Thank you for joining this course about, “How to Share Your Faith.” Chances are, you signed up for this course because you have a burden for people who do not know Christ, and you want to develop the tools and confidence to share your faith with the people around you. Today, you will be challenged to start praying for and reaching out to 5 people in your life who do not know Christ, be introduced to the bridge diagram, and so much more!
1. What holds people back from sharing their faith?
2. Read Matthew 28:18-20. What would it look like in your life if you took this instruction from Jesus seriously?
18 Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. 19 Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. 20 Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
Write down on a piece of paper or the Notes App on your phone your list of 5 people who are far from Christ who you can be sharing your faith with. If you have a hard time creating that list, write down at least three different places you can go consistently where you can develop relationships with people who are far from Christ.
1. How was your experience creating a list of 5 people who do not know Christ? Was it difficult or easy? Why?
2. What places can you begin going where you can interact with people who do not know Christ on a consistent basis?
1. Todd introduced 4 questions we can ask other people to open the door to talking about eternity and what really matters:
Do you ever think there must be more to life than this?
What do you think your purpose in life is?
Do you think there is a Heaven and a Hell?
What do you think happens after we die?
Which of these questions would you like to memorize to ask others when the opportunity comes to have spiritual conversations with those who are far from Christ? Why?
2. How will the bridge diagram help you when it comes to sharing your faith?
In order to help you memorize the Bridge Diagram, we have attached the script here. Use this Script as you learn the Bridge Diagram this week.
Put the word US on one side and GOD on the other side. Then, write the word sin between the two words. Explain that because of our sin, there is a separation between us and God. Now the problem that we all have because all of us have sinned is we want to get to God, but we can’t make it to the other side on our own, and people have tried. Some people think if I am a good person that I can make it to the other side on my own or if I go to church and become a really religious person, I can make it to the other side on my own, but the Bible says no matter how hard we try to get to the other side, we can't make it to the other side.
Thankfully, God saw the mess we were in. And because He loved us so much, He sent His Son Jesus to bridge the gap between us and God. (Draw the cross over our sin). Jesus died for all the sins that we have committed. You see, at 12 noon, the sky grew dark as midnight as Jesus hung on the cross. It was at this time that all of our sin was placed on Jesus, and when that happened Jesus cried out, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” God the Father is holy, and He cannot be in the presence of sin, so God the Father turned his back on Jesus as all of our sin fell upon Him. Jesus became the payment for our sin that we owed a holy God.
One of the last things Jesus said before He died was “It is finished”. That saying in the first century meant “paid in full”. Jesus paid in full our sin debt, and now we have access to God through Jesus' death, burial, and resurrection. You see, Jesus didn’t stay dead, but three days later, He rose again from the dead. Jesus promises to those who put their faith and trust in Him that when we die, because we have asked Jesus to take control of our lives, we get to go to Heaven to be with Him forever.
Asking Jesus into your life is as easy as 1,2,3 or A, B, C.
A. Admit you are a sinner. Have you ever sinned? Everyone has, but it is not enough to just admit that you have sinned. You have to repent of your sin. That means we must turn away from our sin. I was once living for myself, but now I want to live for God.
B. Believe that Jesus is God’s Son who died on the cross for you and rose again from the dead. Most people believe that to be true. In James 2, it says that even the demons believe and shudder with fear, so it’s not enough just to believe some facts about Jesus. You have to do step three.
C. Commit your life to Jesus. You say, Jesus, everything I am and everything I hope to be, I give it over to you. Take my life and use it. I don’t want to live for myself anymore. I want to live for you.
After I share this, I always ask them, “Where do you see yourself? Here at number 1, number 2, or number 3.”
Next, I ask, “Is there any reason why you wouldn't want to commit your life to Jesus today?" (If they say, "No," I pray with them, and I pray right through the three steps…)
“Dear God, I know that I am a sinner. I believe Jesus died on the cross for my sins and rose again. I commit my life to You. Everything I am and everything I hope to be, I give it to You. I love You, and I thank You for forgiving me and loving me. In Jesus' name, Amen.”
If they say they are not ready, I say, “No problem! Thank you for letting me share this with you.”
Baptism:
After giving their lives to Christ, baptism is an important step in every Christian's life. It is a picture of the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus. In the same way that Jesus died and buried and rose again, when you get baptized, you are dying to your old way of life, and when you come out of the water it represents your new life in Jesus.
Just as Jesus died on the cross and rose again from the dead, we are choosing to die to our old way of life… and living a new life in Jesus. Baptism shows that you are serious about following Jesus. And it is a way to let the world know that God has changed your life.
Your homework for next week is to practice the things that we talked about during this week’s session. Commit to doing these three things over the next week:
1. Pray over your list of people who are far from Christ every single day this week.
2. Pick one of the 4 questions to open the door with others to share your faith and memorize it.
3. Work on memorizing the Bridge Diagram every day this week. Come prepared to practice sharing the Bridge Diagram with your group next week. Remember, resources to help you learn and practice the Bridge Diagram are found on the Sagebrush App by selecting the “Resources” tab and then the “One Life” tab.
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