Personal Witnessing Strategy - Session 4

PERSONAL WITNESSING STRATEGY

Session 4

FOUNDATIONAL FUNDAMENTALS

Professional athletes don’t have time to think about every movement they make. Because they’ve practiced the fundamentals of their game so much, the actions just happen when different situations arise in their game. We want this to be the case when telling others about Jesus. While the Good News of sins forgiven through Jesus is a simple message, it also has important points that we will want to communicate as a person asks for more about this Jesus guy.

Hopefully, as our relationship grows with someone we’re witnessing to, we’ll have an increasing amount of opportunities to talk about who Jesus is, why He had to die on the cross and what the events of Easter really means for modern day Christians. If we continually are in contact with God’s Word, these things will flow out from us more easily.

“But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect,” (1 Peter 3:15 NIV).

If we focus specifically on the fundamentals of the Good News we will find ourselves better prepared for communicating Jesus’ message when opportunities arise.

SEVEN FUNDAMENTALS

Keep it simple. When witnessing to others, remember that they might not be ready for the amount of detail that you are able give them. Here are seven basic statements that Michael Gibson offers to help communicate the Good News in a simple but faithful way.

#1 - GOD LOVES US UNCONDITIONALLY.

The world around us doesn’t give much out for free. But God’s love for sinners comes with no strings attached. Some push God’s love away because they think God can’t really love them unless they do something to earn His love. Others push God’s love away by reasoning that if God loves everyone, than everyone will make it to heaven. God does love everyone, and has made forgiveness of sins available to everyone – in His Son. Not in Allah. Not in Buddha. Not in Gaia. In His Son.

John 3:16

1 John 5:11-13

1 Timothy 2:3-4

#2 - WE REBEL AGAINST GOD’S LOVE.

Sin is rebellion against God’s loving rule in our life. Ever since Adam and Eve all of us do it. Our sin rebellion separates us from God and invites His judgment.

Romans 3:23

Psalm 14:1-3

Ecclesiastes 7:20

#3 - WE CAN’T OVERCOME OUR OWN REBELLION.

Most if not all religions apart from Christianity are suggested methods for overcoming the badness in us and climbing upward to God. But this is make believe. Just as a human being will never jump up and touch the stars, neither can sinners overcome the sin that they are mired in.

Romans 11:35

Romans 3:20

Isaiah 6:1, 5

#4 - JESUS IS GOD’S SOLUTION TO OUR REBELLION.

God knew right from the start that sinful mankind could never get himself out of the mess of sin. So God provided the way out. God arranged for someone else to pay the punishment for man’s sin – Jesus. God’s Son made human. The God-Man.

Romans 3:23-26

Romans 1:16-17

2 Timothy 3:15

#5 - GOD’S UNCONDITIONAL LOVE BRINGS US FORGIVENESS AND PEACE THROUGH JESUS.

Jesus doesn’t come to teach us how to earn forgiveness, Jesus brings us actual forgiveness. Now. Forever. Christianity doesn’t offer a ladder to heaven. In Christianity Jesus transports us into the kingdom of forgiveness and peace through no efforts of our own. In Jesus we see God’s love truly is unconditional. No strings attached.

Acts 10:43

Ephesians 1:7

Colossians 1:13

#6 - TRUST IN JESUS BINDS US TO HIM.

Forgiveness, life and salvation are all found in Jesus. Those who trust in Him have these. It is not our good deeds that bind us to Christ. His goodness and loving acts toward us shine like a light and draw us to Him in trust.

Romans 10:11-13

John 5:24

1 John 5:11-12

#7- GOD’S GRACE ENABLES US TO LIVE AS OBEDIENT CHILDREN WHO CAN SAY NO TO SIN.

The world often messes this one up. Most religions say we have to do good to earn God’s love. The reality is, God’s love comes to us first! God’s Son washes our sin away and makes us His children by faith. The good conduct that begins to grow afterwards is just the breathing of the living spirit that trusts in Jesus as Savior.

Titus 2:11-14

Romans 12:1-2

1 John 3:1-3

GETTING ONTO THE FIELD

1. Write Gibson’s seven Gospel points on 3 x 5 cards. On the other side of the card write out a passage which you feel expresses this point well. Take the cards with you and memorize them. Make them so familiar that they’ll easily come to mind in a conversation.

2. Identify events in your life that illustrate each of these fundamental points. Think about how your story might lead into one of these Gospel points. Practice how you might actually talk about this in real conversation. Practice talking around these points until you’re comfortable and natural when doing so. You are becoming equipped to reach out with your own personal experience and actually share the Good News in the context of your experience with Jesus. Now that’s exciting!
   

Referenced: “Out of the Bleachers and Onto the Field” by Michael E. Gibson

Personal Witnessing Strategy - Session 3

PERSONAL WITNESSING STRATEGY

Session 3

MAKING CONTACT

Maybe you’ve seen a big “home-run” hitter step up to the plate at a softball game. This guy knows he can hit a home-run and wants one right now. Here comes the pitch. Here comes the swing. A big step, a big swooping swipe, the crack of the bat – and a high fly ball to end the inning.

The homerun is glorious, but the game winning hitters are the ones who come out every night just to make contact. In fact, that’s the best method for hitting homeruns – just make good solid contact. Eventually, one will find the fence.

In witnessing the same is true. Our great God hasn’t asked us to hit a homerun every time, He just wants us to make contact!

A pastor was giving a talk on witnessing and was asked, “What should I say?” He replied, “Something!” He was right! Effective witnessing can’t be done if we don’t put the Word of God into play. To use the baseball comparison: Where should I hit it? Somewhere! Make contact! Speak of your great God and Savior!

CONTACT AT THE CROSS POINTS

Mark 5:18-20

When the experience of a believer overlaps with the experience of a non-Christian an opportunity is present to speak of what God has done for us and how He has had mercy on us.

Sometimes a cross point zips past like a fastball down the middle of the plate. We miss it because we aren’t paying attention. Part of seeing cross points is being conscious that they may be coming, and listening for them.

Acts 17:22-23

In Athens Paul first paid attention. He listened and looked at what the people were like. What they were interested in. Then he put the Good News of Jesus into play by using what he learned about the people!

LISTEN! LISTEN! LISTEN!

If we want to share Jesus with other people we need to first listen to them. Then we can understand what aspect of the Good News we might start with and how to do that. Each situation is different because each person’s experience in life is different. There isn’t one polished sentence or paragraph that a Christian can just rattle off in every witnessing opportunity. We have to listen before we can speak with specific purpose and direction.

A SILLY CROSS POINT

In his book, Gibson tells a story about a little green dot. He would place a little green dot on his watch to remind himself to be in God’s Word every day. One day a the local grocery store a clerk noticed the dot. She asked him what it was. He told her, “It’s something I use as a reminder. When I see it, I ask myself if I’ve spent time with the Lord today in Bible study and prayer.”

Looking confused, the clerk said, “Oh... Your total is $7.32”.

But the next time he went through her line, she noticed the dot had changed color. It was red now. She asked why. He responded, “If I don’t change the color it loses impact.”

She said, “Did it work today, did you remember?”

“Remember?”

“Your time with, you know, …God.”

“Yeah, I did; I had a great time.”

“Oh. Your total is $3.21.”

It was a silly dot. It was a simple exchange. It was a little conversation, but it was the beginning of a relationship.

“As we have our little talks (remember, I’m in the quick-check line), I try to remember previous conversations so that I can ask questions about her well-being in hopes of providing an opportunity to encourage her, to promise to pray for her, to speak to her about the Lord. I’m not doing anything special, just trying to make contact. And as I listen to her, I begin to get a feel for who she is and how she might respond to parts of my story” (Gibson 44).

JOURNAL YOUR EXPERIENCE

People are valuable. They are precious souls fashioned by God Almighty and bought back from sin by the unimaginable suffering of God’s Son. Take the time to listen to their thoughts, their worries, their story. Take it further. Take a moment to write down some of the things you hear in a journal. Take it even further. Review that journal and actually pray for these people that you may have an opportunity to reach out to.

GETTING ONTO THE FIELD

1. In an earlier session you made a list of unsaved family and friends. Write down the names of 1-3 of those individuals on which to focus your witnessing efforts.

2. List some “cross points” that you have in common with each person. Ponder how God might use these common experiences to provide a contemporary context in which the Good News of Jesus can be shared.

3. Continually pray for the people on your list.

Referenced: “Out of the Bleachers and Onto the Field” by Michael E. Gibson