Comments on: Moving from fear to faith http://www.pastorfairchild.com/2005-02/24/moving-from-fear-to-faith/ Simul Justus Et Peccator Fri, 25 Jul 2008 11:55:18 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.0.4 by: David Engle http://www.pastorfairchild.com/2005-02/24/moving-from-fear-to-faith/#comment-35 Sat, 19 Mar 2005 05:28:45 +0000 http://www.pastorfairchild.com/2005-02/24/moving-from-fear-to-faith/#comment-35 Hi David. Thanks for your frank and interesting confessional about your embarrassments in sharing the Good News. I love a man who yearns for other to know about Our Lord. In my view the right way to proceed was best modeled in Acts by Peter and John. After Peter received the Spirit he went out to the public square, where he didn't lead people in the sinner's prayer or tell them of their need for a savior (because those ideas presuppose a strong conscience and sense of guilt) Rather, he preached to Jerusalem... "Jesus you crucified, but God raised him from the dead, of which we are witnesses." From this formula it would seem that we also should begin any evangelizing type discussion by announcing the Resurrection of Christ as an historical fact which cannot be rationally explained-away or trivialized or compared with any other phenomenon. This resurrection was and is God's method of persuasion ! It sure worked for me, hardheaded though I was. God has continued the same mode of disclosure and persuasion for centuries by giving saints and visionaries thousands of testimonial accounts of the risen Lord. These have been collected and circulated in great anthologies numbering many volumes since the 7th cent. (and really beginning with the New Testament itself) It is this body of visions that really converted pagan Europe and caused countless numbers of powerful sainly lives to flourish in gothic and medieval times. A website, ChristCome.net, surveys a few hundred ancient and modern visionary testimonials of Jesus through time. Virtually all I find are very, very persuasive and powerful. The cumulative impact of reading one after another is to me really overwhelming. And other people have told me of similar feelings. God's intention is to persuade in this way, which accounts for why he has provided so many of these experiences Everyone who I send to the ChristCome website seems to respond with a deepened faith whether they began with little or much Once people believe God raised Jesus, they can make the step to believing that Jesus' words came from God, and can embrace the doctrine and instruction with real conviction. Anyhow, just a thought in case you would like some backup support in your missoinary efforts. All the best to you and Kaleo folks David Engle Hi David. Thanks for your frank and interesting confessional about your embarrassments in sharing the Good News. I love a man who yearns for other to know about Our Lord.

In my view the right way to proceed was best modeled in Acts by Peter and John. After Peter received the Spirit he went out to the public square, where he didn’t lead people in the sinner’s prayer or tell them of their need for a savior (because those ideas presuppose a strong conscience and sense of guilt) Rather, he preached to Jerusalem… “Jesus you crucified, but God raised him from the dead, of which we are witnesses.”

From this formula it would seem that we also should begin any evangelizing type discussion by announcing the Resurrection of Christ as an historical fact which cannot be rationally explained-away or trivialized or compared with any other phenomenon. This resurrection was and is God’s method of persuasion ! It sure worked for me, hardheaded though I was.

God has continued the same mode of disclosure and persuasion for centuries by giving saints and visionaries thousands of testimonial accounts of the risen Lord. These have been collected and circulated in great anthologies numbering many volumes since the 7th cent. (and really beginning with the New Testament itself) It is this body of visions that really converted pagan Europe and caused countless numbers of powerful sainly lives to flourish in gothic and medieval times.

A website, ChristCome.net, surveys a few hundred ancient and modern visionary testimonials of Jesus through time. Virtually all I find are very, very persuasive and powerful. The cumulative impact of reading one after another is to me really overwhelming. And other people have told me of similar feelings.

God’s intention is to persuade in this way, which accounts for why he has provided so many of these experiences Everyone who I send to the ChristCome website seems to respond with a deepened faith whether they began with little or much

Once people believe God raised Jesus, they can make the step to believing that Jesus’ words came from God, and can embrace the doctrine and instruction with real conviction.

Anyhow, just a thought in case you would like some backup support in your missoinary efforts. All the best to you and Kaleo folks
David Engle

]]> by: Kevin Cawley http://www.pastorfairchild.com/2005-02/24/moving-from-fear-to-faith/#comment-23 Thu, 24 Feb 2005 22:29:18 +0000 http://www.pastorfairchild.com/2005-02/24/moving-from-fear-to-faith/#comment-23 David-- Thank you so much. My wife and I were moved and challenged by your words. It is good to be challenged with the reminder of God's passion for his glory, and his call to announce His reign. May he continue to bless you and your church. David– Thank you so much. My wife and I were moved and challenged by your words. It is good to be challenged with the reminder of God’s passion for his glory, and his call to announce His reign. May he continue to bless you and your church.

]]> by: D. Goodmanson http://www.pastorfairchild.com/2005-02/24/moving-from-fear-to-faith/#comment-22 Thu, 24 Feb 2005 21:32:56 +0000 http://www.pastorfairchild.com/2005-02/24/moving-from-fear-to-faith/#comment-22 THanks David. I posted a link from my blog, because people need to read this. THanks David. I posted a link from my blog, because people need to read this.

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