Sunday School Resource - How to Evangelise

On Saturday 15th of November the Sunday School Department of RCCG, The King's Court in Hackensack New Jersey will be leading the church members to carry out intercessory prayers and thereafter they would be going round the church neighbourhood to share the love of God with the Bible sharing tracts and bookmarks.

Recreate below as concise bullet points which you can share as nuggets to aid the outreach programme. Let them know this is an evangelism outreach in line with God’s commission to believers in Acts 1:8 and Matthew 28:19-20 to evangelize. Let them know that in participating they are tapping into Matthew 6:33 – as they seek first to increase God's kingdom, God will add all other blessings to them.

Sharing one’s faith with nonbelievers can be intimidating and difficult, but also incredibly rewarding. Evangelism is a cornerstone of the Christian faith and can be a great way to connect with people and share your passion in a tactful, friendly manner. Believers can learn to make the whole process easier by using simple evangelism tips in a group or individual evangelism outreach.

1.  Pick an appropriate location and time. That is what we have done. Individuals and other departments can do this also. As we move around, members should be courteous and respectful.

2. Be prepared. We have prepared ourselves spiritually by praying first. Some people find it very hard to share their faith and experiences because it takes courage to talk about what you believe in to people who might not always be interested in listening. But with us doing this as a group, your courage level would be boosted. If you approach someone in twos, one can speak while the other prays in the spirit. After each session with the person you meet or home you visit, quickly review and talk about how to do the next one better.

3. Have a message. The message we are sharing today is a message of hope; Jesus saves, God is love and there is hope in God. Share biblical messages and experiences that will connect with people in a personal way. We can share important bible verses or stories, story of how you came to be saved, benefits of salvation and church history.

4.  Have few probing questions to ask. It's helpful to transition from simple conversation into a discussion of faith by leading with probing questions, and it helps to have a good list of them to draw from so you're not struggling to come up with them on the fly. Good questions might include:

a.     Do you feel fulfilled in your life?

b.     Do you ever feel like something is missing?

c.      Do you pray?

d.     Do you go to church?

e.     Have you experienced the joy of salvation?

5.     Don't rush directly into the topic of witnessing. Start with some small talk and ask about what has been going on in the person’s life lately. Expect that they won’t immediately trust you. Since we have just a few minutes, come across as being friendly before you go into witnessing.

6.   Ask a probing question. Ask a question that will lower the person's guard and get them thinking about larger existential issues, making them receptive to an exchange of ideas. A question like, "What do you think about afterlife?" can be effective at transitioning the conversation into your territory. A most effective evangelistic tool that you can use is a survey. You can ask four questions about an individual's life, and after you know the needs and beliefs, witness to each based on the point of view.

7.     Listen and pay attention. Evangelism isn't just waiting for an opportunity to speak; it needs to be a real conversation and exchange of ideas. When you ask a question like, "Have you experienced the joy of salvation?” really listen to the response. Aside from giving them the feeling that they have a willing listener, you need to pay attention to what they're saying to enable you respond appropriately, accurately and convincingly. Avoid pressing persons that are totally closed to you, but persist with the ones that are open. Listening closely will help you to gauge the person’s interest and open them up even more.

8.     Talk about your testimony to encourage the person. Tell them about your version of Christianity, what it means to you, and how your faith has changed your life for the better. It's important to treat this conversation as a conversation between two people, putting a face on the Church. In general, you'll want to avoid getting into overly complicated discussions of dogma and theology, focusing instead on the importance of faith and salvation.

9.  
Talk about the Ten Commandments. The Commandments are typically somewhat familiar to the layperson, and a conversation about "laws" can be an effective transition into more theoretical concepts and ideas. Even non-believers can agree that lying, killing, and stealing are to be avoided, and hearing it laid out in those terms can make closed listeners more receptive. Alternatively you can bring in the law by starting with known laws like the “Blue Law” or “Thanksgiving” which have their root in Christianity.

10. 
Lay out the ABC. Some evangelists like to use a basic introduction method of becoming a Christian as a way of giving a possible convert a concrete list of steps to keep in mind when thinking about developing their faith. The ABC method breaks down like this:

A: Admit that you are a sinner

B: Believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God who died for your sins

C: Confess your belief to Christ

11. Lay out a plan with them. A person may not become spiritually mature and be "saved" after talking to you for five minutes. What's the next step? What should this person do tomorrow and the next day to build and maintain their new interest in your faith? Pray, study the Bible and attend church.

12. 
Provide appropriate literature. Have Bible and some handouts to give the most receptive of the people you communicate with. Also give materials provided by the department e.g. bookmark to as many people as possible, whether they show interest or not.

13. Do not deliver a false-hope Gospel. Deliver the true Gospel, the "Good News." Anyone who says that when you become a Christian your life will be always wonderful and perfect has apparently never read the New Testament. If the person you are trying to convert does not wish to discuss or listen, then move ahead to talk to someone more receptive.

14. Do not preach hell, fire and brimstone or prosperity message. Just preach the basics of the good news of the Gospel. The basic story of Jesus is a good place to start.

15. Recommend the church. Ensure you share the church’s information. Share the service schedule especially Sunday Service and Bible Study.

16. Evangelise for the right reasons. If they are social or material, you are no better than a salesman. The Lord is always reaching out to the unbelievers, but you can be in God’s way if you are a hypocrite.

17. Proclaim the Truth of the Gospel without respect for persons or favouritism. Do not use opinions and non-biblical doctrines and traditions when trying to explain the Gospel of Jesus Christ to unbelievers or members of another religion or denomination.

18. 
Pray with them. If the person has never prayed before, he/she may be reluctant, curious or nervous about the process. Walk the person through the prayer session. Say a simple and brief prayer, introducing them to it as a practice. Tell them how to pray and when to pray. If they accept the Lord, welcome them to the body of Christ after praying, request that they join a Bible believing church and invite them to church.

Sunday School Resource – What do I do to be saved?

This question answers a lot of other sub questions such as the following: If I am not lost why do I need to be saved? What am I being saved from? Why should I be saved? How do I know that I need to be saved? A person who desires to be saved is someone who needs a saviour. When we talk about being saved we are talking about a spiritual state and not a physical state. A person will know that he needs to be saved when he finds that he /she begins to feel empty and dissatisfied with life. They find that that they may even be financially comfortable and in a loving marital relationship but still find that there is a void inside of them. This person may have everything but they are still empty. They try to fill the void with friends, hobbies, outings, buying themselves expensive gifts but find that the void is still there.. The bible shows us the way and is the answer to all our life problems.. The manual that our manufacturer has left for us to order our lives by is the Bible, has all the answers 2 Timotht 3:16. You may ask, how do we know that the bible can answer our problems. We know that the bible can answer our problems because it is a book that has spanned many generations and has fulfilled over 300 prophecies it had predicted ie the birth of Christ, the deliverance of the children of Isreal from the hands of the Egyptians etc. There is the scientific evidence that the bible is true and it has been confirmed by science ie roundness of the earth - Isaiah 40:22, infinite extent of the sidereal universe Isaiah 55:9, vast number of stars Jeremiah 33:22, paramount importance of blood in life processes Leviticus 17:11, gravitational field Job 26:7 etc. Those that wrote the bible wrote in it as different books, it was later put together as one book. There is a total of 66 books in all and over 30 authours. What is unique is that the themes of all the books seem to be very similar. The message of all the books is that God loves us and even when reading books which reveals wars the fights and mass destruction, the message is still one of a God of love. This piece is not meant to go into the indepths of biblical apologetics but to make a point that we do have to be saved to be fulfilled as a whole human being and also be reconciled with God so that we have perfect peace and harmony in life. These points will suffice for now, to ensure that the bible is true. Having now proved that the bible is a book which is what it says it is, then we go back to the intial point which is: why do I need to be saved. The reason why we need to be saved is as follows:          God wants us to be saved. So that we become one with Him.          It will do us good.          It brings us inner peace.          So that we make it into God's heaven for all eternity. In short, this piece attemts to explain and encourage the reader, not only to be saved but to stay saved. God bless you.

Sunday School Resource: United in Doctrine

Doctrine is the revelation of scriptures given by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit as an unchangeable pattern for the New Testament church. Doctrine gives a sect identity as it portrays the basic fundamental beliefs of the religious organisation (Psalm 133: 1-3, Ephesians 4:11-15, Acts 2: 41-47). A change in doctrine will therefore produce a new sect or religious group. The universal church must have a unified doctrine. Heb 6: 1-2, 2Tim 3:16, Matt 22:33, Luke 4:32 Mark 1:27. WHY UNITY IN DOCTRINE?          To prevent corruptness. Tit 2:7          It is a means to control heretic revelations and teachings. 1Tim 4:16, Mk 1:27          To foster stability. 1Tim 6:20-21, Heb 13:9          To ensure faithfulness to the ancient land mark 1Tim 1:3-4, 2Tim 2:2          It is the root of our core value. 1Tim 4:13, 15-16, 2Tim 3:10          To preserve and ensure the continuity of the Christian faith to coming generation. 2Tim 2:2, Gen 18:18-19          To help believers grow in grace and in complete freedom from bondage, etc. Jn 8:32          To produce strong mature believers and to stop backsliding – Believers should be taught the hard fact of discipleship, discipline, it‟s the strong meat. Heb 5: 12-14; 2Tim 4:1-4; Eph 4:11-15 HOW TO BE UNITED IN DOCTRINE You must know the doctrine. Be an ardent scholar of the Word. Be sound in the knowledge of the Word. You cannot give out what you don‟t have. Be persuaded, convinced and unshakable regarding the truth of the Word (Matt 12:34; 2Tim 2:15; Ezra 7:6, 10; 1Tim 4:6). The greatest problem with teachers today is lack of sound knowledge of the Truth. To do proper teaching and interpretation of the Word, you MUST have proper understanding, equip yourself with study materials such as commentaries, Study Bibles, concordance, and Bible Dictionary of the word and places, etc. Make most of the teachers' preparatory meeting. It is held once a week (please request the phone line). It is a must for all teachers to attend; on no account should a teacher who did not attend the preparatory meeting be allowed to teach. The purpose of the teachers‟ preparatory meeting include:          To do a careful study and analysis of the lesson in view until the core of the lesson is understood by the teacher (who should first learn as a student)          To read and critically ascertain the correctness and relevance of every Bible quotation in the lesson.          To discuss and agree on the divergent views on a subject and reach a unified conclusions in line with the Scriptures.          Be united in your teaching and don‟t go on and teach your own views in your class.          On no account should teachers argue on a topic in the presence of people/students. All that should be sorted out during the preparatory meeting.          Teach the Word without compromise or apology, but with love, humility but firmness. Eph. 4:15, 25. Exalt Jesus in all your teaching. Let everyone know they need a saviour regardless of personal challenges, status, religion etc. John 3: 1-5, 14-15; Acts 8: 5, 27-35, Acts 9:20 (what are the attributes of Philip as a teacher and preacher demonstrated here?) Emphasise salient doctrines and spiritual experiences in your teaching. John 3:1-7; 4:19-24 – Salvation, Holiness, Holy Spirit baptism etc. Teach until your listener understands, for no learning has taken place till the students know what you are teaching. This can be achieved through various means, viz: Teach in plain simple terms, and not grand theological phrases. Use picture language that will make the truth come alive in living colour. Metaphors, parables, similes, etc. were used by Jesus in the gospels. Build on what the listener already know and believe. Jesus and the disciples never attacked others for their beliefs. They used their beliefs as a basis to help them understand the truth they were teaching (Acts 17:22-23). Relate/repeat your message when necessary. Be focused in achieving your objective. Students must go home with cogent lesson, i.e. forcefully convincing. Hence, you need thorough preparation so that you can discover the basic lesson taught in the lesson. PRAY, PRAY, PRAY! This can never be over emphasized. Jesus prayed the whole night for just few hours teaching. Pastor E. A. Adeboye fasts and prays for weeks for few hours sermons/teachings. We are shaping lives and destinies through the Word. It‟s a sacred job. People‟s lives and eternity depends on the Word. RESULT          The Word will bear fruit and our labour in the teaching ministry will not be in vain.          The church will be at peace. Wrong doctrine brings disharmony and aggravation. Acts 15: 1-2, 22-23, 30-31.          Tremendous growth. Acts 5:11-16; 19; 9-10; 6:27-28.          The church will be prepared for the second coming of Jesus. Eph 5:27.          The doctrine of Christ will be preserved for coming generation. CONCLUSION True believers must be unwavering in the practice of the doctrine they accepted. This is why removing the ancient church landmark is a gross abuse of the call to teach and lead in the body of Christ. Any deviation from sound doctrine in the church is an end time spirit. Watch out! 2Tim 2:13; John 17:16; 2Tim 4:1-3.

Sunday School Resource: Confronting Challenges of Heresy

A church cannot be stronger than her doctrines. The early church knew this fact pretty well enough that they left nothing to chance. Their approach was clear: the trumpet must give a clear message, or else.  In this study, we will examine the definitions of doctrine, heresy, and church. We will also highlight some of the approaches of the apostles in dealing with heresies in their time. Finally, we will examine the signs we must watch out for in order to identify a heretical teaching or movement. You cannot claim to be a member of the RCCG without the belief in our fundamental doctrines. It is through teaching not preaching that we transmit doctrines. Hence every Sunday School teacher must be sound in the knowledge of God‟s Word and have good knowledge of teaching methodology. DOCTRINE It is a codification of beliefs or a body of teachings or instructions (Wikipedia). It is a body or system of teachings related to a particular subject. It is a particular principle, position, or policy taught and advocated. It has its origin from (Latin) doctrina, which means teachings or a body of teaching. It could be translated learning. (www.dictionary.com). The Greek didache, which means teaching or that which is taught; to speak in a way of teaching, in distinction from other modes of public speaking. (www.esword.com). For the purpose of this study, we will define „doctrine‟ as a body of teachings or beliefs, fundamentally based on the Bible, and accepted as tenets of faith by a body of believers. It is taught and practiced by the generality of the people and deviations are, not just frowned at but disciplined. Membership of such a group is defined by adherence to this set of teachings. HERESY It is an opinion or belief that runs contrary to established teachings, or customs. Its root, Greek „hairesis‟, means act of choosing. The heretic chooses to believe, or follow, a set of teachings different from what the group subscribed to. According to John W. Ritenbaugh, heresy is the translation of the Greek „hairesis‟- meaning literally “choice “ or “selection”- which has an interesting secular as well as biblical history. Until its biblical use, it has no evil connotation. Even in the Bible, it is mostly used to refer to a party or philosophy with which a person has chosen to identify or ally himself. Thus „hairesis‟ is frequently translated “sect”. In Acts, Luke applies it to the Sadducees (Acts 5:17) and the Pharisees (Acts 15:5; 26:5). Outsiders also used “hairesis” in Acts 24:5, 14 and Acts 28:22 to identify the Christian church. However, when Paul and Peter‟s writing began circulating, „hairesis‟ meant a destructive element within the church that creates division through consciously formed opinions and ideas in disagreement with the orthodox teachings of the apostles. Paul condemns it in Galatians 5:20 as one of “the works of the flesh.” Sometimes it is translated “factions” or “party spirit,” but regardless of its translation, Paul says that people who practise such things will not inherit the Kingdom of God (verse 21)! (Forerunner, February 1995) CHURCH Campbell defines the church of the living God as a company of called out ones – called out of the world – those whom God has called unto Himself by the gospel of His grace and who have accepted the gospel and the Saviour it represents. We define the Church as comprising those who have been called out of the world, out of sin and isolation from God, and through the redemptive work of Christ have been gathered as a community. They have a common faith and share the blessings and responsibilities of serving the Lord. There is no doubt that there are various definitions of the church. But we will stick to the last definition for our purpose since the basic concepts of separation from the world, redemption, faith, and the gospel are clearly represented. HOW DID THE EARLY CHURCH DEAL WITH HERESIES IN THE BIBLE? The Church had to contend with heresies from the beginning and the apostles put it on the front burner.          Acts 15: 1-31 – The first Jerusalem Council had its first meeting to deal with a doctrinal matter, a decision was taken and communicated to the Gentile believers who were the target of Judisers.          Acts 15: 33-35 – Paul and Barnabas were teaching the believers ceaselessly.          Acts 15:36 – There were follow-up visit from time to time.          Acts 15:41 – The apostolic visits were solely to confirm or strengthen the church and ensure they are preserved from doctrinal errors.          1Cor. 1:11-13; 2: 1-2; Gal 3:1-3 – The epistles were written to various local assemblies to correct heresies and arrest the trend early.          1 Thess. 5: 2-8 – We are children of day and not of night, hence, let us keep the light of the true gospel shining.          2 Thess. 2:2-12 – Heresy is a sure sign of the end time.          1Tim. 1:3-7, 18 – Timothy was given specific charge when he was sent to Ephesus and this is to confront the heretical teachers. To Paul, dealing with heresies is a spiritual warfare.          2 Tim. 2:2; 4:2-5 – Paul advocates intentional mentoring as a way of dealing with wrong teachings. This approach will embolden true teachers of the Word to counter the effect of heretical teachings.          Tit.1:9-11 – The assignment of Titus among the Cretans was to stop the mouth of the false teachers.          2 Pet.2:12-19 – Peter compares these teachings to Balaam who loved the wages of unrighteousness.          1 John 2:15-19 – John warns against worldliness, as a sign of heretical teachings. He also identified the spirit at work as that of the antichrist. This is why all kinds of churches are springing up today.          Jude 1:1-25 – Jude says heretical teachers are clouds without water, trees whose fruits have withered. This is because they’ve been plucked up by the root. HOW DO WE IDENTIFY A HERESY? (GEN 3:1-9) 1  It appeals to the flesh – 2 Tim 4:2; 2 Pet 3:3. 2  It queries the authenticity of the Word of God. 3  It is half-truth, just enough poison to damage and damn the soul eternally. 4  It produces result (temporal gratification), but not on relying on the Holy Spirit. 5  It could lead to a movement, but it will not produce true believers. 6  Sometimes, it down plays on persecution and Christian suffering. 7  It impoverishes the laity while the clergy lives big. – 1 Pet 5:2-3 8  It feeds on the ignorance of the followers. 9  It down plays end time warning – 2 Pet 3:3-4. 10          Heresy is a neighbour to apostasy. This is why there are homosexuals and lesbians who call themselves believers today. CONCLUSION The best way to identify the fake is to know the original. The focus of the early church was the Word of God, the doctrines of Christ and not miracles, blessings, comfort but the Word. They studied, taught, fellowshipped, prayed, lived and died to ensure the decimation of the true doctrine of Christ. They risked everything for it. Nothing was compromised for the truth, 1 Tim 6:3-5; Rom 16: 17; Deut 13:1-10, 2John 10-11. Bankers are trained to identify fake currencies by being able to tell the original even in the dark. If you know the truth, not only will it set you free, you will be able to smell heresies afar off and help others to do the same.