Issue link: https://cp.revolio.com/i/1455603
l Write out your testimony and study it. l Since you won't always have 20 or even 5 minutes to share your faith, prepare an "elevator speech" of 2-3 minutes; an abbreviation of your longer testimony. l Don't use Christian jargon and cliche's. Learn to communicate effectively to the average non‐Christian. l Don't preach or talk down to people. l Don't bring up politics! l Don't speak critically or negatively about any other individual or group. or church l And when you share your testimony, remember to share it with loving enthusiasm in the power of the Holy Spirit. l Let people see your story of what God is presently doing for and through you. l One last thing: Our job is to prepare, pray and present the Gospel and what Jesus means to you. If they ask a question you can't answer, say you don't know and will get back to them. While we certainly hope for the opportunity to pray with someone and lead them to Christ, only the Holy Spirit can tell you when it is time to "ask the question" or "walk away." You may be a seed planter and someone else will come along and "harvest the fruit." Beware of your ego getting in the way or false guilt that you have somehow failed. When Paul was talking about his efforts, he wrote 1Corinthians 3:5-7 " What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe—as the Lord has assigned to each his task. I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. So, neither the one who plants nor the one who waters are anything, but only God, who makes things grow." Ride your bikes and enjoy them! Shine those boots and love on those bikers - but sooner or later we must present the Gospel, ask the hard questions and challenge them to surrender their hearts to Christ because without that they will be lost for an eternity in hell. b Why We Do What We Must Do Part Two A. Hell is a Real place: "Don't fear those who kill the body, rather fear him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell" (Matt 10:28; see also 5:29-30; 23:15,33; Luke 10:15; 16:23). Commenting on Jesus' teaching about an "eternal punishment" (Matt. 25:46), John Broadus (Christian psychiatrist) wrote: "It is to the last degree improbable that the Great Teacher would have used an expression so inevitably suggesting a great doctrine he did not mean to teach." According to Jesus, hell is real. Hell is Place of Judgement In numerous parables, Jesus clearly and emphatically taught of a final judgment and the separation of the righteous from the unrighteous. The unrighteous will be condemned to a place of blazing fire and utter darkness where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. (See Matt. 13:24-30,36-43, 47-50; 22:1-14; 25:14-46.) Jesus called this place "the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels" (Matt. 25:41). Hell is not a place where people are tormented by the devil; it is where those who reject God will suffer the same fate as the devil and his demons. It is the place of final judgment. Hell is Forever Jesus spoke of hell as "eternal fire" (Matt. 25:41) and "eternal punishment" (Matt. 25:46). In Matthew 25:46, the same word—eternal—is used to describe eternal life for the righteous and the eternal punishment of hell for the unrighteous. According to Jesus, hell will be eternal. Hell is More Terrible Than We Can Ever Imagine The images of fire (Matt. 25:41), darkness (Matt. 8:12; 22:13; 25:30), the weeping and gnashing of teeth " (Matt. 8:12; 13:42,50; 22:13; 24:51; 25:30; Luke 13:28) and being cut into pieces speak of the horror of hell. Are these vivid images of hell literal or figurative? If they are meant to be figurative, then the imagery is pointing beyond what human language can convey. In other words, hell—if not a literal fire and literal darkness—is immeasurably worse than those images and inexpressibly worse than we can even imagine or describe. As heaven is more wonderful than our finite minds can comprehend, hell is more horrible than we can comprehend. So, what are we to do with Jesus' teaching about hell? For believers, the reality of hell is an impetus to evangelism and missions; it is a reminder to us of what is at stake with the gospel. Praise God "there is now no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus" (Rom. 8:1) but may we as believers be gripped with the urgency of the gospel message. I pray we'll be like Spurgeon, who said, "If sinners be damned, at least let them leap to hell over our bodies. If they will perish, let them perish with our arms about their knees. Let no one go there unwarned and un-prayed for." b