PERSONAL EVANGELISM
(Part 3)
Memory Verse: “But
God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak
things of the world to shame the strong.” I Cor. 1: 27 (NIV).
LESSON
OBJECTIVES AND FOCUS
We shall be looking
at the different types of people we are likely to come across when we are
engaged in personal evangelism.
LESSON INTRODUCTION
It is said that when
someone understands the problem he is dealing with, then he is halfway to the
solution. In a similar way, if we understand the type of person we are
witnessing to, then our personal evangelism will be more focused.
SOME INSIGHT
God in His infinite
wisdom has always turned the wisdom of the world into foolishness. He has
always confounded the mighty and the brave with the simple. What the fathers
could not appreciate He delivered to the children and babes. Matth. 11:25. Just for some examples:
·
Imagine Philip
standing before the Ethiopian Eunuch with the CV in Acts 8:27. The Eunuch needed to understand what he was reading from
Isa 53, and Philip lead him to faith in the Lord. Acts 8:26-31; 34-38.
·
Paul met with some
philosophers in Athens, a city renowned for its learning in those days. They
set up altars for as many gods as they could invent, and as an insurance, they
also had one reserved for the “unknown God”. Paul told them,
“I know this God”. Acts 17:16-34 (and note vs. 22-23).
·
Imagine the high
position of the Army Commander, Cornelius, Acts
10:1, but it pleased our God to humble him and use a simple, uneducated
ex-fisherman to lead him & all the people in his house to a saving faith in
Jesus. Acts 10:1-end.
God continues to use
simple people today, believers who are not trusting in their own personal achievements
and capabilities, to bring the high and low to a saving faith in the Lord.
LESSON OUTLINE 1: THE ONES BEING EVANGELISED (PART I)
As we said earlier,
understanding the people we are to evangelise will assist us in the task. For
instance, there are those we can characterize as:
1. The careless. See
Luke 12:13-21; Psalm 10:4.
God is never in their
thoughts. They are just too busy chasing after this and after that. If they
hear the word of God, it means nothing to them. Like the seed sown by the wayside,
the word of God finds no room in them – it is simply carried away by the birds
of the air.
2. The deceived. See
I Tim 4: 1-3; II Tim. 3:1-7.
They will readily
embrace error instead of the truth. They are in fact manifestations of the
signs of the last days.
3. The objector or opposer. See Acts 13:8; I Cor. 16:8-9; II Tim. 3:8.
They oppose &
refuse to accept the truth and authority of the Scriptures. They would go on,
in some cases, to ask questions often designed to entrap the witness &
discredit his message.
4. The sceptic and atheist. See
Psalm 14:1.
They do not believe
in the word of God. In fact they doubt God’s existence, & tend to believe
that science and modern learning have answered, or will soon answer, all of
life’s questions.
5. The excuser. See Gen. 3: 10-13; Luke 14:18.
They tend not to
accept responsibility for their action. They would rather blame others, and
find a way to wriggle out of taking the right course of action.
How can we
handle the people in these various groups?
LESSON OUTLINE 2: THE ONES BEING EVANGELISED (PART
II)
1. The heathen. See Psalm 135: 15-18; Matth. 6:7.
In some cases it can
be said they have never heard of the living God. However given the spread of
the gospel these days especially through the print and electronic media (wherever
radio and TV signals are received), it can be said that many are heathen today
by choice.
2. The anxious or seeker after the truth and salvation. See Acts
8: 26-40.
There are indeed
genuine seekers after the truth and salvation. They are anxious to know the
truth so they may be set free. John 8:32.
3. The backslider.
See Psalms 137:1-4 & 126:1-6
which describe the results of the backsliding of God’s people and their
eventual restoration.
He once knew the joy
and assurance of his salvation but has now lost that close relationship with
His Saviour because, like a dog, he has gone back to his vomit. II Pet. 2:20-22. He has
gradually slipped back to his old life,
but if he was genuinely saved at the beginning (see I John 2:19), he will be uncomfortable living in the vomit until he
comes back to his first love.
4. The discouraged.
See I Sam 23:15-16; II Cor. 1:3-5.
There may indeed be
occasions in life when the path of the believer is not “level”, as he comes
across experiences that could discourage him. It is at such times he needs to
trust in the Lord the more (see Isaiah
50:10), as he reminds himself of the reality of Rom. 8:28. Even the seeming disappointments become God’s
appointments, and the apparent stumbling blocks become steps unto the higher
ground the Lord is calling him to.
How can we
handle the people in these various groups?
SUMMARY
God wants all
conditions and types of men to be won to Him. Let us depend on the help of the
Holy Spirit as we seek to carry out His command to evangelise all men all over
the world.