We ended up getting into a very interesting conversation with someone who was reading upstairs in the Penn bookstore. He was a devout Muslim, which led to some deep theological discussions and debates.
We were able to share the gospel with him and to further explain discrepancies that exist between us regarding salvation. We generally tried to stress these differences to present core beliefs of Christianity and their distinct functions. I feel that we were able to challenge him in these areas and leave him with an understanding of the Christian perspective.
It was quite difficult to tell if what we were saying was getting through to him. He asked some questions that Muslims commonly bring up about Christianity. We addressed each of the issues as best as we could; he didn't press the issues further, but I'm not sure that this correlated to his assent.
Overall, it was an informative conversation for us about the beliefs of Islam and the things they feel are "corrupt" in Christianity and other religions. I think it helped to better grasp what these issues are and sparked a need to gain knowledge in these areas.
Though I cannot tell the extent to which the conversation was used by God, we were thankful that we were at least able to present the Gospel, clear up misconceptions, and present defenses for our faith. We were thankful for the opportunity that God provided.
Also, please pray for this individual. He got married this past weekend, and I believe he is spending time away this week. Pray that God could reveal Himself to him even through this blessing of His common grace in his life.
Wednesday, April 11, 2007
Sunday, April 1, 2007
innae & sky's conversations
we had two really great conversations as well!
we first spoke with a couple (Wanna and Michael) sitting on a bench who told us that they were Greek Orthodox. When asked to explain when they believed exactly and waht it meant to be Greek Orthodox, they got a little flustered when they realized they couldn't really explain it themselves. As we continued to probe and ask more questions, we eventually shared the TWTL presentation. I asked which way they felt like they were living, and Wanna said that she felt we should try to find a balance between the two because there were areas in our lives which we controlled and areas where we didn't have control. We tried to explain that the two ways of living weren't necessarily related to control, but this topic sparked a discussion between the couple where Michael said that we weren't really in control and Wanna disagreed...
in the end, we felt like God really used us because through our talk we got the couple to talk more about spiritual things and question what they really did believe.
we tried to talk to two people who were walking, but both said they had stuff going on, so we just wished them well and moved on.
The last individual was a student named Sylvan. He professed to be a Christian and said he believed in Christ - prayed and read his Bible daily - but he seemed to emphasize his good works and his efforts in being a good person. He admitted to not going to church on a weekly basis but believed that you didn't need to go to church to have a connection with God. He also said that Christ died for our sins, and went to heaven (which I thought was odd because he didn't mention the resurrection, but he could've just misspoke). Sky asked him the question about getting into Heaven, to which he responded "I think so, because I believe in God and I've been trying to lifve a good life." We recapped the TWTL presentation really quickly, touching on what was similar and also what was slightly different. I felt that he believed most of the correct things of the Christian faith but was missing out on some key points... but we weren't 100% sure where he stood. What WAS good is that we invited him to service next Sunday (pointing out that it was Easter and he SHOULD come to church on that day, if anything) and he seemed receptive to that.
woot. God is good.
we first spoke with a couple (Wanna and Michael) sitting on a bench who told us that they were Greek Orthodox. When asked to explain when they believed exactly and waht it meant to be Greek Orthodox, they got a little flustered when they realized they couldn't really explain it themselves. As we continued to probe and ask more questions, we eventually shared the TWTL presentation. I asked which way they felt like they were living, and Wanna said that she felt we should try to find a balance between the two because there were areas in our lives which we controlled and areas where we didn't have control. We tried to explain that the two ways of living weren't necessarily related to control, but this topic sparked a discussion between the couple where Michael said that we weren't really in control and Wanna disagreed...
in the end, we felt like God really used us because through our talk we got the couple to talk more about spiritual things and question what they really did believe.
we tried to talk to two people who were walking, but both said they had stuff going on, so we just wished them well and moved on.
The last individual was a student named Sylvan. He professed to be a Christian and said he believed in Christ - prayed and read his Bible daily - but he seemed to emphasize his good works and his efforts in being a good person. He admitted to not going to church on a weekly basis but believed that you didn't need to go to church to have a connection with God. He also said that Christ died for our sins, and went to heaven (which I thought was odd because he didn't mention the resurrection, but he could've just misspoke). Sky asked him the question about getting into Heaven, to which he responded "I think so, because I believe in God and I've been trying to lifve a good life." We recapped the TWTL presentation really quickly, touching on what was similar and also what was slightly different. I felt that he believed most of the correct things of the Christian faith but was missing out on some key points... but we weren't 100% sure where he stood. What WAS good is that we invited him to service next Sunday (pointing out that it was Easter and he SHOULD come to church on that day, if anything) and he seemed receptive to that.
woot. God is good.
Evangelism Outing Testimony
Charlotte and I were able to have conversations with two people: a female Penn student and a middle-aged man, who was there with his wife and young child.
The female Penn student comes from an Anglican background and is clearly familiar with some things about Christianity. But she doesn't see the Bible as "literally true," but rather approaches it as a collection of really interesting stories. She might even say that those stories are "true" in some sense, I think, in that they communicate spiritual truth, but not in that they actually happened. This was actually a difficult conversation, in my view, because in a sense, my responses to her, which pointed out that Jesus not only gave us an example but died to accomplish something objectively true, were basically saying, "Your view of Christianity is inaccurate." Of course, even though I said these things very gently (I THINK I did, but you can ask Charlotte...I really do think I did! :), she was basically not too happy with my responses.
The middle-aged man has an interesting background. He grew up in a Methodist church, I think and had a bad experience when taking confirmation class when he was 12 years old. Basically, when the pastor asked him if he believed in Jesus, the man said no. The pastor responded very harshly to this, according to the man, saying that he would go to hell and other things as well, apparently. The man has also seen a lot of hypocrisy in the church, and he basically is a Daoist now and tries to live "according to the balance of nature." He was open to hearing the gospel, and I think he appreciated hearing the story and having Christians, even "fundamentalists," listen respectfully to his views and his experiences. His name is Brian. Please pray that God would stir his heart to continue seeking the truth.
The female Penn student comes from an Anglican background and is clearly familiar with some things about Christianity. But she doesn't see the Bible as "literally true," but rather approaches it as a collection of really interesting stories. She might even say that those stories are "true" in some sense, I think, in that they communicate spiritual truth, but not in that they actually happened. This was actually a difficult conversation, in my view, because in a sense, my responses to her, which pointed out that Jesus not only gave us an example but died to accomplish something objectively true, were basically saying, "Your view of Christianity is inaccurate." Of course, even though I said these things very gently (I THINK I did, but you can ask Charlotte...I really do think I did! :), she was basically not too happy with my responses.
The middle-aged man has an interesting background. He grew up in a Methodist church, I think and had a bad experience when taking confirmation class when he was 12 years old. Basically, when the pastor asked him if he believed in Jesus, the man said no. The pastor responded very harshly to this, according to the man, saying that he would go to hell and other things as well, apparently. The man has also seen a lot of hypocrisy in the church, and he basically is a Daoist now and tries to live "according to the balance of nature." He was open to hearing the gospel, and I think he appreciated hearing the story and having Christians, even "fundamentalists," listen respectfully to his views and his experiences. His name is Brian. Please pray that God would stir his heart to continue seeking the truth.
Wednesday, March 14, 2007
Quotes on Faith, Knowledge, and Regeneration
I'm working on a reading assignment for one of my seminary classes, and some of it relates well to what we discussed in class this past Sunday. These quotes are written by John Murray, one of my favorite theologians (from Volume 2 of his Collected Writings).
On the importance of knowledge for faith:
On the importance of knowledge for faith:
"Faith respects an object and in this case Christ. But there can be no trust without knowledge of the person in whom trust is reposed. We do not trust any person unless we know something about him and, more particularly, things pertaining to that in respect of which we have confidence. So it is with Christ. In this case, however, the knowledge must be proportionate to the issues of life and death, of this age and the age to come. Hence we must know that he is worthy of and equal to such confidence." (pp. 257-8)On the relation between faith and regeneration (being made alive by God with respect to our spirits, i.e. spiritual birth):
"Regeneration is not believing; it is the Holy Spirit who regenerates. Faith is not regeneration, for it is the person who believes. But it is by the washing and renewal of regeneration that the person is enabled to believe. Faith is of God, but faith itself is the whole-souled movement of the person in entrustment to Christ" (p. 262).
Sunday, March 11, 2007
Knowing the gospel--my two cents
Thanks for your comments responding to the following statement: "The gospel isn't about intellectual content; it's about each individual's personal relationship to God." Here is my opinion about it.
I have no problem with what this statement affirms; I do have a problem with what it denies. The gospel certainly DOES concern each individual's personal relationship to God. One is either still in their sin and rightfully deserves God's wrath, or is in Christ and is graciously given eternal life (John 3:36).
But it's also true that the gospel has intellectual content. Our response to the gospel is to repent and trust. But that trust, as we discussed today, is trust in a person and what He has done. If there is not even a basic knowledge of who this person is, then where or in whom is this trust placed? At best, it's unclear; at worst, it's a misplaced trust--it's not saving faith at all.
So the gospel is about each person's individual relationship to God. But that relationship, just like ALL relationships, necessarily requires knowledge of the other person. Without some basic and true knowledge, there is no real relationship.
I will try to answer some of the questions asked in response to the previous post shortly. Stay tuned!!!
I have no problem with what this statement affirms; I do have a problem with what it denies. The gospel certainly DOES concern each individual's personal relationship to God. One is either still in their sin and rightfully deserves God's wrath, or is in Christ and is graciously given eternal life (John 3:36).
But it's also true that the gospel has intellectual content. Our response to the gospel is to repent and trust. But that trust, as we discussed today, is trust in a person and what He has done. If there is not even a basic knowledge of who this person is, then where or in whom is this trust placed? At best, it's unclear; at worst, it's a misplaced trust--it's not saving faith at all.
So the gospel is about each person's individual relationship to God. But that relationship, just like ALL relationships, necessarily requires knowledge of the other person. Without some basic and true knowledge, there is no real relationship.
I will try to answer some of the questions asked in response to the previous post shortly. Stay tuned!!!
Wednesday, March 7, 2007
Bible Study I (from p. 27)
Not sure if anyone's reading this (actually, I'm fairly sure you're not :), but let's give this another shot.
Read the following passages: 1 Corinthians 15:1-8; Colossians 2:6-7; 2 Timothy 3:14-15. How do these passages show that the gospel of Christ is taught or learned? What do these passages reveal about the actual content of the Christian message?
1 Corinthians 15:1-8 Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. 2 By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. 3 For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: {3 Or you at the first} that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 5 and that he appeared to Peter, {5 Greek Cephas} and then to the Twelve. 6 After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. 7 Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, 8 and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born.
Colossians 2:6-7 6 So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, 7 rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.
2 Timothy 3:14-15 14 But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, 15 and how from infancy you have known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.
Read the following passages: 1 Corinthians 15:1-8; Colossians 2:6-7; 2 Timothy 3:14-15. How do these passages show that the gospel of Christ is taught or learned? What do these passages reveal about the actual content of the Christian message?
1 Corinthians 15:1-8 Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. 2 By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. 3 For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: {3 Or you at the first} that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 5 and that he appeared to Peter, {5 Greek Cephas} and then to the Twelve. 6 After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. 7 Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, 8 and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born.
Colossians 2:6-7 6 So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, 7 rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.
2 Timothy 3:14-15 14 But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, 15 and how from infancy you have known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.
Wednesday, February 28, 2007
Knowing the gospel
Discuss the following statement (from p. 27 of the Participant's Manual): "The gospel isn't about intellectual content; it's about each individual's personal relationship with God." Agree? Disagree? If you disagree, how would you qualify it?
Any comments or questions are welcome here!
Any comments or questions are welcome here!
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