so this is my definition of studying for my computer operating systems quiz today.
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Monday, July 7, 2008
Why Would I Listen to Something I Don't Believe In
by Josh Tutwiler
So many times I hear many Christians say that they have a hard time preaching the gospel to non-believers because of the fact that they feel like they are talking to a brick wall. One guy told me "Why should I even bother telling them (non-believers) the gospel? They don't believe it anyways. It would just come in one ear and out the other." Some Christians use the approach of connecting with non-believers whether it be certain similar interest (such as in music or entertainment) or relating to them on a personal level by exchanging testimonies with each other. I believe this is an amazing approach to connect with non-believers and creates such a solid and secure ground for further conversation but it's so important we don't loose sight of the sword and the power it can have in the heart of EACH AND EVERY single person on this planet.
I can understand the nervousness someone can have about sharing the actual word-by-word gospel with a non-believer believe me I've been there. It's usually normal to establish a friendship with the person and once that person let's you into that little circle of trust and friendship then you might poke them with a little Jesus here and there. This is very risky however because the more you hang out with this person, the more opportunities you will have to do the practices that they (a non-believer) does. We must be careful not to be acting as the world does as Paul says in 2 Cor:
"Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness?" 2 Cor 6:14
As a side note, this verse is not telling you that you can't have unbelieving friends. It is telling us however that we need to not be in binding relationships that can hurt our relationship with God. I'm sure all of us have had friends who were not believers and in the end we have had many regrets as to the decisions we've made from the relationship. This is what Paul is emphasizing here.
However, back on track, if you do have friends who are non-believers it's important for them to know who you are and what you believe in (that's the easy part). But it's also important for them to know that you love them so much that you want them to be a part of the life God has offered them and that can't be done with anything but the Gospel message. Sharing the Gospel message with an unbeliever is another blog post but for know it's important to see the importance of sharing the word of God with people and especially those you call a friend.
When I first was open about sharing the gospel I felt very unprepared. Why??? Because I didn't know any of the gospel. The truth is, I still feel unprepared sometimes and that's not what God wants for us.
"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
This is why it's so important for us to spend time in the word every day with God. We don't need to know the whole Bible word for word but we do need to know what the Bible says about many of the things the world doubts God on. Like my mentor Casey Jones says "It's going to happen to you every once in a while, but DON'T LET IT HAPPEN TWICE." In other words, when we come into a situation where we don't know how to correctly answer a question a non-believer has for us we need to dive in the word and search for the answer ASAP so that next time we are ready to answer the question just as the 1 Peter tells us to do.
For example, I was talking to one of my classmates in one of my computer science classes who is a agnostic. I was telling him about God and in our discussion he brought up the suffering of the world such as global warming and poverty in Africa and he asked me "If God is so loving then why would God let things like this happen to the world he "loves"?" This is a fair question I thought but the truth is I didn't know what God had to particularly say about this. I ended up telling him that God didn't want all this to happen but that conversation was on my mind all day and when I got home I dove in the scriptures as to what God had to say about the pain and suffering in the world. It wasn't that hard to find. What I found was that it started with Adam and Eve and the curse they set on themselves for not listening to God (Gen. 3:17) . And because of this sin, death has come into the world along with pain and suffering because of MAN not because of God (Rom. 5:3) I was now clear that all the things in the world that are so haywire like global warming are because of US and our actions and yet we blame God about it. Then I read this:
"I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed. For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it (MAN), in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought int o the glorious freedom of the children of God." Rom. 8:18
and on top of that I read this:
"He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away." Rev 21:4
WOWOW!!! how amazing is God?? Not only can I answer my friends question now but I can give him a hope that no one else can offer. A hope that only God can give him that promises him freedom for the bondage of this world and destruction that lies within it. HOLY COW!! This is how we grow in God folks. Not only by reading and meditating on his word but putting it into practice in our everyday lives whether it involves other people or just ourselves and the things we go through on a day-to-day basis.
I think one of the most important barriers that we must overcome as Christians is spreading the word of God. We must not be ashamed of it, instead we must be so eager to share it with other people who we know must hear it.
"I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes" Romans 1:16
Instead of thinking how they will think of us from now on, we need to think of them and how they are going to suffer for eternity if we don't tell them about the good news of Jesus Christ.
All the fol owing verses are so amazing and I encourage you to remember these whenever you have the opportunity to share the gospel with a non-believer:
"All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness." 2 Tim 3:16
"So is my word (the word of God) that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it." Isaiah 55:11
"For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges and thoughts and attitudes of the heart." Hebrews 4:12
The word of God is so powerful. It is not just a book. "IT IS ALIVE AND ACTIVE" in every one's lives. So when you think that someone won't care about what the bible has to say or they even tell you that this doesn't mean anything to me just remember that "IT WILL NOT RETURN TO ME EMPTY, BUT WILL ACCOMPLISH WHAT I DESIRE AND ACHIEVE THE PURPOSE FOR WHICH I SENT IT". God will always be with you and remember "If God is with me, who can be against me" Rom 8:31
"All men are like grass, and all their glory is like flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord stands forever."
1 Peter 1 :25
So many times I hear many Christians say that they have a hard time preaching the gospel to non-believers because of the fact that they feel like they are talking to a brick wall. One guy told me "Why should I even bother telling them (non-believers) the gospel? They don't believe it anyways. It would just come in one ear and out the other." Some Christians use the approach of connecting with non-believers whether it be certain similar interest (such as in music or entertainment) or relating to them on a personal level by exchanging testimonies with each other. I believe this is an amazing approach to connect with non-believers and creates such a solid and secure ground for further conversation but it's so important we don't loose sight of the sword and the power it can have in the heart of EACH AND EVERY single person on this planet.
I can understand the nervousness someone can have about sharing the actual word-by-word gospel with a non-believer believe me I've been there. It's usually normal to establish a friendship with the person and once that person let's you into that little circle of trust and friendship then you might poke them with a little Jesus here and there. This is very risky however because the more you hang out with this person, the more opportunities you will have to do the practices that they (a non-believer) does. We must be careful not to be acting as the world does as Paul says in 2 Cor:
"Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness?" 2 Cor 6:14
As a side note, this verse is not telling you that you can't have unbelieving friends. It is telling us however that we need to not be in binding relationships that can hurt our relationship with God. I'm sure all of us have had friends who were not believers and in the end we have had many regrets as to the decisions we've made from the relationship. This is what Paul is emphasizing here.
However, back on track, if you do have friends who are non-believers it's important for them to know who you are and what you believe in (that's the easy part). But it's also important for them to know that you love them so much that you want them to be a part of the life God has offered them and that can't be done with anything but the Gospel message. Sharing the Gospel message with an unbeliever is another blog post but for know it's important to see the importance of sharing the word of God with people and especially those you call a friend.
When I first was open about sharing the gospel I felt very unprepared. Why??? Because I didn't know any of the gospel. The truth is, I still feel unprepared sometimes and that's not what God wants for us.
"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
This is why it's so important for us to spend time in the word every day with God. We don't need to know the whole Bible word for word but we do need to know what the Bible says about many of the things the world doubts God on. Like my mentor Casey Jones says "It's going to happen to you every once in a while, but DON'T LET IT HAPPEN TWICE." In other words, when we come into a situation where we don't know how to correctly answer a question a non-believer has for us we need to dive in the word and search for the answer ASAP so that next time we are ready to answer the question just as the 1 Peter tells us to do.
For example, I was talking to one of my classmates in one of my computer science classes who is a agnostic. I was telling him about God and in our discussion he brought up the suffering of the world such as global warming and poverty in Africa and he asked me "If God is so loving then why would God let things like this happen to the world he "loves"?" This is a fair question I thought but the truth is I didn't know what God had to particularly say about this. I ended up telling him that God didn't want all this to happen but that conversation was on my mind all day and when I got home I dove in the scriptures as to what God had to say about the pain and suffering in the world. It wasn't that hard to find. What I found was that it started with Adam and Eve and the curse they set on themselves for not listening to God (Gen. 3:17) . And because of this sin, death has come into the world along with pain and suffering because of MAN not because of God (Rom. 5:3) I was now clear that all the things in the world that are so haywire like global warming are because of US and our actions and yet we blame God about it. Then I read this:
"I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed. For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it (MAN), in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought int o the glorious freedom of the children of God." Rom. 8:18
and on top of that I read this:
"He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away." Rev 21:4
WOWOW!!! how amazing is God?? Not only can I answer my friends question now but I can give him a hope that no one else can offer. A hope that only God can give him that promises him freedom for the bondage of this world and destruction that lies within it. HOLY COW!! This is how we grow in God folks. Not only by reading and meditating on his word but putting it into practice in our everyday lives whether it involves other people or just ourselves and the things we go through on a day-to-day basis.
I think one of the most important barriers that we must overcome as Christians is spreading the word of God. We must not be ashamed of it, instead we must be so eager to share it with other people who we know must hear it.
"I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes" Romans 1:16
Instead of thinking how they will think of us from now on, we need to think of them and how they are going to suffer for eternity if we don't tell them about the good news of Jesus Christ.
All the fol owing verses are so amazing and I encourage you to remember these whenever you have the opportunity to share the gospel with a non-believer:
"All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness." 2 Tim 3:16
"So is my word (the word of God) that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it." Isaiah 55:11
"For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges and thoughts and attitudes of the heart." Hebrews 4:12
The word of God is so powerful. It is not just a book. "IT IS ALIVE AND ACTIVE" in every one's lives. So when you think that someone won't care about what the bible has to say or they even tell you that this doesn't mean anything to me just remember that "IT WILL NOT RETURN TO ME EMPTY, BUT WILL ACCOMPLISH WHAT I DESIRE AND ACHIEVE THE PURPOSE FOR WHICH I SENT IT". God will always be with you and remember "If God is with me, who can be against me" Rom 8:31
"All men are like grass, and all their glory is like flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord stands forever."
1 Peter 1 :25
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
