Evangelism and the local church

 

 

The roots of evangelism are embedded in the local church which derives its life from Christ, as he is set forth in the whole of Scripture. The members evangelise as they are nourished by the preaching, strengthened by the corporate prayer and worship of the church and encouraged by fellowship.

 

Christians who abide in Christ by abiding in a true local church will evangelise spontaneously. They can do no other. If the churches are not producing evangelism in this spontaneous way, the way to recovery is not by the imposition of organised efforts upon the churches from without. The only way is by reformation and revival taking place within.

Rev. Erroll Hulse

Three-fer Saturday!

His Feet on the Street completed a "Hat Trick" Saturday hitting three big events in Cherokee County.

Vernon Costolo from "Proclaiming the Truth" joined His Feet for the first event of the day at the Canton Art's and Craft's Show in Canton, Georgia. We were able to hand out a few hundred tracts and have some great gospel sharing conversations before Vernon had to go to work  -

Vernon found a very friendly spot to stand and hand out some tracts; the parking lot of the Canton Police Department :)

                                                Evangelism Warriors Cam and Vernon

Cam Sharing with a young couple

Cam sharing with an older couple (we don't discriminate!)

Discussing the Law while the law looked on -





After we left the Art's and Craft's show, we went and got a bite to eat and then headed over to Ball Ground's Heritage Day Festival. While we were there we had a few good conversations and handed out a couple hundred Gospel tracts!



After a couple hours at Heritage Day, we headed back to Canton for the monthly Car Show where we were able to hand out a few hundred more Gospel tracts and talk to several people in about an hour and half before the rain came.

We praise and give all glory to God for the opportunities He gave us to share the Gospel and hand out tracts to receptive hands. We pray that God was glorified and Jesus was proclaimed mightily-

We pray that through the conversations and the tracts, God leads many to repentance and faith in the Name above all names; Jesus Christ.





Three Years Old Today

His Feet is three years old today. On this day, three years ago, His Feet on the Street came together for it's first trip out to intentionally share the Gospel.

I can't think of a better way to say "Happy Birthday" than to share a story from "Firecracker". Firecracker, as she is affectionately known to us around here, was the driving force behind the 2012 Clothing Drive a couple weeks back.

I asked her to share her thoughts from the Clothing Drive - (Enjoy some new pictures too!)

When God calls us to serve, he equips us with all we need. If we are obedient and we trust him…he will provide to the very last detail.  I was particularly dancing and jumping like a 3 year old child jumps out of joy when a parent stops the ice cream truck to buy a child ice cream as I watch God at work even before the day of the Clothing Drive. I truly believe He loves the child in me because when I praise Him my joy is so uncontainable just like the one of a child. 

Sometimes I think we do not praise him enough – we take things for granted or somehow think we may deserve it and forget to be thankful, when everything we have, everything we are we owe it to Him. 

The folks that make up “His Feet on the Street” plan ahead, many people say that they want to help and be a part of the ministry, but somehow there is no follow through. Thankfully we serve a FAITHFUL GOD and He never fails us.   

Every year we do this clothing drive God shows us that He is in control. We continue with our plans to do what he has called “His church” to do. We know we have a mission and that is to let others know about Him, to spread the Good News, to talk about repentance, about surrendering to Him, to just show His love to others and to provide a need to our community in more than one way.  God prepares the provisions of the clothing, the volunteers, the food, the perfect location, the tables, the bibles, the weather, and the ears and the hearts that come to hear His message.    

Wow!  Do we serve and awesome God or what!? Many long hours and days go forth into the process of planning the event and we don’t necessarily know how God is going to work, but we do know He is at work. People came to us at the clothing drive because God brought them and they heard what we had to share.  Some of our conversations were 20-30 minutes long and they just listened. There were people hurting who shared with us their pain with heavy hearts, who shared with us their state of being, how lost they felt, what an outcast they were, how they had no direction in life, some were unsure of were they stood with God, their hearts seemed divided.   

Many got to open up their hearts and even sobbed – that my friend is the Holy Spirit at  work! We give God the Praise and all the Glory for all that took place that day, but I tell you that even if only one seed was planted throughout the whole day, if only one person surrendered to Him and repented, then everything would have been worth it either way!

 I thought because I speak more than one language I was there to share the Gospel with the Hispanics, and Wayne, Cam, Kris and the rest of the guys would witness, serve or be praying for or to the ones who spoke English, but suddenly I found myself witnessing to a lady name Loreen who was very burdened as well as to their daughters who spoke English.   

I bagged her times and asked her if I could have a few minutes for some questions.   

I proceeded… what good is it to give you a bite to eat, something to drink and even some clothing, if I do not talk to you about my Savior, if I do not share with you the Good news. There is purpose to our lives; we exist to have a relationship with God. “  Before I finished my sentences I saw her eyes swelled up and noticed she was trying to hold back her tears, as she looked around her teenage daughter, and her other daughter who held her little one in a stroller. I could not help but to feel her heaviness upon my heart.   

I am a mother and I know how much I pray for my own children to know and to live a life abiding in the Lord.  Before you know it, those tears were rolling down her beautiful face and I say beautiful because I guarantee you that she probably never looked more beautiful to the Lord than at that very moment when her heart was longing to be embraced by His grace and mercy, when she was surrendering to Him. 

She did not care who was watching; who was around her, she just let it out. Of course I prompted her to do so, that we wanted to be there for her. She not only spoke of how lost she felt she was, but she cried for her daughters who were present and asked God for Him to intervene in their lives.  She was so ready to have an encounter with the Lord. She mentioned she was struggling and was in a spiritual warfare.  She said life had been rough and that at some point she had been to church, but it had been a very long time since she had been back.  

 I reminded her that we might forget about God, but that He never forgets about us.  That He allowed U-turns and that He was there waiting for her return with opened arms.  The more I spoke the more she sobbed.  After exchanging a few words, I asked her is she was tired of trying to make things work.  I told her she was not meant to carry her burdens and her children’s burdens, but that the Lord would gladly take them. 

We spoke about God’s love for her regardless of her wandering away and you can tell that she needed to hear about His forgiveness. How wonderful to know that He will come and rescue us from the deepest and darkest pit when we realize He is our one and only Savior and Redeemer.  I know God came to her rescue, I know that she had a divine appointment with the Lord and that He will carry her and her burdens with His righteous right hand and that the storm she is facing will not over take her. 

She said she was so ready to turn around her life, that her whole family needed Jesus. I did tell the daughters that the mom could not attain salvation for them that they had to come to Christ them selves.  I probably went overboard as the firecracker that I am and I did put them on the spot, but see this business of Jesus is no game.  He is coming!  I may never see them again and I needed to let them know to take God seriously. 

Sometimes it is through suffering we draw near to Him, so we need to understand that He is the source of all we need.  I remember seeing Cam praying while we spoke… the power of prayer is a wonderful thing.  Can you imagine what else God will do if we prayed fervently for one another?!  It was a privilege to let God use us to provide her more than clothing and a bite of food.   

We shared Christ with her and her family. 

We were church on the street. 

We embraced her, her family and each other while others were praying and God was there in the midst of us, healing, justifying, sanctifying and already at work with his transformation and Loreen knew this was as real as it gets. I bet she had no idea she will meet with Jesus at something so simple like a clothing drive. We may not necessarily see the finished work of God, but we know He will bring it to completion and that is all we need to know.

To see this many people come through the clothing drive is telling us that our community needs the church to step up to be a church! 

This is not about numbers or religion; this is about our duty as Christians to serve our community and spread the Gospel. Many people just needed prayer, others had other needs… regardless, we as the church keep tripping over our actions and all we need is to have our hearts see and speak and be lead by mercy, by a mercy that will open a door, maybe a window, but something will open – if not the whole heart! John 15:13 says “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends” I know this is referring to Christ, but we can also apply this to us. Does this mean that we have to die to show our love for our friends? Is only to our friends? 

Well… we at His Feet on the Street lay down our lives every time we put someone else's needs before our own through service, through meeting a need, though planting seeds, handing Bibles, sharing His Word and through loving lost cause, the outcast because not long ago we were there ourselves. 

As a church we have many opportunities to serve the body of Christ, and the church does not necessarily mean the structure of a building. Christ made it clear in Matthew 28:19-20 when he said “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit and teaching them everything I have commanded you to do.” We have a responsibility to reach the people in our community. 

On April 28 we probably saw over two hundred people come through the Clothing Drive, you could see some who were indifferent, some with many hurts, doubts, and questions. Some seemed to be in a desperate condition – they needed clothes, food, but they needed something much more essential, they needed love; they needed to know someone care to give them something without expecting anything in return, they needed a savior, a relationship with Christ; they needed HIM, they needed to know that we attain life only through Him. 

Our mission is to reach out to the people, to accept them and joyfully receive all who surrender to Him no matter their state of being. 

After all… didn’t Christ died for ALL? What is happening in our churches today? Are we getting too complacent that we are growing stagnant? Have we gotten too comfortable under the air conditioning and too preoccupied with our needs that we can’t see the ones of our neighbors? Folks, our community needs us to truly care about them, when we can prove we care, only then they will be willing to listen to what we have to share. Until they know we care we are just blabbing away. 

Actions speak louder than words. James 2: 15-17 says “What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? ¹⁵ Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. ¹⁶ If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? ¹⁷ In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.  

We need to live our lives understanding that we need to tie our actions with our words. People are watching us and they know if we are real!!! More importantly Christ knows. James 1:22 “ Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.

John 21: 15-16Jesus said Do you love me more than these?”“Yes, Lord,” he said, “you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.” ¹⁶ Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep

The church exist not to serve itself, but to serve God and to help further His Kingdom. We are to do the work of Christ and be His Feet on the Street daily, at work, during sports, at the store, driving, wherever we are,,, are we ready for His coming? Are we not worried that some folks are walking near a cliff that leads to eternal doom and they don’t even know it? Can we love like He did? Can we care?

God designed the church to function like a body with every member ministering in the power of the Holy Spirit to others, helping one another and pointing others towards him. There is work to be done right here, there are missions right here! Let’s Get it Done! Praise God for His faithfulness and all His provisions! 

May He richly bless those who encountered His Grace and Mercy and may he bless all the volunteers, all who donated clothes, tables, the location, Bibles, food, and all of those who prayed! You are a valuable tool for the kindgdom of God! It is an honor and a privilige serving with you!

In His Mighty Love,

Firecracker

May God be praised and all glory be given unto Him -

 

Clothing Drive 2012

This past Saturday, "His Feet on the Street" sponsored a clothing drive in the parking lot of the Ingles supermarket in Canton, Georgia. Although lots of clothes, house hold items and food was given away for free, the main goal of this event was to take the biblical Gospel to the people of the community.

A dedicated team of compassionate laborers for Christ arrived early and began hauling tables, setting up tables, sorting clothes, organizing stations and cooking food. Thank you to all the volunteers who sacrificed their time,energy, money and sweat for the glory of the Lord!

A big thank you to the Ingles supermarket for the parking lot space and a special thank you to the Cherokee Armory for the tables. Even though there was a door closed to us from what we thought would be a reliable source, we trusted that God would provide with all that we needed to make the event a success for His glory...and provide He did!!!

Here is how the event process worked: Each person that came through the line received five tickets. One ticket equaled one article of clothing or one house hold item. When the person got to the end of the clothing tables, they would redeem the tickets for the items and we would bag them up. Once the items were bagged up, we would share the Gospel with them.

Every person that came through the line was personally witnessed to. After we shared the Gospel, they would proceed on to get the free hotdogs, chips and drink.


We were able to biblically share the Gospel with roughly 200-250 people Saturday...Praise God!

I hope to be able to post some stories from others who helped out Saturday, but while it is fresh on my mind I would like to share a few conversations I had.

Before we were even complete with the set-up, I noticed a young man sitting down on the curb between where we were and the YMCA parking lot. I grabbed some tracts and headed over to see if I could have a chat with him. The young man was on the cell phone and was kind enough to tell the person on the line (Do we still say "line" for a cell phone) that he would call him back in a few minutes.

I started the conversation by telling him what we were doing on the other side of the lot and invited him over  in a little bit to get some free clothes and food if he so desired. He asked why we were doing that and I told him we had an ulterior motive; we care about where people would be spending their eternity. So, after handing him a Million Dollar Bill, I asked him the million dollar question: If you were to die today, where do you think you would spend eternity?

He actually said that he had been thinking a lot about that lately and had been reading many books to help answer that question. I asked what kind of books had he been reading and he mentioned several books that I could only describe as "New Age"philosophy books. He told me that he had basically come to the conclusion that all religions were more or less the same and that space aliens would ultimately usher in the apocalypse that the book of Revelation talks about.

We danced around the sinfulness of man and then I made it personal to him. He told me that he had never lied for a bad reason. All the lies he has told were to help out his friends or family. He said that he never once taken anything that was not his...but if he had, it would not have been his fault, but societies fault for causing him to do it. He never came out and admitted he had sinned in anyway, shape or form even after going through all the Commandments.

He went on to talk about the Deity of Christ, the Trinity, space aliens, the Government, etc. I tried to stay on point, but conversation with him seemed like trying to catch a greased pig. I eventually steered the conversation back around to sin, death, wrath of God, Judgment and eternity in Hell for sinning against God. As hard as it was to get there, I shared with him what God did for us so that we could be forgiven of our sins and be free from His wrath on Judgment Day.

I gave him a "Why Christianity" booklet and Cam gave him a Bible. We shook his hand and went back over to the clothing drive set up.

Another conversation I had before we began was with a young lady who had stopped by to ask if she could donate some clothes for the drive. My wife had been chatting with her when I got the "come over here now" wave. When I walk up my wife explained why the young lady was there and that she had grown up in a non-practicing Christian home, met and married a Muslim man and had since converted to Islam.

The lady started telling me what a good thing it was that we were doing and that she believed that the Bible and the Koran were both true. She also went on to tell me that she thought Jesus was a good man and prophet and that Allah and the God of the Bible were the same.

I asked here what the test of a prophet was in Islam. She said that a prophet always speaks the truth. I asked her if she really believed that. She said yes. So I said if a prophet always speaks the truth, and, according to you Jesus was a prophet, then everything Jesus said was true? Is that right?

She said yes.

So I asked her if Jesus was speaking the truth when He said He was the way, the truth and the life and that that no one goes to the Father except through Him?

She just looked at me. So I broke the silence by saying that by her own words this must be true. If Jesus was a prophet, and a prophet always speaks the truth, then Jesus was speaking the truth when He spoke those words.

She then countered with the Bible Christians have today is not the original Scriptures. She said that in the first or second century, the original Scriptures were lost and the translations we have today are not trustworthy.

I said that is not what you stated a few minutes ago. I told her that she started off by saying that the Bible and the Koran were both true. So either the Bible is true or it is not. She said a few other things not related to what we were talking about and shifted on to saying that Christians believe that Jesus is God. She said that Jesus was not God, never claimed to be God and was just the "son" of God.

She said that no where in the Bible would we find Jesus claiming to be God. I said what about Jesus saying that He and the Father are one. Or how about Jesus telling Philip that if he (Philip) has seen the Son, he had seen the Father. Or what about Jesus saying that before Abraham was, I Am? I said that those Jewish rulers knew exactly what Jesus meant when He spoke the words "I Am". That's why they wanted to kill Him on the spot for blasphemy -

The lady changed the subject pretty quick and said that there were people waiting for her and she had to get on back to them. We shook hands and I gave her a ministry card which has a detailed Gospel message on the back.

There were many conversations that day but one last one I want to share was with a lady named Shareeka (sp?). Shareeka joked and laughed for most of our conversation and seemed very apathetic towards the Gospel.

Shareeka believed that God was God of love and kindness and would never punish anyone...let alone send anyone to Hell for eternity. I immediately took her through the Good Person test (which she failed). She admitted to being a liar, a thief and a blasphemer. But even though she believed she would stand before God one Day, she refused to believe that God would punish her for breaking His law.

I believe, in Shareeka's mind, "God" is a grandfatherly figure type who is sitting around on a Heavenly porch just waiting for all his kids to show up so He can give them a big hug and kiss. I gave Shareeka earthy examples of breaking the law and having to pay the consequences. I told her no matter how much she may think a judge is loving and kind, he would have to follow the law and sentence her for her crimes or he would be a derelict judge.

I tried to explain to her that the very thing she was relying on to save her on Judgment Day (God's love) was the very thing that will condemn her to an eternity in Hell. God is either going to see her as a transgressor of His law (a sinner) and she was personally going to pay for sinning against God, or, she needed Someone, an  Advocate, to stand in her place on that Great Day.

I explained Who that Advocate is and shared the Gospel with her. I told her about the finished work of Christ at Calvary and that God commands her to repent and put her faith alone in Christ alone for salvation.

Shareeka laughed, smiled and thanked me for talking with her. She cracked a few jokes and then wanted her picture made with me    ~ sigh ~

I am not sure why she laughed and joked around so much. Maybe it was one of those nervous laughs. Maybe there were influencing circumstances. Maybe she just didn't care what the crazy Jesus freak had to say. I don't know.

One thing is for sure though: There will be a Day when Shareeka, like all of us, will stand before a just and holy God. And on that Day there will be no joking around. There will be no do-overs...no second chances to get it right. There will be no pleading or begging. There will be no persuading God to see it your way. There will only be you and God and your sin that He hates.

God will not turn a blind eye or give you a wink and excuse you for transgressing His law. If you die in your sins you will spend an eternity in Hell with the wrath of God abiding on you; forever -

The Gospel truth is that Christ died for your sins according to the Scriptures. He was buried and rose again three days later defeating death and conquering the grave.

God commands you to repent and put your faith in the One who will stand as your mediator between you and God.

Those are just a few conversations I had and I hope to have some more from the others over the next couple weeks along with different photo's.

Please pray that God will draw to Himself those He desires to save, opens their blind eyes and leads them to repentance and faith in Jesus Christ for His glory and His glory alone.

Soli Deo Gloria!

Happy GOOD Friday...Thank you Jesus!

A bird's-eye view of Hell!

"I beg you, father Abraham--send Lazarus to my father's house! For I have five brothers, and I want him to warn them so they don't end up in this place of torment!" Luke 16:27-28

Jesus takes off the covering from the bottomless pit--and gives us a bird's-eye view of Hell!

There is a young man there. He was rich. He was surrounded by a multitude of earthly goods. He has forfeited them all--and now he is in Hell. His doom is fixed--and fixed forever. He cannot obtain one single drop of water to cool his parched tongue!

He finds that it is now no use asking favors for himself. But he has brothers--five brothers. Can he prevent their coming to Hell? He will try. He therefore prays that Lazarus may become a missionary--and be sent on a mission of mercy to his father's house. Hear him: "I beg you, father Abraham--send Lazarus to my father's house!" Who would expect to find mercy in Hell--or pity in Hell--or prayer in Hell! But here it is!

Can earth be worse than Hell? Can professed Christians be worse than this lost soul? Shall lost souls in Hell wish to send someone to their ungodly relatives--if possible to prevent their damnation--and will you neglect your relatives? Has pity for the souls of your lost relatives no influence on you?

Is Hell only a fable?

Is eternal torment only a trifle?

How then, can you let them go to Hell without pity or concern?

Souls are perishing!

Hell is filling!

Time in flying!

Are you, can you be careless about the eternal happiness or eternal misery of the souls around you?

Where, O where is your pity for poor perishing sinners?

(James Smith, "A Voice from Hell!" 1856)

Have Christians LOST Our Heart for the LOST? - Timothy Gray Muse

 From All Things Reformed

After reading and being reminded again this past week how Jesus WEPT as he approached Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, I meditated, asking myself the question “Do I and other Christians today – WEEP over the lost – the way Jesus did?”

Sadly, as I survey my own present heart and much of what I see on the whole in the life of the church, I confess my answer is “No.”

I come to this conclusion after comparing Jesus’ example with my own recent thoughts and track record, with that which I observe in the lives of those I regularly read or communicate with, along with those things in the church as a whole which seem to consume our time, direct our attention, occupy our passions, fill our conversations, and form our service and labors of ministry.

While the things I speak of do not apply to all, it seems that while many of us in the church have become adept at doing things like doctrinally defending God’s justice against the non-elect while extending his redemptive mercies and grace to the elect, and preaching and explaining how the gospel is to be held out to all, and how the reach of missions is to extend to the ends of the earth, … that at the level of our hearts – we do not tend to be as broken, caring, warmhearted and concerned as Christ over those who lack peace either temporally and/or eternally and who experience difficulties of various kinds and measures on a daily basis because they fail to recognize God’s coming to them in Christ.

After meditating on this question this past week and praying, I went for a run to get some exercise on a bright and beautiful day. In God’s providence in the course of my three mile run, I was interrupted and called over to talk to three individuals (one of which I never met before, another which I only spoke to once in passing on a former run, and the other a man of whom I had become aware of the presence of some personal issues but whom up until this day I had never spoken with directly about these problems) who ended up asking or accepting an offer for me to pray for them or a family member.

Read rest of post HERE