The Sixth Commandment: Murder of the Heart “You shall not murder." Exodus 20:13 Chances are, if you ask someone if they have they broken the sixth commandment, you shall not murder, they will claim to be innocent. This is pretty typical. Most people when faced with God's holy law believe at least that they have not broken it on this particular point. But check out what Jesus said regarding the sixth commandment. “You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.’ 22 But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire.” Mathew 5:21-22 This is called murder of the heart. Unrighteous anger towards another person is sinful and violates the law of God. It is God alone who sits on the judgment seat. When we slur another person or harbor… [more]

How to Share Christ with Atheists I was reading an article this past week that was describing a speech Stephen Hawking was giving entitled; “How the big bang happened without God.” It always amazes me how much effort is given, by those who claim to know God does not exist, by trying to prove what they already claim to know to be false. But nonetheless here was another atheist dealing with the topic of creation. I read the full article to see what arguments he had to make and began to chuckle at the language used to describe his thoughts. The article contained words and phrases like: believed, seem to fit, likely, ideas, fit that model and created out of nothing. Of course, there was a lack of certainty inherent in the selection of these words. My favorite phrase was "Spontaneously created matter." I already read a book about that years ago. It was called Genesis 1:1. Now I am not writing this post to mock Atheists. As Christians we should have a concern for their eternal des… [more]

I have always been a proponent of internet evangelism. When I found out that tomorrow, Sunday April 21st, is internet evangelism day, I had to do an article about it. Internet evangelism day happens every year on the 4th Sunday of April. This website has over 4,000 people per year go to our page that is set up to teach people how to start a personal relationship with Jesus. The internet has broken down the walls between nations and people. It allows a small town pastor in rural Wyoming to speak to people of all nationalities. It allows you to plant seeds where you never thought it was possible to plant seeds before. It truly allows every believer to fulfill the great commission given by Jesus in Matt. 28:19-20 Matthew 28:19-20 THE GREAT COMMISSION 19 Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, 1 baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. 20 Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am w… [more]

Using the Law in Evangelism: The Fifth We have looked at one half of the tablets which comprises the Ten Commandments that describes our responsibilities towards God. Now we will begin looking at the other half, that speaks to our relationship to each other. For more on the two sides of the commandments read my post "The Two Tablets of the Decalogue." The Fifth Commandment “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long upon the land which the Lord your God is giving you.” Exodus 20:12 The impetus in these posts on using the law in evangelism have been to show you how to use them to bring conviction of sin and judgment to the hearer in a witness encounter so that the Holy Spirit moves on a person's conscience and brings repentance and faith to them. For the scriptures tell us it’s the law of the Lord that perfectly coverts the soul (see Psalm 19:7). The fifth commandment tells us that we should give honor to our parents. Honoring encompasses both obe… [more]

Fear in Evangelism Does the thought of approaching a stranger to share the gospel give you a cold sweat? Does fear keep you from being obedient to the great commission and verbally proclaim the gospel to your lost family members and friends? Do fearful thoughts invade your mind and race your heart as you try to hand someone a gospel tract? If so, then you are perfectly qualified to share the gospel with those exact people. Let’s look at the great apostle Paul and what he experienced when he came to the Corinthians. “And I was with you in weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling.” – 1 Corinthians 2:3 So in order to be like the apostle Paul you need to have weakness and fear. Many take this feeling of fear in evangelism to be a sign that they are not qualified to be a verbal witness for Christ. However Christ said if we are to be His disciples we WILL be His witnesses. “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you: and you will be my witn… [more]

Using the Fourth Commandment in Evangelism "Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy." Exodus 20:8-11 (NIV) The Sabbath is a day of rest. (Exodus 31:15) It was established as a sign between God and His people; the Israelites. (Ezekiel 20:12) In the church age, we continue to keep the essence of this law by setting aside Sunday as a day of rest and worship. (Acts 20:7) There was a time when the government in America use to enforce this commandment with what was commonly referred to as Blue Laws; of which most have been repealed… [more]

Last Words of Hugo Chavez "I don't want to die. Please don't let me die", were the last, sad words from one of the world's most repressive dictators of our current times. His words are in striking contrast to the words of Paul the Apostle who said in Philippians 1:21, "For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain." To Die Is Fearful This life is the only thing the unbeliever has to look forward to. Enjoying the sin of his season is his aspiration. The scripture is very clear in that after this life is over, the sinner must stand before God in judgment. (Hebrews 9:27)  Dying is not gain to the unconverted; instead it is fearful. It ends the person's feast into the depths of depravity. It moves them from the frying pan and into the fire. Whatever they could do or give, to just have one more moment with their beloved sinful desires, they would go to any length or cost to achieve. Queen Elizabeth I reportedly said in her last words, "Oh, I would give my kingdom for one mome… [more]

Part 3: Using the law in evangelism I was having a conversation one day with a Mormon at my place of work. He mentioned that his god knew his heart. (by way of saying he thought he was a good person and his god knew that) I said I agreed, "God does know your heart, (Jeremiah 17:3) but what I don't understand is that you take his name in vain so often." He was confused and quickly said, "I don't do that!" "Sure you do", I replied, "every time you say oh my * you are using his name wrongly." This took him by surprise, I've heard him many time use this phrase. He had believed there was nothing wrong with it, after all it's just a saying...right? The truth is that when we use the name of our Lord, God Almighty, in a way that lowers His position and authority, as in the trite use expressing disgusts or amazement, or whatever the reason, we are committing blasphemy. But it goes farther than that. It encompasses lowering and not giving God His due honor and respect in regards to not just … [more]

What is Repentance? “Repentance is by the Grace of God, whereby the Sinner is inwardly humbled and visible transformed. It is a turning away from sinful desires and turning towards God.” Understanding true repentance is important for anyone one who is attempting evangelism. If its nature is not correctly understood then such a person can easily force a false conversion thereby leaving the person “Twice as much a son of hell.” (Mathew 23:15) Counterfeit Repentance Before we speak of true repentance let's discuss what it is not. A false repentance can take on the following appearances. 1. Fear of punishment: A criminal may abstain from stealing because of a fear of the police. But this is not repentance. 2. Resolution against sin: This is your new-year resolution crowd. The person in this category leaves sin for improvements sake alone. 3. Leaving sin for personal gain: Similar to above, a person here leave sins for improvement, but it goes beyond personal sat… [more]

Using the Law in Evangelism “You shall not make for yourself a carved image—any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; you shall not bow down to them nor serve them. For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me, but showing mercy to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments.”  - Exodus 20:4 The Second Commandment The days of making a wooden or stone idol appear to be long gone. For the most part people do not have physical idols in the classical sense sitting in a niche at home. (However, do not be surprised if you find some who do. I have encountered this before.) For many, the second commandment is archaic, and harkens back to a time when people were uneducated and superstitious: or so they think. I like to call this thought as historic snobbery. People assume they a… [more]

Using the Commandments in Evangelism: Part One Before we talk about using the specific commandments of the Law in evangelism let’s back up and review why we would use them at all. In my other post, How to Evangelize: Lessons from Jesus, I told you that the Apostle Paul said in Romans 7:7 “I would not have known sin except through the law. For I would not have known covetousness unless the law had said, ‘You shall not covet.’”  It is the law of God that shows us our need for a savior, by leaving us condemned before God’s throne of judgment. Therefore, we drive a sinner towards repentance in Christ through examining a person’s life against the Holy standard of the law. Let me be clear, the law does not justify. We are not asking a sinner to keep the law. We are only using it as a tool to bring conviction of sin and leave the sinner desiring salvation. The Law leads to Grace. The First Commandment “I am the LORD your God, which has brought you out of the land of E… [more]

Opening the Door of Salvation In John 10:9 Jesus speaks of himself as a door which leads to salvation. In biblical evangelism we offer a key to the unsaved to open this door. But we can't offer just any key. The true key has been misused by the church over the years. It has even been thrown out in favor of man-made gimmicks. Here I will show the key God gave us to reach the lost. John 10:9 New King James Version (NKJV) “I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.” There are two effective means God uses to persuade the lost. These are the keys to bring about the knowledge of God (Luke 11:52). These two means are “The Prophets” and “The Law of Moses”. "persuading them concerning Jesus from both the Law of Moses and the Prophets, from morning till evening." -Acts 28:23 Using Prophecy Prophecy is very powerful. It proves the inspiration of scripture. Scripture brings forth instruction for righteousness (… [more]

Apathy in Evangelism Most pastors would agree that in the church those who are active in evangelism represent the minority not the majority. Is this because Christians who want to share their faith are over-active hyper Christians who just don't understand that it not polite to speak of Christ in public? I don't think so. But the fact remains that many professing Christians never share their faith verbally. According to Dr. Bill Bright, the founder of Campus Crusade for Christ, said in his book, "The Coming Revival" that less than two percent of professing believers ever share their faith in Christ with others. Why is this and how can it change? Our First Love For those of us who are married should remember what it was like when we were dating. Remembering how much of our thoughts revolved around our new found love. The same is with Christ. When we come to Christ in repentance and faith we realize the depth of the price that was paid on our behalf and how undeserving we are of … [more]

Why Hell is Reasonable I recently had a conversation with another who had an issue with the biblical truth that hell is eternal. For a good source on the biblical support for the hell's eternal characteristics go to Matt Slick’s article here. The crux of the matter became whether or not punishment for sin in an eternal hell was reasonable. I will try to briefly deal with that objection in this article. I normally do not get into apologetic arguments when witnessing. My aim is to glorify God through the proclamation of His gospel. I also know that it is impossible to intellectually convince someone into the kingdom. For example, the demons know hell is eternal and they also know there is a God but they cannot be saved. James 2:19 New International Version (NIV) “You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.” But sometimes you will get questions from people and you may need to deal with them. For some general tips please vi… [more]

Leaving a Legacy When we speak of leaving a legacy it typically has to do with leaving an inheritance of some kind that will represent a portion of your life living on after you pass. In a quick Google search we find suggestions of charitable donations, retirement savings or some kind of business planning. In short people are searching for ways to leave something that will be treasured by their descendents. A True Legacy While the world may look at the physical aspects of a legacy, as Christians we understand that the greatest treasure that can be given is the salvation from hell that comes through repentance and faith in Jesus Christ. We see this illustrated by Jesus in scripture. "The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.” – Mathew 13:44 Impacting Your Family for Christ One of the greatest influences you can have in evangelism is with you… [more]

10 Bible Verses for Evangelism and Witnessing I found it a hard task to narrow down to ten bible verses for evangelism. Each of these verses I have used in communicating the gospel in a biblical way, the way Jesus did, to those who are lost. This is the law to the proud and grace to the humble approach that is demonstrated every time in scripture. In future posts I will go into this more deeply but you can read on it my other article, How to Evangelize: Lessons From Jesus. 10. Hebrews 9:27 “And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment,” It is important that people understand that there is no second chances after death, no purgatory and no reincarnation. 9. Psalm 14:1 “The fool has said in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, They have done abominable works, There is none who does good.” The atheist may say he does not believe in God but he’s beliefs are immaterial. God will judge everyone whether they believe He exist… [more]

The Shepherd Evangelists and the Birth of Christ In Luke 2, we see the record of the angels bringing the good news of the birth of Christ to the shepherds. "Fear not" the angel said. This simple instruction they obeyed. The scriptures record that they became the first evangelist to spread the good news of the saviors birth. Luke 2:17 New International Version (NIV) 17 When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, How is it that these untrained simple sheepherders were able to do this? Do we need to be mature Christians with doctrinal degrees from accredited seminaries to be qualified to share the gospel? Absolutely not! The only qualification is being a Christian. But how is it that upon hearing the good news the shepherds  were motivated to tell the town. Here is a simple analogy. Imagine a person sees a movie that makes a strong impression on him. The next day around the water cooler his co-workers begin talking a… [more]

Witness for Christ in This World The morality of the world only seems to be heading further into a death spiral. This is evident in the tragedy of Sandy Hook Elementary School. In my home state of Maryland we have taken the plunge into approving corrupt politics, legalizing homosexual marriage and embracing dependence on "lady luck" with casino table games. This pattern is multiplying across America and beyond. The moral standard has been thrown away and in its place is the commandment of self-gratification. So how do we continue to be a witness for Christ to this world when the divide between godly living and worldly norms grows farther apart each day? Drawing a Line in Stone Even with the flexibility of morals there is a standard by which the world can know right from wrong. This standard is called the 10 commandment and it was given for a specific and important purpose. This purpose, if used correctly, can change an entire society and even the world. The Purpose of the 10… [more]

Losing The Culture War Christian, are you afraid we are losing the culture war? It should be no surprise society is becoming more and more immoral and Christian values, which use to be a norm in America, are disappearing. It would be difficult arguing anything other than Christian morals and beliefs are being systematically disassembled year after year by an unending onslaught by atheist and those supporting a relaxed social standard. America Has Changed But are we too focused on trying to hold the line to preserve Christian values? Are we enforcing a standard that the new culture of America does not want? This is not the country of our fathers or grandfathers anymore. Gay marriage is gaining steam, drugs are being legalized, gambling is extensive and sexual promiscuity is normally accepted. What If We Could Go Back? Let's assume we are successful in stopping the march against the opposition to God's standard. Assume we can push back the clock to 1950's social norms. What … [more]

Being A Christmas Witness Tis' the Season when we send out those lovely Christmas cards. And in this age of instant gratification through IM and email it is the one time we do things the old school way. Please don’t overlook this opportunity to reach your family, friends and co-workers for Christ by becoming a Christmas witness. Start by picking out a card with a solid Christmas message. One that mentions the "Reason for the Season" which is that Christ came to save us from our sins.  Matthew 1:21 New International Version (NIV) 21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus because, he will save his people from their sins.” Sometimes picking that perfect card with a strong gospel message can be tough with the majority of cards being toned down with the mundane "Seasons Greetings." If you are making a picture card you can add your own message. Also consider inserting a gospel tract or writing a message to coincide with the card. If you already s… [more]