Hitting the nail on the head
by Calvin Smith
Published: 25 August 2009(GMT+10)
Photo stock.xchng
Do you have to be an expert to share your faith in our “modern” culture?
Not at all! As a matter of fact I’ve found that skilled evangelists (typically
the people that need apologetic arguments the most) often use simple, yet accurate
points that they can communicate quickly because of the time constraints they are
under.
This does not mean Christians should not study their Bible (show
yourself approved) or understand and explain sophisticated scientific and
philosophical arguments. It just means sometimes we need strategy in our walk and
our witness to match the situation.
Throw the heaving line, not the hawser!
When mooring a ship to shore, sailors will secure the vessel using massive ropes,
called “hawsers”. Without these anchor points a ship will drift
out to sea, and, unguided, be battered and sunk by the elements. These ropes are
far too heavy to throw from ship to shore however. In order to draw the heavy line
in, a smaller rope (the heaving line) is attached and thrown ashore, and then the hawser can be pulled in and secured. This is an analogy to a practical witnessing
strategy. Sometimes we must start with a light, easy-to-wield delivery system before
moving on to the more “weighty” matters.
On the front lines
Canadian evangelist Cory McKenna, presenter of the weekly radio program The Cross
Current.
Recently I was speaking with Canadian evangelist Cory McKenna, who teaches on evangelism
and takes teams of people out onto city streets weekly, sharing the Gospel. He airs
real life conversations on his
weekly radio show,The
Cross Current.
Cory explained to me how important it is for him and his teams to get to the heart
of people’s stumbling blocks to the Gospel quickly, before they become disinterested
and move on. Cory shared two “witnessing weapons” he uses to effectively
share the Gospel: conscience and creation.
Conscience
First, God has written His Law on the hearts of all people and given them a conscience
whereby they know it’s wrong when they lie, steal, blaspheme, etc. That’s
why by using the Ten Commandments (the Law), he can objectively show people how
they have sinned against a holy and just God and are deserving of His wrath. This
also helps them understand why God sent His Son Jesus to be the perfect, sinless
sacrifice for their sin.
To do this takes time of course, and busy people often will not stop to listen if
they think their time is being wasted.
Creation
Cory explained that more than 80% of the time people will bring up evolutionary
arguments or objections to the book of Genesis as reasons to reject the Bible. Yet
they will often hang around for a long time, engaging in lively conversations. Some
are often converted on the spot if they receive powerful, easy to understand illustrations
that overcome their objections early in the conversation.
Of course, it’s the “foolish” preaching of the simple Gospel message
that ultimately saves. However, if people have already dismissed the Bible as truth,
or simply profess non-belief in God, then starting with the Gospel apart from any
apologetics may quickly lead to disinterest, and the person may walk away. This
is why creation apologetics are essential when sharing Christ with an atheistic,
evolutionary culture.
Cory says such topics help people become “intellectually engaged”, causing
them to voice their opinions and be more open to spiritual concepts. He follows
up these initial witnessing encounters via 1-on-1 meetings or
on-line communications, in an attempt to further the person’s journey
towards Christ. Only after such communication has been established can more in-depth
objections be explored, often by simply sharing/forwarding articles like the ones
on CMI’s FAQ page.
Short and sweet
An illustration Cory shared how one of his fellow evangelists came up with was the
“pyramid analogy”. When faced with someone touting an atheistic (no
God), evolutionary (everything creates itself) belief, they might ask something
to this effect: “If you were to look at the outward structure of one of the
great Egyptian pyramids, would you conclude it was created by an intelligent designer
or came into existence by chance?”
After admitting there may be a God the person is now much more willing to receive
the Gospel.
Usually receiving an affirmation that it was obviously logical to affirm intelligent
design from the external structure they continue: “Even if you thought there
was a way the stone blocks mechanistically piled themselves into position, if you
were to look at the internal passages of the pyramid and see hieroglyphics (a language)
painted on the wall, would it be logical to conclude that this is pretty well absolute
confirmation in your mind that someone sophisticated created these structures?”
After receiving the inevitable “Yes” they point out “Well when
I look at you externally it seems obvious that you were designed by someone, and
internally you have the most sophisticated language system ever imagined in the
form of DNA!. Do you think from the evidence it’s possible that there is a
God?”
When confronted with this simple, un-antagonistic line of reasoning Cory says many
will agree that it is possible that there is a God. For many people this
is a huge first step! Hebrews 11:6 says: And without faith it is impossible to
please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists
and that he rewards those who seek him. After admitting there may be a God the person
is now much more willing to receive the Gospel.
Smacking your thumb with a hammer is a painful experience! It often makes you hesitant
to try again. But an experienced carpenter rarely misses, and feels the satisfaction
of regularly hitting the nail on the head.
Note that the above analogy is derived of two components that can be expanded greatly,
the design
argument, and the
information argument. Cory says the team member that came up with the analogy
is extremely well versed in Christian
apologetics and can deliver sophisticated explanations if asked. But he
uses this analogy to put a chink in their armour quickly (making the person understand
they have weaknesses in their belief system) and help them understand it is not
“un-intellectual” to believe in God.
Doing good work
Smacking your thumb with a hammer is a painful experience! It often makes you hesitant
to try again. But an experienced carpenter rarely misses, and feels the satisfaction
of regularly hitting the nail on the head.
As sharers of God’s word we need ready answers to questions about the Christian
faith we know many will ask. CMI has many “hit the nail on the head”
tools that can help you sharpen your skills in this area. Some of our most popular
are: Creation magazine,
Stones and Bones,
the Creation Answers Book,
Answers to the 4 Big Questions,
and Creation Magazine LIVE!
Armed with these simple tools in their pouch, Christians can get a lot of work
done in their mission field, and avoid the painful sting of a missed opportunity!
Related resources
|
