Kindle Notes & Highlights
Friendship Evangelism is the principle of reaching others for Christ through natural relationships - our friends, relatives, associates, and neighbors.
Relationship is what Christianity is all about.
Evangelism is making contact with a person and motivating him to give an honest hearing to the gospel.
Friendship is an effective means of making people receptive and responsive to the gospel. On the human level, the single key to establishing friendships is to be friendly.
The Christian witness must take the initiative in establishing redemptive friendships.
This informal survey reveals the same results that research discovered in various denominations that the key influence in bringing people to Christ is friends and relatives. People are reached for Christ through existing relationships.
1. Making people receptive by forming relationships. Christianity is a reflection of relationships.
The key is establishing a relationship with God.
Working through existing relationships was used effectively during the earthly life and ministry of Christ.
2. Bonding newcomers to the church through networking. Getting new converts or members into a group is the glue that keeps them in the church.
Research shows that new converts and members who do not become involved in a cell group are often lost to other churches, or they drop out of church completely.
Since the cell (Illustration, Sunday School class, Bible study, etc.) is the glue that holds groups of people to the church, what is the glue that holds individuals to the cell? The answer is meaningful interpersonal relationships.
First, there must be an accurate vision of the condition of the unsaved.
Second, there must be a vision of what you can do.
2. Getting a vision for the method
A Christian is a witness for Jesus Christ, and whether he is a good one or bad depends upon vision.
3. Making friends. Begin building redemptive friendships by learning names, smiling, looking friendly and showing a sincere interest in others.
4. Building relationships. The warmest climate for building a meaningful friendship may be provided by your own home.
As the relationship begins to develop, the believer should continue taking the initiative by cultivating common interests.
In addition to your personal concern and friendship, your new acquaintances should be introduced to other Christians who have interests similar to theirs and who will share your concern for their spiritual welfare.
New friends become receptive and responsive, as they are included in Christian group activities (this is called Side Door Evangelism).
Throughout the process, the believer should always be alert to the changing seasons of the soul, those times when people are more receptive than at others.
Therefore, redemptive friendships must be genuine friendships that requires a thorough understanding of true friendship.
1. A friend makes you comfortable.
A true friend is one who not only loves you for yourself, but in spite of yourself.
2. A friend can always be trusted A true friend can be trusted to stand by you even when it might be more profitable to forsake you (Prov. 27:10).
Friends do not always agree on all things. But they can agree to disagree and still remain friends.
3. A friend gives encouragement A true friend is one who helps you through the trials and tests of life.
4. A friend will make sacrifices.
Friendships are not found, they are established and developed through the investment of time and effort.
The objective of the networking process is to build redemptive friendships. Those who become involved in networking may be accused of building friendships for ulterior motives, but nothing could be farther from the truth. One of the hallmarks of friendship is giving attention to the good of others. What greater good could one possibly purpose than to lead a friend to Christ.
A prospect should be stair-stepped toward- the gospel. Like helping a young baby walk, every step he takes toward God should be supported.
Evangelism should be seen as an on-going process that includes pre-evangelism and postevangelism.
1. Salvation (the new birth)
Salvation is like a light bulb; it is either on or off.
But just as there are nine months of preparation before a birth, so a person is prepared for salvation before his conversion. This is called stair-stepping or pre-evangelism.
Each contact that the church makes with a lost person should move him closer to acceptance.
Like the human life cycle, evangelism is a process (pre-evangelism, conversion, post-evangelism) that consists of events.
Stair-stepping includes all that is involved in reaching the unsaved where they are and influencing them to Christ.
Only the Holy Spirit can convict the sinner (Jn. 16:8ff), and every possible precaution must be taken to see that no conscious or unconscious attempt is made to replace spiritual conviction with psychological pressure or human manipulation.
At the same time, it is neither logical nor biblical to expect a "God-hater" to be saved without taking some intermediate steps in his understanding and acceptance of the person of God.
In evangelism, the decision to trust Jesus Christ by faith is usually preceded by many other decisions.
The first step of an individual toward God is determined by his need.
The vast majority of Christians think of evangelism as a confrontational event, rather than a stair-stepping process.
Success - whether in sports or evangelism - is reaching goals which stair-step people toward the ultimate objective.
The ultimate objective of introducing the unsaved to Jesus Christ must be broken down into realistic goals.
Each time a goal is reached, success can be measured in terms of the progress that has been made toward the ultimate goal of bringing a person to Christ.
Stair-stepping enables the Christian to concentrate his efforts on winning the winnable while they are winnable.
The unsaved must hear the gospel often so they will become more receptive to it.
The key to getting started is determining where the prospect is in relationship to God. Then, the believer must know what entry-level to make in witnessing to him. Once a relationship has been made, the process of evangelism is a matter of stair-stepping the prospect toward faith in Christ.
