In this article, we will pick up where we left off in the prior lesson. How can we overcome the following obstacles in sharing the gospel with the lost?

Lack of Knowledge?

For some reason, it seems like we think every person that we walk up to will be a devout atheist with a ton of knowledge and arguments that we will not be able to answer. Or we may think that we need to know everything there is to know about God and His word to share the gospel. Is this the case? IF so, no one would share the gospel!

• What do you need to know? What do the lost need to know?

These are the important questions we must know the answer to, and the answer is not that difficult. Every true Christian should have this knowledge. What the lost need to know is the gospel! Do you know why you became a Christian? Were you convicted of your sin? Did that conviction lead you to Christ? IF so, you know enough to share the gospel!

• There are really just a few things a lost person MUST hear about:

• Sin
• Judgment
• Good News
• The Call of God to Repentance and Conversion

This is where we should always start. But you may be saying to yourself, “Yes, but how do I answer some of the questions that aren’t about the gospel?” I have the perfect answer that you should give to lost people who ask questions that you do not know the answer to: “I don’t know the answer to that question, let me get your email address, and I will get the answer for you.” Give this answer, and then get back on track teaching them the gospel.

There is something else concerning a “lack of knowledge” that must be dealt with. If you do not know how to respond to some questions, how much are you getting into God’s word to learn about these questions? At times, this is the reason why we feel like we have a lack of knowledge. Remember, Peter commands us to always be ready to give an answer for the hope that lies within us (1 Peter 3:15). That means we need to be studying God’s word! If you have any questions you need help answering, you can also send us an email and we can try to answer it for you.

Too Busy? Don’t Have the Time?

If there is an excuse that shows clearly that our priorities are wrong, this is the excuse. There are so many times that we fill up our schedules to the point with what we want to do that we just squeeze the Lord and His will out of our lives (except for going to “worship” of course). Is the Lord pleased with this? No, He isn’t! When this is how our lives are, we are like the soil with the thorns in Matthew 13. We are being choked spiritually, and are bearing no fruit for God. Remember what Jesus says about disciples that bear no fruit, “”Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away…” and that branch is “thrown into the fire, and burned” (John 15:2, 6). It is clear that we make time in our schedule for what is important to us! The question you need to ask yourself is, “Is God’s will important to me? Is obeying God important to me? ” If we answer these questions with a “no,” then we have many things in our lives that are IDOLS! Anything we are putting before God and His will is an IDOL.

Make evangelism something that is important to you! Plan to do it on a daily basis. If you do this, you will find time to do it!

Not concerned enough for lost?

I think most of our excuses point to this fact. The reason why we give so many excuses is that we just do not have the kind of concern that we should for lost people. Here are two things concerning this that you should think about:

1. Someone cared enough about you!

• Was someone concerned enough about lost souls to help you come to Christ? With this being the case, you should do likewise! Show God you are grateful for your salvation by sharing your hope with others.

2. Would you warn someone if their house was on fire?

• If your neighbor’s house was on fire and they were still inside, what would you do? More than likely, you would call 911 and then go bang on the door or kick it down to get your neighbors out! Why don’t we do this when it comes to lost people that are going to spend eternity in flames? This is a much more important issue than a lost neighbor’s house! We are talking about an eternity of torment!

We Just Don’t Care or Don’t Want to Evangelize

There is only one way to respond to this excuse: Repent! IF you have no desire to evangelize, more than likely, you are not saved yourself. Remember that you have made a profession of Jesus as your LORD. If you are not obeying Him, any confession you may make is worthless. Jesus says, “Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do what I tell you?” (Luke 6:46), and “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven (Matt 7:21).

What things in our lives keep us from evangelism? There are many excuses that I have used in the past, one of which you may give right now. Some common excuses are:

• Evangelism is Not My “Calling”
• Fear, Lack of Courage?
• Lack of Knowledge?
• Too Busy?
• Not concerned enough for lost?

Is it possible for us to overcome these obstacles? The answer is yes IF we truly desire to evangelize! There are many people that make these excuses because they simply do not want to do this work, and if this is the case for you, you must repent. As we go through these excuses we so often give, hopefully you will see that evangelism is commanded of every Christian, and we must do it if we want to be faithful to God and if we want to be like Christ.

I will deal with the first couple in this article and the rest in a follow-up article tomorrow.

Not My “Calling”

“I am not a preacher or pastor” may be the statement that runs through your mind. But is the fact that you may not hold one of these two positions within the church mean that you should not be evangelizing? I will answer this question with three questions:

Are we called to “love our neighbor as ourselves”?

The answer to this question is YES. The second of the greatest commandments given by Jesus is to love our neighbor as ourselves (Matthew 22:39). We obviously love ourselves enough to want to get to heaven, but do we love the lost in this way? If we do love them, we will act!

Are we called to serve people?

We are called to be servants. Jesus says that the greatest in the kingdom are those who serve (Matthew 23:11). We need to be like the Apostle Paul when he says “For though I am free from all, I have made myself a servant to all, that I might win more of them” (1 Cor 19:20).

Are we called to be like Jesus?

This is really the crux of the matter. Anyone who wears the name of Christian is someone that desires to be like Christ. The fruit of the Christian will show that Christ is living in Him (Gal 2:20). Jesus said that we must deny ourselves and follow Him (Luke 9:23), and this means that we need to say no to our own will and do His will. Jesus had a compassionate heart for the lost. He had so much love for them that He was willing to even die so they could have hope. What kind of compassion do we have? Do we see lost people as Jesus did, as helpless sheep without a shepherd? (Matthew 9:36).

The simple truth is that we all are given the command to share the gospel. Jesus tells the Apostles in Matthew 28:19-20, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
²⁰ teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” He clearly in this verse is talking to the Apostles, but it is interesting what Jesus tells them to teach the disciples. He told them to teach His disciples to observe ALL things that were commanded of the Apostles, including the command that He just gave them to go into the entire world to teach the Gospel.

Fear, Lack of Courage?

How often is it the case that we are just too afraid to start a conversation with someone? Sometimes this may seem like a constant battle for us. The question we must ask is, “what is it that we are afraid of?” Are we afraid of what people will think of us? Are we afraid that we will get ridiculed or mocked? Maybe a door will get slammed in front of us? Maybe you are afraid of messing up; afraid of failure. The truth is, the only real time that we fail is when we do not share the gospel with others! So how can we overcome fear? Here are a few tips:

Prayer!

When the early disciples were going through persecution (which is nothing like we endure), they approached God in prayer. A perfect example is in Acts 4:24-30. Peter and John were threatened by the Jewish leaders. After this they went among their companions and prayed for boldness to speak in spite of the opposition. God answered their prayer.

Work with others

This is a very simple piece of advice, but it is so helpful. From my own experience, I am so much bolder when I have a brother with me encouraging me and challenging me to do what’s right. Jesus sent His disciples out two by two to preach the gospel of the kingdom (Mark 6:7).

Remember that God promises to be with you.

This is an important thing that we too often forget! God promises us as His people that He is with us. Jesus told His disciples in the Great Commission, “behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matt 28:20).

“Ice Breakers”

Find easy ways to start conversations with strangers

• Talk to strangers daily

This is a simple thing to try. Try to make it a goal to greet a couple people you do not know daily. Over time this will make you more comfortable.

• Ask questions

The easiest way I have found to start a conversation with someone is by asking questions. My favorite question to begin with is, “Excuse me, Can I ask you a question?” This most of the time gives me an open door to ask them if I can interview them for a Christian website, or to begin teaching them the gospel by asking them what they believe happens when someone dies.

• Use tracts to start a conversation

Hand someone a tract, and ask them “Have you gotten one of these yet?” When they ask what it is, tell them it is a gospel tract, and then ask them “what do you believe happens when someone dies?