What Is the Gospel?: The 3R’s of What Will Christ Do When You Believe

 

When I first came to Christ, I did not have the privilege of someone explaining the full Gospel to me. Many people have not had the opportunity to hear the basics of the gospel in one presentation. So I have attempted to put together a simple and memorable gospel outline:

·       The ABC’s of becoming a Christian: Admit Your Sin, Believe in Jesus, Count the Cost.

·       The 3R’s of Believing: Jesus as Replacement, Risen and Ruler.

·       The 3R’s of what Christ Will Do When You Believe: Reconcile You to God, Make You Righteous and Give You Rebirth.

In this final blog I will address the 3R’s of what Christ will do when you believe.

Reconciliation

First, Jesus reconciles us to God. This implies that at one time we were estranged. Indeed our sin had separated us from God who is holy.

Few things feel worse than having a rift in a relationship. When I was in my early twenties, I had gone out with a girl for about a year when she broke up with me. The final thing she said was “Don’t call me!” The pain of the breakup was intensified by my being cut off from communicating with her. Far worse than losing any human relationship is the loss of communion with our Creator. We were made to love and be loved by God yet because of our sin we face an eternity of separation from Him.

Thankfully God provided a remedy for our broken relationship. Paul exhorts “be reconciled to God” (2 Cor. 5:20b) and Peter wrote, “For Christ died for sins once for all to bring you to God” (1 Pt. 3:18). 

Just as few things are better than the relief and satisfaction that come from reuniting with someone with whom there has been a conflict there is great joy in being reconciled to God through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. 

Righteousness

Jesus not only reconciles us to God, he gives us his righteousness. Paul considers his Jewish heritage worthless compared to this: “that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith” (Philippians 3:8b-9).

A key truth in this passage is that our righteousness is not our own, it is a gift. We cannot make ourselves good enough to stand before a holy God or earn our way to heaven. God does not, as some wrongly believe, “help those who help themselves.” Rather, God helps those who admit they cannot help themselves and so look to a Source of help outside of themselves. 

At the cross, God treated Christ Jesus as if he had lived a totally sinful life, in order that He (God) might treat ungodly sinners as if they had lived the totally righteous life that Jesus lived.

I frequently tell young people that it is as if they failed a test that a classmate got 100 percent on. The teacher then decides to count the classmate’s 100 percent on the young person’s record. Jesus’ sinless life is credited to our account through faith.

I’ve often told people on the street: “If you have been hoping to do enough good in your life so that your good outweighs your bad and you make it to heaven, give it up. It won’t happen. None of us deserve heaven or a relationship with God. You don’t qualify but he qualifies you. His righteousness becomes yours. You get in on the basis of his merits, not your own.

Hoping to get a reward from God for our own righteousness is like taking money from a Monopoly game and trying to use it as legal tender. The merchant will not recognize it as valid. Likewise the only righteousness God recognizes as valid has its source in Christ.

Rebirth

Finally Jesus gives a believer rebirth. Paul wrote to Titus, “He saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit” (Titus 3:5). We need a new heart and greater power than what we possess. And these are what Christ provides.

When my two youngest daughters were four and seven, I found them doing something that alarmed me. My youngest girl Emily, wanted to have her tooth come out after seeing her older sister, Elyse, lose a tooth. Elyse was willing to help her make this a reality. She tied the end of a string around one of Emily’s teeth and the other end around a doorknob. She then opened the door attempting to pull the tooth out. I must admit, I was impressed with their ingenuity. What they didn’t understand about losing teeth is that a tooth becomes loose because a new and better tooth is forming. They were trying to bypass that process by taking matters into their own hands.

Likewise, a lifestyle that is pleasing to the Lord cannot develop unless we have a new heart, i.e., a new nature as well as the indwelling power of the Holy Spirit. Paul says that that power for us who believe is like the power that raised Jesus from the dead (Eph. 1:18-20). So God provides not only forgiveness through Christ but new power to live His ways.

Once I was preaching a gospel message at the Eugene Mission when a man interrupted, saying: “I’ve been coming here for several days to these chapels and no one has talked about the Ten Commandments. “If I follow the Ten Commandments, I should be good.” His comments were a great setup to explain the gospel.

I asked those present: “How many of you have kept the ninth commandment? You shall not lie (give false testimony)?” No one raised his hand. That moment perfectly illustrated everyone’s need to be forgiven. I shared that one of the purposes of the law is to show a person his need for a Savior. We have all blown it before a holy God and need saved from the penalty of our sin. We need to be reconciled to God, to be made righteous and be given rebirth. Jesus provides all these when we exercise faith in him.

Copyright Ed Skipper 2013 

For more information about Ed’s ministry, to listen to him speak or to contact him about speaking to your group, visit heartofrevival.net.

 

What Is the Gospel?: The 3R’s of Belief

Last week I wrote about the ABC’s of becoming a Christian. This week’s topic is The 3R’s of a Relationship with Christ. There is an old saying that describes the essentials of a child’s education called “The 3R’s”: (reading, ‘riting and ‘rithmatic.) Similarly there are three essential concepts a person must understand when beginning a relationship with Christ. They are Replacement, Resurrection and Ruler.

Replacement

Paul wrote, “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Rom. 5:8). We were on Death Row, so to speak, because of our sin when God sent His Son to die in our place as our substitute. Jesus became our “replacement” sacrifice. This reveals God to be both just and merciful.

I often explain this by saying, “It is as if I went to take a swing at you and your friend stepped in and took the hit instead of you. That’s what Jesus did for you. He took the hit you deserved and paid your price.”

One night, when my children were young I kept hearing sounds of splashing water coming from the bathroom. "What is that?", I wondered. I thought one of my daughters had gotten up out of bed to use the restroom and was playing in the sink as she washed her hands. I laid in bed for a couple of minutes expecting to hear her footsteps retreating to her bedroom. But the splashing continued.

I finally got up to stop the playtime only to find the bathroom light off and the house dark. “Surely no one is playing in water in the dark”, I thought to myself.

Once in the bathroom, I realized that the splashing was coming from the toilet. I immediately thought of stories I’d heard of snakes coming up into people’s toilets. I cautiously peeked into the toilet and discovered a rat! Muriel, our little pet rat had somehow fallen in and was scrambling to get out. She was completely trapped and needed a rescue...so I went and got my wife Char!

Just like that pet rat we need a rescue. We need outside intervention. That intervention was provided by God in sending His Son Jesus to die in our place.  

Resurrection

After Jesus died on the cross for our sins he rose again. Jesus’ resurrection was God the Father’s affirmation of Jesus’ perfect life and “stamp of approval” of Jesus’ sacrifice on our behalf. By rising Jesus conquered death and guaranteed that we too will, one day, have a resurrected body that will not deteriorate or get sick. We will be raised to commune with God without the hindrance of sin in a place where there will no longer be any pain or sorrow (Rev. 21:3-4).  

Peter states it this way, “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade-kept in heaven for you” (1 Peter 1:3-4).

Ruler

When Jesus conquered death and rose from the grave God exalted him to the highest place (Philippians 2:9). He became ruler and Master of all. He is Lord and, as such his people must submit to him. Paul wrote,  “if you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved” (Romans 10:9).

When I think of submitting to Jesus’ lordship and rule I think of a pen that I own. As far as I am concerned, my pen exists strictly for my purposes. It is at my disposal. I use it when I want, how I want, and as often as I want. So it is with a person in a relationship with Christ: they must be willing to be fully available to God and His purposes.

Not everyone understands this. Once I approached a small group of high school students near the South Albany High School campus. As I got closer I observed two girls kissing one another. One of them was willing to take my “good person” survey. She boldly proclaimed that she was a Christian yet did not see how her choices conflicted with God’s plan for her. Walking away from that conversation I was stunned by the fact that many people fail to see that a Christian’s submission to Jesus’ rule has all kinds of implications for how we live.

What are the essential beliefs a person is to have about Jesus? That he died in our place (Replacement), that he rose (Resurrection) and that he rules (Ruler).

 

Next week and my final blog: “The 3 R’s of What Christ Does When a Person Believes”

 

Copyright Ed Skipper 2013

 

For more information about Ed’s ministry, to listen to him speak or to contact him about speaking to your group, visit heartofrevival.net.

What Is the Gospel? The ABC’s of Becoming a Christian

It seems that when it comes to religion in our culture almost anything goes. If you were to take a random survey of people’s beliefs you would hear all kinds of ideas that are not true:

-“All paths lead to the same God”

-“It does not matter what you believe as long as you are sincere.”

-“All world religions teach the same things.”

-“Only a few of the worst people go to Hell”

-“Just take the best parts of all the faiths to find the path that is right for you.”

These misconceptions have led to a widespread misunderstanding of what the Gospel is.  It is therefore imperative that Christians have a good grasp of the basic tenets of the faith in order to rightly represent it to those whom they seek to reach.  In the next three weeks I will address the question, “What is the Gospel?”, by presenting nine scriptural elements that are essential for true conversion.  These nine elements outline the basic steps a person must take, the core beliefs they must embrace and what Christ promises to do when a person puts his or her faith in him.  The first three elements are what I call the ABC’s of becoming a Christian.

Recently my laptop quit working.  A computer technician determined that the problem was a dead hard drive.  My son-in-law promptly ordered me a new one.  When it arrived he called  me with good and bad news.  The GOOD news was that the new hard drive was successfully installed.  The BAD news was the computer still did not work! The bad news swallowed up the good.

The Gospel is often called the Good News because of Christ’s substitutionary death on our behalf. But this good news is in response to some very BAD news: That we are all separated from God because of our sin.  When we present the Gospel to people I think it is a good idea to start with the bad news.  After all, most people don’t take their car to a mechanic unless they recognize that something is wrong with it.  Similarly, they won’t visit the doctor unless they believe that they have a problem.  So it is with coming to Jesus as Savior.  A person must comprehend the BAD news of their hopeless state before they can genuinely turn to God and receive the GOOD news of salvation.

 

So the first step in becoming a Christian is A-Admit your sin.

Isaiah records God saying: “For this is what the high and lofty One says-- He who lives forever, whose  name is holy: "I live in a high and holy place, but also with him who is contrite and lowly in spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly and to revive the heart of the contrite (Isaiah 57:15).

Most people are in denial about their true spiritual state. I often hear something like this: “Nobody’s perfect and I am not either.”  The Holy Spirit must break through this denial and bring them to the realization that they are “in trouble” with God. They have broken God’s laws in innumerable ways.  They’ve been selfish and rebellious and God is not happy about it.  Their deeds have rightly earned them condemnation. In response to this revelation, there must be genuine repentance as emphasized in both the Old and New Testaments (Matt. 3:1-2, Matt. 4:17, Acts 3:19, Acts 17:30).  Repentance is sorrow before God over our sin and a willingness to turn away from our sin and toward God.  It involves humbly admitting wrong without excuses or justification.

In addition to admitting their sin a person must B: Believe in Jesus.

“For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16).

Saving faith requires more than an intellectual assent to truth. It involves trust.  A story is told of a great circus acrobat who crossed Niagara Falls on a steel cable.  With no safety net he did things like walk, run and dance on that cable above the crashing water in front of large, awestruck crowds.  

 

Once, after pushing a wheelbarrow full of bricks across the falls, he asked the audience if they believed that he could push a man across in a wheelbarrow.  Everyone, without exception, believed that he could.  The crowd became excited with anticipation. Then he asked, “Who will be that man?”  Not surprisingly, no one was willing.  People believed he could do it but they were unwilling to entrust themselves to him. Saving faith entails entrusting ourselves to Jesus.

The benefits of Jesus’ death and resurrection must be personally received in order for them to apply.  As John said, “Yet to all who received Him, to those who believed in His name He gave the right to become children of God” (John 1:12).

Several years ago my wife and I received a tax return check from the Federal Government in the amount of several hundred dollars.  The check got buried under a pile of papers in a drawer and was forgotten for six months!  We found it before it expired.  We had money credited to us but until the check was found and deposited it did us no good.  Likewise, the saving benefits of Jesus death and resurrection are only activated in a life when received through faith.

In addition to admitting sin and believing in Jesus, a person must C: Count the cost.  The cost is total commitment.  While it is true that we cannot clean ourselves up or earn our salvation through repentance or committing to follow Christ, Jesus did say, “Any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple” (Luke 14:33). Denying ourselves, taking up our cross and following are entry level requirements in becoming a Christian (Matt. 16:24-26).

The Lord wants the rights to our time, money, attitudes, relationships, ...everything.  He asks us for permission to run our lives and we can gladly give it to Him because we know what a mess we make of it when we take control. 

Giving up control of our lives runs contrary to our natural way of thinking.  We want to hold on to what we have.  It is like learning to dive into a pool. It is a skill I have never mastered because I could never ignore the voice inside my head that screamed: “Don’t lead with your head!  It’s dangerous!” Just as a person learning to dive needs to overcome that resistance and trust that diving is safe, we must overcome the urge to keep control of our lives and abandon ourselves to him.  Jesus said that “whoever wants to save his life will lose it but whoever loses it for me will find it” (Matt. 16:26).

 

Next week: “The 3 R's of What We Must Believe”

 

Copyright Ed Skipper 2013

 

For more information about Ed’s ministry, to listen to him speak or to contact him about speaking to your group, visit heartofrevival.net.

 

 

Responses to Common Objections to the Christian Faith

It is common when witnessing for my presentation of the gospel to be refuted with reasons as to why it cannot be true. These objections, while intellectual in nature, are often rooted in something deeper such as an unwillingness to surrender to God or an experience of disappointment with God, that has resulted in a resistance to spiritual truth.

For example, a high school-aged boy at a Eugene park repeatedly responded with angry questions as a fellow Christian and I attempted to share the gospel with him. For thirty minutes he heatedly offered intellectual arguments. Then, all of the sudden, he blurted out: “And why would God not answer my prayer when I called out to him after my dad died!”

At that point, what seemed like a fruitless conversation, became personal and warm. At the root of this boy’s objections was a feeling that God had let him down. With the real issue revealed, my friend and I were able to show him compassion and pray for him. He left us eager to go home and read the gospel of John. The lesson I learned that day was that intellectual arguments against the gospel often have an emotional source.

Sometimes resistance to the gospel is rooted in genuine questions about our beliefs. It is important that we be able to clearly articulate the Christian perspective on tough issues. The following are questions I frequently hear and my typical response to them:

“What do Christians (or God) have against homosexuals?

When this subject comes up I try to draw the person’s attention to this larger truth: All of us have sinned, fallen short of the glory of God and need a Savior. I state God’s standard regarding sexuality: that it is intended to be expressed in the context of marriage between a man and a woman. I want them to know that God is not “picking on homosexuals.” Homosexual activity is one of many sins for which people need forgiveness. My main purpose is not to change their views on homosexuality (that can come later.) My purpose is to get them to consider Christ. I try to direct the conversation toward Jesus and their response to him.

Doesn’t evolution disprove the Bible?

Regarding science and evolution, I sometimes get in over my head. I am no scientist! However, my usual way of dealing with this subject is to appeal to the argument for intelligent design. I offer the complexity and sophistication of just about any body part or the many systems of the body and their interdependence as an argument for an intelligent designer. The random changes over millions of years that evolution proposes is an inadequate explanation for the magnificence of the natural world.

If there is a God who is good, why is there so much evil in the world?

As to the difficult question of how a good God can allow evil, I bring up the devil as well as the effects of the fall, including the sinful nature of humanity as an explanation. I point out that God’s ways are higher than ours and often beyond our comprehension and that an eternal viewpoint helps us bring evil events into perspective. I also explain how Christian faith not only has a good explanation for evil but also offers a way for people to overcome it.

How do you know the Bible is true?

On the matter of the truthfulness of the Bible, people often say that it is unreliable because it has been changed or re-written so many times. While it is true that there were many copying errors made with the New Testament, it is not difficult for scholars to analyze those copies and determine what the original says.

I point out that the Bible claims to be God’s word. For example, Paul states that “all Scripture is God breathed” (2 Tim. 3:16). Peter claimed that “no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet’s own interpretation but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit” (2 Peter 1:20-21). 

Of course, just because someone makes a claim, does not make that claim true. I draw their attention to the dozens of Bible prophecies that have been fulfilled- particularly ones dealing with the Messiah including his birth, death and resurrection. The large number of fulfilled prophecies is a persuasive argument for the divine nature of the Word.

Also, the consistency of the Bible is incredible given that it was written by at least 40 authors over a period of at least 1,500 years. Repeatedly, archeology has supported the events, persons and places mentioned in the Bible. And last but not least, millions of lives have been changed for the better through the truths of Scripture.

Do you really believe that people who don’t believe like you do, go to hell?

This objection has to do with the narrowness of Christianity and the penalty of hell for non-believers. When someone asks if I believe that someone is going to hell just because they don’t believe the way I do, I explain that everyone is “in trouble” with God because of their sin. God, in His mercy, provided a solution, a way to be reconciled to God, when He sent His Son to die for our sins. It is the one way that God has provided to be right with Himself. It is not a matter of people needing to believe what I believe but one of assessing whether the Bible’s statements about Jesus are true. He is the one that claimed to be the Way.

I often share that I once believed that lots of world religions contained essential truth. I borrowed what I thought was the best from each one to put together my own philosophy of life. But Jesus’ words “I am the way and the truth and the life” and “no one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6) kept haunting me. Eventually I had to decide whether or not His claims were true. Concluding that they were right, I could no longer cobble together my own composite religion. I encourage people to consider Jesus’ claims, particularly by reading the gospel of John.

Next week: “The ABCs of the Gospel”

Copyright Ed Skipper 2013

For more information about Ed’s ministry, to listen to him speak or to contact him about speaking to your group, visit heartofrevival.net.

 

 

What People Believe

Two and a half years ago, when I began to make an intentional and regular effort to share my faith, I was shocked to learn what many people’s spiritual beliefs are. Being surrounded by church folks had shielded me from the reality that a Christian world view is a rare thing in our culture especially among young people. I have talked to people who identify themselves as witches, atheists, New Agers, Satan worshipers, Jehovah Witnesses, Mormons, agnostics, Hindus, Jews, believers in Greek gods, Muslims, and Buddhist monks. Some have philosophies and religious beliefs that I have never heard of.

Many reject any formal spirituality, believing that religion causes war or that it just is a means to control people. Some have turned away from a Christian upbringing they felt was forced upon them or have become disillusioned for any number of reasons, many of them valid. It is very common for people to have notions that are clearly unbiblical.  These notions can be wide-spread such as a belief in reincarnation or the misconception that all religions teach the same thing. (One middle-aged couple that I spoke with in Yachats are convinced that they could not go to hell because their relative is a Catholic priest and has sway with God!) 

There are intellectual issues that influence people’s thinking. Evolution is proffered as an argument against a Creator.  In this age of information some feel they can’t believe anything that can’t be scientifically proven. I have been challenged to prove that there is a God on several occasions.  Sharing truth from Scripture is countered by opinions such as the Bible is a fairy tale, is full of errors, or has been “re-written” and therefore cannot be trusted.

Additionally there are strong societal values that form peoples’ worldviews. The exaltation of tolerance as a virtue has lead to the idea that “it doesn’t matter what you believe as long as you truly believe it.”  This has led to normalization of behaviors and lifestyles that were once considered unconventional at best. (For instance questions about and opposition to the Christian view of homosexuality comes up in many of my conversations.) Underlying this “anything goes” mentality is the belief that humans are basically good. In Yachats I spoke with a couple of ladies who were attending a Buddhist presentation. One woman claimed that that there is no such thing as evil. I asked her if it would be “evil” if someone murdered her brother. She replied that she would be mad, but that it would not be evil since there is no such thing.  

Finally, there are the age-old questions that have confused and confounded people for thousands of years: Questions such as, “How could a good God allow all the evil that goes on in the world?” or “How can a loving God send people to Hell?” Lots of people have made statements such as “I don’t believe someone would go to hell because they don’t believe a particular way.” One high school boy told me that if he had to go to hell he thought he could get used to it!

All these influences contribute to the major trend in our culture of putting together a composite of spiritual beliefs - borrowing from different religions and philosophies. I often hear, “No religion has it all.” I spoke to three young women at Linn-Benton Community College one day who are typical. All three of them had elements of Christianity in their belief systems but none of them appeared to have a personal relationship with Jesus or a trust in God’s Word. They all had an eclectic mix of beliefs borrowed from various sources. This is some of what they shared with me: “I don’t believe God is cruel” (i.e., He doesn’t send people to hell); “I believe we keep coming back in new forms getting closer to God as we learn our lessons;” “All religions teach the same thing and lead to the same God;” “I believe Christ died for my sins but I get my peace from Buddhist meditation;” and “There is someone or something out there beyond us that made all this but we can’t really know what it is.” Another young man who told me told me that he had his bases covered: “I am Catholic, Mormon and Christian.”

My conversations have made it apparent to me that a Christian worldview is a rare thing in Oregon. It is both a privilege and a challenge to engage with people holding such a wide range of opinions on spiritual matters. In my next blog I will write about how I respond to the some of the most common objections to Christianity.

Next week: “My Response to Common Objections”

Copyright Ed Skipper 2013

 

For more information about Ed’s ministry, to listen to him speak or to contact him about speaking to your group, visit heartofrevival.net.

 

 

Share the Gospel, Expect Fruit

Last week I wrote that we should expect to receive opposition when we share our faith. It is also true that we should expect fruit. When we take the risk of presenting the gospel, good things happen! The reason that we can expect fruit when we share the gospel is found in the Great Commission. To his disciples, who were told to go and make disciples of all nations, Jesus said: “Surely, I will be with you always to the very end of the age” (Matt. 28:20). We experience his presence in the greatest way when we have the greatest need for Him, i.e., when we know that we are in over our heads and cannot rely solely on our own resources. Here are some examples of God bearing fruit through my gospel interactions with people:

At the Eugene transit station a Teen Challenge student I was training felt impressed to approach a particular group. A young man (about 20) began talking with us. He was angry at God. A friend of his had been shot in a gang-related shooting in Los Angeles. Another friend had died in his arms of a heroine overdose. He wondered why God would allow so many bad things to happen and why God did not answer his prayer for his dying friend. The Teen Challenge student interjected that he had been a heroine user and had, himself, overdosed. He was able to share what the Lord had done for him. I saw this young man soften as we talked with him. It was evident that the Lord had gone before us in this situation matching up the right people.

My friend and I were sharing at Willamalane Park in Springfield.  A young man followed us as we shared with various groups of kids.  His heart was tender, and eventually we sat with him on a picnic bench and lead him to the Lord. I believe God had been drawing Him even before our encounter.

At Ralston Park in Lebanon I talked to a middle-aged man about the Ten Commandments.  As we parted he said that our conversation convinced him to forsake his plan to murder a person who was involved with his lover!

Once I talked with a boy who had had no exposure to the Gospel. He was not literate and came from a very poor home with no internet. He was astonished when I told him God sent his Son to die. He did not think that a loving Father would do such a thing. I explained to him that God did it because He loved him so much. I told him, “God loves you more than you love yourself.” Astounded, he exclaimed, “I love myself a lot!” That young man was beginning to comprehend the depth of God’s love for the first time. 

When I lack motivation to share I think about how many people are being exposed to the Gospel through my efforts. 

I came across a boy who was reluctant to take my Gospel comic because he thought it was too much to read.   He was with a girl that I had witnessed to the day before. To encourage the boy to read it, I said to the girl: “It’s real good, isn’t it?” She replied, “Yeah, my friends read it to me seven or eight times yesterday.” I was thrilled that they were reading the basics of the gospel over and over.

Hundreds of times, as I’m handing out tracts at a mall or school, I look back and people are reading a gospel presentation. How cool is that!

Not only does God prepare the hearts of those we will share with, Jesus also goes with us directing our steps. One day I was preparing a message on God’s guidance when I decided to go to Lebanon High School where I have ministered many times. As I drove toward the school I wondered what part of the campus I should head for so I asked the Lord to lead me. I was still several blocks from away when I noticed two college-age guys and a girl standing at the edge of a field. I took this as the answer to my prayer for guidance. I approached them with my survey on spiritual beliefs. The girl immediately stated her qualifications as a good person:  “I have spiritual beliefs. I am a Christian. I know where I’m going when I die. I believe in God and follow the Ten Commandments. That’s what God asks of us.” As we continued to talk it became clear she believed, as many do, that she could earn her way to heaven. I explained to her that, like all people, her wrongdoing disqualified her from heaven.  I explained that Jesus paid the price and that her hope needed to be in what He did for her on the cross. When she realized that she could never be good enough to earn heaven she was amazed and delighted. She had never heard this aspect of the gospel before. Then one of the guys shared that though he was a Christian he did not know where he was going when he died. I was able to share with him about the book of 1 John, which was written to “you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life” (1 John 5:13).  He, like his friend, welcomed this “good news”. At the end of our conversation, I went away stunned at how God had directed me to that place at that time to minister to the people God had in mind. I never did arrive at my original destination but I made it to the appointment that God had for me that day.

I encourage you to pray for, watch for and seize opportunities to share spiritual truth with lost people. It will amaze you what God can do!

Next week: “What People Believe”

Copyright Ed Skipper 2013

For more information about Ed’s ministry, to listen to him speak or to contact him about speaking to your group, visit heartofrevival.net.

Expect Opposition

When I read through the Book of Acts, two things about sharing the gospel strike me. First, God produced fruit through the early believers’ efforts. (This will be the topic of my next article.) Second, these believers repeatedly experienced intense opposition.

When Paul came to a town, both good and bad things happened. The gospel message he brought stirred people up. It had a major impact. Not only were there conversions but there were also antagonism and riots.  

We too can expect both fruit and opposition in our gospel-sharing endeavors. An example of this happened to me on the Oregon coast. I met a boy who, like me, had experienced the death of his father when he was a boy. His late dad had been a Christian and his interest was peaked when he learned that I was a believer. My conversation with this boy made an impression on me and I began to pray for him. A few days after our encounter, I ran into him again. My heart was encouraged, believing that the Lord had arranged this. I was able not only to reconnect with him, but also to share the gospel with friends he was with.

Immediately after that, I got into a long conversation with four teens who showed interest in and asked questions about everything from sin to the resurrection. Near the end of that conversation they saw three friends coming down the street and invited them over to hear the gospel!  I was on an emotional high from this very fruitful afternoon when two Florence City Police officers pulled up. I assumed they would ask me if I had seen someone that they were looking for. Much to my surprise, I learned that they were actually there to interrogate me. Someone had seen me talking with young people and suspected that I was a pedophile!  It is hard to think of a more troubling accusation. Worse, at least one of the officers did not appear to be convinced of my innocence. I heard him say on his radio: “Of course, he’s denying it!”  

While the police in this situation were simply doing their job, it is a vivid reminder of the fight that we can expect when we get serious about sharing the gospel. This incident shook me up for a few hours but ultimately served to strengthen my determination to spread the gospel.

It should not surprise us when we encounter opposition to our efforts to share our faith. Let’s be realistic: Not everyone is going to be happy when we talk to them about spiritual things. Certain biblical truths will not “fly” well in our culture. Truths such as Jesus is the only way to heaven, the need for repentance and that God shows grace to the unworthy are not popular and can sometimes lead to strong reactions.

I was in Gladstone with some free time and it was my desire to  share the gospel with young people. Without a local map or a GPS, I prayed for God’s direction. As I drove around, I “stumbled” upon a skate park and thanked the Lord for answering my prayer.  Immediately a slight boy “greeted” me, pointing his finger and proclaiming in his best macho voice, “There‘s the parking lot!” That was quite and introduction yet that same boy ended up listening, asking questions and following me around. I talked with different groups that day. As I approached one group three boys declared “We’re homosexual!” as they pretended to do sexual acts. One boy opened up his shirt and stuck his chest in my face as I was quoting John 3:16-18. As I left some of them threw my tracts down and stomped on them as they yelled obscenities at me. Talk about opposition! Yet I as I walked away I had a strong sense that God had sent me there for His purposes. Even in the midst of the resistance, I had sensed some openness to the Word and rejoiced.

Once at Linn-Benton Community College I approached a man sitting on a bench and asked if he would like to do my “Good Person” survey.  He began to curse at me. When I gently asked him why he was so upset with Christians, he threatened to call the police.

In another memorable incident, I was sharing with some boys at a skate park in Salem when an older high school student came over and asked them: “Didn’t you come here to ride? Go and ride.” He chased them away from me thinking he was doing them a favor. When I asked him what was going on he sneered, “You people are coming to our doors and now to our skate parks.” His anger was so strong that I thought it best to leave the area.

 

When we experience this kind of resistance or rejection because of the gospel, we can encourage ourselves with Jesus words: “Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you (Matthew 6:10-12).

I am also inspired by accounts of persecution I read in a monthly newsletter published by Voice

of the Martyrs.  It contains stories of believers in countries where Christianity and especially evangelizing, are not tolerated. These people pay a major penalty for sharing their faith. There are stories of women whose husbands have been killed for proselytizing. Others have lost body parts due to severe beatings. Many know they will be attacked, imprisoned, and, in some cases, killed for what they are doing. Yet they boldly go on proclaiming Him, fully knowing that becoming silent about their faith could end their suffering. These men and women inspire me to put up with the comparatively small amount of opposition I sometimes face.

How about you? When you face hardship because of your faith in Christ, will you consider it a privilege?

Next week: “Expect Fruit”

Copyright Ed Skipper 2013 

For more information about Ed’s ministry, to listen to him speak or to contact him about speaking to your group, visit heartofrevival.net.

One Approach to Sharing the Gospel

As I look back over the last two and half years, it is amazing to me how many people I have been able to share the gospel with simply by trying to have an encounter with at least one person daily. I estimate that by talking with just three people a day (there is most often a group-not just one individual), I have spoken with about 2,000 people in a period of two years. Over ten years that adds up to 10,000 people who get at least some exposure to the gospel. What a huge influence a single person can have by making a habit of speaking to people about the gospel! 

The vast majority of my contacts have been with young people. In general, I find them to be both more willing to talk to me and more open to what I have to say than older folks. I speak to them at skate parks, near high schools, at college campuses, at mauls, at fairs, etc.

Ideally I take someone along with me when I share. I find that I have greater courage when I’m not alone and it can also serve as a protection should someone choose to make some kind of accusation. Nevertheless, I am most often by myself because I can talk to many more people if I don’t have to work around someone else’s schedule.

One thing I try to avoid at all costs is getting into an argument with someone I’m speaking with.  It is possible to be “right” in a discussion but to have the wrong attitude. We do not want to win a debate at the expense of our credibility.

Although I always want to be led by the Spirit in my conversations, I have found it helpful to use certain methods in sharing the gospel. Any person who desires to witness will develop their own strategies according to their personality and convictions. Furthermore, each conversation will vary according to the responses of the people involved.

In my last blog, I described the “Good Person” quiz. Another good technique is to take a survey on spiritual beliefs. I learned this approach from the booklet “How Can I Share My Faith Without An Argument?” (available on line at discoveryseries.org.) I ask these questions: “Do you have any spiritual beliefs?” “What do think happens when you die?” “What do you believe about Jesus?” “What do you believe about the Bible?” I listen to their responses and then I ask: “Can I tell you my beliefs?” Every person I have done this with has given me permission. I then share the basic concepts of the gospel. Most often, the survey leads to a discussion about the gospel without ever getting to that final permission question.

A strength of this method is that it gives people an opportunity to share their views, which most people enjoy. It is more conversational and less directed than the Good Person quiz. I’ve found that this approach works well with people who are beyond high school-age.

However it does require the person sharing to be able to respond to a wide variety of questions and comments. The person sharing must have a good working knowledge of the Bible and a willingness to tackle any subject from atheism to belief in aliens! Both of these techniques require an ability to discern how and when to redirect a conversation or to continue on the track that it is on.

The spiritual survey has resulted in some interesting encounters and has led to some lengthy conversations about the gospel. In one situation two Teen Challenge students and I were finishing up a conversation with an LDS high school boy at the Junction City skate park. A 14 year-old boy rode up. I asked this boy if he had any spiritual beliefs. He said that he had believed in God but when his best friend died he began to doubt. The boy went on to explain that he and his friends use to “train run” (standing on train tracks and jumping out of the train’s way just in time as the train approached.) One day as they were train running they encountered an Amtrak train which is considerably faster than they were used to. His best friend next to him did not get out of the way in time and was killed instantly. This boy opened up about how he struggled with the incident and how much he missed his good friend. The boy welcomed the opportunity to express his feelings. Our hearts went out to him and we prayed for him. One of the Teen Challenge students was able to share a similar experience with the boy. (His 14 year old friend got hit, dragged and killed by a dump truck.) He was able to tell his story to the grieving boy and we went away amazed at how God had sovereignly arranged this encounter.

If you’re like me witnessing may be out of your comfort zone but it is astounding how God often shows up when we put ourselves in situations in which we are “over our head” in our service to Him. It is also amazing how often God directs us to talk to the right people at the right time.

Next week: “Expect Opposition”

Copyright Ed Skipper 2013

 

For more information about Ed’s ministry, to listen to him speak or to contact him about speaking to your group, visit heartofrevival.net.

"Are You a Good Person?" Surveys

For the past two and a half years I have made sharing the gospel with strangers a priority in my life. When starting a conversation with someone I don’t know I choose to use a direct approach . Some people are good at starting a conversation and eventually turning the topic to spiritual things. I find it easier to tell the person from the outset why I am talking to them. The most common method I use is to ask one of two questions. The first is, “Would you like to take my test on ‘Are you a good person?’”  The second, “Would you like to take my survey on spiritual beliefs?” will be addressed in my next blog.

When I engage with people about half of them agree to talk with me. The “Are you a good person?” test is adapted from material developed by Kirk Cameron and Ray Comfort (livingwaters.com). The purpose of this exercise is to first show people that they have violated God’s law and then to present Jesus as the Savior who can meet their need for forgiveness.

When someone agrees to talk to me I ask them, “Do you consider yourself a good person?” Most people answer in the affirmative. About ten percent  admit that they are not good and another twenty percent say something to the effect of “I’m good some of the time.” To help them determine how good they really are, I ask each person, regardless of their self-assessment, about how they are doing keeping the Ten Commandments or other Scriptural standards. I listen as they rate themselves on coveting, lying, stealing, etc. Most people give themselves good ratings and downplay or justify their sins saying things like: “I don’t lie unless I need to” or “I don’t steal anymore.”

I am convinced that for most people the biggest barrier to saving faith is their inability to recognize and be sorrowful over their sinful state. If a person does not see that they have failed to meet God’s standards and need a new heart, they won’t see their need for a Savior.  Coming to this awareness is the convicting work of the Holy Spirit.

Consider a couple of examples I’ve encountered that illustrate this kind of spiritual blindness. At Clackamas Community College there was a woman who was reading my comic “Are You a Good Person?” The tract quotes Jesus as saying that a person is guilty of adultery even if he just lusts in his heart. Three times she exclaimed, “This can’t be true or I would be guilty over and over again!“  Surely, she couldn’t be guilty of sinning! She saw herself as a good person and adjusted her standard of goodness to match her own attitudes and behavior.

                                                                                             

In another instance, I was at the downtown Eugene transit station conversing with a high-school aged homosexual. He had a church background and viewed the church as full of rules. He also felt that they judged him. We had a good talk about the gospel being something quite different than a set of rules. I left him with a tract. Later, he found me in a different part of the station and asked this question: “This says that a person is guilty if he looks at a woman with lust. What if I look at a man with lust?” (As is so often the case, he was looking for a loophole.) I explained to him that Jesus, in his statement on lust, was trying to show self-righteous people that a person can sin with their thoughts and attitudes as well as with their actions. O how deceitful the human heart is in justifying itself! But I believe the Holy Spirit was breaking in and showing this young man his need for the Savior.

After I ask about several of the Ten Commandments, I like to ask if the person expects to go to heaven. Most believe that they will, although some don’t believe that heaven and hell exist, and others feel it would be presumptuous for them to expect to get there. However, when a person answers that they do expect to go to heaven I ask them why.

This question reveals whether or not they know Jesus and understand the gospel. Most answer that they expect to go to heaven because they are a good person (e.g., they are kind, they do their best, they try to stay out of trouble or they haven’t done anything deserving of hell.)  This type of response reveals to me that they are trying to earn eternal life by being good enough. Much to my disappointment, very few people are able to explain that their hope in heaven is because Christ died for their sins, was raised from the dead and that they have repented and put their faith in him.

Once, a high school student in Newport said that her grandmother taught her she had to “earn” her way to heaven. This student was very interested and intrigued when I explained the true nature of the gospel to her. Because the notion of “earning” heaven is so very common I make a habit of trying to gently confront the “works-righteousness” lie and to present the truth that salvation is by grace through faith. I do this by explaining that the Bible says we are all disqualified because “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” People often get a shocked look when I say this. Their stunned reaction is a great entry point for me to explain the gospel: that God, who is both just and merciful, sent Jesus to pay the price for their sins and to die in their place.

Sometimes I use an illustration about the time that we will give an account to God for our lives. As I am standing I ask what would happen if they came and tackled me around the ankles. The answer is that I would fall!  This is because what I am resting my weight on (my legs) has been taken away. I then ask them if I were seated what would happen. The answer is that I would remain seated because what  I am resting my weight on (the bench or chair)  remains securely grounded. So it is at the judgment: if a person is relying on oneself  and one’s own ability to earn their way, they will fall because no one obtains eternal life that way. But if a person is relying on Christ, and what He has done for them, they hold fast.

Usually I will end our time together by doing one or more of the following: offering to pray for them, encouraging them to read the book of John or leaving them with a tract. Often after conversations like those described in this blog, people have expressed to me that they have come to understand the gospel for the first time. Hallelujah!

 

Next week: “Spiritual Beliefs Survey”

Copyright Ed Skipper 2013 

For more information about Ed’s ministry, to listen to him speak or to contact him about speaking to your group, visit heartofrevival.net.