Alright, I've been trying to get people interested in evangelism for a while, to understand that all Christians are commanded to obey the Great Commission. To understand that we have the knowledge for eternal life and are commanded to share this information with every creature, yet very few do. Maybe I need to contact this guy.
Is it important to evangelize? We've got to understand that everyone without Jesus Christ (John 14:6, Acts 4:12) goes straight to eternal torment in hell (Rom 2:5, Col 3:6, Eph 2:3), and every one of us deserves that because we've broken God's Law (Psalm 53:3, Rom 3:23), which is found in outline form in the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:1-17), explained more fully by Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount (Matt 5:17-48). We Christians have the knowledge that people need to keep them from that eternal torment (Acts 17:30-31), yet most still refuse to warn others (Ezekiel 33:8-9). Test yourself (2 Cor 13:5, 1 John 2:3), and pray for more workers in the harvest field (Luke 10:2).
There's a variety of excuses given, but when a completely free class comes up that will equip people to be able to share their faith, Biblically, effectively and easily, they're not interested. A few will actually go through the class, but never put the principles into action (James 2:22).
What is wrong with us? Is this the apostasy, the falling away, mentioned in Matt 24:10-11? When love grows cold, and apathy rules our selfish hearts?
Oh, the end is certainly closer than ever before. We cannot know the day or the hour (Matt 24:36), but the season is obviously upon us (Matt 24:32-33).
How can we possibly expect to hear, "Well done good and faithful servant" (Matt 25:14-30) when we haven't bothered to do what we're commanded (Mark 16:15, Matt 28:19-20, Acts 10:42)? Can we truly know Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior if we refuse to obey Him (Luke 6:46)?
Monday, April 25, 2011
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Saturday 04-16-11
A couple of women stopped to check out our verse from Isaiah on the board. It says:
"Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted.
But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.
We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all."
I asked if they knew who this was talking about, and of course, they said, "Jesus." I then explained that they were correct, and that this verse was written 750 years before Christ was born (Isaiah 53:4-6). This is an amazing fulfilled prophecy!
They said their names were Aboba and Annalisa. They didn't really like going through the law, but wanted to stick with the "love only gospel", fortetting that God is also holy, righteous and just. I explained that it only makes sense when we understand our NEED for a Savior. I didn't see much change in them, but hopefully gave them something to consider later.
I did some Open Air Trivia, and Shawn (from the Skeptic Tank) answered a couple of the trivia questions. He claimed he hadn't heard the answers before, but I know he's heard the questions many times in the past. It really doesn't matter who answers the questions, as long as people can see what's going on and stop by to hear the rest.
A self proclaimed hippy guy stopped to go through the Good Person Test. He went through most of it, but walked away before the end, forfeiting his prize. However, there were others in the crowd who stayed and listened, so the Gospel was proclaimed and the Lord says that His Word will not return void (Isaiah 55:11).
Tom talked to a big mean looking guy named Damon who wanted a glow stick. He went through about half of the Good Person Test, before just grabbing the glow stick and walking off. People are quite bold in just taking what they want these days, with their conscience seared, reminding me of the verse in Judges 17:6, when Israel had no king and everyone did whatever they wanted.
We stopped at Taco Bell after that, where we met Marcus and Kat. We were talking about baptism, and three guys sitting nearby wanted to discuss the subject. We found that they were Catholic and debated with them for a while, going into infant baptistm, prayers to Mary, the Immaculate Conception, transubstantiation, and other Catholic doctrine.
A couple of Muslims stopped by to listen in, and I talked with them for a while. I didn't have much progress with them. They had been drinking, which they admitted was against their own religious belief system that they still held tightly to.
Another girl came and sat down to see what was going on, but her friend came and told her they had to go. I looked around and there were a lot of people standing around listening to this discussion. There were only a few other people sitting further away, most had come near our table to listen, debate, or just add their opinion into the matter. Who says people don't like to discuss their religious beliefs?
Tom has had a Catholic background, so he was able to talk with the three guys for a while, but with no success. They were very passionate young men in their religion. I pray that they would see their error in following tradition and man, worshipping Mary and holding to many pagan practices and come to Jesus Christ alone as the only mediator between God and man.
Soli Deo Gloria
"Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted.
But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.
We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all."
I asked if they knew who this was talking about, and of course, they said, "Jesus." I then explained that they were correct, and that this verse was written 750 years before Christ was born (Isaiah 53:4-6). This is an amazing fulfilled prophecy!
They said their names were Aboba and Annalisa. They didn't really like going through the law, but wanted to stick with the "love only gospel", fortetting that God is also holy, righteous and just. I explained that it only makes sense when we understand our NEED for a Savior. I didn't see much change in them, but hopefully gave them something to consider later.
I did some Open Air Trivia, and Shawn (from the Skeptic Tank) answered a couple of the trivia questions. He claimed he hadn't heard the answers before, but I know he's heard the questions many times in the past. It really doesn't matter who answers the questions, as long as people can see what's going on and stop by to hear the rest.
A self proclaimed hippy guy stopped to go through the Good Person Test. He went through most of it, but walked away before the end, forfeiting his prize. However, there were others in the crowd who stayed and listened, so the Gospel was proclaimed and the Lord says that His Word will not return void (Isaiah 55:11).
Tom talked to a big mean looking guy named Damon who wanted a glow stick. He went through about half of the Good Person Test, before just grabbing the glow stick and walking off. People are quite bold in just taking what they want these days, with their conscience seared, reminding me of the verse in Judges 17:6, when Israel had no king and everyone did whatever they wanted.
We stopped at Taco Bell after that, where we met Marcus and Kat. We were talking about baptism, and three guys sitting nearby wanted to discuss the subject. We found that they were Catholic and debated with them for a while, going into infant baptistm, prayers to Mary, the Immaculate Conception, transubstantiation, and other Catholic doctrine.
A couple of Muslims stopped by to listen in, and I talked with them for a while. I didn't have much progress with them. They had been drinking, which they admitted was against their own religious belief system that they still held tightly to.
Another girl came and sat down to see what was going on, but her friend came and told her they had to go. I looked around and there were a lot of people standing around listening to this discussion. There were only a few other people sitting further away, most had come near our table to listen, debate, or just add their opinion into the matter. Who says people don't like to discuss their religious beliefs?
Tom has had a Catholic background, so he was able to talk with the three guys for a while, but with no success. They were very passionate young men in their religion. I pray that they would see their error in following tradition and man, worshipping Mary and holding to many pagan practices and come to Jesus Christ alone as the only mediator between God and man.
Soli Deo Gloria
Thursday, April 14, 2011
Darwinian Evolution - A New Religion
The problem with Darwin's theory, is that it has been scientifically disproven. Yet, so many within the scientific community are unwilling to let it go. Thus, it has become a religion for atheists, and these so called "scientists" that hold to it have become preachers, holding to their own belief system by blind faith - the same leap into the darkness in which they claim that Christians do. But we don't, do we? There is plenty of archaeological evidence, manuscript evidence, fulfilled prophecy and scientific fact. Just as we know that there could not be a building without a builder, or a painting without a painter, there could be no creation without a Creator.
The funny thing is, no one ever assumes that Mt Rushmore just happened by random chance. Yet a living thing that is so much more complex than Mt Rushmore, they will say was just random chance. That is so foolish that it can be seen as nothing less than willful rebellion against the Creator that we all know exists.
Life does not come from non-life. It never happens, it's never been observed or recreated in a lab. Never.
----------------------------------------------------------------
a·bi·o·gen·e·sis
[ey-bahy-oh-jen-uh-sis, ab-ee-oh-] –noun
Biology . the now discredited theory that living organisms can arise spontaneously from inanimate matter; spontaneous generation.
----------------------------------------------------------------
So, they state that evolution does not go into the origins of life, just the changes that happen later. Do they forget the name of their prophet's book? On The Origin of Species.
Micro-evolution, or adaptation, is indeed true. There are small changes within a kind, in order to adapt to changes in their environment. This has been seen in nature and recreated in the lab, it is a fact. But to take that fact and add to it the magical ingredient of millions of years in order to make the claim that it will change into another kind is pure fantasy, with no proof of any kind. That is the blind leap of faith into the darkness that Darwinists make.
These small changes never create anything new and actually tend to go back to the way they were before, when the changes that caused them disappear. Take Darwin's finches for example. Their beaks changed when the environment changed, yet they changed back when the environment changed back. And all along they were still finches! Nothing new was created.
What an awesome creation our God has made, with built in abilities to adapt to survive changes that will occur in their environment. Yet still remaining the same animal and preserving itself and continuing to reproduce after it's own kind, exactly as the Bible tells us.
In Darwin's time, it was thought that the cell was the smallest building block of life. However, know we know that within a cell, there are tiny machines working, putting things together in a certain way. Had he known this, his theory would have been discarded, yet there are still those who are attempting to hold to it.
DNA is a code, have you ever known a code to just randomly happen without some sort of intelligence behind it? I haven't. Life is way too complex to have randomly appeared.
For example, if you have an earthworm, a computer, a 747 jet airplane and a watch, which one would you say is the most complex? The worm is - the digestive system, reproduction - just living - how could we believe that a watch, a computer and a jet airliner were created, but something that is actually alive and much more complex just happened by accident?
Darwinian Evolution is simply ridiculous if you dig into it and use some common sense. It's just an attempt to deny the fact that there is a Creator who will hold us accountable one day. It's a crutch for those who are afraid, yet unwilling to give up their sinful and selfish lifestyles. But it will do them no good, because our belief (or lack of it) is not what makes something true. If you don't believe in trucks, and go stand in front of one coming down the road at 60mph, your unbelief is not going to save you.
Neither will your unbelief save you from the coming wrath of a holy, righteous and just God. Only that Creator's mercy and grace can save you, and He gave us that in Jesus Christ. Repent and trust in Him, lest you perish.
The funny thing is, no one ever assumes that Mt Rushmore just happened by random chance. Yet a living thing that is so much more complex than Mt Rushmore, they will say was just random chance. That is so foolish that it can be seen as nothing less than willful rebellion against the Creator that we all know exists.
Life does not come from non-life. It never happens, it's never been observed or recreated in a lab. Never.
----------------------------------------------------------------
a·bi·o·gen·e·sis
[ey-bahy-oh-jen-uh-sis, ab-ee-oh-] –noun
Biology . the now discredited theory that living organisms can arise spontaneously from inanimate matter; spontaneous generation.
----------------------------------------------------------------
So, they state that evolution does not go into the origins of life, just the changes that happen later. Do they forget the name of their prophet's book? On The Origin of Species.
Micro-evolution, or adaptation, is indeed true. There are small changes within a kind, in order to adapt to changes in their environment. This has been seen in nature and recreated in the lab, it is a fact. But to take that fact and add to it the magical ingredient of millions of years in order to make the claim that it will change into another kind is pure fantasy, with no proof of any kind. That is the blind leap of faith into the darkness that Darwinists make.
These small changes never create anything new and actually tend to go back to the way they were before, when the changes that caused them disappear. Take Darwin's finches for example. Their beaks changed when the environment changed, yet they changed back when the environment changed back. And all along they were still finches! Nothing new was created.
What an awesome creation our God has made, with built in abilities to adapt to survive changes that will occur in their environment. Yet still remaining the same animal and preserving itself and continuing to reproduce after it's own kind, exactly as the Bible tells us.
In Darwin's time, it was thought that the cell was the smallest building block of life. However, know we know that within a cell, there are tiny machines working, putting things together in a certain way. Had he known this, his theory would have been discarded, yet there are still those who are attempting to hold to it.
DNA is a code, have you ever known a code to just randomly happen without some sort of intelligence behind it? I haven't. Life is way too complex to have randomly appeared.
For example, if you have an earthworm, a computer, a 747 jet airplane and a watch, which one would you say is the most complex? The worm is - the digestive system, reproduction - just living - how could we believe that a watch, a computer and a jet airliner were created, but something that is actually alive and much more complex just happened by accident?
Darwinian Evolution is simply ridiculous if you dig into it and use some common sense. It's just an attempt to deny the fact that there is a Creator who will hold us accountable one day. It's a crutch for those who are afraid, yet unwilling to give up their sinful and selfish lifestyles. But it will do them no good, because our belief (or lack of it) is not what makes something true. If you don't believe in trucks, and go stand in front of one coming down the road at 60mph, your unbelief is not going to save you.
Neither will your unbelief save you from the coming wrath of a holy, righteous and just God. Only that Creator's mercy and grace can save you, and He gave us that in Jesus Christ. Repent and trust in Him, lest you perish.
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Saturday 04-09-11
There was a lot of opposition to the Gospel tonight. I met Marcus and Brandt out there, and we distributed a few tracts while Brandt did some open air.
Marcus and I talked with an atheist named James for quite a while. He actually stated that you couldn't know if there was a God or not, but didn't like the word "agnostic." We had a pretty good discussion, explaining some of the evidence for Christianity - archaeological, fulfilled prophecy, manuscript evidence as well as scientific fact found in the Bible, but he held fast to his rejection of the Gospel. We offered him a Science and the Bible tract to check out and maybe even research more later, but he wasn't interested. No amount of intellectual knowledge will ever convince anyone anyway, they'll just look past it and find a new objection. Only through the Holy Spirit will anyone ever be converted. We just remain obedient to the Lord in proclaiming it and offering reason for our belief (1 Pet 3:15 ).
A guy stopped by that wanted to talk on the mic,saying he was a Christian and wanted to talk about the Ten Commandments. I was playing some Apologetix music through the speaker at the time, and since I didn't know this guy, I would not allow him to use the mic. You never know what people are going to say on there. He seemed sincere, though. He said he was from southern California and stuck out here for a while. He said his name was Al (cool name) and asked where I went to church. I told him and gave him general directions, which he seemed interested in, so maybe he'll come and visit sometime. I'm not sure what part of town he's currently staying in.
Our atheists (the small "think tank" of skeptics that I like to refer to as The Skeptic Tank) were out, even in the rain. I really didn't think they'd show up tonight. But, apparently, word got out that Brandt would be preaching, and he tends to attract a crowd and stirs up the Skeptic Tank. I let Brandt use a couple of the "transitional species" I had created to show how ridiculous Darwinian evolution is.
The Skeptic Tank has no sense of humor about those at all.
Soli Deo Gloria
Marcus and I talked with an atheist named James for quite a while. He actually stated that you couldn't know if there was a God or not, but didn't like the word "agnostic." We had a pretty good discussion, explaining some of the evidence for Christianity - archaeological, fulfilled prophecy, manuscript evidence as well as scientific fact found in the Bible, but he held fast to his rejection of the Gospel. We offered him a Science and the Bible tract to check out and maybe even research more later, but he wasn't interested. No amount of intellectual knowledge will ever convince anyone anyway, they'll just look past it and find a new objection. Only through the Holy Spirit will anyone ever be converted. We just remain obedient to the Lord in proclaiming it and offering reason for our belief (1 Pet 3:15 ).
A guy stopped by that wanted to talk on the mic,saying he was a Christian and wanted to talk about the Ten Commandments. I was playing some Apologetix music through the speaker at the time, and since I didn't know this guy, I would not allow him to use the mic. You never know what people are going to say on there. He seemed sincere, though. He said he was from southern California and stuck out here for a while. He said his name was Al (cool name) and asked where I went to church. I told him and gave him general directions, which he seemed interested in, so maybe he'll come and visit sometime. I'm not sure what part of town he's currently staying in.
Our atheists (the small "think tank" of skeptics that I like to refer to as The Skeptic Tank) were out, even in the rain. I really didn't think they'd show up tonight. But, apparently, word got out that Brandt would be preaching, and he tends to attract a crowd and stirs up the Skeptic Tank. I let Brandt use a couple of the "transitional species" I had created to show how ridiculous Darwinian evolution is.
The Skeptic Tank has no sense of humor about those at all.
Soli Deo Gloria
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
Saturday 04-02-11
There were a couple of skaters on Mill Ave named Shawn and Zach - one of them rolled up near the post office and jumped up onto the window ledge with his board and back down again. He was shirtless and covered in tattoos. We complimented him on his skating abilities and gave him a million dollar bill. We then asked if he thought he was good enough to get into heaven. He stated that everyone was good enough, and we were able to go through the Good Person Test to clarify God's standard. He claimed to be a believer, but seemed to pick and choose what he liked and what felt right to him. We left them with some more in depth tracts to read through later. Seeds planted.
Tom was talking with a young woman on a bike and called me over. The last couple of weeks we had been talking among ourselves about tattoos, and whether or not a born again believer should get one. We all agree that having tats from previously is not an issue, but to get one after becoming a Christian has been an interesting discussion. Most Christians answer that they feel that it is permissible, but they themselves wouldn't want to get one. So, that was what made Arielle interesting. She said that she'd gotten her tattoo after she had become a believer.
Now, I'm not sure that her theology was sound, and I'm not sure that she wasn't a false convert - I wasn't able to talk with her long enough to determine these things. She didn't like the new sign that Marcus had brought out, full of Bible verses, and she seemed to be into the "love alone" gospel, not really understanding God is holy, righteous and just, and that He is not ONLY love to the exclusion of everything else. She wouldn't take any tracts, but we talked with her for a while. She had gotten her tattoos of her own artwork, and felt that if her body is a temple, she is free to decorate it.
I guess I agree for the most part. The only problem with that is, are you glorifying yourself or God? We are to glorify God in everything we do, we're called to be separate from the world, putting God first, rather than ourselves. It is those in the world who prefer to bring attention to themselves, so in the end I remain unsure. I will have to find more people who have gotten tattoos after becoming believers to discuss the subject further.
David (the conspiracy guy) was out there. He has some issues, but is a nice enough guy most of the time. He's always talking about aliens, the CIA and various conspiracies that he thinks he sees. Today he was being a bit obnoxious, claiming that Marcus's sign was offending him. He ranted about that for a while, but then Stan talked with him and calmed him down. He actually made David come over and apologize to each of us for his actions, and he remained pretty calm the rest of the night.
Here are a couple of pics of Marcus's sign. It's a little reflective, so I took pics from two different angles.
We were approached by a couple of guys who gave us a card for a new church that was opening on Mill. Tom asked what they believed and if anyone could come. They said it was a non-denominational Bible believing church and that anyone could come. Another guy who seemed to be more in charge came up. Tom asked if unbelievers with questions would be welcome, and they guy said, "Of course" and that they wanted people to come and ask questions. Then Tom asked him about the Law and if he knew the Ten Commandments or not. To which, the guy stated that they were just trying to be nice and tell us about the new church and that he felt attacked by all of these questions. Excuse me? Did you just read where he told us that they actually wanted people to ask questions, and then he's offended by the questions we're asking?
We pointed that out to him and he apologized. He was able to name 7 or 8 of the Ten Commandments (which is actually pretty good - most people can't get past 4).
I explained to them that we were asking questions in order to determine what their beliefs were in this new church and that you cannot gather that information without asking some in depth questions. There are countless heretical "churches" out there that would claim to be "Bible believing." You have to really dig into their theology in order to discover what they really believe. They seem like they might be a good place, but I'd have to go there and ask more questions to know for sure.
There was another group of evangelists that went by when we first got there. They were young, but knew Scripture pretty well. Tom spoke with one of them for a while, but they were in a hurry to go and preach elsewhere and felt that they were wasting their time speaking with other believers. The thing is, there are so many false converts out there that it's difficult to determine if you're talking to a true believer or not. So, I gave a couple of them my card with this blog on it so they could check out our beliefs when they have more time. I'd really like to talk to them more, they seemed to have a pretty good grasp of the Gospel and evangelism. Maybe we'll see them out there again, and be able to listen to some of their street preaching.
Soli Deo Gloria
Tom was talking with a young woman on a bike and called me over. The last couple of weeks we had been talking among ourselves about tattoos, and whether or not a born again believer should get one. We all agree that having tats from previously is not an issue, but to get one after becoming a Christian has been an interesting discussion. Most Christians answer that they feel that it is permissible, but they themselves wouldn't want to get one. So, that was what made Arielle interesting. She said that she'd gotten her tattoo after she had become a believer.
Now, I'm not sure that her theology was sound, and I'm not sure that she wasn't a false convert - I wasn't able to talk with her long enough to determine these things. She didn't like the new sign that Marcus had brought out, full of Bible verses, and she seemed to be into the "love alone" gospel, not really understanding God is holy, righteous and just, and that He is not ONLY love to the exclusion of everything else. She wouldn't take any tracts, but we talked with her for a while. She had gotten her tattoos of her own artwork, and felt that if her body is a temple, she is free to decorate it.
I guess I agree for the most part. The only problem with that is, are you glorifying yourself or God? We are to glorify God in everything we do, we're called to be separate from the world, putting God first, rather than ourselves. It is those in the world who prefer to bring attention to themselves, so in the end I remain unsure. I will have to find more people who have gotten tattoos after becoming believers to discuss the subject further.
David (the conspiracy guy) was out there. He has some issues, but is a nice enough guy most of the time. He's always talking about aliens, the CIA and various conspiracies that he thinks he sees. Today he was being a bit obnoxious, claiming that Marcus's sign was offending him. He ranted about that for a while, but then Stan talked with him and calmed him down. He actually made David come over and apologize to each of us for his actions, and he remained pretty calm the rest of the night.
Here are a couple of pics of Marcus's sign. It's a little reflective, so I took pics from two different angles.
We were approached by a couple of guys who gave us a card for a new church that was opening on Mill. Tom asked what they believed and if anyone could come. They said it was a non-denominational Bible believing church and that anyone could come. Another guy who seemed to be more in charge came up. Tom asked if unbelievers with questions would be welcome, and they guy said, "Of course" and that they wanted people to come and ask questions. Then Tom asked him about the Law and if he knew the Ten Commandments or not. To which, the guy stated that they were just trying to be nice and tell us about the new church and that he felt attacked by all of these questions. Excuse me? Did you just read where he told us that they actually wanted people to ask questions, and then he's offended by the questions we're asking?
We pointed that out to him and he apologized. He was able to name 7 or 8 of the Ten Commandments (which is actually pretty good - most people can't get past 4).
I explained to them that we were asking questions in order to determine what their beliefs were in this new church and that you cannot gather that information without asking some in depth questions. There are countless heretical "churches" out there that would claim to be "Bible believing." You have to really dig into their theology in order to discover what they really believe. They seem like they might be a good place, but I'd have to go there and ask more questions to know for sure.
There was another group of evangelists that went by when we first got there. They were young, but knew Scripture pretty well. Tom spoke with one of them for a while, but they were in a hurry to go and preach elsewhere and felt that they were wasting their time speaking with other believers. The thing is, there are so many false converts out there that it's difficult to determine if you're talking to a true believer or not. So, I gave a couple of them my card with this blog on it so they could check out our beliefs when they have more time. I'd really like to talk to them more, they seemed to have a pretty good grasp of the Gospel and evangelism. Maybe we'll see them out there again, and be able to listen to some of their street preaching.
Soli Deo Gloria
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)