Usually the only time that Marla and I watch TV (other than the news or the Olympics) is when we stay in a motel. It’s always an eye-opening experience for me, to learn where the culture is at.

Several years ago, we saw a feature on an up and coming actress that obviously focused on her sex appeal. Since then, from reading the tabloid headlines while waiting in line at the market, I know that she has gone through a divorce from the man she was engaged to when we saw this program. She is frequently pictured on those tabloids in revealing attire, with stories about her latest sexual escapade. But in the program we watched, the young woman’s father talked about her faith in Jesus Christ, assuring the viewers that she was a good Christian girl!

It’s not at all uncommon to hear about or meet people that make a profession of being born again, but their lives are no different from those in the world. They have never turned from the sin that characterized their lives before they professed to be born again. In their morals, in their marriages, in the way they raise their children, in their materialistic lifestyles, and in the way they spend hours every week watching the filth on TV or in movies, they are no different than the rest of our pagan culture. And yet they claim to be born again Christians!

Are people who have “prayed to receive Christ,” or who claim to be born again, but whose lives are no different than they were before, truly converted? I believe that the Bible answers that question with a loud, “No!” Those who are truly converted to faith in Jesus Christ are marked by what the Bible calls “repentance.” This does not mean that they are sinless, but it does mean that they sin less. They mourn over their sin. They fight against it. When they do sin, they turn from it and turn back to following Christ as Lord. A study of “repentance” in the Bible shows that…

A life of turning to God from sin is the mark of true conversion.

This relates to the message of evangelism. If we do not make it clear to lost people that repentance is necessary for salvation, we will produce false converts, who think that they are saved when the truth is, they are on the broad way to hell.

This is crucial to understand because there is an entire organization, made up in large part of graduates of the seminary that I attended, which promotes the view that repentance (in the sense of turning from sin) has no part in evangelism. They argue that to bring up repentance when you present the gospel is to undermine the doctrine of justification by faith alone.

Of course, there are many verses in the Bible that connect repentance with salvation. So these men have to define the word rather narrowly. They say that it only means changing your mind about Jesus Christ, where you acknowledge that He is the Savior or that He is God. But, they argue, it does not mean turning from sin or changing one’s conduct. They argue that submitting to Christ as Lord is desirable for the Christian, but not necessary for salvation (see Thomas Constable, in Walvoord: A Tribute [Moody Press], pp. 207, 209). But, a study of “repentance” in the Bible shows that…

1. Those who are lost must turn from sin to be saved.

Is repentance, as many purport, just a change of mind? No!

A. Repentance is to turn to God from sin.

The main Old Testament word translated “repent” means to turn or return. It is the twelfth most frequently used verb in the OT (1,050 times; some usages refer only to someone physically turning around, but many refer to turning to the Lord). Scholar Victor Hamilton writes of this word (Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament, ed. by R. Laird Harris, Glean Archer, & Bruce Waltke [Moody Press], 2:909), “… it combines in itself the two requisites of repentance: to turn from evil and to turn to the good.” He concludes (ibid.) that “this conscious decision of turning to God” includes “repudiation of all sin and affirmation of God’s total will for one’s life.”

There are three New Testament words used for repentance and they occur (in noun or verb form) over 60 times, beginning with a summary of both John the Baptist’s and Jesus’ preaching: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matt. 3:2; 4:17). R. C. Trench (Synonyms of the New Testament [Eerdmans], p. 260) describes repentance as “that mighty change in mind, heart, and life wrought by the Spirit of God.” While the main Greek word is a compound word taken from two words meaning to change one’s mind, this meaning, according to another scholar, “plays very little part in the NT. Rather the decision by the whole man to turn around is stressed. It is clear that we are concerned neither with a purely outward turning nor with a merely intellectual change of ideas.” (J. Goetzmann, in The New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology, ed. by Colin Brown [Zondervan, 1:358.) Theologian Wayne Grudem (Systematic Theology [Zondervan], p. 713, italics his) offers this definition: “Repentance is a heartfelt sorrow for sin, a renouncing of it, and a sincere commitment to forsake it and walk in obedience to Christ.”

Thus repentance involves a change of thinking, feeling, and behaving. Like saving faith, repentance is a gift that God grants by His sovereign grace (Acts 3:16; 5:31; 11:18; 2 Tim. 2:25). In that sense, it is not something that sinful man can produce, although sinners are responsible to repent. But when any sinner repents, it is because God graciously granted repentance.

While sorrow for sin is a normal part of repentance, it is possible to feel sorry for your sins and yet not be repentant unto salvation. Judas Iscariot felt remorse for betraying Jesus, yet he was not converted (Matt. 27:3). Esau “found no place for repentance, though he sought for it with tears” (Heb. 12:17). Paul told the Corinthians that sorrow according to the will of God can lead to repentance, and thus be a valuable thing (2 Cor. 7:8-11). But sorrow for sins alone is not enough. Biblical repentance is a turning of the whole person from sin to God. The repentant person accepts responsibility for his sin, he calls out in faith to God for salvation, and he proves his repentance and faith by his good works.

Let’s look at some biblical examples of repentance. In Jonah 3, the prophet reluctantly went to Ninevah and proclaimed God’s message, that in 40 days, the city would be overthrown for its sin. To Jonah’s displeasure, the people of Ninevah believed in God (Jon. 3:5). Their genuine faith was evident in that they fasted and turned from their sins (Jon. 3:5-8). Then it says (Jon. 3:10), “When God saw their deeds, that they turned from their wicked way, then God relented concerning the calamity which He had declared He would bring upon them. And He did not do it.” What was the evidence that their faith was genuine? Their repentance: they turned from their wicked way. Repentance is turning to God from sin.

We see the same connection with faith and repentance in Paul’s ministry to the Thessalonians. He writes (1 Thess. 1:8), “For the word of the Lord has sounded forth from you, not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place your faith toward God has gone forth, so that we have no need to say anything.” The Thessalonians had believed in the gospel that Paul had preached. But clearly their faith was inseparable from repentance, because verse 9 reads, “For they themselves report about us what kind of a reception we had with you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve a living and true God.” Paul did not preach, “Just believe and maybe later you ought to turn from your sins.” Rather, he had included repentance in his gospel. The Thessalonians’ whole way of life had changed from idolatry to serving the living and true God.

Paul summarized his message to King Agrippa (Acts 26:18) by saying that the Lord had sent him to the Gentiles “to open their eyes so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the dominion of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who have been sanctified by faith in Me.” Those are Jesus’ direct words to Paul regarding the message he was to proclaim to lost people. It was a message about repentance: turning from sin (darkness, Satan’s dominion) to God. That message is bound up with, not distinct from, “forgiveness of sins and faith in” the Lord Jesus.

Paul goes on to say that in obedience to Christ, he preached (Acts 26:20), “even to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, performing deeds appropriate to repentance.” Paul’s gospel to pagan people was not just, “change your mind about Jesus and believe in Him, but don’t be concerned about your sins.” Rather, Paul’s gospel—which he got straight from Jesus—included turning to God from sin. Lost people must turn from sin to be saved. This means that…

B. Our presentation of the gospel is incomplete if we do not talk about turning to God from sin.

John the Baptist preached repentance to lost people and made it clear that he wasn’t talking about a change of mind only, apart from a change of behavior. Luke (3:3) summarizes his message as “a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.” He told his hearers that they needed to bear fruits in keeping with repentance (3:8). Then he gave them specific behavioral changes that they needed to make (3:11-14).

Jesus also preached a message of repentance to lost people (Matt. 4:17; Mark 1:15). He clearly told the Jews (Luke 13:3, 5): “Unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.” When Jesus sent out His disciples to preach, their message was “that men should repent” (Mark 6:12). They didn’t make up that message. They got it straight from Jesus! As we’ve seen, the apostle Paul got the same message directly from Jesus.

John MacArthur sums up a chapter on repentance (The Gospel According to Jesus [Zondervan], p. 167):

Repentance has always been the foundation of the biblical call to salvation…. No evangelism that omits the message of repentance can properly be called the gospel, for sinners cannot come to Jesus Christ apart from a radical change of heart, mind, and will. That demands a spiritual crisis leading to a complete turnaround and ultimately a wholesale transformation. It is the only kind of conversion Scripture recognizes.

You may be wondering: What is the relationship between repentance and saving faith? Repentance and faith are inextricably bound together, like two sides of the same coin. But the two words have different nuances or emphases (John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion [Westminster Press], 3:3:5). True saving faith, which is trusting in Christ alone and His shed blood to deliver us from God’s wrath, includes repentance. You can’t truly lay hold of Christ for salvation with one hand, while at the same time knowingly hold onto your sin with the other hand. To genuinely trust Christ, you must turn from your sin. Some may verbally profess to believe in Christ while holding onto their sin. But such empty profession without repentance is not true saving faith.

For example, if you’re driving to Phoenix and you repent, you don’t just say, “I don’t like going to Phoenix. I wish I weren’t going to Phoenix. I really believe that Flagstaff is the place where I should be.” Those are nice, but meaningless thoughts. True repentance means that you won’t just think or talk about it. You will actually turn around and drive back towards Flagstaff. Your behavior reflects your beliefs. If you truly believe in Christ as your Savior, you’ll turn from your sin. That’s repentance. J. Edwin Orr wrote (in Christianity Today, Jan. 1, 1982, p. 27), “The difference between true faith and what the Scripture calls false faith is simple: it is the lack of repentance.”

This is illustrated in the story of Simon the sorcerer (Acts 8:9-24). In verse 13, we read that Simon believed, was baptized, and continued on with Philip. But when Peter and John came to town and people received the Holy Spirit through their prayers, Simon offered to pay them so that he could have the same power. Note Peter’s response (Acts 8:20-23):

“May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money! You have no part or portion in this matter, for your heart is not right before God. Therefore repent of this wickedness of yours, and pray the Lord that, if possible, the intention of your heart may be forgiven you. For I see that you are in the gall of bitterness and in the bondage of iniquity.”

Clearly, although Luke says Simon had “believed,” he was not saved, because his faith did not include repentance. We aren’t faithfully presenting the gospel to lost people if we imply that they can get to heaven by faith without turning from their sin.

Becky Pippert, in her book Out of the Salt Shaker & into the World [IVP, pp. 45-47], tells of inviting Lois, a Stanford student who was skeptical about the existence of God, to a Bible study. She agreed to come but said, “The Bible won’t have anything relevant to say to me.”

The next day Becky discovered that Lois was living off campus with her boyfriend, Phil. To Becky’s great surprise, Phil came with Lois to the Bible study. Before she knew Lois’s background, Becky had already decided to study Jesus’ encounter with the woman at the well in John 4.

She started the study and suddenly realized that the passage dealt with a woman living in sexual sin. Not wanting Lois to feel ambushed, Becky tried to arrange it so that Lois wouldn’t have to read any of the text as they went around the room. But it turned out that Lois had to read the portion where Jesus said to the woman, “You are right in saying, ‘I have no husband’ ... for the man you’re living with now is not your husband.” It was her first time ever to read the Bible. Lois said, “I must say, this is a bit more relevant than I had expected!”

Becky met with her later and talked with her about Christ. “Is there any reason why you couldn’t become a Christian?” Becky asked. “No,” Lois said. “Well, I can think of one,” Becky said. “What will you do about Phil?” Then she talked directly about how becoming a Christian is a relationship that affects every aspect of our lives, including our morals. As they talked, it became clear that God had been pursuing Lois for a long time. There were tears and struggles followed by a sincere prayer asking Christ to be her Savior and Lord.

Immediately she said, “Becky, I’ve got problems. I’ll have to tell Phil and move out; I have no place to go; it’s impossible to get a dorm room this late, and now I’ll have to pay this month’s rent in two places.” So they prayed again, and as Lois left, Becky agonized over how such a young believer could handle so much.

Later Becky was chatting in the hall with some other students when she heard a noise and turned to see Lois, slowly walking down the corridor, carrying several suitcases and smiling with tears streaming down her cheeks. Everyone began asking her why she had left home. “Oh, no. I haven’t left home. I’ve finally found my home,” she said. “You see, today I became a Christian.”

That decision had far-reaching effects. That same night three girls decided to get right with Christ. Another girl who had assumed she was a Christian realized she wanted no part of it if it demanded total commitment. The next day Lois was told she could move into a dorm (unheard of at such a late date), and she discovered her new roommate was a mature Christian.

Three months later her boyfriend Phil became a Christian, and he too grew rapidly. He had been angry over her conversion and for moving out. But after he was converted he told her, “Thanks, Lois, for loving God enough to put him first instead of me. Your obedience affected my eternal destiny.”

Luke reports the risen Lord’s great commission to the disciples was “that repentance for forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in His name to all the nations” (Luke 24:47). How can anyone dodge the fact that repentance is at the heart of the gospel?

But repentance isn’t just something a person does at the moment of salvation and then says, “Whew, I’m glad that’s over!”

2. Those who are saved will be marked by repentance as an ongoing way of life.

True Christians grow increasingly sensitive to sin. To grow in Christ means to walk more closely with Him in the light of His Word. The Word exposes things in our lives that are not pleasing to Him. If we truly know Christ, we will be quick to confess these things as sin and to turn from them. As I said, we will never be sinless, but as we walk with Christ, we will sin less and will turn from that sin when God confronts it. A life of turning to God from sin is the mark of true conversion.

The story is told of a girl who trusted Christ and applied for membership in a church. A deacon asked her, “Were you a sinner before you received the Lord Jesus into your life?” “Yes, sir,” she replied. “Well, are you still a sinner?” “To tell you the truth, I feel that I’m a greater sinner than ever.” “Then what real change have you experienced?” “I don’t quite know how to explain it,” she said, “except I used to be a sinner running after sin, but now that I’m saved, I’m a sinner running from sin!” They accepted her into the fellowship of that church, and her life there proved her conversion.

The final thing to consider about repentance is:

3. When sinners repent, God welcomes them with great joy.

Some see repentance as negative. But the fact that God grants repentance gives us great hope. It means that when we turn to God from our sin, He will be gracious to us because of Christ’s death on our behalf. Both the Old and New Testaments picture God entreating sinners to turn back to Him:

Isaiah 55:6-7 implores, “Seek the Lord while He may be found; call upon Him while He is near. Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; and let him return to the Lord, and He will have compassion on him; and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon.”

When Jesus told the stories of the lost sheep, the lost coin and the lost son, in the first two He emphasized the joy in heaven when one sinner repents (Luke 15:7, 10). In the third story, He illustrated repentance on the part of the prodigal son, who said, “I will get up and go to my father and will say to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in your sight; I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me as one of your hired men.’” But he didn’t just think that; he did it!

And did the father say, “You no good excuse for a son! You’re going to pay for your sin”? No! The father saw the son a long way off, ran to him and didn’t even let him get the whole confession out of his mouth before he threw his arms around him, kissed him, and welcomed him with great joy (Luke 15:11-24). That’s God’s response to any sinner who turns to Him from his sin. If you will turn to God from your sin and trust in Christ, He will welcome you with great joy!

Conclusion

Did your profession of faith in Christ include repentance? Jesus said, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven; but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven. Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.’” (Matt. 7:21-23). Frightening words! Don’t be deceived: The mark of true conversion is a life of turning to God from sin. Anything else is a counterfeit.

Application Questions

1. Is repentance different from a pre-salvation effort to clean up one’s life? How so?
2. Some charge that preaching repentance to lost people is adding works to faith alone. How would you answer this?
3. Is a person who makes a profession of faith but then is defeated by some habitual sin (like drinking or drugs) necessarily unrepentant? How can he know whether he’s truly saved?
4. Some say that because faith alone saves, we should never confront an unbeliever’s sin. Is this biblical? Discuss Matt. 14:4; 19:16-22; 23:1-33.

Copyright, Steven J. Cole, 2010, All Rights Reserved.

Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture Quotations are from the New American Standard Bible, Updated Edition © The Lockman Foundation

If you want to learn something well, study under a master. Whether it’s one of the arts, a trade, law, business, or a sport, if you have the opportunity to study under someone who knows the subject well, don’t pass it up.

No one was a better master at winning souls for God than Jesus Christ. He came “to seek and to save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10). If we want to learn how to talk with people about the gospel, we can find no better teacher than Jesus. As you read in the gospels of His encounters with lost people, take note of how He did it. He never used the same approach twice. He always tailored it to the individual.

If I wanted to extend this series for several more weeks, we could study the differences in Jesus’ witness to the Pharisee Nicodemus in John 3 with the Samaritan woman in John 4. The contrasts could not be much greater. He was a Jew; she was a Samaritan. He was a man; she was a woman. He was educated; she probably was not. He was a leader among his people; she was probably disrespected by her people. He was morally upright and proud of it; she was immoral and ashamed of it. He recognized Jesus’ merits and sought Him; she at first had no idea who He was. Jesus sought her. Nicodemus shows that no matter how religious you may be, you still need to come to Jesus for salvation. The woman at the well shows that no matter how immoral you may be, the salvation that Jesus offers extends to you.

But I’ll leave you to explore Jesus’ encounter with Nicodemus. This week and next, we’ll study Jesus’ witness to the woman at the well. I’m going to draw out 20 principles for witnessing. I know that you won’t be able to remember them all, but my hope is that some of them will stick, so that you’ll be better equipped as a witness for Christ. Because I’m going to give you so many principles, I’ll only be able to skim over them. I hope that you will chew on them in more depth. Also, next time I will draw some lessons from this story about the person of Jesus Christ. He is the One to whom we bear witness, and so to do it well, we must grow to know Him better. To sum it up generally:

Jesus’ encounter with the woman at the well teaches us much about witnessing and much about Jesus Christ.

Before we look at the principles, we need to understand some background. The text falls into three sections: First, there is the setting for the story (4:1-6); then, there is the conversation between Jesus and the woman at the well (4:7-26); finally, we read the results of this encounter: with the woman (4:27-30); with the disciples (4:31-38); and with the Samaritans (4:39-42).

Jesus left Judea and headed north towards Galilee to avoid conflict at that time with the Pharisees, who were both jealous and nervous about Jesus’ increasing popularity. John says that Jesus “had” to pass through Samaria. Samaria was the region between Judea and Galilee, and so in one sense there was a geographic necessity to pass through that area as He headed north. But many strict Jews hated the Samaritans so intensely that they would take the longer route of crossing the Jordan River and avoiding Samaria altogether. So John may want us to see God’s providential necessity for Jesus to travel through this region. His encounter with this woman, although seemingly coincidental, had been ordained from the foundation of the world. So in that sense, Jesus had a divine appointment in Samaria.

The village of Sychar was located about 30 miles north of Jerusalem, at the base of Mount Gerazim, the “holy mountain” for the Samaritans. Jacob’s well was about one-half mile outside of town. Scholars debate whether the sixth hour was noon (Jewish time) or 6 p.m. (Roman time), although most lean toward the first view. Jesus was weary from the journey and so He sat down by Jacob’s well while the disciples went into the village to buy food.

Samaritan history goes back to the time of the Assyrian victory over the northern kingdom of Israel (722 B.C.). The Assyrian king deported most of the Jews, but left a few in the land. He repopulated the area with foreigners, who intermarried with the Jews. Later, these settlers mixed their own pagan beliefs with the Jewish understanding of God. So they were a mixed race that held to a mixed religion. They only accepted the first five books of Moses as Scripture, and modified those books in many places.

The hatred between the Samaritans and the Jews flared when the Samaritans opposed Ezra’s and Nehemiah’s attempts to reestablish the true worship of God in the land after the return of the southern tribes from Babylon. The break was cemented when the Samaritans built their own temple on Mount Gerazim, rejecting Jerusalem as the place of worship. In 128 B.C., the Jews burned down the Samaritan temple, furthering the hatred between the two groups. The hostilities had not abated by Jesus’ time. As John explains (4:9), “Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.” With that background, let’s work through the story, learning from Jesus how to do a better job of sharing the good news.

Jesus’ encounter with the woman at the well teaches us much about witnessing:

1. Contact others socially (4:7).

Given the cultural hostilities, Jesus easily could have sat quietly while the Samaritan woman came, drew her water from the well, and left. But instead, He initiated the conversation by asking her to give Him a drink. This was not a ploy on Jesus’ part, in that He really was thirsty. But, as Frederick Godet observed (Commentary on the Gospel of John [Zondervan], 1:422), “He is not unaware that the way to gain a soul is often to ask a service of it.”

Contacting others socially sounds obvious, but I confess it is one of the most difficult factors for me to overcome. As a pastor who works around other Christians, I don’t have enough contact with lost people and, frankly, I don’t know what to cut out of my busy schedule to make time for such contact. Maybe that’s not your problem, but the longer you’re a Christian, the more likely it is that you will have less contact with the lost. But we won’t reach the lost if we hang out in the “holy huddle” all of the time!

2. Establish a common interest or link (4:7).

Jesus simply asked a favor as a way of making contact. By the way, this is an example of Jesus witnessing to “person X” that we talked about last week. He had never met this woman before and after this episode, He probably never saw her again. But He used this simple request to open the door for the gospel, not only to this woman, but also to her entire town. Any common interest can be an entry point that eventually leads to the gospel.

3. Buy up the opportunity (4:10).

Jesus was alert to “buy up the opportunity” (as we also saw last week), turning the situation to spiritual things. This woman went to the well that day to perform the same task that she had done hundreds of times. She had no idea when she left home that her life was about to change dramatically. But Jesus saw this open door and grabbed the opportunity to offer this thirsty woman the water of life.

We need to watch for common situations that present us with an opportunity for the gospel. Years ago, I had some car repairs done. I went to the cashier, paid my bill, and went out to my car. As I got in the car, I thought, “That didn’t cost as much as I expected.” So I looked at the bill and realized that the girl had tallied up the parts, but not the labor. The bill should have been twice what she had charged me. I confess that the thought went through my mind, “The Lord just saved me all this money!”

But I knew that I had to go make it right. So I grabbed a gospel tract out of my glove box and went back inside. I actually had to argue with the girl to prove the error. When she finally saw it, she said, “I’m new at this job. I would have been fired when they discovered my mistake. Thank you for being honest!” That’s when I told her, “I’m not by nature an honest person. But Jesus is my Lord and Savior. Would you do me the favor of reading this booklet tonight when you go home?” I had written my phone number on the tract. I never heard from her again, but she did hear the truth about Jesus Christ.

4. Cross cultural barriers, if need be, to reach people (4:9, 27).

Jesus was not afraid of being “contaminated” by drinking out of a Samaritan woman’s cup. Nor was He afraid of talking privately with a woman about spiritual matters, although the Jewish rabbis viewed Samaritan women as ceremonially unclean (D. A. Carson, The Gospel According to John [Eerdmans/Apollos], pp. 217-218). Some of the rabbis even believed that to teach your daughters the Torah was as inappropriate as to sell them into prostitution (ibid., p. 227)! But Jesus ignored these cultural prejudices and deliberately engaged this immoral Samaritan woman in spiritual conversation.

I hope that none of us harbor any racial prejudice that would keep us from talking to those of other races about Christ. But we may have to overcome some cultural prejudices. For example, would you talk kindly in public with a transvestite about his need for Christ? Or, maybe you avoid an obnoxious person at work or school, rather than trying to build a bridge that could lead to sharing the gospel. The person may be a social outcast, as this Samaritan woman probably was. But he still needs Christ and to hear about Christ he needs a Christian who is willing to risk public scorn to talk to him.

5. Use a common situation to introduce spiritual matters (4:7-10).

I’ve already touched on this, but it’s worth pondering how Jesus used a natural situation (His thirst and water) to begin a conversation that He quickly turned to spiritual things. Maybe it’s a discussion about the world’s problems—war, natural disasters, the economy, or whatever. Jesus used such things—a report of how Pilate had slaughtered some Galileans and another report of a tower collapsing and killing some people—to talk about eternal issues (Luke 13:1-5). I would urge you, however, to be careful not to turn the discussion towards politics or moral issues, rather than the person’s need for Christ. His main need is not to change political parties or clean up his life, but to be reconciled with God.

6. Arouse interest by your life and words (4:7-10).

Jesus used both His actions and His words to stimulate the woman’s interest. The mere fact that He, a Jewish man, would talk to her, a Samaritan woman, asking her for a drink, grabbed her attention. When she commented on that (v. 9), Jesus further aroused her curiosity by His reply (v. 10), “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, ‘Give Me a drink,’ you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water.” He was using “salt” to whet her thirst (see Col. 4:6). J. C. Ryle (Expository Thoughts on the Gospels [Baker], 3:210) points out that if Jesus had come on with a systematic statement of doctrinal truth at this point, it would have been lost on her. Instead, He aroused her curiosity, leading to further discussion. He didn’t dump the whole thing on her at the outset, but skillfully led her along.

Bill Fay, who owned a brothel in New Orleans before he came to Christ, offers some helpful questions (on audio cassette) that we can use to arouse interest in the gospel: “Do you have any kind of spiritual belief? To you, who is Jesus? Do you think there is heaven or hell? If you died, where are you going? Why would God let you into heaven?” He advises just listening to their responses without arguing. But then, as a final question to arouse their interest, ask, “If what you believe is not true, would you want me to tell you?” It will be rare for you to get a firm, “no.”

7. Use the natural to explain the supernatural (4:9-15).

Jesus used this principle repeatedly. Here, He spoke first of water and then of living water. With Nicodemus, Jesus used the new birth and the wind (perhaps a breeze blew through the room as they talked). In John 6, Jesus fed the 5,000 and then spoke of Himself as the bread of life. In John 7, on the last day of the Feast of Tabernacles, when the priests poured out water from the Pool of Siloam as a memorial of the thirsty nation in the wilderness, Jesus proclaimed that if anyone was thirsty, they should come to Him and drink. In John 8, Jesus claimed to be the light of the world. In John 10, He portrayed Himself as both the good shepherd and the door of the sheepfold. In John 15, He used the vine and the branches to explain our need to abide in Him.

The woman at the well was probably more concerned about her physical needs than her spiritual need. Some think that she was being somewhat sarcastic when she challenged Jesus with where He could get this “living water” (4:11). She still may have been skeptical when she asked Jesus to give her this living water (4:15). She wasn’t yet focused on her spiritual need, but on the fact that she didn’t want to come all that way to get water from the well.

But Jesus used her interest in natural water to lead her to see her need for the living water. By “living water,” Ryle thinks that Jesus was speaking of everything that He freely gives to our needy souls: “pardon, peace, mercy, grace justification, and sanctification.” He says (3:211), “As water is cleansing, purifying, cooling, refreshing, thirst-satisfying to man’s body, so are Christ’s gifts to the soul. I think everything that a sinful soul needs is purposely included under the general words, ‘living water.’”

8. Don’t expect a completely mature response from a seeking person (4:15).

The woman’s response (4:15) was somewhat mixed: “Sir, give me this water, so I will not be thirsty nor come all the way here to draw.” She is still thinking of physical water, but maybe she was beginning to see that He was talking of something much more lasting and substantial. Some think that she was being sarcastic. Others say that she was asking Jesus for eternal life. But I’m inclined to agree with Ryle, who says that she probably was still quite mixed up in her motives. He explains (3:217), “Our great aim must be to persuade sinners to apply to Jesus, and to say to Him, ‘Give me to drink.’ If we forbid them to ask anything until they can prove that they ask in a perfect spirit, we should do no good at all.” He goes on to compare it to trying to analyze an infant’s first cries.

9. Point out the need, but do it graciously (4:16-18).

When the woman asked Jesus for this living water, He rather abruptly said (4:16), “Go, call your husband and come here.” Suddenly, the conversation moved from friendly banter to very personal. She bristled (4:17), “I have no husband.” She was technically correct, but trying to divert Jesus from the truth. Jesus went for the jugular (4:17-18): “You have correctly said, ‘I have no husband’; for you have had five husbands, and the one whom you now have is not your husband; this you have said truly.” Suddenly, her sinful past and present were exposed. She realized that she was not talking with an ordinary man!

In order really to desire the living water that Jesus offers, a sinner must be convicted of his or her sin. As Ryle puts it (3:218), “No one values the physician until he feels his disease.” But at the same time that He exposed the woman’s sin, Jesus dealt with her kindly and graciously. He didn’t point His finger at her and say, “You’re a wicked woman! Unless you repent, you will perish!” (Ryle, 3:219). Rather, He gently agreed with her, “You have said truly.” He pointed out her need, but didn’t condemn her. He did the same thing with the woman caught in adultery when He told her (John 8:11), “I do not condemn you, either. Go. From now on sin no more.”

We need the same fine balance that Jesus had here. Use God’s Word to show how we’re all guilty of violating His holy law. But do it graciously, pointing them to the cross.

10. Avoid arguments (4:12-14, 21-24).

In verse 12, the woman insinuates that Jesus could not be greater than Jacob, who gave them the well. In effect, she was saying, “Who do you think you are?” If Jesus had been proud, He easily could have set her straight. He probably would have won the point, but lost the woman. Then, she tries to draw Jesus into a centuries-old debate between the Samaritans and the Jews over the proper place to worship. While Jesus tactfully corrects her misperceptions, He still refuses to argue with her.

Arguments do not lead sinners to the Savior, even if you win. The reason is that in an argument, your pride gets involved. You want to prove that you’re right and the other person is wrong. But you’re missing the real issue. Sure, he’s wrong, but conversion is much more than persuading him that he’s wrong. Conversion requires God granting repentance and new life. Paul gives us the right approach (2 Tim. 2:24-26), “The Lord’s bond-servant must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged, with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will.” That’s what Jesus did here:

11. Don’t make concessions, but offer gentle correction (4:22).

The woman brings up the debate between the Samaritans and the Jews about the correct place to worship. While Jesus did not argue, neither did He let her errors go by without correction. He pointed out that the Samaritans worshiped in ignorance and that salvation is not from them, but from the Jews. The Messiah was promised through the descendants of Abraham and David.

Unbelievers mistakenly think that their religious ideas are just as good as anyone else’s. In other words, they do not understand that one way to God is objectively true, while others are necessarily false. Rather, they view religion as a matter of subjective preference: “You like chocolate, I like strawberry. But neither one is right or wrong.” But Scripture is clear that unless we worship the one true God as He has revealed Himself through His only Son Jesus, we’re worshiping idols. So we can’t let people get away with the idea that it really doesn’t matter what you believe, as long as you’re sincere. Don’t make concessions, but offer gentle correction.

12. Stick with the main issue (4:20-26).

The discussion could have veered off into a debate over the merits of Judaism versus Samaritan worship. It may have been an interesting interchange, but it would have left the woman in her sins. So Jesus shows her that it is not outward religion that matters, but rather whether we worship God in spirit and truth. Then, when the woman brings up the promise that Messiah will come, who will resolve this debate, Jesus straightforwardly declares (4:26), “I who speak to you am He.” At that point, she has a choice: Is He or isn’t He? Do I believe Him or not? So Jesus brought the discussion back to the main issue, “Who do you say that I am?” As we’ll see next week, the aim in all spiritual discussions should be to bring it back to the person of Christ.

Conclusion

Next time we’ll look at the other eight principles and also at seven lessons about the person of Christ from this encounter. I conclude by asking (based on 4:13-14), “Are you drinking from the water of this world, which never fully satisfies? Or, have you drunk of the living water that Jesus gives, which has become in you a well of water springing up to eternal life?”

Application Questions

1. What are some ways to contact unbelievers socially and establish common interests without being manipulative?
2. How can we know how quickly to direct a conversation to spiritual things? When should we back off?
3. Do you have any cultural barriers that you need to overcome to be a witness to someone you have contact with?

Copyright, Steven J. Cole, 2010, All Rights Reserved.

Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture Quotations are from the New American Standard Bible, Updated Edition © The Lockman Foundation

When Gib Martin, who later became a pastor, was 27-years-old, he was a school teacher. After spending his day with 27 kids, he would unwind by stopping at a bar to have a beer and bemoan life. He had come from a religious background, but for three years he had been an atheist. He was going through a period of desperation and he didn’t feel like being around anyone.

Every day at the bar he would see an older man named Charlie, a carpenter who for many years had been an alcoholic, but then, many years before, had been led to Christ by Martin’s great-grandmother. Charlie was so burdened for souls that after work each day, he would stop at this bar, drink coffee, and share his life with those who would listen.

Charlie could tell that Gib was miserable, so he tried to befriend him, but was met with resistance. He wasn’t able to share Christ because of Gib’s attitude, but he invited him to go hear a man with a doctor’s degree who was speaking in the community. Gib told Charlie he would go if they could later discuss what the man had to say. Gib went and heard the gospel for the first time. He was so convicted of his sin that he vomited all night long and thought he was dying. The next day at noon, he dropped to his knees and gave his life to Christ. He later found out that Charlie and others that Charlie had led to Christ had spent all night praying for him.

But the sad part of the story is that none of the local churches would allow Charlie to associate with them because he went to the bar every day. Even though he wasn’t getting drunk—he wasn’t even having a beer—they didn’t like what he was doing. Even the church where Charlie directed Gib to go after his conversion wouldn’t allow Charlie to join (from A Theology of Personal Ministry, by Lawrence Richards and Gib Martin [Zondervan], pp 44-45).

What do you think? Was Charlie wrong to go into a bar to get acquainted with those who frequented that place and look for opportunities to share the gospel? Or, was Charlie following the example of the apostle Paul, who became all things to all men so that by all means he might save some (1 Cor. 9:22)? I’ll tip my hand: Give me ten men like Charlie to reach out to Flagstaff’s bar crowd!

There is no doubt that some have greatly misapplied our text. For example, during the hippie days, women from the Children of God cult were encouraged to “be all things to all men” by offering themselves sexually to entice men to join the group! A more current and subtle example is the so-called “Insider Movement” among missions to the Muslims. In attempting to contextualize the gospel for Islamic cultures, some have gone so far as to say that Muslim converts to Christianity can still go to the mosque, repeat the Islamic creed, observe the fasts, view the Koran as a revelation from God, and esteem Mohammed as God’s prophet! Many rightly fear that these missionaries are creating a new syncretistic religion that we might call, “Christlam.”

If we want truly to win others to Christ, we need to think carefully about Paul’s words in these verses. As Gordon Fee points out (The First Epistle to the Corinthians [Eerdmans], p. 432), this text has nothing to do with adapting the message of the gospel to the language and perspective of the recipients. Neither, he says, does it have anything to do with observing social taboos among Christians. Rather, it has to do with how one lives or behaves among those he wishes to evangelize. The message of the cross is often offensive to proud sinners, but we should not be personally offensive in neutral matters of custom or culture. Paul is saying,

Winning others to Christ requires presenting the gospel to lost people without needlessly offending them.

In the context, Paul is writing against the Corinthians who were demanding their rights. He is showing how he laid aside his rights for the sake of others. He had a right to support in the ministry (9:1-14), but he laid aside that right so as not to be a hindrance to the gospel (9:15-18). Here he is arguing that he had a right to be free from the social customs of others in non-moral areas, but he laid aside that right and enslaved himself to all, becoming all things to all men that by all means he might save some.

We need to understand that to win others to Christ, we must share the content of the gospel (9:18). People will not be converted by watching our lives alone, without hearing the good news about Christ. But what Paul tells us here is that we should remove all cultural barriers that would needlessly distract or offend those we are trying to reach. We don’t want our outward appearance or political views to be the issue. We want the gospel to be the issue.

1. Winning others to Christ requires presenting the gospel to lost people.

God could have chosen other methods to spread the gospel, and probably they would have been more effective. Angels could have done a better job, but God chose saved people to tell lost people the message. Our text shows that there is both a goal that we must own and a message that we must proclaim.

A. There is a goal that we must own: by all means to save some.

Paul sums up his goal in 9:22b-23a: “so that I may by all means save some. I do all things for the sake of the gospel ….” When we read these words, we all must ask, “Is that my goal?” Maybe you’re wondering, “Should it be my goal? Isn’t that just a goal for an apostle or missionary or for someone gifted in evangelism?” But Jesus said that He came to seek and to save that which was lost (Luke 19:10), and we are to become like Him. And Paul said (1 Cor. 10:33), “Just as I also please all men in all things, not seeking my own profit but the profit of the many, so that they may be saved.” Then he immediately adds (11:1), “Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ.” So while we all have different gifts, we should purpose to use them for the ultimate goal of seeing lost people get saved. Consider four things about this goal:

(1) It is a realistic goal.

Even Paul, as gifted as he was, does not think that he will save everyone. But he did aim to save some, and those some would save some others, who would save some others. Paul realistically knew that the gospel would be for some an aroma of life, but for others an aroma of death (2 Cor. 2:15-16). The goal is to save some.

This helps me not get under a pile thinking about the enormity of the task. I can’t reach all of Flagstaff with the gospel, much less the whole world! But maybe I can be God’s instrument in saving some. Begin praying for those you have contact with who don’t know Christ. Pray for opportunities to present the gospel to them. It is a realistic goal to ask God to use you to save some.

(2) It is a worthy goal.

Nothing is more worthy of your time and effort than helping people get rightly related to God. Nothing will help the world more than leading people to saving faith in Jesus Christ. Nothing will help families more than leading family members to Christ.

A worthy goal deserves worthy means of achieving it. When Paul says that he uses “all means” to save some (9:22), in the context he means that he is willing to lay aside all of his rights to bring someone to Christ. He does not mean that the end justifies any means. I read about a church in Texas that attracted 23,000 to its Easter services by advertising that they would give away 16 cars and millions in prizes, including bicycles, furniture sets, flat-screen TV’s, and 15,000 gift envelopes stuffed with coupons for goods and services valued at $300 each (World, May 8, 2010, p. 30). The pastor justified it by saying that it gave them a chance to offer the free gift of heaven to those who came. He claims that thousands received Christ because of the giveaway. But I think he cheapened the gospel by making it seem like an extra door prize that you can take home with your new TV set! It was not a worthy means for the worthy message of the gospel.

(3) It is a crucial goal.

What could be more crucial than saving people? If a person is not saved, he is lost. Those are the only choices. And we’re not talking about a temporary situation, but an eternal one!

If we say that we believe the Bible and follow Jesus as Lord, we cannot escape the fact of an eternal hell that is an awful place. Jesus described it as a place of unquenchable fire (Mark 9:43), where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matt. 8:12; 13:42, 50; 22:13; 24:51; 25:30). He never pictures it as a giant party for all the wicked. He tells of the rich man in the flames pleading with Abraham to send someone from the dead to warn his brothers, so that they will not come to “this place of torment” (Luke 16:27-28).

So when we talk about people getting saved, they aren’t getting saved from low self-esteem or from a life of failure. They are getting saved from God’s eternal wrath and judgment on their sin to eternal life with God in heaven. It’s a crucial goal.

(4) It is a compelling goal.

Because it is so crucial, the goal of saving some must grip our lives. These verses throb with Paul’s passion to reach the lost: “that I may win more” (9:19); “that I may win Jews” (9:20); “that I may win those who are under the Law” (9:20); “that I might win those who are without law” (9:21); “that I might win the weak” (9:22); “that I may by all means save some” (9:22); “I do all things for the sake of the gospel” (9:23). Back in verse 16, Paul says that he was under compulsion to preach the gospel. He didn’t control it; it controlled him. The man was obsessed!

If it were not the apostle Paul and if this were not inspired Scripture, some theologically correct brothers might say, “Paul, don’t you know that you can’t save anyone? Only God can save people. So relax, will you? If God has chosen to save them, then He will do that without your help!” That’s what a pious minister told William Carey 220 years ago when he proposed taking the gospel to India. But both Carey and the apostle Paul realized that the sovereign God uses means to save His elect. He uses men and women who are compelled by the goal of saving some.

Does the goal of saving lost people grip you? Is it your passion, as it was Paul’s? I confess that I’m too complacent about seeing lost people get saved. Paul shows us that there is a goal we must own: by all means to save some.

B. There is a message that we must proclaim: the gospel.

True, we cannot save anyone, but the gospel is “the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes” (Rom. 1:16). This means that winning people to Christ does not require that you learn how to become a clever salesman. Rather, it means that you understand the gospel clearly so that you can present it well. You should be able to present it in one minute or less. There are 3 parts:

First, our problem is sin, rebellion against the holy God who created us to know Him. “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Rom. 3:23). And, “the wages of sin is death” (Rom. 6:23), which means eternal separation from God in hell.

Second, God’s provision for our sin is the Lord Jesus Christ. He is God in human flesh. He came to teach us God’s ways and to offer Himself as the perfect sacrifice for sin that God’s righteousness demands. Since He is God, His death has infinite value. Since He is man, His death atones for human sin. God raised Jesus from the dead as proof that His death is the acceptable sacrifice for our sins. “He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness” (1 Pet. 2:24). “He [God] made Him [Christ] who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him” (2 Cor. 5:21).

Third, our required response is to trust in God’s provision in Christ as the payment in full for our sins. To trust in Christ, we must turn from our sins and give up our attempts to get into heaven by our good works. Rather, whoever believes in Jesus Christ has eternal life (John 3:16). We must trust in Jesus as we would trust a doctor who gave us a prescription and said, “Take this; it will cure you.” We must trust in Christ as we would trust a pilot who said, “Get on board and I will fly you to your destination.” To trust in Jesus Christ as Savior means that His death and resurrection are your only hope to be acquitted and get into heaven on judgment day.

To win others to Christ, we must present this simple good news: You have sinned against God, but Jesus Christ bore your penalty on the cross if you will turn from your sin and trust in Him.

2. Winning others to Christ requires presenting the gospel to lost people without needlessly offending them.

Paul shows us three things about how he preached the gospel boldly and yet avoided needless personal offense: There is an attitude to adopt; a perception to gain; and, a balance to maintain.

A. There is an attitude to adopt: I am a slave to all.

“For though I am free from all men, I have made myself a slave to all, so that I may win more” (9:19). A slave does not view himself as being over others, but rather as being under them to serve. He doesn’t think of himself first, but of those he serves. Paul made himself a slave to those who were without Christ.

Do you view the lost as the enemy to be fought or as those whom you need to serve? If the latter, how are you serving them? Do you look for opportunities to serve your neighbors or your lost family members? If an unbeliever is rude toward you, do you react with anger or with kindness?

I read of a mean army sergeant who threw his muddy boots at a Christian private as he knelt by his bunk in prayer. They hit him in the head, but he went on praying. In the morning the sergeant found his boots beside his bunk beautifully polished. That act of kind service on the part of that private resulted in the sergeant’s salvation. I’ll be the first to admit that I probably would not have responded as that private did. But that kind of behavior starts with an attitude that we all must adopt: “I am a slave to the lost.”

B. There is a perception to gain: Where is this person at?

Paul had one message, the gospel, which he never changed. But culturally, he considered the perspective of his hearers and tried to think and act as they did, as long as it wasn’t sinful, so that they would hear the message.

To the Jews, Paul became a Jew (9:20). Wasn’t Paul already a Jew? Yes, but he had left the strict cultural aspects of Judaism behind when God called him to preach to the Gentiles. So when he went back to Jerusalem or to Jewish people anywhere, he had to relate to them as a Jew. In modern terms, with the Jews, Paul was kosher. He skipped the bacon for breakfast.

“Those under the Law” (9:20) is another way of looking at the Jews. It focuses on their religious practices, especially keeping the ceremonial aspects of the Law. Paul was no longer under the Law of Moses (Rom. 6:14; 7:4), but he could observe a Jewish celebration if it gave him an opportunity to reach the Jews.

“Those without law” (9:21) refers to the Gentiles. When Paul was with them, he could lay aside the non-moral aspects of the Law of Moses and live culturally like a Gentile. He is quick to clarify that he was not without God’s law, but under the law of Christ, which refers to the moral aspects of God’s law. Paul would never use profanity or tell dirty jokes to relate to lost people. But he would eat meat offered to idols to reach Gentiles (1 Cor. 10:27-31).

“To the weak” (9:22) is difficult to interpret. Either you have to give a different meaning to “the weak” than it had in chapter 8, where it referred to weak believers; or, you have to give a different sense to “win,” which refers to saving the lost. Since the immediate context has to do with winning people to Christ, I think Paul means that with those who are overly scrupulous, he would be sensitive and not bowl them over with his liberty in Christ. In other words, he was sensitive to the sensitive.

Paul’s overall point is that we need to understand where a person is at and not do things in our behavior or manners that needlessly offend them. The message of the cross may well offend them, but we should not be personally offensive to them. Don’t make non-gospel issues the issue. Make the gospel the issue.

Thus, there is an attitude to adopt: I am a slave to all. There is a perception to gain: Where is this person at? Finally,

C. There is a balance to maintain: To be all things to all people, while being all for God.

This is always a struggle and it’s easy to err on both sides. Some professing Christians, such as the Amish, withdraw from the world and are so culturally distinct that they have virtually no impact in terms of saving any. The world just looks at them as being weird. They aren’t of the world, but neither are they in the world.

On the other hand, in their attempt to reach the world, other professing Christians become so much like the world that they lose their holiness and compromise the gospel. For example, I’ve read of pastors that freely use profanity and churches that use secular hard rock music (with lewd lyrics) to lure young people into the building. They’re in the world, but they’re also of the world.

Jesus calls us to be in the world, but not to be of the world (John 17:15-16). He was known as the friend of sinners, but He never compromised His holiness. One way to keep our balance is to keep our goal in view at all times: “to save some.” Your reason for going into the world is not to cavort with them, but to snatch them out of the flames (Jude 23). And, a second goal that Paul mentions is (9:23), “so that I may become a fellow partaker of it [the gospel].” Along with those he sees come to faith in Christ, Paul wants to share in the eternal blessings of the gospel.

If Charlie, the converted alcoholic, had said, “Now that I’m a Christian, I won’t go into bars,” he never would have reached Gib Martin. On the other hand, if Charlie had gone into bars and started drinking and carousing again, he never would have reached Gib Martin. To win others to Christ, we have to go where they’re at so that we will get opportunities to present the gospel to them. But we need to be distinct in our lifestyle and behavior so that we don’t compromise the message that we have to give them.

Conclusion

This passage convicts me in several areas. I lack Paul’s all-consuming passion, to by all means save some. I can’t honestly say, “I do all things for the sake of the gospel.” I’m too isolated from lost people to reach them with the gospel. Perhaps you’re convicted in the same way, or perhaps some of you are too much like worldly people to win any of them to Christ. However the Lord speaks to you, I urge you to wrestle with it and ask God to change you. May He use us as a church to win more to Jesus Christ!

Application Questions

1. On the spectrum of being “in the world, but not of it,” where do you fall? Are you not “in it” enough, or “of it” too much?
2. How can we shake off our apathy and develop a passion to win the lost?
3. The Bible forbids us from being too closely associated with unbelievers (2 Cor. 6:14-17). How then can we befriend them to reach them with the gospel? Where’s the balance?
4. Was Charlie right to hang out at the bar to reach lost people? How far should we go with this?

Copyright, Steven J. Cole, 2010, All Rights Reserved.

Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture Quotations are from the New American Standard Bible, Updated Edition © The Lockman Foundation

Last week we began to consider some answers to common questions and objections that you will encounter when you share Christ with others. This assumes that either you are sharing Christ with others or you want to be prepared to do so. As 1 Peter 3:15 says, “But sanctify [set apart] Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence.” To obey that verse, you need to know how to respond to common questions and objections.

First I gave some general guidelines: Always be courteous, polite, gentle, and kind. Try to steer the conversation to the person of Christ. He is the issue! Keep in mind that you’re talking with a sinner who needs the Savior. Point him to Christ.

Then we began to work through some of the most common questions or objections, along with a simple way to deal with them.

Questions and objections concerning God:

1. “I don’t believe in God.”

2. “How can a loving God send people to hell?”

3. “If God is good, then why does He allow innocent people to suffer?”

4. “Why did God command Israel to slaughter entire populations and take their land? That does not seem right or fair.”

Questions and objections concerning Christ and the way of salvation:

1. “What about people who have never heard about Jesus Christ? Does God send them to hell?”

That much is review. We continue with this objection:

2. “I believe that there are many ways to God.”

This is often expressed with a self-righteous, condemning attitude: “I am a tolerant, open-minded person who believes that all religions have some good in them. Many roads lead to the top. Are you so narrow-minded and intolerant as to tell me that if people don’t believe in Jesus as you do that they are going to hell?” Underlying this attitude and accusation is the assumption that spiritual “truth” is subjective and relative. It’s really just whatever you like, and no one religion is absolutely true. There are smatterings of “truth” in all the world’s major religions, and you can pick and choose the “truths” that feel right for you.

One way to counter this objection is to ask, “Are you then saying that Jesus was in error?” If the person responds, “What do you mean?” you can cite John 14:6, where Jesus said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.” Or, Peter said in reference to Jesus (Acts 4:12), “And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.” If those statements are true, then other “ways” to God must be false. Jesus is either the only true way to God or He was mistaken. But you can’t take a little of Jesus and a little of Buddha or Mohammed and piece it all together.

Another defense is to point out that truth is very narrow. What if you went to a doctor and he said, “Here are four different prescriptions that people have liked; take your pick”? You said, “Which one is right for my illness?” He said, “Well, some people like the flavor of # 1. Others prefer # 2, 3, or 4. And some like to mix them together and down them all at once.” But medicine is not a matter of personal preference. It is a matter (we hope) of scientific truth. One medicine is best designed to cure a specific disease.

If God objectively exists as the eternal Creator of the universe, and if Jesus came to this earth as God in human flesh to reveal the Father to us, then His word is the truth and the only truth. All other religions are human speculations about God; but Jesus claimed to give us true revelation about Him. And He claimed to be the only way to the Father.

3. “Jesus never claimed to be God.”

I had a philosophy professor in college who made this claim. I raised my hand to protest and cited a couple of verses that showed her to be wrong. In a very unphilosophical manner, she retorted, “Which Bible are you quoting from—the Catholic Bible or the Protestant Bible?” The other students laughed and she never dealt with my question directly.

If someone makes this claim, you could ask, “Have you read the Gospel of John?” Chances are, he has not. But even if he has, you can then take him to many verses and ask, “How does this read to you?” In John 5:18-29, the Jews were seeking to kill Jesus because he made Himself equal to God. Rather than correcting their accusation as a misunderstanding, Jesus goes on to show that He is equal with God. The Father shows Jesus everything that He is doing (5:20). Just as the Father can give life to whomever He wishes, so also the Son (5:21). The Father has given all judgment to the Son, so that all will honor the Son even as they honor the Father (5:22-23). Whoever hears Jesus’ word and believes in the One who sent Him has eternal life (5:24). These are claims of deity!

You can also take the critic to John 8:58, where Jesus claims to be in existence before Abraham was born. Or go to John 10:28-33, where Jesus claims to give eternal life to His sheep and to be one with the Father. Or, in John 14:9, He tells Philip that whoever has seen Him has seen the Father. Or, in John 20:28-29, when doubting Thomas sees the risen Jesus and exclaims, “My Lord and my God,” Jesus doesn’t rebuke him for blasphemy, but rather affirms his faith.

4. “Isn’t Christianity merely psychological?”

“Aren’t you guys just making this up in your heads? If it makes you feel good to believe in Jesus and heaven and all that sort of thing, that’s wonderful for you. But I’m not into that religion stuff. I believe in myself and in living the good life.”

This is another attack on the matter of absolute truth in the spiritual realm. It assumes that religion is a subjective preference that helps some folks, but it can’t possibly be true for everyone.

But it ignores that Christianity is rooted in history, especially in the history of Jesus Christ. The Old Testament prophesied specifically about Jesus. Here you could turn to Isaiah 53 and read it without giving the reference, asking the one you’re talking with, “Who is this talking about?” If he knows anything at all, he will correctly say, “That’s talking about Jesus.” You can then say, “Yes, and it was written over 700 years before Jesus was born.” You could do the same with Psalm 22, which describes Jesus’ crucifixion 1,000 years before His birth and hundreds of years before crucifixion was devised as a means of execution.

But, also, go to 1 Corinthians 15:1-19, where Paul stakes the entire Christian faith on the bodily resurrection of Jesus. If He is not raised from the dead, our entire faith is in vain. But if He is raised, then He is Lord of all. He is coming again to judge the world, as He claimed. That is not merely psychological! It has serious ramifications for every person!

5. “I’ve always believed in God and tried to live a good life.”

This person is trusting in his own good works and in his hope that God will be nice to those who have tried to do the best they could. The person may be a regular churchgoer or not. He may just be a decent person who has never committed a crime or done anything worthy of going to prison. He thinks, “Surely, God wouldn’t send a good person like me to hell, would He?”

You can ask this person, “How good do you have to be to get into heaven? Would ten sins keep you out? What about 100 or 1,000? Do you have any idea how many times you have violated God’s holy law?” Take him to the Ten Commandments or the Sermon on the Mount or the two Great Commandments. Have you ever stolen anything or fudged on your taxes? Then you’re a thief in God’s court. Have you ever been angry at anyone? Jesus says that you’re a murderer. Have you ever lusted after someone? Jesus says that you’re an adulterer. And God doesn’t grade on the curve. If you break one of God’s commandments once, you’re guilty of breaking His whole law and will be condemned on judgment day. Over a lifetime of sins, you’ve not got a chance! If he feels convicted of his sins, then show him God’s remedy in Christ.

Questions and objections concerning the Bible:

1. “I don’t believe in the Bible.”

Usually, the person who says he doesn’t believe in the Bible has never read it as a seeker of the truth. So you can ask, “Have you ever read it through, asking God to reveal Himself to you?” Or, you can say, “The main message of the Bible is how a person can have eternal life. What is your understanding of what the Bible teaches on this crucial matter?” You will probably hear some version of being a good person or doing good works. You can listen and then ask, “If you were mistaken on this, would you want me to tell you?”

2. “The Bible is full of errors and contradictions.”

You can ask, “Is there an error or contradiction that keeps you from believing in Jesus as your Savior and Lord?” The Bible is amazingly consistent with itself, seeing that it was written by at least 40 different authors over a period of 1,500-2,000 years. Archaeology and history have consistently supported the biblical record.

Also, depending on how long you’ve been a Christian, you can say, “I’ve studied the Bible for [x] years and have found that many of the so-called ‘errors’ or ‘contradictions’ have reasonable answers. I can’t answer them all, but there is enough truth in the Bible that I’m sure that the seeming contradictions come from my lack of understanding, not from the Bible. The seeming contradictions between the gospel accounts show that the writers were not in collusion, concocting a story.” Encourage the person to read the Bible as a seeker of truth, not as a critic looking for errors. God doesn’t answer skeptics, but He will reward seekers. And encourage him to ask as he reads, “Is Jesus who He claimed to be?”

3. “The Bible has been through so many translations.”

There are many different modern translations, but they are all based on the original Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek texts. The manuscript evidence for the Bible is very reliable. And, no major doctrine is affected by any textual variant or reputable translation. (The Jehovah’s Witness translation, The New World Translation, is not reputable because they change the text and translation to fit their heretical doctrines.)

4. “You can’t take the Bible literally, can you?”

The Bible must be interpreted in its historical, literary, linguistic, and cultural context. Poetic sections and figures of speech are to be taken normally, just as we take them in English. Which “literal” interpretation bothers you the most? Why? Do you understand what Jesus means when He says that we must believe in Him to have eternal life?

5. “I can’t believe all the miracles in the Bible.”

The real issue here is, does God exist? If God is God and if He spoke the universe into existence out of nothing by the word of His power, then He can perform miracles. Just because you’ve never seen one does not mean that they have not happened.

The miracles in the Bible do not occur evenly through various times. They occur in clusters, especially around Jesus and the apostles. The key miracle to consider is Jesus’ bodily resurrection from the dead. The entire Christian faith rests on it. Have you considered the evidence that Jesus was raised from the dead? There is: the empty tomb; eyewitness accounts; changed lives of the witnesses; integrity of the witnesses; and, willingness of the witnesses to die for what they had seen. Refer them to Josh McDowell’s Evidence that Demands a Verdict or his More Than a Carpenter.

6. “I believe in evolution.”

You can ask a lot of questions here: What conclusions are you drawing from this belief? Are you saying that everything in the universe happened by sheer chance, without God? Do you believe that something came out of nothing? Do you think that man evolved out of pond scum over billions of years through random mutations and natural selection? Why does the fossil record not have billions of “missing links”? How could anything as intricately balanced and finely tuned as the natural world have happened by sheer chance? Where do you find evidence that random chance produces such evident design, even given a billion years? Would a billion years produce a 747 jet out of nothing without a designer and builder? How do you explain the concept of irreducible complexity? Certain biological features require all the parts to be together and working at the same time. This couldn’t have happened over a long time.

Moving to the more spiritual, if you believe that we just happened as a biological accident with no God, then how do you find meaning and hope in life?

7. “The Bible endorses slavery, the oppression of women, and homophobia.”

You can say, “I thought you believed that moral issues are relative to each culture. Are you saying that these things are absolutely wrong? Do you believe, then, that certain things are absolutely true and binding for every culture in every age? How can you rightly judge that the Bible’s views are wrong, if in fact the Bible teaches these things? Isn’t your view as narrow and exclusive as the views in the Bible that you find offensive?”

Again, ask, “If I can give reasonable answers to some of these issues, are you saying that you would become a Christian?” Most of these objections are smokescreens. The person doesn’t want to face his own sin before God.

Regarding slavery, while it was permitted in Bible times, it was far different than the expression of it in the U.S. Paul’s approach to slavery eventually led to its abolition in Christian lands. It was committed Christians (like Wilberforce in England and Lincoln in America) who worked to abolish slavery in the West.

Regarding women, the Bible elevates and respects women far more than other world religions do. Jesus befriended and taught women. Women ministered to Him when men did not. He first revealed Himself after the resurrection to women. Paul commands husbands to love their wives with self-sacrificing love. The fact that women and men are assigned different roles in the home and in the church does not belittle women or diminish their significance.

Regarding homosexuality, the Bible clearly declares it to be sin. But it is not the unpardonable sin. Christ’s death is sufficient to forgive and restore homosexuals who repent, just as it does with other sinners. If you deny that it is sin, how do you determine right and wrong? What is your standard?

Personal questions and objections:

1. “The church is full of hypocrites.”

“Yes, and so is the world. Jesus warned about and condemned hypocrisy, and yet many of them are in the church or in ministry. But this does not invalidate who Jesus is. We are not to trust in church members or ministers, but in Jesus alone. Do you think that He was a hypocrite? Was He a phony? If not, you must trust Him.”

2. “I don’t need the church cramming its narrow morality down my throat!”

Probably a person who says this had religion forced on him as a child by strict, stern parents. So you may want to begin by asking, “Did you have a bad experience in church or in your family as a child?” Listen sympathetically and then try to point out that he has missed the truth about Jesus because of the hypocritical or mistaken behavior of those who claim to follow Him. You can ask, “As far as you know, did Jesus have absolute standards of morality? If so, do you think He was mistaken?”

Or, you can raise questions about how this person determines what is right and wrong. If he says, “We should all love one another,” you can point out that that was what Jesus called the second great commandment. But how do we know what real love looks like? Jesus set the example by laying down His life for us. Do you know why Jesus died on the cross? Also, you can ask, “Do you always love others? Have you always loved your parents, your mate, your children, your neighbors?” If not, you have violated God’s commandment and stand guilty before Him. How will you answer Him when you stand before Him? Then, direct him to the cross.

3. “Christianity is a crutch.”

Yes, and you’re a cripple! We all trust in something. What are you trusting in? The person raising this objection is trusting in himself. He thinks that he is able to handle life’s problems and deal with life’s challenges without God or religion. Only weak people need religion. So he sees himself as “the master of his fate, the captain of his soul” (William Ernest Henley, “Invictus,” whose “fate” involved dying at age 54, by the way!).

God holds the “trump card” on each of us: death. You will die and it may not be at the time you choose. The question is, how will you answer to God, who sent His own Son to bear the penalty that you deserve for your sin? Will you say, “I don’t need a Savior?” Fine, you will pay the penalty of eternal destruction in a place of awful torment. You may say, “I don’t believe that.” Okay, but then you’re saying that Jesus was wrong, because He believed it and taught it often. You’d better make sure you’re right!

Conclusion

There may be a few more objections or questions that will come your way, but I think I’ve covered the most common ones. Almost always, they are a smokescreen to divert the conversation away from the person’s need to repent of his sins and trust in Christ. Your job is lovingly, patiently to direct the conversation back to the main issue: You are a sinner, under God’s condemnation. You need a Savior from God’s judgment before you die. God sent Jesus Christ as the only Savior. He died on the cross for sinners, to pay the penalty that we deserve. But you must turn from your sin and trust in Jesus alone as your only Savior and Lord. God gives eternal life as a free gift to all who trust in Jesus.

As John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” Are you willing right now to turn from your sin and put your trust in Jesus Christ for eternal life? If he says, “I’m not ready,” you can ask, “Why not?” Don’t pressure him, but you can ask, “I just want to make sure that I’ve made the gospel clear. Can you tell me what you must do to receive eternal life?” And, “If you were to die without trusting in Jesus Christ, where would you spend eternity? Have a nice day!”

Here are a few resources that will help equip you with answers to common questions and objections:

• Josh McDowell and Don Stewart, Answers to Tough Questions [Living Books, Tyndale House], 1988.
• R. C. Sproul, Objections Answered [Regal, G/L Books], 1978.
• Timothy Keller, The Reason for God [Dutton], 2008.
• Dave DeWitt, Answering the Tough Ones [Moody Press], 1980.
• William Fay, Share Jesus Without Fear [B&H Publishing], 1999.
• James Kennedy, Evangelism Explosion [Tyndale House], 1970.

Application Questions

1. Which of the questions or objections is the most difficult for you to grapple with?
2. Why is it better to ask questions instead of refuting the critic’s position? Note Matt. 19:16-17; 21:23-25; 22:17-21, 41-45.
3. Must a person give up his belief in evolution to get saved? If not, what are the implications for witnessing?
4. How can we know how much pressure to put on someone to make a decision to trust in Christ? What guidelines apply?

Copyright, Steven J. Cole, 2010, All Rights Reserved.

Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture Quotations are from the New American Standard Bible, Updated Edition © The Lockman Foundation