HOW TO SHARE CHRIST
Mat 4:19 And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I
will make you fishers of men.
Maturity
in Christ includes embracing the call to be a partner with Jesus Christ in the
mission for which he came (Luke 19:10). Every believer is commanded to
participate in the work of the Lord by influencing and bringing people to
Christ and helping them to grow in Him. Jesus commanded us to go/ step out in
faith and share the gospel. It is a question of obedience (Mark 16:15; Acts
1:8; Mathew 28:18-20). A going believer is a growing believer. A going church
is a growing church.
Humanity
without Christ is lost –‘And I saw a
great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the
heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them… And whosoever was not
found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.’ Revelation
20:11-15
God
is so loving that he has made a way out for the lost (John 3:16; Romans 10:9).
Evangelism is prayerfully sharing and
showing Christ to non believers and
giving the opportunity to believe in Christ and join a Christian church
community for ongoing discipleship.
The
gospel is the power of God (Romans 1:14-16). The Gospel is the best treasure we
have to share with others. It is the only good news (Galatians 1:8). He that
wins souls is wise (Proverbs 11:30).
Sharing Christ is a apart of our spiritual armor (Ephesians 6:15).
What Sharing Christ
Involves
• Praying (Air cover).
You need to accept the priority and urgency of always asking
for the blessing and knowledge of Christ to rest on people. Pray individually
as well as corporately, for your relatives and people in your community. A list
of specific people you are presenting before God until their salvation is
helpful. Sharing Christ is about dependence on God who alone convicts and
converts people (2 Corinthians 4:4). Its warfare, the enemy who blinds the
sinner discourages the believer from sharing Christ.
•Building
Relationships (A Bridge).
Build or retain some level of relationships/contacts with
people who do not know Christ. Instead of breaking all of your past and non
church relationships redefine them. Build bridges and create proximity spaces
to show Christ’s love and power. Initiate
programs were there is mutual interest with non believers – sport, etc .
Be relevant to people in your life by good works and life
(Mathew 5:16). Address the felt needs of people. Help solve societal problems. Assist practically. Even ‘small’ responses
make a great difference.
Pray for the needs of non believers. Stand with them in hard times. Your life is a powerful gospel
tract. Believers have an attractive aroma that influences non believers (2
Corinthians 2:14).
The longer
you live with people the more life witness counts and the less effective words
become. The credibility of the witness is in the power of their trestimony.
Deliberately
and wisely invite no believers to a
place where Christ is shown and shared. People
come to church when personally invited. Andrew is the one who invited Peter to Jesus.
Jesus Christ has made an invitation to all of us to come (Mark 11: 28).
• Having a Message. (A Fishing Hook)
When
you interact with non believers be prepared to answer questions about your
faith, life style and good works. Be able to share the gospel simply and clearly
when necessary. You need the ability to
communicate and demonstrate Christ in a language of your audience – be it your generation, your profession, your family,
etc
a) Simple Outline - Mastering
a simple gospel message outline for use to lead someone to Christ helps in
building confidence and enhancing clarity.
i) An example is:
- You are a sinner and the
result of sin is death (Romans 3:23; Romans 6:23)
- You cannot save yourself even
by church going or good works (Ephesians 2:8, 9)
- But God is just and loves you
so much he gave Jesus (John 3:16; Romans 5:8)
-
Christ died and is risen for you.(Acts 2:36-37. 1 Corinthians 2:1-2. Romans
10:9, 13)
- Turn from being a sinner and
trust in Jesus as savior and Lord for forgiveness of sin. (Acts 2:39).
- Make a commitment. Now is the
opportunity for you to decide. Today is the day for salvation. You may not have
such an opportunity again (Revelation 3:20).
ii) Then -
- Lead them in a prayer to
receive Christ. E.g. like ‘Oh Lord be merciful to me a sinner. I turn
to you from my sin. I turn my back to satan. I believe in you Jesus as my
savior and Lord. Save me and set me free. I trust that you have saved me’.
- Congratulate them. Say what has happened
and how to proceed. Provide immediate
help to the new believers.
- Pray for their needs. The
message of Christ is good news to the poor. It addresses the wholistic needs of
people. Salvation in Greek is sozo
whose meaning includes – to save, to deliver, to protect, general well being,
to make whole (spirit, soul and body). Demonstrate the love, power and gifts of
Christ.
b) Share your salvation
testimony - The testimony of how you became a Christian is a natural tool
to use often. Acts 22 - Paul, John 4 - The Samaritan woman. It covers three areas.
- What you were like before salvation
- How you got saved
- What you have been like since
c) Give literature/media –. You can also give relevant tracts, books, tapes, radio,
satellite, music, web links, etc that give an opportunity to introduce
solutions in Christ.
•A Road Map (Growth
Path)
Provide the next steps on the exciting adventure of walking
with Christ. Set the new believer on a growth path among the shelter of a
community of believers. The ultimate goal of evangelism is to make disciples of
disciple makers.
Share with new believers
about ‘Assurance of Salvation and
immediate growth steps’ and some of
their new identity and help them find a church where they will be
discipled (John 1:12; 3:6; John 6 vs. 46 – 47).
LINK: http://wordoers.blogspot.com/2012/10/share-it-if-good-news.html
Message by Dr. Kurai Chitima.
Faith Ministries – Johannesburg Faith Life Center
Ground and First Floors Sunset Bay Building
204B Bram Fischer drive,
Randburg, Johannesburg , South Africa
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