Sharing Your Faith

Once you become a Bible believing follower of Jesus Christ you will want to share your faith with others.  This is right and proper.  It is also a natural desire for someone who has discovered the Most Important Thing in the World and come to know the Person who is the Giver of that most precious gift.

You now know His Name is Jesus.  Jesus of Nazareth.  Jesus, the Son of Man.  Jesus, the Son of the Living God.  Jesus the Christ.  (Christ means, Messiah, or 'the promised one' and has special significance in the light of Biblical prophecies that foretold the coming of the Saviour of the World.)

One of the things Jesus said to his disciples was, 'Follow me and I will make you fishers of men'.  Matthew 4: 19.  One reason He chose the metaphor of fishing, was because for many of his first followers, such as Peter, fishing was their vocation and livelihood.  So, it was relevant and made sense to them.  Fishing was important to them, and it emphasised the importance of sharing their faith in Christ Jesus, their Saviour. 

It is important for us also, who follow Him today.  I firmly believe that we should pray very sincerely and ask Him to do that for us.  To make us fishers of men also.  Of course, this means men, women, young people and children of all ages and races.  Pray to be useful to Him in the work of His Kingdom.  One way to do this is make use of this web site.  Perhaps you could put the link to The Most Important Thing in the World at the bottom of your emails and in other places where people might click or type it into the address bar of a web browser and learn the way of salvation and how to receive the gift of eternal life?  If you have a web site or a Facebook page, MySpace or Blog you could put the link there.  This would be an easy way to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ with many people. 

Most importantly of all, start to include mentioning Jesus Christ and the way of salvation in your conversations with friends, family and acquaintances.  There are many ways to start a conversation about Jesus and spiritual things.  People are not as closed off as we often think.  In fact, many people are very interested in spiritual things.  Some even go to church and are quite unsaved and have no clear knowledge of how to be sure of eternal life. 

Often, the changing circumstances of life can be 'gateways' for people to come into an understanding of the Gospel and Jesus Christ as Saviour.  A crisis, a need, a loss, the death of a loved one or friend, many things can be an opportunity for you to speak about the love of God. 

I use simple phrases that open the way for further conversation about the Gospel.  For example, "Are you interested in spiritual things?', is a good opening question.  It allows you to find out in a simple  and non-threatening way what understanding a person has and then move on into your own story of how you came to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ and what that has come to mean to you.

Another approach I often use is to say quite up front, "I am a Bible believing follower of Jesus Christ and have learnt that trusting Him is a wonderful way to get through all the difficult things that happen.  When things get rough, He smoothes them out somehow, when things are difficult being able to pray and trust Him makes things easier.  It doesn't mean that bad things never happen, because they do, it does mean that there is a real source of support and help when I need it.'   It's very easy to go on and develop this and then explain how to become a follower of Jesus and how to be sure of the most important thing in the world, eternal life.

Always pray and ask the Lord to lead you to people you can speak to and then to give you the words to say.  The wonderful thing about being in constant contact and fellowship with the Lord is that He is always there and He does help and make a way for you.  Make this a way of life.  Read books about sharing your faith and find good booklets and pamphlets to give to people you speak to.  Often I give away Bible's to people I've talked with.  Small New Testaments in the Good News version, or other modern translations are excellent and always appreciated.  I've had some wonderful feedback over the years from people to whom I've given Bibles, prayed with and shared Christ.  It is the greatest and most fulfilling experience you can ever have. 

Remember, there is an enemy of the Gospel, Satan, the Devil, who is also real and he will resist and try to stop and discourage you from sharing your faith.  He is not a gentleman and is the master of dirty tricks.    The Bible speaks about him in these words, "Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. 9 Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith..."  1Peter 5: 8 

I recommend material from Ray Comfort, who is a New Zealander, a Kiwi, now living in America, and who runs a school of evangelism called, The Way of the Master.  Get a hold of some of the material they provide and it will help you share your faith very effectively. 

It's so simple to share the Gospel and talk about the Lord.  Yet, at the same time, we often look back at missed opportunities and wonder, "Why didn't I speak up then?", "What made me slow to share?", and so on.  Often it's unpreparedness, or different kinds of fears and so on.  With the Lord's help all these can be overcome and by learning from our past mistakes we can become the fishers of men He promised He would teach us to be.  Trust Him and don't allow yourself to be disheartened or dismayed.  Feel free to share your experiences with me and I'll do all I can to help you and equip you to be the bold, fearless, effective witness of Christ I know you can be.  God Bless you.

Here is a beautiful exhortation by Michael W. Smith using an opportunity while sharing His music gifting to encourage others to become followers of Christ.  He does this in a very simple and very natural manner and, of course, he has the wonderful gift of music to help him.  But, you will meet people in your world that Michael Smith, or I or other Christians will never meet and YOU are their 'lifeline to heaven and salvation'.  So, be brave, be bold, be very courageous for the Lord is with you...all the time.  Read Joshua 1: 1-8 and make the Lord's words of encouragement to Joshua after the death of Moses, your own, as though God was speaking directly to you.  They have been a source of strength and encouragement to all followers of Jesus Christ through all the ages.  They can be yours as well as you embark on the great task of sharing your faith with all those with whom you come in contact.

How To Become A Christian / Michael W Smith "Lord I Give You My Heart"