Oh, Those Wonderful, Well-Meaning Christians!

From time-to-time, a Christian brother will set me straight about our methods of evangelism.

The following email is a response to my story about the Sarah Palin evangelistic effort a couple of weeks ago:

Have you ever considered that “an angry mob that hates Christians” coincidentally materializes every time you go out to seek “persecution”? Maybe they don’t “hate Christians” so much as rudeness and that being rude enough to attract “hate” is what your StoneThePreacher gig is all about (like standing up and “preaching” in the middle of the DMV)?
As the Canadian Mountie said to Sean Connery in “The Untouchables”: “I cannot approve of your methods, sir.” I guess I don’t regard the promise of persecution to be fulfilled when we go out of our way to provoke it for it’s own sake, which is what your various stories often seem to me to consist of. If one stands up in a restaurant (or the DMV, or a sporting event, or a wedding, or what have you) and starts “preaching” and gets thrown out or insulted, I’d say that one had it coming.

Below, see two articles I wrote dealing with people who don’t understand what we do as Biblical evangelists.

The first article is a response to many people (including a Pastor), who have taken issue with my “in your face” style; this was pre-Ray Comfort and before I used The Law! It’s called “Defending the Gospel.”

The second article is about those who don’t understand why we use the 10 Commandments in a Gospel presentation, and how to respond to our brothers and sisters in a loving way. It’s called “Loving Lawless Lovers of the Lord.”

Comments (0)

Paul Latour
October 16, 2008
When you get someone who claims to be a Christian and he uses a quote from a Hollywood movie instead of the Word of God (especially to back his stance against preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ in public) then I think it fair to exhort that person to examine himself to see if he is in the faith as Scripture calls us to do.
Tony Miano
October 16, 2008
Has it really come to this? (And that is a rhetorical question)
Are Christians really forming their theology from a Sean Connery movie filled with blood, gore, profanity, and blasphemy? (Another rhetorical question)
Sadly, many Christians these days will vehemently defend an unbelievers “right” to enjoy life and go to hell. Sadder still, some American Christians are more concerned about how they look to a lost world than where lost people will spend eternity.
Well, there’s no time quibble and whine. There are too many people dying every day. Steve, the most reasonable response to the person’s e-mail is this. Go! Go and preach the gospel as often as you can, to as many as you can, for as long as you can! 🙂
SeedSowerJoy
October 16, 2008
Careful reading would show that you don’t “stand up and preach IN the DMV”. (It is difficult enough to get the authorized permit to preach OUTSIDE the DMV.) But, I AM reconsidering inviting you to my wedding ;oD
Keep on preaching His Word–WHENever and WHEREever you find an “organic congregation” in desperate need of hearing the Law and the Gospel.
Rightous Richard
October 17, 2008
Thank you Ray Comfort for telling us to use the Law in our Gospel presentations. Thank you Pastor Steve for teaching me how to apply it. Today I was at the DMV and there were only a few people in line. I thought that I would only have time to pass out tracts before the DMV clerk came outside prior to opening. Just a few people in line I was thinking, No time to preach today. As I stood at the end of the line passing out tracts and then I counted 25 people in line and it was 7:48A. Something told me he who declares my name before people I will declare him to my father and he who denies me before people I will deny him. We preached for five minutes then the DMV clerks came out. We then retreated to the end of the line and pass out more tracts. The doors opened and everyone went inside. We handed out the rest of our tracts and walked back to our car. As I was getting inside my car I thought, Richard you really didn’t do a very good job this AM. Then a thought came to me, when you are weak I’m strong. God can use our weakest attempts given in love and in obedience to him. God please save many this morning and you get all the praise.
Ed Lee
October 21, 2008
Sounds as if this is another person who believes that we must “earn the right” to speak out the gospel to a lost and dying world. The timing must be convenient to all parties, the message carefully crafted to avoid hurting anyone’s sense of self righteousness, and heaven forbid speaking the convicting truth!! Better to let those lost and perishing decide when to seek God. Do criminals miraculously appear at the police station, urgently desiring to confess? I think not!!
Romans 3:10-12 “As it is written: There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one.”