An excellent evangelistic Bible study guide!
Jesus insisted that children be given access to Him. “Permit the little children to come unto Me, and do not forbid them,” He said. Somewhat confused, the disciples stepped back and gave way to these seemingly unimportant little people. Jesus picked one of them up, held the child in His arms and blessed it. The year was around ad 32.
It is now ad 2004 and children regularly gather with Sunday School teachers, AWANA leaders or camp counsellors to hear exciting stories from the Bible about this same Jesus who loves them. Many respond to the invitation of the Saviour and personally receive the Lord Jesus.
This has been the happy experience of the believers at Markham Bible Chapel. In general, outreaches to children tend to be interesting, relevant and enjoyable. The reason is simple. If children find things boring or irrelevant they let you know or simply stop attending.
Adults are more sophisticated, have more preconceived opinions. They also have fine-tuned rejection strategies:
• Church is boring. Everyone knows that, so instead I’ll just stay home and watch my lawn grow.
• I personally don’t need religion, but a little bit wouldn’t hurt my kids. It might round out their education.
•I have my own church; I don’t need another one.
Many parents are interested in providing their children with an interesting learning experience with a bit of religious training included. Most will attend “Parent’s Night” or other special occasions where their children are participating. Cameras often record these “award winning” performances.
Even though friendly relationships developed with parents over a cup of coffee or during drop-off or pick-up times, there was a reluctance to attend regular assembly meetings. Parents weren’t interested in “joining a church.” Many already were members of other religious denominations and “didn’t see any reason to change.”
The desire to communicate the gospel message to parents and other adults presented a real challenge. The traditional gospel meeting may still be effective in some places. However, when a serious effort of prayer and handing out invitations from door to door fails to move people, it’s time to re-evaluate the approach.
During our search for a good way to communicate the good news of the Lord Jesus to adults, we had a visit from an evangelist who shared the encouraging experience of seeing a good number of people come to faith in Christ through meetings in his home. He explained how he invited people for supper followed by a talk about a relevant topic and how the Bible addresses the issue. After concluding the study, people were free to continue with questions as they wished. Many did, and some accepted the Lord.
While looking for an appropriate study guide, we evaluated the popular ALPHA program. Not finding it suitable, we were subsequently pleased to discover the Christianity Explored (CE) course. It is a straight-forward study of the Gospel of Mark, where people are encouraged to read and examine the Bible for themselves. Over 10 weeks, three questions are posed and answered from the Bible. (1) Who is Jesus? (2) Why did He come? (3) What does He demand of those who want to follow Him? Throughout Mark’s Gospel these three themes of His Identity, His Mission and His Call are repeated. A quote from the CE literature, “The emphasis on God’s grace (that we are more wicked than we ever realized, but more loved than we ever dreamed) and also the clear presentation of the cost involved in following Christ make the course distinctive.” is certainly true.
During the first study, a total of 12 guests joined the study with 8-10 attending on a regular basis. We initially only invited people we knew: parents of children attending youth events, neighbors, and friends. There were no cold-calls or mass mailings to strangers.
The format is designed to create a relaxed atmosphere where people can open up and ask questions.
Outline of the evening
6:30-7:00 Leaders prayer time
7:00-7:45 Dinner
7:45-8:05 Discussion #1 (Read Bible passage, answer questions in Study Guide)
8:05-8:30 Gospel presentation (on video or in person)
8:30-9:00 Discussion # 2 (challenge to respond)
Dinner is provided at 7 pm for all in attendance, followed by Discussion #1 which involves reading a Scripture passage, then answering 4–6 questions for 20 minutes. The next session is viewing a half-hour video presentation by Rico Tice (a co-author of the study) where important biblical truths are explained in a contemporary way.
Discussion #2 then provides an opportunity to respond to the message, answer questions and highlight key points. The evening is concluded at 9 pm. People are then free to leave or stay and discuss. The evening usually ends anywhere between 9:30 and midnight.
A weekend retreat is recommended around Week 6 or 7 to provide a time away where guests can focus without distraction on what they have learned about the Lord Jesus to date, as well as understand what God has provided for those who receive Christ as Saviour, including the Church, Prayer, the Bible, and the Holy Spirit. The first person to receive Christ did so in November, followed by two more at the retreat weekend in January of 2004.
On January 19, the second study commenced with good interest by both new and former attendees. Around 35 people have been contacted and relationships established. On the third week, one young woman announced that during the week she had been saved. There are several who are seriously interested in knowing more about the gospel and often stay to talk an hour or more after the studies are officially concluded at 9 pm.
An Evaluation of the Materials
CE materials include; (a) a Study Guide for Guests, (b) a Leader’s Study Guide, which includes answers to the questions and background information on the Bible passage, (c) a Guide on How to Run the CE Course, (d) a paperback book presenting the gospel message, written by Rico Tice and Barry Cooper, authors of the course. In addition, some promotional materials are available. The Christianity Explored study was developed over 10 years by those involved in evangelism at All Souls Church in London.
The study materials are excellent. The key elements of the gospel are clearly presented with due emphasis on our sinful condition, the deity of Christ, His atoning sacrifice and the need for personal appropriation. The cost of following Christ is highlighted and we are warned not to “lower the cost” in our presentation of the gospel simply to attract followers.
Several who have used a different study course have expressed concerns about its teaching on the Holy Spirit and because of this they skipped sections. CE can be used with complete confidence since it faithfully follows the Scriptures and does not attempt to “soft pedal’ the message to make it more appealing. It is simply a tool which can be used to present the gospel.
At a recent CE conference in Toronto, the presenters commenced the session by saying, “The emphasis tonight is not upon Christianity Explored; it’s about presenting the good news about Jesus as recorded in Mark’s Gospel.” This is an important differentiation between the different study materials available.
The Response
One guest, a lady who had attended a large denominational church faithfully all her life, became quite agitated and demanded to know why she had never heard the gospel clearly explained until now. She found it inconceivable that church leaders who have studied religion for years never spoke about it. “For 41 years I didn’t realize that you needed “personal faith” in Jesus Christ, instead of just having a “general faith.” On November 17, 2003 she placed her “personal faith” in the Lord Jesus and experienced God’s salvation.
It has been a real joy and encouragement to those involved in the study to hear six people profess faith in Christ during the past seven months. I’m quite sure there was rejoicing in heaven as well. An older sister in the assembly told me, “You don’t know what an encouragement and blessing it is to me, to be able to minister to a new believer,” a young mother of four. The tears in her eyes confirmed her sincerity.
So, is the gospel message irrelevant, boring or simply untrue? Irrelevant? It’s an all too common charge by those who don’t know the Saviour. But is it the message, or the messengers? Are we irrelevant—unable to connect with our culture? Possibly. Boring? Are we boring people in our presentation of this glorious message?
The content of the message is unchangeable; however the methods employed in delivering the message may vary. Too often we get stuck in a rut and continue to do the same thing even though we see no fruit. The exciting thing about the gospel is that it is highly portable. You can take it anywhere and to anyone, under any conditions. It’s important that we understand our current culture and discover interesting and compelling ways to present it.
Eric is available to respond to any inquiries [email protected]