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carters
Member



Joined: 2011/5/24
Posts: 138
Australia

 


_________________
Mrs Carter

 2012/2/22 14:52Profile
Lysa
Member



Joined: 2008/10/25
Posts: 3699
East TN for now!

 Re: How does a Christian do "friendship evangelism" in the world?

Quote:
carters wrote:
Deep down I guess I know that I am a people pleaser. But at the same time I have no problems going up street evangelism. Just "friendship" evangelism does my head in!


Thank you for being so honest but you need to know that showing yourself as friendly has nothing to do with being a people-pleaser. Do not take a book with you everywhere you go! That is a clue that you do not want anyone talking to you and they won’t!

Smiling at someone is being friendly. Helping hold a door is being friendly (with a smile!) or picking up something someone drops is being friendly. A simple smile can break down a lot of barriers and encourage someone especially if they are having a really bad day. People can just love to be around you and you don’t have to preach them, they just love your spirit.

FYI: You do not have to partake of their “sinful conversations” to be friendly either. Ask your heavenly Father to make you friendlier and He will! This is definitely something to pray about if you don’t have any ability to be outgoing or friendly.

God bless you and I’ll be praying for you!!
Lisa


_________________
Lisa

 2012/2/22 16:59Profile
twayneb
Member



Joined: 2009/4/5
Posts: 2256
Joplin, Missouri

 Re: How does a Christian do "friendship evangelism" in the world?

carters: Every one of us shares the fact that we are humans living in flesh and inhabiting this world. In that respect we have everything in common. We as believers are born again in spirit. We belong to another king and another kingdom. In that respect we have nothing in common. But we do have the love of Christ that flows from us. We know people who are not born again. We can have coffee, talk at work, talk at the grocery store, play a round of golf, etc. In the process we can enjoy fellowship around the things we have in common, our daily lives. But coupled with that is the love of Christ flowing out of us. I have noticed that the average lost man is very likely open to frank discussions about his life and God. As you establish relationship this openness only increases. So you can often allow God to lead you naturally into discussions of how God relates to life, and ultimately to their need for the Savior. There is no need to be quiet when the uncomfortable topics come up. Share in normal conversation your own perspective. Don't be offended by the topics. They are real life for these people. Be a light in the middle of them.

Let me give you a real life example. I was working as a state highway construction inspector last summer. I worked with a contractor's foreman who was extremely foul. Every third or fourth word from his mouth began with the letter "f"...literally! As we talked I endured the language but was frank and unabashed about telling him about my own life as a Christian. I did not preach at him, but I did share the gospel. One day I found his employees trying to console him as he wept. (Mind you these are stereotypical construction guys.) I found out his mom was very ill and about to die and he was a thousand miles from her. I asked frankly if he would like me to pray for him. He said yes and I was able to minister to the man. I did the same and shared the gospel with one of his workers whose wife was ill with cancer. Now there were no confessions made unto salvation at the time and I am not sure what has happened to either man. But I did share the gospel, prayed with them, and sowed seeds. I trust God will bring another to water.

The point is that it was a natural outflow of the love of God toward people. They received it pretty well. They were not friends of mine and my contact was limited and had to be somewhat professional, but I was still able to be used of God.

Just be a believer around them. Let God work through that.


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Travis

 2012/2/22 18:19Profile
jimp
Member



Joined: 2005/6/18
Posts: 1481


 Re:

hi, iwrote a long blog full of the visirol i despise and it vanished.. i think i forgot to press the button.thank God... i get angry with myself and others who think they are better than others who have not had the great grace of God given to them yet.we all need a redeemer,grace and mercy...we should have compassion on the vile and the most bass sinner for if you are guilty of one you are guilty of all.read how Jesus treated the sinner.read thestory of the good samaritan.who are we to deny friendship and love to another son of adam who needs to know that if it were not for Jesus and what He did on the cross for us that we all would be headed for an eternity in hell.jimp

 2012/2/22 21:27Profile
carters
Member



Joined: 2011/5/24
Posts: 138
Australia

 


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Mrs Carter

 2012/2/24 18:26Profile
jimp
Member



Joined: 2005/6/18
Posts: 1481


 Re:

hi, you can't make a mistake sharing the love of Jesus to people. the Holy Spirit is the One who woos and births them into the kingdom.just be yourself and talk to people (NOT AT THEM).tell them how God sent them to you and you feel that God wants you to share what He has done for you.

 2012/2/25 2:20Profile
Koheleth
Member



Joined: 2005/11/10
Posts: 530
NC

 Re: How does a Christian do "friendship evangelism" in the world?

How does a Christian do "friendship evangelism" in the world?

Simple answer. You don't. These words are not found in the New Testament, but more importantly the concept is not either. "Friendship evangelism" is a worldly concept that the devil uses to make the saints less effective.

The first question for yourself is: do you know Christ and are you committed to following him? If you are, then you must follow Jesus' methods. No matter what label you put on them, evangelism, discipleship, repentance, or some other term, we should all form relationships with others based on the model Jesus gave.

A wrong model, based on insincerity and deceit, is to pursue a friendship with someone simply to get close enough to them to at some point let them hear the gospel from us. Jesus didn't wait. His model was to offer people reconciliation to God, moral teachings, and eternal life from the outset.

The gospel of John offers excellent examples. From the first chapter, Jesus called his disciples to follow him and God. He didn't try to make friends with them first. Neither was Jesus worried about staying on the good side of Nicodemus. He wasn't afraid to rebuke him. Nor did Jesus try to be make friends with the woman at the well (other than being friendly during their first encounter). Instead, he headed directly for the essential topics. And in John chapter 6, Jesus was not worried about whether people liked him or not, nor whether they would stay around. Many ended up leaving.

I believe the thoughts you are having on "friendship evangelism" are the spirit leading you. You use words like superficial, trying to build, pulled into, fake, fraud, and people pleaser. These are all accurate and are precisely the reason that "friendship evangelism" should be entirely forsaken. You cannot find an example of it in the New Testament. Instead, you proclaim the message or conduct the ministry that God has given you, and you continue on with those who respond. It is from that point, from Christ, that relationships develop. Jesus did not make friends with his disciples. He called them and those who stayed became friends. We should do the same as he did.

 2012/2/25 4:39Profile
Lysa
Member



Joined: 2008/10/25
Posts: 3699
East TN for now!

 Re:

Quote:
Koheleth wrote:
You use words like superficial, trying to build, pulled into, fake, fraud, and people pleaser. These are all accurate and are precisely the reason that "friendship evangelism" should be entirely forsaken...
Jesus did not make friends with his disciples.


And yet Jesus did in fact show Himself friendly! Because I'm quite sure He didn’t lecture them or yell at them that they would all go to hell if they didn’t follow Him.

There is no law in the Bible or anywhere that is against Christians showing: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, and gentleness, self-control.

God bless,
Lisa


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Lisa

 2012/2/25 6:18Profile
jimp
Member



Joined: 2005/6/18
Posts: 1481


 Re:

hi koheleth, you speak as a man with great authority who knows all about this subject but i would like to know how you witness to those around you. you are soooooowrong.paul, while in greece was on the mount where all the gods were and paul said to them "see this unknown god you have here ,this is the God i came here to tell you about....so we should disregard all of what paul said or wrote for he used cunning and oh wisdom to preach Jesus?

 2012/2/25 6:43Profile
Koheleth
Member



Joined: 2005/11/10
Posts: 530
NC

 Re:

Quote:


Quote:
Koheleth wrote:
You use words like superficial, trying to build, pulled into, fake, fraud, and people pleaser. These are all accurate and are precisely the reason that "friendship evangelism" should be entirely forsaken...
Jesus did not make friends with his disciples.



And yet Jesus did in fact show Himself friendly! Because I'm quite sure He didn’t lecture them or yell at them that they would all go to hell if they didn’t follow Him.

There is no law in the Bible or anywhere that is against Christians showing: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, and gentleness, self-control.



Of course we should be friendly, and I mentioned no contrary concepts in my post. Although Jesus never put friendship ahead of discipleship, I meant to imply, and perhaps left out, that we should follow Jesus' example and always be friendly. This means treating people with dignity, politeness, and respect. But it does not mean we need to make friends with them. When Jesus sent his disciples out, he told them to not greet anyone on the way. It may be a tangent, but it is related. Jesus and his disciples were never interested in social relationships (friendships). They were interested in the work of God and bringing people to God. Interestingly enough, this is often a good way to make friends, but friendship is never guaranteed. In following Christ, we are only guaranteed Christ.

 2012/2/25 19:50Profile





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