Defending our Faith - Session 1

1st Class
I want to spend 15 minutes in each class at the end, praying. 3 Main ideas to this class and praying.

1. God Draws People. He saves.
2. I need to be Bold.
3. God is in Charge of Outcomes.


Why are we here? 
but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect,
(1 Peter 3:15 ESV)


But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
(Acts 1:8 ESV)


And he said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation.
(Mark 16:15 ESV)

Many do not engage in their faith because of fear and yet fear is a good thing. The response of fear is faith.

How did we get here?
And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”
(Matthew 9:35-38 ESV)

What is our message?

And he said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation.
(Mark 16:15 ESV)

Way of the Master

The law of the LORD is perfect,
reviving the soul;
the testimony of the LORD is sure,
making wise the simple;
(Psalm 19:7 ESV)
Get personal. Focus on conscience (right and wrong), not their brain or intellect (argument).
Now we know that whatever the law says it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be stopped, and the whole world may be held accountable to God.
(Romans 3:19 ESV) 

For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin.
(Romans 3:20 ESV)


Mark 10 - Rich Young Man

START of Class
-- When my wife and I were expecting our first child, my wife Pamela went out and bought a book called, "What to expect when you're expecting." It was a very popular book at the time (it might still be). As you can probably imagine it was written on the simple premise of, as you are getting to engage yourself in something that you look forward to, but yet, is a an unknown, here is some information. For a woman, being a mother is ingrained in them. And yet, there is still uncertainty. There is excitement. There is a little fear, mostly in the unknown. It became a book she poured through and constantly consulted.

For us, as we begin this class and time together, in some ways we could write the Title of this course as "What to expect when you are sharing your faith." It's normal.

The Bible is full of individuals that stepped into a situation, by faith, and yet, not completely knowing what lies ahead. Jonah (confirm this). Isaiah (confirm this). David. There are many individuals.

As we begin let's get some basic expectations out of the way. First of all, this is a 13 week course and so, what will transpire in those 13 weeks.

Week 1 - Introductions, Basic understanding of basic conversations with people and faith
Week 2-9, Begin the 8 lessons. Take your time. If people aren't doing the work, then take longer to move through material. Do the other lessons at the end.
Week 10-13 - Wrap up, concluding thoughts, next steps, Field Work continues


-- This is a class about being confident of Christ and Who He is and what he has already done. And just like singing in the choir, or teaching a Sunday school class, we can be of good cheer. In Choir, we practice. In teaching, we practice. In evangelism, we practice. In all of our acts of service, there will be trials and distresses, but through them all, we can still be of good cheer. - John 16:33 (Amplified)

 -- Our focus in Evangelism must be to depend on Christ. January 4 Jesus calling states, "It is through problems and failure, weakness and neediness that you learn to rely on Me."

Homework: This is a course that requires work. I'm not here to give you something that will only take a few minutes. It is amazing that ministry is often a sales effort to get people to do something that won't take much time.

Sharing our faith
1. Face to face
2. Online/Email/Chat (GMO, Facebook)
3. Telephone (Billy Graham, Church follow-up)

Writing out a Testimony
When we think about 2 Corinthians 5:17

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.
(2 Corinthians 5:17 ESV)


Often, when using this verse, a testimony is something good to insert here. So, before the next session, I would like you to prepare your testimony.



but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect,
(1 Peter 3:15 ESV)

Write out the Gospel message.

This is an incredible verse to study and pick apart. It would be good to look at I Peter 3:8-17

But, just looking at 3:15 we see this:

• Be ready to give an accurate reason connected to God's truth
• Honor Christ in your response (speak of Him)
• Be gentle and respectful (think about who you are speaking to; look them in the eye; consider their position; get in their shoes)

With this in mind, here are some questions for self.

1. Am I memorizing God's word? If not memorizing it, am I meditating on it. At the very least, do I have a Bible with me I can refer to. Not, a big Bible, but something to whip out of my pocket or retrieve on your phone.
2. In my normal, everyday life, do I speak of the Lord's work in my life and give him praise? When good things happen; when trials happen - do you give God the credit for his rewards, for teaching you. And here is the challenge for me -- do I only do this around people I feel safe with? Do I voice in God's goodness with my neighbors who I'm pretty sure are not believers?
  -- around church people we easily talk about God and how he is working in our life and the things we are learning from the Bible
  -- around non-church people, we easily don't talk about God, but instead talk about life as just happening, almost by chance.
3. Does my walk = talk? Can I be proud of my behavior?