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Practicalities of Soul Winning
Apologetics
Earlier this
year I presented you with two messages:
1. Elements
of Soul Winning
2.
Particulars of Soul Winning
This
messagewill serve to finalize the content of those two sermons.
When you
offer to share the gospel message with the lost you will often
meet with opposition in the form of excuses.
People will
generally listen to you, but then offer excuses in an attempt to put you off (shut you
up).
There is only
one way to avoid criticism or opposition:
- Say nothing, do nothing, and be nothing.
Both the excuses and the responses are
valid. I am not, however, suggesting that you must use any of these.
I am saying
that you must say something in response to excuses offered to the truths you hasve
presented.
My intention
is to give you pointers/examples that you can be comfortable with.
Objections
And Criticism
Basic Attitude
You need to
be in control. Even if you cannot control the conversation, you still need to control
yourself.
Show Some
Enthusiasm
You are
supposed to be sharing something you believe will make a
difference in the individual’s life.
- If you are not excited about what it has done for you, the
person you are sharing with will not be excited about acting on your information either.
Avoid going overboard by acting like a
carnival barker. Just be genuinely enthusiastic, not artificial.
Avoid
Arguments
The only way
to win an argument is to avoid it.
- A soft answer turneth away wrath: but grievous words stir
up anger. Proverbs 15:1
Show a Positive Attitude
Thank the
person for bringing up the issue(s). Let the person know that you are only too happy to
help.
Use
Sincere Compliments
For example:
“It is a
real pleasure to discuss these things with someone who is interested in spiritual
matters.”
If the person
has become irritated or hostile, it can definitely reduce the tension.
I do Not
Believe Your Doctrine
You should
have enough word in you to be able to refer to 1 or 2 scriptures to support what you
believe and to disprove the foundation of the individuals objection.
Lacking this
scriptural foundation is the biggest reason more people do not share the gospel.
If You do
Not Know—Say So!
You will
generate more credibility by admitting that you do not know the answer than by attempting
to fabricate one. Try something like this:
“That is
a very good question. I have no idea what the answer is, but I can find out. I would like
to know the answer myself. Let me research it and I will give you the answer.”
Challenging The Bible’s Authority
You should
handle most objections by referring people directly to the Bible. In fact, if you
know your Bible well enough, just hand it over to the person you are speaking with and
point him to the passages you want him to read. Let him do all of the reading.
However, if
the individual objects to the validity or authority of the Bible you have a different
situation on your hands.
Avoid
Being Confrontational
For example:
Q. How do you
know the Bible is True? Can you prove it?
Answers such
as, “Can you prove that it is untrue,” only serve to antagonize the individual.
The best
answer to give the person is:
“No, I
cannot prove that the Bible is true. The Bible proves itself to be true to those who will
read it and believe it.”
The Judo
Approach
If a person
does not believe the Bible, you are not up against a wall, you merely have an obsticle to
overcome.
Typically
soul-winning seminars teach people to respond with things like:
- It is the world’s best seller.
- It is the most popular book of all time.
- It is the most important literary work in human history.
These and other such responses are entriely
worthless approaches to a person’s unbelief of the Bible.
Do you
honestly think that just because the Bible is the most read book of all time that everyone
is suddenly going to start believing it?
When someone
says, “I do not believe the Bible,” what he really means is, “I have never
read the Bible, but I have heard people talk about it and I do not believe what they
say,” or, “I have read some of the Bible, but I do not believe all of what I
have read.”
In any event,
you are going to have to find out what it is the person actually does not believe.
1. Is his
unbelief based on tongues?
2. Does he
hold the whole of Scripture suspect because of healing?
3. Perhaps he
does not believe the Bible because of a failure in prayer.
Find out what
it is in particular he does not believe.
Never Ask About His Belief
If the person
is not born again, his belief is already faulty. You do not want to have him speak out his
error and reinforce it.
Rather than
asking a person do tell you what he believes, have him declare to you what he knows.
NOT THIS:
“What do you believe a person has to do to be saved?”
BUT THIS:
“How are you going to get to heaven?”
Jesus is Not God
This is not
all that common. Your best recourse is to know the material in “The Deity of
Jesus.”
Excuses
People who
want to remain friendly, but still your voice, will offer excuses in an attempt to get you
to either drop or change the subject.
God is Love
The “God
is love” excuse asserts that God, in his infinite love and mercy, would not send me
to hell.
Never use the
approach, “Can you afford to take the risk?” They already feel there is not
risk. After all, God is love.
You need to
create a risk without being confrontational:
“God is
not going to send you to hell. God will never send a person to hell. People will go to
hell because they prefer to be with Satan rather than with God who loves them.”
- Exodus 34:7
- Acts 17:30, 31
- Luke 13:3
- 2 Peter 2:4-9
Too Many
Hyocrites in Church
Never, never
say, “There is always room for one more.” That is simply rude. A better approach
might be:
“Would
you refuse to buy meat from a market where some of the employees were vegetarians?”
“Would
you refuse to have you hair cut or styled by a person who was bald or wore a wig?”
- Romans 14:10-12
- Matthew 7:1
I do Not
Need a Savior
Talk about
being a hypocrite...
- Romans 3:23
- Romans 6:23
- Romans 10:13
- 2 Corinthians 10:12
- Acts 4:12
I Would
be Embarrassed
Mark 8:38
I Would Have to Give up Too Much
This in not
at all uncommon.
- Mark 8:36, 37
- Mark 9:43-48
I Tried
Being a Christian Once
You should
offer to help disciple the individual so he will not fall again.
I Have
Been (am still) Too Bad
Many people
feel God will automatically reject them because of the sins they have committed.
This is
especially true of women who have had an abortion.
Not
Today—I Still Have Time
Although it
never seems likely, death can happen at any time, by any means.
- Joshua 24:15
- Isaiah 55:6, 7
- Luke 12:20
- 2 Corinthians 6:2
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