I wear the bracelet on occasions when I am praying and anticipating God to use me to share the gospel. These last two weeks I had the opportunity to hand out a 1 Cor 15-centered, free grace tract (by Dr. Sumner Wemp), to a man who was in a hurry and I am building a new connection with a woman my age who has become backslidden from a legalistic pentecostal church. God is very amazing, and I am blessed.
Last night I went to the pharmacy to pick up a prescription for my son's pink eye infection. There was no one except the cashier and the pharmacist there. The cashier asked me what my bracelet represented. I was caught off guard.
"Oh; it's an evangelism bracelet. There are five colors on it which represent the five scriptures that lead people to put their faith in Christ."
"Oh," she said, a little weirded out.
Then there was a short pause and I knew I better speak up or lose an opportunity. I looked behind me to make sure there wasn't anyone in line to annoy with an intense discussion -- nope, no one. I turned back and was about to ask what I oftentimes do next "Do you have a faith life?"
Unfortunately, she was just finishing ripping off my receipt, being a lot faster than I thought she'd be. I missed an opportunity. I pray I can go back to her and see her again and get into that discussion.
That was a pretty lame answer, wasn't it? How can I make this easier, next time?
Should I waste no time at all and tell her five scriptures' worth of information? Or, should I ask her interest and permission first?
Is depicting five requirements of agreement, a healthy way to suggest how one goes about obtaining eternal life? Could it be done with four or three?
What if I started off with the "most important information" first, and then got into more detail as time allowed (and by grace all of those points would be discussed in a steady flow)? What would be the first thing that came out of your mouth, if you had no idea the background of the person you were sharing with, and you didn't know how long you would have to speak?
I haven't ever made a dedication to use a "crossless" version of the gospel in evangelism. It's too gosh-darn scary. Not only because I love the Word of God but also because I've always been an island of disagreeing opinion.
Who wants to follow the crazy lady in your head even if you're the owner of said head?
Here are the five points of this gospel (some of you may dislike the vernacular I use to recall the verses):
GOLD - God lives in heaven and He wants you to live there too when you die.
BLACK - There are wrong things each one of us has done, and there is a punishment; suffering and separation from God.
RED - The perfect man who was also God - Jesus - died and took away all our sins, yours, mine, everyone's.
WHITE - You and I get the credit of His effort when we believe in what he did.
GREEN - In the same way you trusted in Jesus just now, we have the ability to trust in Him to take care of us in life and to take us to be with Him in the end.
2 comments:
Hi Michele.
Let me tell you something that is wonderfully liberating.
In this country, there is a widespread understanding that Jesus Christ died on a cross and rose again. People may not believe it, but they know about the story.
The encounter with Jesus in Sychar, John chapter 4, is very interesting. Transcribed for us is an evangelistic dialogue. Jesus piqued the woman's interest and allowed a conversation to occur, directing it ever so skillfully to reach the points He wished to emphasize.
He asked her for a drink, which was a very curious (to say the least) thing for a Jewish man to say to a Samaritan woman. When she called Him on it, he said one of the most spectacular things ever to be spoken, "If you knew the gift of God, and who it says to you, 'Give me a drink,' you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water."
WHAT A CONVERSATION OPENER, eh?!!
In that instance, there was a dialogue, a back and forth. There were 10 back and forths, Christ speaking and the woman responding.
You wrote:
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What if I started off with the "most important information" first, and then got into more detail as time allowed (and by grace all of those points would be discussed in a steady flow)? What would be the first thing that came out of your mouth, if you had no idea the background of the person you were sharing with, and you didn't know how long you would have to speak?
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Tell you what, a great opener would be something like this:
Jesus Christ made the radical claim that anyone who simply trusts in Him for eternal life has it that very moment, and can never lose it, no matter what!
I'll tell you what. That statement or something similar gets the interest of 3-4 out of 5 people everytime I use it. It gets a discussion going.
Usually I will get something like this:
"Does the Bible really say that?"
or
"Well I thought you had to be a good person"
At any rate, you have an opening and a discussion, and you are able to plant seeds... AND the person has enough information from the get go - faith alone in Christ alone.
You asked, and I answered. I hope that you find it intriguing at the least.
Your free grace guest,
Antonio da Rosa
Great idea, mostly because of how it is a door-opener and not some kind of restriction against using a more fuller version of the gospel. And yet first things first, eternal life is the achievement of His work and the applicational goal of dialogue.
I have a lot to learn!!
I went back to the pharmacy and she wasn't there. I was sad. But now I'm doing a one-week kids' club evangelism program in our home. It's with CEF and this five-point gospel.... Please pray for the kids that will come! God bless you, who read!
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