The Forgotten Method

 

FLAG CHAPEL BAPTIST CHURCH

738 FLAG CHAPEL ROAD

JACKSON, MISSISSIPPI 39209

 

“But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you:

And ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea,

And in Sameria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.” (Acts 1:8)

The Bible clearly commands every Christian to be a witness.  This command applies to the preacher in the pulpit and the people in the pew.  No believer is exempt from this responsibility, because this is our greatest responsibility.

If men are lost and the gospel is the only way of salvation, then nothing can be allowed to take precedence over proclaiming the message of salvation through Jesus Christ.  Therefore witnessing must be and remain the priority of the Church.  It is the God ordained method for bringing people to Jesus and salvation and most people in fundamental Churches understand that truth.

Very few people in any independent Baptist Church will argue with you over the importance of witnessing or who God expects to be a witness.  It is common knowledge among independent Baptist that our main task is to spread the gospel and every Christian is to do their part in pointing men to Christ and salvation.

Now with independent Baptist putting so much emphasis on witnessing and being a witness one would  think independent Baptist would have more people saved each year than any other group in America, but in many cases that is not true.

In many locations Independent Baptist are not having any more saved through their ministry than are the groups that never mention witnessing from the pulpit and in some cases they seem to be having less.  How can that be true?  How can a group put so much emphasis on witnessing and not have any more saved than the groups who never talk about witnessing when  we  know  this  is  the God ordained method for reaching sinners?

The answer is simple.  This lack of fruit is due to the confusion that exists among God’s people about witnessing and the method of witnessing that is necessary to bring sinners to Jesus and salvation.  This confusion comes from the fact there are many different ways to be a witness and preachers seem to put each of these methods on the same level of importance.

Let me list a few of the ways a Christian can be witness.

 

A Christian can witness through the use of gospel tracts

There are many good gospel tracts being printed today.  These tracts present the gospel as clearly as it can be presented and when a Christian gives one of these tracts to a lost person that Christian is giving a witness.

We had an organized tract ministry in our church at one time and we encouraged those who were in this ministry to give away at least one tract everyday.  When those people on our tract team gave out their tracts they were giving a witness that a lost person could read that would explain the way of salvation.  This in one way to witness and it does work.

Some people get saved every year after reading a gospel tract and the seed of the gospel is planted in the hearts of many others through the use of gospel tracts.  Some people believe the only reason more people are not saved by reading gospel tracts is because more people are not distributing them  and that may be true.  Only eternity will reveal how many souls were saved because someone gave them a tract. 

I personally wish every Christian would get in the habit of carrying tracts and distributing them liberally.  There are times  when there will be no opportunity to take your Bible and present the gospel verse by verse to a sinner, but you can leave the gospel with them by giving them a tract.  This is one method of giving a witness but it is the only method some Christians use.

 

A Christian can witness by giving their testimony

Most pastors occasionally give their congregation the opportunity to share their testimony concerning their salvation experience.  In these testimony services church members publicly declare they are a Christian and they give the details of their conversion.

By doing this those who share their testimony are being a witness to those who are present in the congregation.  They are presenting the truths of the gospel as they testify they have been saved through Jesus Christ.

Now certainly Christians should share their salvation experience when the opportunity arises.  Paul said --- “Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord…” (II Timothy 1:8A)

So every Christian should be willing to give their testimony when the opportunity presents itself and sharing ones testimony is a valid witness.  Occasionally people get saved after hearing the testimony of others.  The Holy Spirit sometimes uses the conversion exper- ience of a believer to show others their need of Jesus and salvation.

Would to God every Christian would relate the details of how they came to Christ when their pastor asks for testimonies.  This is a legitimate way for a Christian to be a witness, but this is also the only method some Christians use to share the gospel.

 

A Christian can witness by living a holy life

When a Christian chooses to live like the Bible says a Christian should live, their life gives confirmation to the gospel. Someone once said, “I had rather see a sermon than hear a sermon.”, and when a Christian lives a holy life their life provides a living illustration of what Jesus can do. It shows the world Jesus can and does save and change sinners.  Their life becomes a witness lost sinners can see everyday.

Oh, how we need this type of witness today!  In this day when the life style of many Christians has given Christianity a black eye, there is a great need for Christians who will “live the life”.  The world needs to see that it does mean something to be a Christian and Jesus does make a difference.  What an impact it would have on the lost and dying world if every Christian began living like a Christian!

Life style evangelism is a legitimate way for a Christian to be a witness, because living a holy life does make an impression on people who are not saved, but it is the only method some Christians use to influence the lost and dying world.

Now all three of the methods mention above are valid ways a Christian can give a witness and each of these methods have a place in the over all scheme of trying to bring the lost to Christ.  Gospel tracts can go places you and I will never go.

Giving a testimony allows the world to see salvation from the stand point of a satisfied customer and living the life confirms that knowing Jesus does make a difference in a person’s life.

All three have a place in the wok of evangelism, but these three method above are not enough to effectively bring lost sinners to Jesus and salvation. They have a place, but they are not the whole ball of wax and the fact these are the only methods some people use explains why we are doing such a poor job in the harvest.

These methods are needed.  God forbid we should ever cast them aside, but there is a fourth method.  A forgotten method.  And this method is the one that is needed and necessary.  What is this fourth and forgotten method of witnessing?

 

A Christian can witness

by being a personal

soul winner

Personal soul winning was the primary method of witness used by the believers in the New Testament. Christians in the first century took personal responsibility for the unsaved in their day and they verbally shared the message of salvation with the unsaved they encountered.

Acts 5:42 says -- “And daily in the temple, and in every house, they ceased not to teach and preach Jesus Christ.”

Then in Acts 8:4 the Bible says -- “Therefore they that were scattered abroad went every where preaching the word.”

Even the Apostle Paul relied upon one on one, confrontation witnessing to reach the lost.  In Acts 20:20-21 Paul says --

“And how I kept back nothing that was profitable unto you, but have shewed you, and have taught you publicly, and from house to house, testifying both to the Jews,and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.”

It is apparent these verses are not talking about passing out gospel tracts, merely giving a testi- mony or life style evangelism.  These verse tell us the Christians in the book of Acts were personal soul winners.

They sought out sinners and shared the message of salvation one on one with the unsaved with the intent of leading them to Christ if possible.  This was their primary method for evangelizing the world.  Even on the day of Pentecost the Bible says all the disciples went out soul sinning and there was never any question in their mind that this was the way to win the lost, because Jesus had told them to use this method.

In Mark 16:15 Jesus said --“…Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.”

Then in Acts 1:8 Jesus said --“But ye shall receive power, after the Holy Ghost is come upon you: And ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.”

It is clear as you read the New Testament that Christians in the first century took these statements to mean every Christian should personally seek to verbally share the gospel with as many lost people as possible with the intention of leading them to receive Christ.

You can call it “button hole evangelism”, “confrontation evangelism” or call it soul winning. It makes no difference what you call it, the method is clear.  Early Christians majored on personal soul winning to get people saved and it worked!  They turned the world upside down as millions came to know Jesus.

No other generation of Christians have effected the world as dramatically as these we read about in the book of Acts and personal soul winning was the key to it all.  The vast majority of those who were saved in the early days of church history came to Christ because someone personally, verbally presented the gospel to them.  Anyone who reads the New Testament can not fail to see that fact.  Personal soul winning is God’s method for reaching the lost.

But out of all the methods available that enable Christians to be a witness, this is the one that is often neglected. Christians pass out gospel tracts by the thousands.  Christians try to live clean and pure so others can tell they are a Christian and most Christians speak up for Jesus in a testimony service.

But lost people are dying unsaved within walking distance from the church and many churches never have anyone walk the isle because we have forgotten the God ordain method for winning the lost.  Many Independent Baptist Churches have done away with their soul winning program.  Multitudes of Independent Baptist pastors never knock on a door and never preach about soul winning. It is the forgotten method.

Most Christians today have never led a soul to Christ and many have never even attempted to lead a soul to Christ.  They have and do invite people to Church, but they completely ignore God’s command concerning soul winning.

This is tragic, because personal soul winning is the only way to effectively reach the lost and this is the reason many Independent Baptist Churches are dying.  We have the right doctrine and the right convictions, but we have forgotten the right method for winning the lost.

In these last days when multitudes are being deceived by the cults and swayed by the name it and claim it crowd, Independent Baptist must return to New Testament evangelism.  We must get back to house to house, door to door soul winning. No other method of evangelism will reach the masses.  We must rediscover the forgotten method