OPEN MIND

“How to converse while evangelizing” – Rev. Young Joo Lee

“There are many people who say that at the very least they can hand out gospel tracts, but don’t have the confidence to evangelize through conversation. So today, similar to last week where I shared on how to hand out gospel tracts, I will share with you how to evangelize through conversation. Because there is a low possibility of meeting again and because there isn’t much time for interaction, sharing about he gospel from the outset is a good idea. Of course, if you start talking about Jesus from the beginning some people may not listen, but if you politely start talking about something that non-believers may think about and lead the conversation in an interesting way, you can meet many people with whom you can have an interesting conversation.

For example, “Hello? I’m so-and-so from a Korean church in London. I see that you are resting and I’m so sorry to bother you, but could I give you this tract?” From there you can quickly explain the contents of the tract. The tract that we are using speaks of John Harper, a preacher who was on the Titanic when it sank and plead to people to believe in Jesus, giving away his life vest. He died but a person who survived and heard his cries believed in Jesus and told of the pastor’s sacrifice. The pastor’s sacrifice is similar to Jesus’s sacrifice for us and naturally explains Jesus’s death on the cross.

The other person may reject the gospel after you explain it or may reject you the moment you say you came from a church. If that’s the case don’t say “Yes, I understand. Have a nice day.” Instead, don’t be flustered but understand that you came out to meet non-believers who obviously would reject your message and try to maintain the conversation. There’s nothing you can do if they reject your message strongly but with most people you can keep conversing.

“I’m Muslim. I believe Jesus is a prophet.” “I’m not a religious person. I’m satisfied with my life.” “I believe in science.” “I think loving each other is more important than religion.” “Isn’t there more war and violence in the world because of religion?”

There are many more reasons for people to reject the gospel than this. Whatever the reason with “Yes, I also thought that way,” you should reply with empathy. Even if you have been Christian your whole life you can say “Even though I was raised in a Christian family I have had those thoughts,” and quickly explain how you came to believe and share the gospel in that way.

Something that you need to be careful not to do is argue. Whenever you interact with nonbelievers you must respect them, care for them, and act with humility and a compassionate heart like Jesus. And if there are sincere questions that nonbelievers asked you that you didn’t have an answer for, if you pray about it and find the answer in the Bible or do some research in the many Christian books and resources that are available you can have meaningful conversations with nonbelievers. Meeting with nonbelievers and conversing with them changes us into people with Jesus as our center.

예배시간 변경 안내(service time change)

  • 3월 3일(3월 첫 주만) 센트럴 주일예배가 영국교회 행사 관계로 오후 3시로 변경되었습니다. 윔블던 예배는 동일하게 오전 10시 30분 입니다.
  • Sunday’s service(3rd, Mar) of Central campus will be held at 3 p.m. due to an English Church event. Wimbledon campus’s service is the same as usual(10.30a.m.).