12 Things God Promises Christians and 12 Things He Doesn’t

Recently, I’ve been thinking a lot about what we say when we share the Gospel and whether we are misleading people, either deliberately or with good intentions, about what to expect if they become Christians.

I’ve been reading books like, Hell’s Best Kept Secret and God Has a Wonderful Plan for Your Life (The Myth of the Modern Message) by Ray Comfort. What many don’t realise is that Ray Comfort was also using the modern message but after seeing vast numbers of people falling away post conversion, he started to examine what was going on by taking a closer look at what the Bible actually says.

If we are going to share our faith both biblically and effectively, I thought it would be good to take a look at exactly what God does promise Christians and also what is not promised so that we can be sure we are communicating the truth.

God Promises:

1. Forgiveness of sin (1 John 1 vs 9)

This is one of the best things that we are promised but it is conditional upon repentance. We are only forgiven when we repent (stop going our way and decide to go God’s way) and believe Jesus died for our sins. Then we receive full and complete forgiveness for all of our past, present and future sins.

2. Peace with God (Romans 5 vs 1) and Inner Peace (John 14 vs 27)

This forgiveness makes it possible for us to be at peace with our Maker. Before this transaction takes place, we are at war with God and He is angry with us because of our sin. When our sin in forgiven, the consequence of death is removed and that most important relationship with our Creator is restored.

Jesus also promised a personal peace to guard us against worldly anxiety in John 14 “ Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you.” This is based on reconciliation with God not the absence of external conflict.

3. Eternity in Heaven (Revelation 21 vs 4 and 22 vs 5) (2 Corinthians 5 vs 1) (John 14 vs 1-3)

The Bible tells us that we can’t even imagine what God has prepared for those who love Him. In Heaven there will be no more crying, pain, suffering or death because there is no more sin. The Bible tells us that Jesus is preparing a place for us in Heaven and that we will be there with God and all other believers forever. The other side to the coin is that we will also avoid eternity in Hell which is a terrible place of punishment where people will want to die but won’t be able to. God promises that Christians will avoid judgement and the wrath to come.

4. His Presence (Ephesians 1 vs 13) (1 Corinthians 3 vs 16) (Hebrews 13 vs 5)

All true believers have God’s Holy Spirit living within them. This means that when trials and difficulties come our way, we are not alone even if everyone earthly abandons us. God is with us in the struggles and will remain with us throughout. He promises never to leave us or forsake us.

5. Way Out of Temptation (1 Corinthians 10 vs 13)

This is different to saying that we won’t be tempted. We will face ongoing temptations as we are still living in the world and the devil will also try to bring us down. However, we are promised that we won’t be tempted beyond what we can bear and that a way of escape will be opened to us in these situations allowing us to resist.

6. To Supply our Basic Needs (Philippians 4 vs 19) (Matthew 6 vs 33)

Notice the promise is to supply our needs not the things we might think we need. We need food, clothing and shelter. God cares about us far more than the sparrows who rely on Him for their everyday supplies. There are stories of dramatic things happening when Christians in great need pray to God for help.

7. To Love us (Romans 5 vs 8) (Romans 8 vs 35-39)

God loved the world so much that He gave His only Son, Jesus, to rescue us from our sins and get us safely to Heaven. He makes us His children and we become part of His Kingdom here on Earth. He loves us as His children in a special way that is different to the way He loves all of humanity.

8. To Hear and Answer our Prayers and to Pray for us. (Philippians 4 vs 6-7) (1 Peter 3 vs 12)

The Bible tells us that the prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. None of us are righteous apart from Jesus so we know that this is referring to believers. God always hears every prayer uttered by a believer and He will answer although it won’t always be in the way we hope. Sometimes, He says no. Once we are saved, Jesus also prays for us! (John 17)

9. To Discipline and Sanctify us (Hebrews 12 vs 6)

As Christians, we often go astray and God wants to keep us on track. As we grow spiritually, He refines and cleanses us so that we begin to look more like Jesus, not perfect but different. We call this process sanctification. Sometimes, this involves discipline which is for our own good and is evidence of God’s love. In Ezekiel 36 vs 26 He promises to give us a new heart and a new spirit and to bring us to maturity as believers.

10. To Use us in Evangelism (Matthew 13 vs 8 and 23) (Acts 1 vs 8) (Luke 12 vs 11-12)

Christians have a part to play in reaching lost souls by sharing the Gospel with them. God promises He will bring people to faith through this method of evangelism. In the Parable of the Sower, the Bible tells us to expect 30, 60 or even 100 fold growth. When the Gospel is preached or spoken one to one, people will hear and believe. God doesn’t want people to perish and He delights in saving them using us as His messengers.

11. The Bible as our Guide-Book (Psalm 119 vs 105) (2 Timothy 3 vs 16-17)

I hesitated with this one as not every Christian has access to the Bible in their language. However, we are told that God’s law is written on our hearts and revealed through our conscience. Most Christians reading this will have access to a Bible. God promises to use His Word to guide us in our lives and speaks to us through it.

12. Persecution and Trouble (John 15 vs 17-20) (John 16 vs 33)

You might be thinking this is in the wrong place or on the wrong list. However, the Bible tells us in 2 Timothy 3 vs 12 that “all who want to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.” We are told that in this life we will have trouble as believers but we are advised to take heart because Jesus has overcome the world. Paul faced much persecution and trouble the minute he became a Christian, all of the disciples, except John, were martyred for their faith.

Christians today face terrible things in different parts of the world. Here in the West, we can be ostracised, rejected, shunned, mocked, excluded and hated for our beliefs. We can lose our jobs, friends, money and even family members. We are beginning to see arrests, fines and imprisonment for speaking the truth. We cannot throw up our hands in horror as we have been warned in the Bible to expect these things as the norm.

God Does NOT Promise:

Now to the list that I’m guessing will be more controversial:

1. Health and Healing (James 5 vs 14-16)

If a Christian is ill we are told to gather the elders of the church around them to pray and to anoint them with oil. We know, however, that this is not a guarantee that they will be healed. God teaches people many things through sickness and in the Bible, not everyone is healed. In 1 Timothy 5 vs 23, Timothy was told to take wine for his stomach problems and frequent illnesses. In 2 Corinthians 12 vs 7-9, Paul had a thorn in the flesh. Others, like Epaphroditus in Philippians 2 vs 25-27, was ill and almost died. Various remedies were offered apart from the miraculous.

Illness and disease are a consequence of sin so God doesn’t promise perfect health. We can pray and hope but blaming the sick person for a lack of faith if they aren’t healed is cruel. Likewise refusing doctors and medical care is foolish when God has allowed medical knowledge to advance so people can be treated. Faith healers are often presumptuous and at risk of incurring God’s anger if they proclaim healing in His Name when He hasn’t spoken. Many get rich at the expense of people who are desperate for a cure. It’s a horrible business and nothing to do with true Christianity.

2. Wealth (Matthew 19 vs 16-30) (Luke 12 vs 13-21) (Matthew 6 vs 19-21)

I don’t really understand why people get this one wrong as there are terrible consequences for people in the Bible that chase riches. The rich young man was told to give away everything he owned and he went away sad, presumably to a lost eternity as Jesus comments that “it’s easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter God’s Kingdom.” The rich fool who tore down barns and built bigger ones had his life taken from him and was called foolish because he wasn’t rich towards God. We are told not to store up wealth which can be stolen and destroyed here on Earth but instead to store treasures in Heaven.

Why would the Bible say these things if we are promised wealth in the here and now. We aren’t promised wealth, only that our needs will be supplied. Those that are wealthy often find that their riches become a snare.

3. Happiness and Satisfaction (Mark 8 vs 34) (Luke 9 vs 23) (Romans 6 vs 6-7)

Christians often tell people that the only way they can be happy and satisfied is if they fill the God-shaped hole in their lives. Recently, it’s been called the missing piece; the idea that people are like jigsaws with a gap that needs to be filled to make their lives complete. But anyone who has been a Christian for any length of time will tell you that they aren’t always happy or satisfied because this world is broken by sin and its consequences. God does want us to be happy but not at any cost. The Bible does tell us to "delight ourselves in the Lord and He will give us the desires of our hearts." Generally, this is taken to mean that as we get closer to God our desires will become His desires rather than that He will give us everything we want.

The pursuit of happiness is not a theme of the New Testament. Instead there are commands to take up our cross, deny self and consider oneself dead to sin. We won’t experience true happiness or satisfaction until we reach Heaven where there is no sin and suffering. When our joy and hope are based on things that cannot be taken away we have found true happiness and God is pleased.

4. Fulfilment, Purpose and Success (Ecclesiastes 9 vs 11) (Luke 9 vs 58) (James 4 vs 13-15)

More and more people are attaching themselves to Christianity or Jesus because they are lacking purpose in their lives. They are seeking fulfilment and are being told that the only way to be fully fulfilled is in the Christian faith. Is this right, though?

What if the person still can’t get a job or is still stuck on benefits? What if their circumstances don’t change at all when they become a Christian? The only thing that will definitely change when someone is truly converted, is their attitude to their situation and perhaps, how they deal with things as a Christian. God doesn’t promise fulfilment or purpose, if we find these things as a by-product of our faith that’s great, but they aren’t guaranteed. We might find fulfilment and purpose in evangelism but most people who are seeking these things are thinking of earthly fulfilment and purpose or success in personal ambitions. The Bible encourages hard work and faithfulness but it doesn’t guarantee earthly success or fulfilment. It teaches that life will involve hardship and that God’s focus is primarily on spiritual growth and endurance rather than worldly achievements.

5. Long Life

Similarly to health, God doesn’t promise that Christians will have long or longer lives than other people. There is general advice to honour our parents if we want to live in God's favour but this can't be applied across the board. God knows the date of our death, so we know that we cannot be taken earlier than He intends but Christians die young. Many of you know that my brother, James, died at 18 in a car accident, he was a believer but died young. We’ve all lost people at various stages and being a Christian doesn’t provide protection from death. The only benefit it might bring in this area is that Christians are less likely to drink too much or smoke so there may be a few extra years but in the big scheme of things it doesn’t make much difference.

6. Security and Freedom from Crime

Christians aren’t promised security in this life. Our heavenly home is secure but that’s about it. We can still lose our jobs, face financial ruin,  have our houses repossessed or face unexpected circumstances that lead to chaos. We can be victims of crime, even terrible crimes like sexual violence and murder. The difference is in how we deal with the things that come into our lives as believers. Do we get angry with God and ask “why me?” or do we accept the difficulties as God’s providence and look for the lessons we can learn. Sometimes, terrible tragedy can be a great opportunity to witness to someone else enduring the same things with no faith to lean on.

7. Justice (1 Samuel 2 vs 30)

We aren’t promised justice. When I was in the police I was so angry and upset about people seemingly getting away with crime but when I became a Christian, I realised that they would face the perfect justice of Almighty God on Judgement Day. No one really gets away with anything. But, often we won’t see justice in the here and now. We might even have to suffer injustice for our faith or taking a stand on a moral issue. We can’t expect justice from a society that rejects everything we stand for and generally hates the God we serve. The Bible does promise that those who honour God will be honoured in return but the reward might not appear until eternity.

8. Community and Family

Lots of people join the church because they are lonely and are seeking community. It’s true that the church can help in this area and that true believers find a family in their local church. But, not every church operates biblically and there won’t always be a church community for people to join. In parts of the world there are no open meetings and individual believers can be very isolated with no one to meet with. God doesn’t promise us community. If we have access to fellow believers, we should be grateful and take advantage of these blessings, but they aren’t promised. Likewise, we aren’t promised we will find a spouse and/or have children. These are blessings given to some but not all.

9. Freedom from Sin Struggles (1 John 2 vs 1) (1 John 1 vs 8)

Christians may think that they will immediately and miraculously be freed from their addictions or other problems in their lives. There are some that do find this is their experience, but many more that continue to struggle sometimes for years. We will not be perfect until Jesus returns and we are in Heaven. Paul said that he did the things he didn’t want to do and often didn’t do the things he should (Romans 7 vs 15-19). We aren’t promised freedom from sin’s power until we reach Heaven.

10.  Peace and Rest on Earth (Matthew 10 vs 34-36)

We give out a leaflet which asks, “How can I find peace?” It is one of those elusive things that most people seek. We have already looked at the kind of peace God does promise but it’s not a freedom from external conflict. Jesus said in Matthew 10 that He “did not come to bring peace but a sword.” He warns that families will be divided over their allegiance to Him. Christians can struggle with the inner conflict of doubt, fear and uncertainty. Mental health professionals advise that the Christmas holidays, the time of “peace on earth” is one of the most stressful times of the year. There is interpersonal conflict and international conflict with wars and rumours of wars and Christians aren’t immune from these difficulties. Real peace and rest will only be found when Jesus returns.

What about the passage in Matthew 11 vs 28-30 when Jesus tells people to “Come to me all who labour and are heavy laden and I will give you rest”? This passage is frequently quoted today to urge people to accept Jesus so that they can be free of life’s burdens. The context is that the religious leaders had been laying down impossible numbers of rules for the people to keep, there was also persecution of Christians. Jesus is offering freedom from the burden of sin and the rest that comes when we cease striving to reach God via our own efforts. In the same passage he talks about finding rest for our souls rather than just a break from life’s burdens. We won’t have true rest until we reach Heaven.

11. Answers or Explanations from God (Job)

We are promised that God hears and answers prayer. However, we aren’t promised that we will be given explanations from God for the things that happen in our lives. Sometimes, we can look back and see how God has guided us through a particular circumstance but often we don’t get answers that satisfy us. In the Bible, Job had everything taken away from him and no explanation was given. We must learn to trust God. Romans 8 vs 28 is a popular verse that tells us that things are working for our good as believers. We also know that God’s ways are perfect and higher than ours. We can’t promise people that they will always know what God is doing or why He is doing it.

12. The Salvation of our Loved Ones (2 Peter 3 vs 9)

Perhaps the most heart breaking. God doesn’t promise to save our loved ones who have freedom to make their own decisions. The vast majority of people are loved by someone and broad is the road that leads to destruction and narrow the path that leads to life. However, we can pray persistently and urgently for those we care about. We know that God answers prayer and that He doesn’t want anyone to perish but for all to come to repentance.

Let’s be careful not to make promises on God’s behalf unless we are sure that He has spoken. Rather than focusing on promises and blessings in this life, let's point people to eternal blessings in the life to come in Heaven.

People Won't Respond to Irrelevant News

A few decades ago there was a British sitcom called The Office. In one of the episodes, the office manager, David Brent, gathers all his employees and announces that he has good news and bad news. They ask for the bad news first and he tells them that some of them will be losing their jobs. Then, they hopefully ask for the good news and he tells them that he is being promoted. The classic response from one of the by now very annoyed employees is “that’s not good news, that’s bad news and irrelevant news!”

I’ve been thinking about whether we are doing the same thing in evangelism when we start with the Good News of the Gospel or tell people that God loves them and has a wonderful plan for their lives.

Christians often comment that “people just don’t seem to see their need.”

Does our Good News become irrelevant news in the minds of the people because we haven’t started with the sin problem and shown them they need rescuing?

I’ve noticed a trend in Gospel preaching both in the open air and in churches, to major on Jesus and the cross (a good thing) but not to give much context. Sometimes, preachers miss out essential truths like what we need saving from (sin, death, judgement, Hell) and even what we are being saved to (Heaven).

The Message is often, “Come to Jesus, come as you are, especially if you are weary and heavy laden, He will give you peace and rest.” or “Make Jesus king of your life, you won’t regret it.” Many of these preachers make Jesus Himself the end goal rather than Heaven. Does this make any sense to a non-believer, or even a believer?

These messages are often focused on the here and now rather than the eternity that awaits. Listening to some Christians, it’s not clear that there is anything to look forward to in Heaven as they are so invested in the things of the world. But the world is passing away and we are only here for a short time, then we will be in Heaven or Hell, forever.

Ray Comfort (an evangelist) has written a lot about this subject and how we share the Gospel. He favours the Good Person Test where God’s moral law (the 10 commandments) are used to show people their sinfulness. He asks them if they’ve ever told a lie, stolen anything or looked at someone with lust etc….

When they have admitted guilt, he asks them if they were to die would they go to Heaven or Hell. Only when they are well and truly humbled and aware of their dangerous position does he offer the Good News of God’s rescue plan for sinners in Jesus.

I was reading in Nehemiah 8 last week about what happened when Ezra read from the book of the Law. It says he was “making it clear and giving the meaning so that the people understood what was being read.” Their response was to weep in repentance as they listened to the words.

Jesus and John the Baptist began their ministries by declaring “Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.”

In Acts 2, Peter confronts the Pentecost crowd with their sin of crucifying Jesus. They were cut to the heart and asked, “What shall we do?”

When Stephen speaks about the prophets having been killed and the law not being kept in Acts 7, the religious leaders are cut to the heart but they gnash their teeth and stone him to death.

Later in Acts, Paul explains the historical context and his own story to the governor, Felix, resulting in him becoming afraid when Paul deals with righteousness, self-control and the judgement to come.

It’s clear from these passages that confronting sin produces a reaction one way or the other. Some people will be afraid and respond in repentance and faith. Others may get angry and reject the message or simply just stop their ears and walk away. There is a division between those who are being saved and those who are perishing.  

Last week in Cambridge in the sweltering heat we met an extremely proud man who was unfortunately acting as a hospital chaplain for the area. He told us that he would never talk to people who were dying about sin or judgement because it was cruel and that instead he would seek to offer them peace and comfort in their final moments. There was no reasoning with him as he thought he knew better than Jesus. What a tragedy that this man, who is in a position to help people find eternal security, is more concerned with earthly provision and being culturally appropriate.

When I share the Gospel, I usually start with Heaven and ask people how they think God decides who gets in. This leads on to something similar to the Good Person Test. Having established that the person isn’t good in God’s eyes. I usually go back to Creation and the Fall of man. Only then does God’s redemption plan for humanity (Jesus on the cross) really make sense. Towards the end of the discussion, I urge the person not to stand before God on Judgement Day with all their unforgiven sin because God will send them to Hell. Then I return to the Good News of Jesus.

In Cambridge last week, after I’d shared the Gospel, three different people in three separate conversations, told me they would go away and read books that I had given them that very night! This doesn’t always happen and it’s not a reflection of my skill as an evangelist. But these individuals had obviously sensed the urgency of their situation and realised that this was something they needed to look into immediately.

We can’t convert people, only God can change a person’s heart, but we can certainly ensure they understand their situation and try to convey the importance of these matters. It’s almost impossible to do this without talking about sin, judgement, death and Hell.

In the parables of the pearl of great price and the hidden treasure, when the characters find what they are seeking, they sell all they have to buy it. In John 6, when Jesus asks his disciples whether they are going to leave as everyone else has done, Peter responds, “Lord to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.”

I asked Ray Comfort recently through a Zoom Q and A if we should be including counting the cost in our Gospel presentations. His answer was no for an interesting reason. He said that if we are sharing the Gospel properly and biblically, we shouldn’t need to.

He was right. None of the people in the Bible stories above needed to be advised to count the cost. They understood what was on offer and they were all in.

If people are made aware of their perilous situation, then we can offer true hope in the Gospel as a remedy for their alarm. Instead, we are often putting the cart before the horse, offering comfort and peace or other life enhancements when the person is teetering on a cliff edge. We must warn people of the judgement that is coming and urge them to repent before it’s too late.

We need to remember that Jesus came into the world on a rescue mission. He came to die on a cross for the sins of the world. He bridged the gap between God and man making a way for us to be saved from the wrath to come, and enter Heaven.

Let’s make sure our news isn’t irrelevant by starting with the bad news which ensures people understand their situation and can joyfully respond to the Good News!

Why Packaging the Gospel in Cultural Trends is Usually a Bad Idea

I’ve been concerned for a while about the rising popularity of courses like 3-2-1 by Glen Scrivener. The course book seems to be everywhere and many churches are seeing it as a viable alternative to more traditional introductions to the Christian faith like Christianity Explored. There are positive reviews on Amazon and Christians are recommending this course and with it the theology that it represents.

I recently attended an evangelistic seminar on connecting with people using cultural trends. This was based on a survey of non-believers where they had been asked to identity what was missing in their lives. The top answers were not God or truth but purpose, freedom, security, love etc. The thinking is that because the Gospel does offer these things, we should major on them in an effort to attract people to Christ.

Why is this a problem, you might ask. Surely it’s a good thing that Christians are seeking to be culturally relevant as they evangelise. Isn’t it good if people are drawn to Christianity?

Yes it is but only if we are presenting the true Gospel message and therefore drawing them to Jesus and real salvation.

Here are some of the issues I have observed with these approaches:

1. It’s soft on sin

This is definitely the biggest problem with the 3-2-1 course as observed by the only critical Amazon reviewer who with a headline, “Had to look hard to find out that there is sin and that it’s the main problem” notes, “Direction of book tends to weave around, seeming to try to fight shy of explaining that man is in rebellion against God. If you look hard, you can eventually find something of a problem that man has, on page 70…this book seems to me to seek to soft-pedal the real problem and to make the message ‘soft’ and agreeable.”

 In case it seems I’m speaking in ignorance, a few years ago, I did volunteer to help lead a 3-2-1 course. After the first three weeks, I approached the elder running the course and asked if we were ever going to get to the core elements of the Gospel as in sin, judgement or repentance. He responded that he thought it was “eluded to” later in the course. To that point, the way it was presented was more that Jesus came into the world to identify with us in our weakness and help us with our mistakes. I informed him that I couldn’t be part of it and stopped attending.

Similarly, in the seminar, I asked the question about sin and was advised that we shouldn’t seek to skirt around or sugar-coat sin. However, I would go a step further and say that we should seek to convey the seriousness of sin from the outset.

It’s back to the obvious point which is constantly being made by the likes of Ray Comfort and Roger Carswell: we must start by getting people to understand that they have a problem and not just that this is a problem in the world but that they are contributors and personally responsible. People will not be ready or willing to hear a solution if they don’t believe they personally have a problem. You can read books like Hell’s Best Kept Secret or come to the FEW conference in January to learn more.

2. It confuses people

When I took part in the 3-2-1 course, I was surprised that some of the faithful Christians at the church weren’t involved so I asked them about it.  They said that the previous course had been a disaster as the participants ended up arguing about the course content as they couldn’t understand it and didn’t recognise themselves within it. They spent so long trying to unpick this that there wasn’t really a clear Gospel presentation. They had resolved not to be involved in future courses.

What a tragedy for the church involved, for the Christians that have been put off evangelism and for the participants who didn’t have their questions answered.

I was having a conversation with a couple in Bournemouth once and had been there for some time when a young man from a different group also doing evangelism joined the discussion and asked if he could say something. I gave him permission and he launched into this long winded analogy which I thought I’d heard somewhere before. He was relaying the various aspects of this tactic, obviously learned in training, with great enthusiasm as if it would answer all their questions, if they would wait until the end. Eventually, they basically said that they’d had enough, that they’d enjoyed talking to me but didn’t have a clue what the young guy was talking about and walked off. The guy looked devastated and sat down on the wall with a great sigh. I tried to reassure him that the couple would probably have walked off anyway as they had been talking for a while when he arrived. He just couldn’t understand why his analogy hadn’t worked as he had put so much confidence in it. It had just led to confusion.

Not only can some of these approaches confuse non-believers, but they can also confuse Christians. There are some interesting books on evangelism but reading some of them just makes me feel tired. Tactics by Gregory Koukl is one such example. It just felt like there was a script or method for every situation. I can imagine myself getting tongue tied or forgetting my lines if there’s too much of that in our conversations with people. Learning some answers to common objections and something about different beliefs is useful but we must be ourselves. Answering “I don’t know” can be a good thing as it makes us more relatable and stops us coming across as know-it-alls. We are trying to win the person not the debate. If we end up confusing ourselves, we will definitely confuse other people.

3. It’s complicated

This point overlaps with the previous one but is worth considering. In a world where society is growing increasingly biblically ignorant should we be making our Gospel presentations less accessible in an attempt to make them culturally relevant?

We already know that we shouldn’t use Christian jargon or that when we do we need to explain it in everyday language but surely that extends to the content itself. If a little child can understand and respond to the Gospel message, why are we making adults jump through hoops to get to the core principles?

Surely clearer and more concise is better. In the past we used things like sin-judgement-Jesus, the Romans road and A: Accept you are a sinner, B: Believe Jesus died for you, C: Commit your life to Him.

More recently, we were reminded at an Open-Air Mission training weekend in relation to talks being placed on a board that “less is more”. The Gospel message is clear, straight-forward and simple: Through the cross of Jesus Christ,

God

Offers

Sinful

People

Eternal

Life

4. It’s the wrong way round

We may agree that we should ensure the Bible dictates how we engage with culture rather than allowing culture to shape our interactions with non-believers but the enemy is always seeking to undermine this principle. The problem is when we allow culture not only to dictate how we relate to and interact with non-believers, which can be a good thing, but when culture determines what we say. We mustn’t allow the Gospel message to be changed to fit or adapt to our culture.

An example would be the various ways well-meaning Christians have attempted to fit scientific theories into the Bible; theistic evolution, the gap theory, Genesis as poetic language etc etc. Someone recently said to me, “the problem is that when you’re talking to an intelligent scientist or an atheist, you can’t just say that God created everything in 6 days because it’s not credible.” This person had therefore come up with a theory that there were two creations and after the devil interfered with the first, God froze everything (the ice age) before creating things a second time?!

The problem with all of these ideas, other than that they don’t deal faithfully with Scripture, is death before the fall. The Bible is clear that sin leads to death and it can’t be any other way without undermining the Gospel message of salvation. God operates in the supernatural. Much of what He does is miraculous and He isn’t constrained by natural laws or our perceptions of scientific advances.

We must have confidence in the reliability of God’s Word.

5. It can be deceptive

I’m thinking here of the seminar I went to where we were encouraged to show people that the Gospel meets the needs that they perceive they have in their lives. It’s worth considering whether people who said they were missing purpose, security, freedom and love were even thinking of a spiritual purpose, spiritual/eternal security, freedom from sin and God’s love. It sounds silly when stated like this because of course they weren’t.

Likewise, Jesus didn’t die to give us purpose, security, freedom or love. He died to deal with our sin to open the way for us to be forgiven and reconciled to God. The things people are seeking may be a by-product of His sacrifice but they are not the main purpose. Shouldn’t we instead focus on getting people to see that they have a sin problem so they will then be ready for the solution?

In the seminar, someone asked whether this wasn’t just another version of the prosperity gospel. I was thinking that it sounded a bit like “God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life” or “Easy Believism/Decisionism” where hands are raised in a meeting but not a lot is said about repentance and the need for a changed life.

I don’t think it’s quite as dangerous as the prosperity gospel with promises of health, wealth and happiness. But it can lead to the same place and it’s much more subtle. It’s similar to John Piper’s Christian hedonism, that we must seek satisfaction for ourselves and it’s okay because it’s in God. I just don’t think God wants us to be seeking satisfaction for ourselves, He wants us to serve Him, to take up our cross daily and live lives of self sacrifice to help others see their need of Him. If a by-product of this life of self sacrifice is satisfaction then that’s great but it shouldn’t be our main goal.

What happens to the person who is promised purpose but still can’t get a job, or the person promised freedom who continues to struggle with addiction, or the one who is riddled with anxiety and continues feeling insecure, or someone promised love who is rejected by their church. 

If people are drawn to Christianity for the wrong reasons they won’t stick around when the things they are promised don’t work out as they had hoped. They are then inoculated against it because they think they’ve tried it and it doesn’t work. This is a serious issue.

A preacher that I sometimes work with was having a chat with someone who wanted to join us in the open air. He asked what they thought was a person’s greatest need. She said, “peace” and then added “love”. He said, “What about forgiveness?” Our greatest need is forgiveness of sin and peace with God. We need to keep this at the heart of our evangelism.

6. It majors on things that God does not

When thinking of evangelism, I can’t think of a stranger place to begin than with the Trinity. It’s a difficult theological truth to understand and many Christians only get a real grasp of it as they are discipled and read the Bible. When speaking with a Muslim is might be helpful to try to explain, but even then it’s difficult as all of our analogies fall short.

However, the 3-2-1 course has around 60 pages on the Trinity at the start of the course book and the 3 is obviously the Trinity. The idea is that The Father, Son and Holy Spirit have been showing love towards each other in the Trinity in eternity past and that God therefore had somewhere for His love to be directed. Some writers continue this by suggesting that this is necessary as otherwise God would have no experience of love and wouldn’t be able to love us. Clearly this is wrong as God is love and doesn’t need us to limit Him in this way.

Whilst the Trinity is a theological truth found throughout the Bible, the love shown within the Trinity isn’t a major theme and isn’t used by Christians in the Bible when evangelising. Probably, because it wouldn’t make a lot of sense to a non-believer.

I believe this over-emphasis on the love within the Trinity is another attempt to bring God down to our level and to appeal to non-believers with an over-emphasis on God’s love to the exclusion of His justice and holiness.

Mature Christians will often say that some aspects of the Trinity are a mystery and explain that the Trinity is one God in three Persons and leave it at that.

7. It focuses on man’s ideas

The Bible is all about God. From Creation, to the Fall of man, to God’s redemption plan through the Cross, the Resurrection and the Return of Christ. 

We have many examples in the Bible of how to evangelise in different settings. The early Christians may have used things that were around them to connect with different groups e.g. Paul using the statue to an unknown God or Jesus referring to living water with the Samaritan woman. However, the message is consistent. The core of the Gospel- salvation through faith in Jesus- remains the same across all audiences.

The reason sometimes given for seeking a new approach to connect to our culture is that people are not interested in hearing the truth anymore. Indeed, they may say “what’s true for you, isn’t true for me” and believe that truth is relative or that there is no truth.

This is a challenge and I do think we need to avoid answering questions that people aren’t asking. People aren’t as interested in evidence based apologetics; proving the resurrection, creation or the origins of the Bible.  

But, I don’t think we can avoid dealing with the fact that our Message is true, that’s why we believe it! It also stops people thinking there are many ways to God or that all religions are equally valid.

People are more invested in discovering the truth than they realise. We rely on truth being absolute in almost every area of life and it’s easy to prove that truth cannot be relative e.g. if someone believes they can fly and launches themselves off a cliff….

God will still judge people and send them to Hell whether they claim to believe in Him or not. We also know from Romans 1 that people suppress the truth and are without excuse because God has made His existence plain through Creation.

There’s an interesting passage in John 18 where Jesus is talking to Pilate. Pilate asks Him whether He is the King of the Jews and Jesus replies, “Is that your own idea or did others talk to you about me?” Later Jesus says “…the reason I was born and came into the world is to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.” The dismissive retort from Pilate, “What is truth?”

People may sneer or dismiss us as Pilate did but our Message of Truth can still convict and convert them in the power of the Holy Spirit. The disciples didn’t change their Message when people were dismissive of truth, they continued as they had before telling people to “repent and believe”.

8. It’s not necessary

The intentions behind all of the Christians using these cultural trends are good; they want to see people come to faith in Jesus. Sometimes, though, they seem to be forgetting that the power is in the Message and that the cross preached is "foolishness to those who are perishing but to those who are being saved it is the power of God" (1 Corinthians 1 vs 18) and that God chooses to use the "foolishness of what is preached to save those who believe" (1 Corinthians 1 vs 21).

We can have confidence in the simple Gospel Message knowing that God’s Word doesn’t return empty and that people will be saved through hearing it. We shouldn’t be ashamed of our Message on any level or try to obscure or hide uncomfortable truths. People are different, one person might be drawn to Christ because they are attracted to the Message of forgiveness whilst others might come because they are afraid of ending up in Hell. Both are valid responses to the Gospel Message and believing the promises and warnings in God’s Word.

What should we do instead?

Behind some of these ideas is a valid concern that we aren’t connecting with people and meeting them where they are at.  We can address some of these things by:

-using modern analogies and by keeping abreast of current affairs. One Open-Air Missioner said recently that wherever he is, flicking through a magazine, overhearing a conversation, on the bus, he’s always on the look out for new material for open-air talks. 

There is a talk which simply asks the question, “Where are they now?” and has the faces of famous dead people. It’s culturally relevant and always draws a crowd but the question cuts right to the heart of the Gospel Message as the preacher can apply it directly to those who stop and ask them, “What about you, where will you be in eternity?”

-learning from each other by attending training and discussing experiences. If we get difficult questions, others may have an answer.

-using modern language and avoiding Christian jargon. We can explain words that people may not be familiar with.

-talking about the big picture to help people see that they are part of it. Rather than it being something abstract or something only relevant to “religious” people.

-asking questions to learn where people are at

-talking to people rather than at them and by making eye contact

-sharing our own story if it’s relevant but not as a replacement for the Gospel Message

-having confidence in the Gospel Message and God’s power to use it to save people

Finally, we need to pray for a love for lost people as we reach out to them knowing that we have what they need in Jesus!

 

The Way of the Master?

I stumbled upon a book this week, The Way of the Master by Ray Comfort and Kirk Cameron. They run an organisation by the same name, and another called Living Waters. They have produced a number of almost feature length films covering controversial topics, these can be watched on their website or on Youtube at no cost. The most recent is called The Atheist Delusion. Both organisations are committed to biblical evangelism.

They state that the modern Western church has lost its way. That due to an over-emphasis on grace and the love of God our churches are full of false converts. These people have been told that God has a wonderful plan for their lives and that all they need to do is to pray a prayer, sign a card or make a decision to accept Jesus and be restored to God. The majority then continue their lives exactly as before but now with the “saved by Jesus” or "born again" label. There was no repentance and therefore there is no visible change in their behaviour. 

When trials and suffering come to these people, they lose interest in their faith or become angry and disillusioned with God for their plight. They question the “wonderful plan” they were offered and blame God for their circumstances. They then either gradually fall into sin believing that God will forgive them later as life is just too hard, and God is not delivering what He has promised. Or they harden their hearts and walk away from the faith, they are thus in a worse position than they were in in the first place. They have now rejected God completely and are resentful and bitter towards Him if they still acknowledge His existence.

You may be thinking that these observations are not new, and that other well-known preachers and authors (John MacArthur) have been highlighting “easy believism” and other mass conversion methods for years. 

Comfort, however, offers a solution. He suggests that the only way for someone to be soundly converted is to first confront them with the law and then outline God’s plan of salvation through Jesus. He believes that the only way to do this is by using the Ten Commandments to make a person realise that they are a wretched sinner before a holy God.  A person needs to admit that they are a liar, thief and adulterer at heart amongst other things. Then they will understand that God’s wrath is upon them and will therefore desire to escape from the penalty of their sin which is ultimately eternity in hell.

It is only once they have acknowledged their sin that Jesus’ death is offered as the solution. The point is that unless someone realises the danger, they are in they are not going to take action to ensure their personal safety. Comfort uses the analogy of a blind man walking towards the edge of a cliff. Someone comes up to him and tweaks the MP3 player he is carrying to enhance the sound so he can enjoy his journey. He is thrilled and merrily continues towards the cliff edge, presumably falling to his death. This is what we are doing when we focus on people’s immediate physical needs, comfort and wellbeing rather than their eternal destination.

At first, I thought, wow what a great resource and method for evangelism. I watched all the movies on the website and looked at ordering tracts. But I was curious and decided to research what others were saying about Comfort’s ministry—that was an eye opener! It seems Comfort is like Marmite, you either love him or you hate him. 

I expected that, to some degree, due to the controversial issues he tackles. I would’ve been more concerned if he didn’t have his critics. But some of the comments were coming from Christian sources that I respected. 

The main two concerns were that the Ten Commandments were not designed to be used in this way for evangelism as we are now living under the New Covenant. Also, that a “one size fits all” or method approach for evangelism doesn’t allow sufficient room for the Spirit to lead and guide a believer when witnessing. That each person is an individual and should be ministered to as such. 

In relation to the first issue, I can see the concern. In Comfort’s book, he goes to great lengths to explain the significance of the Ten Commandments themselves overlooking the fact that they were originally given to the Israelite nation and not to the gentiles. However, for those who think I am suggesting that the commandments don’t apply to us today--ALL, except one, of the Ten Commandments is actually repeated and confirmed in the New Testament and therefore does apply to NT believers. (The Sabbath Day command is the exception and has little relevance to this discussion about biblical evangelism.)

The question that naturally arises is, why place so much emphasis on the Ten Commandments as given to Moses when we can use the NT with its wider scope and more relevant application for today? That would avoid the common argument that we are not living under the Old Covenant and that therefore the rules don’t apply.   

Critics of Comfort’s approach argue that the use of the Ten Commandments is too narrow and excludes other effective methods. Also, that he is telling people that they will be judged according to their adherence to the Ten Commandments alone. They point out that the bigger offence is the rejection of God and of Jesus as their Saviour from their sin. The greatest commandment given by Jesus Himself is after all, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind.” (Matthew 22 vs 37)

Honestly, this is a tough one for me. There are people arguing that scaring or terrifying people about hell is not effective or loving. But personally, it was sufficient to convert me and cause me to give up my worldly life. I'm not sure whether the goodness of God alone would've had the same effect. Convincing people that hell is a real place and that their sins will take them there forever is important. I can see Comfort’s rationale in this respect. I can also see that he has a genuine love for the lost and desire for them to be truly saved.

If there is a choice between the shallow and false conversions we are seeing everywhere today and Comfort’s approach, I would definitely side with Comfort. Actually, the videos that had the biggest impact on me were those of the large numbers of people who claimed they were born again/evangelical Christians cheerfully admitting lying, stealing, pre-marital sex, pornography, drunkenness, drug taking etc. The shocking thing was that these “Christians” felt no shame or guilt about their lifestyles and didn’t even acknowledge that these things were wrong. The main reason given was that everyone else was doing it. They weren’t giving into temptation and repenting and trying again. They were completely unconcerned and apathetic. They were false converts filling the churches on Sundays.

Having said that, I don’t agree with a standardised or method approach that must always be used in evangelism. I have used lots of methods over the years and I think it’s important to really hear the heart of the other person. Sin must be confronted in every Gospel conversation and the Good News about Jesus offered. It is necessary for a person to understand what they are being saved from and how serious their sin is in God’s eyes. I like the way Comfort talks about a change of perspective reminding us that it is our own sin that takes us to hell. He speaks about how ridiculous it is for millions of tiny people (in comparison to God) walking around on the earth shaking their fists at their Creator as if that will change reality.

I would highly recommend the resources on Comfort’s website, Way of the Master, as I believe they will make people think. I admire him for tackling controversial issues that others have avoided. There is no doubt that his work has done a lot of good in the American church. But personally, I would use New Testament texts where possible in evangelism and ensure that the biggest sin of all—rejection of God—is highlighted in any presentation.

2026 Update

I'm editing this in 2026 as the issue of false converts is bigger than ever and the church has definitely lost its way. The focus on God's wonderful plan and life enhancements rather than ensuring people are convicted of sin and repenting of it is widespread in most churches. There is an over emphasis on making Jesus king of your life in order to get the rest He offers for weary souls forgetting the context of persecution of believers when the statement was made. 

Having learnt more about Ray Comfort's approach, it's clear he is using the New Testament where Jesus expands and applies the Old Testament law (10 commandments). I've also read his books Hell's Best Kept Secret and God Has A Wonderful Plan For Your Life (The Myth of the Modern Message) recently and found them both challenging and convicting. Additionally, I went on the Living Waters Academy Training week and found it helpful. 

I definitely think all Christians and especially church leaders need to be seriously considering the things that are raised by Ray Comfort and asking the question, is he right? If he is, we must urgently change our approach to evangelism if we want to see sinners truly born again, avoiding the wrath to come and entering Heaven!