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Serving with Jesus Personal Evangelism Training Seminar

How to Lead Someone to Christ

(Gospel Presentation)  

 This  presentation  can  be  used  in  any  setting  –  during  Bible  studies,  with  the  person  next  to  you  on  a  flight,  with  a  friend  who  does  not  know  Jesus,  etc.    Adapt  it  as  you  see  fit,  but  here  are  the  key  elements:    

1. Build  a  conversation  with  the  person.    You  can  use  2  simple  methods:  

a. F.O.R.T.    

• Family  (In  what  area  where  you  raised?    Do  you  have  any  siblings?  

• Occupation  (What  kind  of  work  do  you  do?    Do  you  like  your  job?)  

• Religion  (What  is  your  religious  background?    Have  you  been  a  [Methodist]  all  your  life?  Do  you  attend  church?)  

• Testimony  (My  life  before  I  accepted  Christ  was…    How  I  become  a  Christian…  My  life  since  becoming  a  Christian)  

b. T.O.P.I.C.S.    

• Today’s  situation  (How  was  your  day?)    

• Occupation/Education  Background  (What  job  are  you  involved  in?  Did  you  study  after  high  school?)    

• Place/Partner/Parents    

o Place:  Where  do  you  stay?    How  long  have  you  been  there?  

o Partner:  Are  you  married?  How  long?  What  does  your  spouse  do  for  a  living?  

o Parents:  Are  your  parents  still  alive?    How  old  are  they?)  

• Interests  (What  are  your  hobbies?)  

• Current  Events  (Did  you  hear  about  the  earthquake  in…    Did  you  see  what’s  happening  in…  [Avoid  political  matters  that  may  be  divisive])  

• Share  (your  testimony)    

2. Say,  “Could  I  ask  you  a  question?  If  you  are  uncomfortable  answering  it,  you  can  just  tell  me.  I  feel  it  is  the  most  important  question  a  person  can  answer.    Do  you  want  to  hear  the  question?    (Wait  for  their  answer.)    Okay,  here  it  is:  If  Jesus  were  to  come  back  tonight  or  you  were  to  die  suddenly,  are  you  assured  you  have  eternal  life?”  

   

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If  there  is  a  long  pause,  you  can  say,  “I  told  you  it  was  a  heavy  question.”    Then  you  should  wait  while  they  ponder  its  significance.  Embrace  the  silence  and  don’t  be  afraid  of  it.    Allow  the  Spirit  to  use  the  quiet  to  speak  to  your  student’s  heart.    If  they  respond  that  they  do  have  assurance  of  eternal  life,  then  you  will  enthusiastically  say:      

“That’s  fantastic!  Now,  may  I  ask  you  another  question?    Say  you  go  up   to   the   pearly   white   gates   of   heaven   and   before   you   enter,   an  angel  stops  you  and  says,  ‘John,  we  are  so  happy  that  you  are  here.    We   have   been   looking   forward   to   your   entrance   into   heaven   for   a  long   time.     But   before   we   let   you   in,   we   need   you   to   answer   a  question.     Why   should   God   let   you   enter?’     John,   how   would   you  answer  the  angel’s  question?”  

This  helps  to  ascertain  if  they  understand  the  gospel.  

Depending  on  their  answer,  you  will  say,  “I  am  glad  to  hear  that  you  are  seeking  to  live  a  good  life  for  God,”  or  “Thank  you  for  such  honesty.    Most  of  us  would  probably  be  speechless  in  the  face  of  such  a  question.”    In  either  case,  here  is  how  you  respond  to  anything  but  the  correct  answer:  

“May   I   suggest   an   answer   the   Bible   endorses?     We   can   humbly  confess   to   the   angel,   ‘I   am   not   worthy   to   enter   heaven,   but   Jesus  came  to  earth  to  live  a  perfect  life  to  die  for  me  on  the  Cross.    I  have  accepted  Him  as  my  Saviour  to  forgive  my  sins  and  I  followed  Him  as  my  Lord  to  tell  me  how  to  live.    It  has  all  been  by  His  grace  and  this  is  why  I  should  be  allowed  to  enter.’    Now  isn’t  this  a  good  answer.    The  emphasis   is  on  what  Jesus  has  done.    We  can’t  do  anything  to  earn  heaven.   It   is   ours   as   a   gift   from  God.     But  we  are   to   surrender   our  lives  to  Him  so  that  we  can  be  forgiven  of  our  past  sins  and  for   the  Holy  Spirit  to  enable  us  to  live  in  harmony  with  God’s  will.      

Now  you  will  ask,  “John,  may  I  briefly  review  the  reason  this  answer  will  be  our  best  ticket  into  heaven?”    When  they  say,  “Yes,”  you  should  do  the  Gospel  Presentation.      

 The Gospel Presentation (3 L’s)

 1. The  Traffic  LIGHT  Illustration  

 Let’s   say   you   leave   your   home   tonight.   You’re   tired,   hungry   and  anxious   to   get   to   your   destination,   so   when   you   get   to   the  intersection  you  skip  the  red  light.  The  next  thing  you  know,  you  see  a  flashing  blue  light  in  your  rear  view  mirror.  The  traffic  officer  pulls  your  over  and  asks  to  see  your  driver’s  license.  If  he  is  honest,  what  is  he  probably  going  to  write  up?  A  ticket!  There  are  consequences  to  breaking  the  laws  of  the  land!  By  the  same  token,  God  has  placed  moral   “traffic   lights”   in   the   universe   for   our   safety   and   protection.  And  there  are  consequences  to  breaking  God’s  laws!  Not  just  a  traffic  fine,   but   Rom   6:23   says,   “The   wages   of   sin   is   death!”   We   are  therefore  all   deserving  of  death  because  Rom  3:23   says,   “ALL  have  sinned  and  fallen  short  of  the  glory  of  God.”  So  all  of  us  are  sitting  on  

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death   row!   That’s   not   a   pretty   picture!   But   God   loved   us   so  much  (John  3:16)  that  He  devised  a  plan...  

 2. The  LAMB  Illustration  

 In  Old  Testament  times  if  you  sinned  (hit  a  friend,  stole  something),  you  would  have  to  bring  a  little  woolly  lamb  to  the  tabernacle.  Inside  the  courtyard,  you  would  kneel  over  the  lamb  and  place  your  hands  upon   its  head.  Then   looking  to  heaven  you  would  confess  your  sins  to  God.  Symbolically  a  DIVINE  EXCHANGE  took  place.  Your  guilt  was  deposited   on   the   head   of   that   woolly   Lamb,   and   in   exchange   its  innocence  was  transferred  to  you.  Then  you  would  take  a  knife  and  slit  the  lamb’s  throat  and  watch  it  convulse  in  its  own  blood  until  its  limbs   grew   still.   That   lamb   died   not   because   it   was   guilty,   but  because   it  bore  YOUR  guilt.   In  return,  you  would  walk  back  to  your  tent   a   free   man/woman,   not   because   you   were   innocent,   but  because   you   bore   the   lamb’s   innocence.   That’s   exactly   what   Jesus  did   for  us  on  Calvary!  He   is   the  real  “Lamb  of  God  who  takes  away  the   sins   of   the   world!”   (John   1:29)   Two   thousand   years   ago   Jesus  took  our  sins  on  His  own  body  and  died  in  our  place  (1  Pet  2:24).  In  exchange  He  gave  us  His  perfect  righteousness  so  that  in  God’s  eyes,  we  appear  just  as  if  we  never  sinned!  This  is  good  news!  However  we  must  do  something  with  this  objective  fact...  

 3. The  LIFELINE  Illustration  

 Let’s  say  you  are  on  board  a  boeing  airplane  that  goes  down  in  the  middle  of  the  Atlantic  Ocean.  You  are  the  only  survivor.  As  you  hang  on   for   dear   life   to   the   tail   fin,   you  notice   dorsal   fins   cutting   circles  around   you.   You   know   it’s   over!   There’s   no   hope   for   survival.   But  miracle   of   miracles,   a   distress   call   goes   out   and   within   minutes   a  helicopter  hovers  overhead.  Through   the  open  hatch  door  comes  a  life   line   right   down   to   your   struggling   form   in   the   water!   At   this  moment  would  you  yell  out,  “No  thanks,  I  think  I  can  make  it  on  my  own!   If   I   just   swim   a   little   harder,   or   kick   a   little   faster,   then   I   can  make  it  to  shore!”  No  way!  What  are  you  going  to  do?  GRAB  ON  TO  THE   LIFE   LINE!   It’s   not   enough   to  merely   know  about   Jesus’   death.    We  must  grab  on  and  make  it  our  very  own!  1  John  5:11-­‐13  says  that  if  we  have   Jesus  we  have   life.    Kicking  and  swimming   (good  works)  will  not  save  us.  Only  His  death   in  our  behalf  will.  How  do  we  then  grab  on?    By  accepting  Jesus’  death  by  faith  (Eph  2:8)  and  by  opening  the  door  of  our  hearts  for  Him  to  enter  and  live  in  us  (Rev  3:20).  

 4. Have  you  come  to  the  place  in  your  experience  where  you’ve  grabbed  hold  of  the  lifeline?    

Would  you  like  to  do  that  right  now?        

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5. Here  is  a  simple  prayer  of  surrender  that  a  person  could  repeat  after  you,  represented  by  the  acronym  FAITH:    

• Forgive  me.    “Jesus  I  ask  you  to  Forgive  me  of  my  sins.”  

• Accept  my  confession.    “Please  accept  my  confession  that  I  am  a  sinner  worthy  of  death.”  

• I  give  my  life.    “I  now  give  my  life  completely  to  you.”  

• Thank  you.    “Thank  you  for  the  free  gift  of  salvation  that    is  now  mine  by  faith  in  Jesus’  death  and  life.”  

• Help  me  to  walk  in  your  ways.    “Now,  Help  me  to  walk  in  all  Your  ways  by  Your  grace  and  power.  

6. Assure  the  person  that  he  or  she,  based  on  the  authority  of  the  Word  of  God,  can  ‘know’  that  they  have  eternal  life  (1  John  5:13;  John  6:47)  

7. Welcome  them  to  the  family  of  God!  (John  1:12;  6:37)  

8. Share  ways  that  the  person  can  grow  in  Christ:  

• Go  to  God  in  prayer  daily  (1  Thess  5:17;  John  15:7)  

• Read  God’s  Word  daily  (Acts  17:11)    (can  start  with  Gospel  of  John)  

• Obey  God  moment  by  moment  (John  14:21)  

• Witness  for  Christ  by  your  life  and  words  (Matt  4:19;  John  15:8)  

• Trust  God  for  every  detail  of  your  life  (1  Pet  5:7)  

• Holy  Spirit  –  allow  Him  to  control  and  empower  your  daily  life  and  witness  (Gal  5:16,  17;  Acts  1:8)  

9. Set  up  Bible  studies  with  person!  

   Sources  Used  

• Gibbs,  Gary.  Winsome  Witnessing.  Keene:  Seminars  Unlimited,  2004  • Hartman,  David.  Winning  Ways  to  Witness.  Resource  DVD.  

     

Prepared  by  Shandrell  Penniken