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Fast Facts on Responding to Popular Criticisms of Christianity

Fast Facts on Responding to Popular Criticisms of Christianity

Criticism: “Christians just have faith”

The fact of the matter, however, is that faith is not unique to Christians. Everyone has faith. For example, even the most hardcore Atheist has faith. The Atheist has faith that there is no God.

The question is not whether a person has faith or not. The real question is what are you putting your faith in and do you have a valid and reasonable basis for your faith?

As Christians we are not making a blind leap of faith. Christianity is not just wishful thinking. Rather, the Christian’s faith is one that is rooted in history and founded on a whole host of valid reasons to believe

Criticism: “You Christians are so judgmental”

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It’s Summer: Look Around and Engage

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It’s Summer: Look Around and Engage

Summertime always seems to be a greater opportunity to engage in gospel conversations.

  • There’s more light.

  • There are more people out and about.

  • There are more relaxed environments.

  • People seem happier and more relational.

Ask Questions – Strategic Questions – More Questions

One of the best ways to transition conversations is to ask questions. People seem more willing to answer some good, caring, non-intrusive questions than to just engage in small talk, so prepare yourself with some key questions to ask in all kinds of settings.

Take a look at the following questions and then start looking for opportunities to ask and see where the conversation leads. …

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Reaching People With the Gospel

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Reaching People With the Gospel

Reaching People with the Gospel | Tim Challies – August 23, 2018 | View the video clips of this transcript

What is the best way to reach people with the Gospel today?

People are always reached in the same way, which is through the telling, the preaching, the sharing of the Gospel, right. So, one way or another, people have to hear the Gospel and respond to it. The means through which people hear the Gospel can vary a lot and it does seem that over time that shifts back and forth. So, you go back to the great awakening and you would have thousands of unbelievers coming out to hear sermons.

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18 Prayers for Unbelievers

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18 Prayers for Unbelievers

18 Prayers for Unbelievers by Tim Challies - November 15, 2016

A friend asked the question: How do I pray for unbelievers? How do I pray effectively? I trust that every Christian regularly prays for family or friends or colleagues or neighbors who do not yet know the Lord. And while we can and must pray for matters related to their lives and circumstances, the emphasis of our prayers must always be for their salvation. Here are some ways the Bible can guide our prayers.

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7 Practical Steps to Cultivate a Heart for the Lost

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7 Practical Steps to Cultivate a Heart for the Lost

The Apostle Paul famously said that his “heart’s desire” and his “prayer to God” is that his fellow Jews “may be saved” (Rom. 10:1). The problem was that these “kinsmen according to the flesh” were lost—bound for an eternity without God—which filled Paul’s heart with “great sorrow and unceasing anguish” (Rom. 9:2-3).

Because we are sinners, we can take a true doctrine (God’s absolute sovereignty) and make it incompatible with an appropriate emotion (unceasing anguish for the lost). In a sermon from several years ago, John Piper explained three ways we can experience a disconnect between the biblical doctrine and the appropriate emotional state:

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Tips for Telling Someone the Gospel

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Tips for Telling Someone the Gospel

Christ’s Church – 2018

1. Pray regularly for open doors, divine appointments, boldness, clarity, and conviction for unbelievers you know in your sphere of influence.

2. Take the initiative to engage people. Be interested in their life and ask lots of questions (residence; occupation; birthplace; family background; interests, etc.)

3. Be a good listener. Listen for passions, fears, joys, sorrows, beliefs, values, struggles, etc.

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Make Your Step - Building Bridges

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Make Your Step - Building Bridges

Our lives are full. Sometimes to the exclusion of building bridges with non-believers around us. Be proactive in looking for ways you can share hope with those who have no eternal hope.

Recently, a person who took the Tell Someone challenge went to visit a patient in the hospital. No one had visited him. His hospitalization brought him face to face with his mortality, and he sought her out to ask for spiritual support. She engaged in conversation with him, asked questions, didn't push an agenda but sought to understand his thought process and how he came to his conclusions.

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Make Your Step - Starting Gospel Conversations

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Make Your Step - Starting Gospel Conversations

You took the "Tell Someone" challenge. You have the desire to share. Are you finding it difficult to get the conversation started? If you do, here's a few tips that may help you.

Read "Starting Gospel Conversations" by Mike Riccardi.

Ask the Lord to open your eyes to perceive opportunities through the four major themes of salvation (Creation, Fall, Redemption, Consummation). Find a prayer partner to pray with and for these opportunities.

Make Your Step - Testimonies & Transitions

Make Your Step - Testimonies & Transitions

Following are examples shared by two people who took the next step. Having the "Tell Someone" challenge on their mind caused them to be proactive in looking for a chance to share. 

Story One: “…. Since then, my college friend and I have lived apart, and I have gotten back into church. God has really been putting her name in my mind during our "Tell Someone" series, and I decided to just get up the courage to start the conversation....It was truly scary to share with such a close friend, but I pray for her each day that she will find a meaningful relationship in Jesus going forward. Thanks for the challenge! It was what I needed to get moving and stop stalling.”