Lesson 12: Opening Doors

► Are we supposed to pray for unbelievers? Where in the Bible are we told to pray for unbelievers?

It is not easy to find a verse in the Bible that says directly that we should pray for the conversion of unbelievers. What we do find are many verses that tell us we should pray for the effective spread of the gospel (2 Thessalonians 3:1, Ephesians 6:19, Colossians 4:4, Acts 4:29).

We do know that we should pray for the conversion of unbelievers along with praying for the success of the gospel. We are told to pray for everyone, which would include praying that unbelievers would be converted (1 Timothy 2:1). We are told to try to bring people to repentance (2 Timothy 2:25), and it would be appropriate to pray for God’s help in that work.

When the church is at its best, evangelism seems to happen spontaneously and naturally. In the first generation of the church described in the book of Acts, it seems that everyone was joyfully spreading the gospel.

► A student should read Acts 2:46-47 for the group.

Apparently, the fellowship of the church was so strong and alive that it naturally drew others in. This tells us that if a church is not attracting new people, its fellowship is not as strong as it should be.

► A student should read Acts 5:42 for the group.

The apostles and others found opportunities for the gospel everywhere and all the time. Some churches have not been doing evangelism, and they are not sure how to start. They don’t know how to find opportunities for the gospel.

► A student should read Acts 8:1-4 for the group.

Because of persecution, many believers left Jerusalem to live in other places. They shared the gospel in all of the places where they went. For them, sharing the gospel was part of the Christian life.

You should avoid arguments about other churches in the presence of unbelievers. Try not to criticize other churches when you share the gospel. Unbelievers do not have spiritual discernment to come to the right conclusions in religious arguments. Many people of the world say that conflicts among churches are the reason they do not believe in Christianity.

If someone insists on asking about doctrinal differences, give scriptural answers, but try to get him back to the priority of the gospel. You can say, “Questions like that are important, but the most important thing is to be saved and in relationship with God.” If they tell you about a Christian they have known, maybe a relative or a pastor, try not to say critical things about that person’s doctrine.

If you do have to explain why your church is different from another, you can say, “It is important for a person to repent of sin, be forgiven, and live in obedience to God. Our church emphasizes that priority, so we are different from churches that emphasize something else.”

Some believers are afraid to evangelize because they are afraid of hard questions. It is good to keep learning, but the fact is that most believers do not know how to answer all of the hard questions. You do not need to know all the answers.

If someone asks a question that you cannot answer, you can say something like this: “I don’t know the best answer to that question. Someone at our church could help with that. But I do believe the Bible, and I believe that the most important thing is to know God and be saved. I do know how you can be saved.”

If a person says, “I don’t believe the Bible,” or “I don’t believe in God,” there are two different directions you could take that conversation. You could ask him the reasons for his opinion and try to give him some evidence. The other direction is to say, “You probably have thought about this and have tried to come to a logical conclusion. But, even if you don’t believe the Bible, as an intelligent person you want to know the basic message of the Bible. Can I show you what it is?” By doing this you may get to share the gospel without arguing. God can use the message to affect him later.

When you are evangelizing, you may meet someone who just wants to argue. You should avoid wasting a lot of time with him. Even if you say all the right things, he probably will not accept the truth. Try to share the basics of the gospel, then move on and talk to someone else.

► A student should read Titus 1:9-11 for the group. What does this passage give as reasons that we should defend the gospel?

One of the abilities that a pastor should develop is the ability to defend Christian truth against the philosophies of the world. This is not talking about arguments about the doctrines of different churches, but the resistance of the world against the gospel.

The reason we must defend truth is not only to try to convert the person who argues, but to help the people who are influenced by him. Many people have not yet decided what to believe. They need to hear a defense of Christian truth.

Most believers are not completely equipped to do this kind of argument. Every believer should be learning as much as he can, but some are especially gifted and prepared for that work.

During argument, it is important to show your purpose. You are not trying to win a competition. You are not fighting the person as a personal enemy. You need to show that truth is important to you because you care about people. If he does not believe the gospel, his soul will be lost. That is why you want to change his mind. You could say something like, “I want you to know God and be saved, and I’m afraid that you believe something that will not bring you to God.”

We do have some records in the Bible of times when an evangelist found a special opportunity to share the gospel.

► A student should read Acts 8:26-39 for the group. Another student could be asked to summarize the story for the group. How was the Spirit of God active in this event? How did Philip recognize an opportunity for the gospel?

Another example of an evangelist recognizing an opportunity for the gospel is Jesus himself.

► A student should read John 4:7-14 for the group. Another student could be asked to summarize the story.

This conversation between Jesus and the Samaritan woman included the topics of ethnic conflict, religious controversy, and the routine duties of life. Jesus did not spend much time on those topics, but guided the conversation to the topic of the woman’s spiritual need.

When you have learned how to give a gospel presentation, you will look for opportunities to share it with people. Occasionally, someone may ask to hear the gospel, but opportunities are usually not that obvious.

Some believers feel that it is difficult to share the gospel because they think people are not interested in hearing it. They think it is difficult to start a conversation about religion.

The gospel deals with many concerns that people have. Therefore, it is not difficult to introduce the gospel into a conversation.

In this lesson, we will next talk about the reasons people have for being interested in the gospel.

People have various motives for responding to the offer of salvation. Sometimes there are wrong motives, but there are many right motives.

► What was your reason for accepting the gospel? Let several students describe their own reasons for conversion.

Here are various motives that cause people to desire salvation.

• To go to heaven, not to hell (or fear of judgment)
• To have fulfillment and purpose in life
• To have security, peace of mind, freedom from fear
• To have forgiveness, freedom from guilt (clear conscience)
• To be spiritually clean and whole
• To have fellowship with God (to know God)
• To have fellowship with followers of Christ
• To have satisfaction of spiritual desires (real happiness)
• To have deliverance from sin
• To know truth

These are direct benefits of reconciliation to God. They are not worldly concerns that conflict with eternal values. A person lacks these things if he is separated from God.

► Look at this list and consider which ones are important to you. Which ones attracted you before you were converted? Which ones became important to you after conversion?

An unbeliever may show in his conversation that he feels a need for one of these benefits of salvation. The evangelist can adapt his approach to sharing the gospel to address that need. Say, “The reason people don’t have ______ is that they are separated from God. The Bible tells us how to come back into relationship with God.”

It is important to make sure that we are not promising earthly happiness to any person who will become a Christian. A person who decides to follow Christ for that reason probably is not really repenting of sin and, therefore, will not get the benefits of salvation. Another reason we should not promise earthly happiness is that the Bible does not promise good situations for the believer; instead, it predicts persecution (2 Timothy 3:12).

The most important reason for a person to become a follower of Christ is that he realizes his guilt and the coming judgment. The other things in the list above can be used to help a person realize that he is separated from God.

► What openings have you used to get an opportunity to share the gospel?

► Has it seemed difficult for any of you to get an opportunity to share the gospel? What do you think is the reason?

Sometimes an opportunity comes easily. In those cases, you can simply start explaining the gospel. If you want to show them scripture verses, you can ask, “May I take a few minutes to show you what the Bible says about how to become a Christian?” If you want to show the bridge drawing, you can ask, “May I take two minutes to show you a drawing that illustrates what the Bible says is the way to know for sure that you are saved?”

Openings appear in conversations on a variety of topics. Any of the conversational openings described here can be used for the presentation of the bridge drawing or a gospel presentation from scripture like the Roman Road.

► How many have heard people complain about the hard conditions of their lives?

Sometimes people complain about hard conditions in their life. Ask, “Why is life so hard?” After they respond, say “Can I show you a drawing that illustrates why life is so hard?” Begin by saying that God intended for us to live in relationship with him and did not intend for life to be as it is. The world has been damaged by sin. Go on to present the drawing.

To use a presentation directly from scripture, like the Roman Road, you can say, “The Bible explains that life is hard because everyone has sinned. Sin brought a curse on the world.” Continue through the Roman Road.

If a person seems to be religious, you can ask him what his most important belief is. Or you could ask him, “What do you believe is the way a person can know that he will go to heaven?” After hearing his answer, ask “May I take two minutes to show you a drawing that illustrates what the Bible says about how a person can go to heaven?”

► Have you heard people talk about the bad condition of the world or national problems? How would you use that as an opportunity to share the gospel?

If a person is talking about national problems, world hunger or poverty, or the danger of war, ask, “Can I show you some scripture that explains why the world is like it is?”

Show that the world’s condition is because unbelievers are separated from God. Do not imply that salvation instantly ends all problems, but show that individual salvation is the beginning of God’s solution. Someday there will be a new heaven and earth and those problems will not exist for those who are now reconciled to God.

Questions can be used to start a conversation, and then the conversation will open an opportunity for the gospel.

The easiest question is to simply ask “Are you a Christian?” Most people are not offended at the question. If the person says, “No,” you can ask, “Can I tell you what the Bible says about how a person becomes a Christian?”

If the person says, “Yes, I am a Christian,” you can say, “That’s wonderful. How did you become a Christian?” If the answer is wrong or the person seems confused, you can offer to explain what the Bible says about how a person becomes a Christian.

The questions in the section above can be used as other opening questions during conversation. Below are some more questions.

“What do you think is the purpose of life?” Let the person give his opinion. Agree with whatever is good about his statements. Then say, “The most important part of our purpose is to know God. He designed us to live in relationship with him. Can I show you what the Bible says about how to come into relationship with God?”

“What do you think is the key to happiness?” Whatever they suggest, you can say, “Many people who have that don’t seem to be happy for very long. The Bible tells us that joy comes from God (Psalm 16:11). Can I show you a drawing that illustrates how a person can come into relationship with God?”

“Do you believe in life after death? What do you think it is like?” Then, “The Bible says that each person will go either to heaven or hell. Can I show you what the Bible says about how to get to heaven?”

“What do you think is the basic message of the Bible?” This gives you the opportunity to show the drawing from Lesson 9.

► Has anyone already used an approach similar to one of these? How did it work?

Not every class member will feel comfortable with every method described in this lesson. It is possible that a method might not be appropriate in every culture.

The purpose of the lesson is to help the student find a way to develop his own approach.

The next lesson includes directions for distributing gospel tracts. The students will need to know where to get some tracts for distribution. If possible, bring a supply to the next class session.

As you continue to share the gospel this week, try some of these opening questions or develop your own. Observe how they work and write a paragraph of description. Be prepared to tell about your experience in the next class session.