in the life of the Christian.

If we yield, He will do it God works total surrender to Him in the secret of our heart. God urges us by the hidden power of His Holy Spirit to come and speak it out, and we have to bring and to yield to Him that absolute surrender. But remember, when you come and bring God that absolute surrender, it may, as far as your feelings or your consciousness go, be a thing of great imperfection, and you may doubt and hesitate and say: “Is it absolute? Have I really totally surrendered?” But, oh, remember there was once a man to whom Christ had said: “If you can believe, all things are possible to him that believes.” And his heart was afraid, and he cried out: “Lord, I believe, help my unbelief.”

Come with all your doubts, and misgivings, and fears That was a faith that triumphed over the Devil, and the evil spirit was cast out. And if you come and say: “Lord, I yield myself in absolute surrender to my God,” even though it be with a trembling heart and with the consciousness: “I do not feel the power, I do not feel the determination, I do not feel the assurance,” it will succeed. Be not afraid, but come just as you are, and even in the midst of your trembling the power of the Holy Ghost will work.

We are feeble, but God is great! Have you never yet learned the lesson that the Holy Ghost works with mighty power, while on the human side everything appears feeble? Look at the Lord Jesus Christ in Gethsemane. We read that He, “through the eternal Spirit,” offered Himself a sacrifice unto God. The Almighty Spirit of God was enabling Him to do it. And yet what agony and fear and exceeding sorrow came over Him, and how He prayed! Externally, you can see no sign of the mighty power of the Spirit, but the Spirit of God was there. And even so, while you are feeble and fighting and trembling, in faith in the hidden work of God’s Spirit do not fear, but yield yourself.

Yield in faith And when you do yield yourself in absolute

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surrender, let it be in the faith that God does now accept of it.

That is the great point, and that is what we so often miss - that believers should be thus occupied with God in this matter of surrender.

I pray you, be occupied with God. We want to get help, every one of us, so that in our daily life God shall be clearer to us, God shall have the right place, and be “all in all.”

It’s all up to God, if would only but come to Him and yeild And if we are to have that through life, let us begin now and look away from ourselves, and look up to God. Let each believe while I, a poor worm

on earth and a trembling child of God, full of failure and sin and fear, bow here, and no one knows what passes through my heart, and while I in simplicity say, O God, I accept Thy terms; I have pleaded for blessing on myself and others, I have accepted Thy terms of absolute surrender - while your heart says that in deep silence, remember there is a God present that takes note of it, and writes it down in His book, and there is a God present who at that very moment takes possession of you. You may not feel it, you may not realize it, but God takes possession if you will trust Him. God not only claims it, and works it, and accepts it when I bring it, but God maintains it.

Prayer: “Lord, I can tell Andrew Murray really knew you, and relied on you, and trusted in you, and leaned on you to change him. He realised it was all up to you Lord. Today Lord, we surrender to you. We look away from ourselves, and look up to You. Even though we feel like poor worms on earth, trembling children of God, full of failure and sin and fear, we bow to you today. We accept your terms of surrender and ask you to talk possession of us. We trust you to work this miracle in us, and to maintains it. Amen.”

Andrew Murray Quote

“There is no one so far lost that Jesus cannot find him and save him.”

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