Is Social Justice a perversion of the Gospel?

Glen Beck, Fox News anchor and analysts, made the comment that social justice was a perversion of the Gospel. “Social” meaning it covers all people in the society, and justice meaning that “equality” or more specifically “fairness,” must be legislated in order to have justice for all people. When it comes to the Gospel, some have suggested that serving the less fortunate and disenfranchised is the same as preaching the Gospel. What are your thoughts.

What makes the Church Attractive?

I read this short description of the Early Church and why it was so attractive to the people in the Roman Empire pre-Constantine. It made the Church so attractive that it grew and grew….here it is.

“And yet the early church grew and grew and grew, even without intentional evangelistic strategy or ministry. How? By being the most attractive community in the Roman Empire. The early Christians rescued abandoned babies and raised them as their own. They gave dignified burials to all, regardless of economic status. They cared for the sick; instead of abandoning the cities in times of plague, they stayed and cared for the sick and dying, even if it meant their own deaths. It was said of the early Christians that “they alone know the right way to live.”

What do you think is the best way to make the Church attractive today to our nation?

Before you do that…think about the consequences.

The Weak Mind…we all have one.

The Weak Mind Defined

*Showing a lack of judgment.” You know better but you misjudge the consequences, the effects or the seriousness of what you are about to do…so you do it. Like a person who may be very intelligent may also be a drug addict. His intellect tells him drugs are bad for him but his weak mind, due to a lack of judgment, tells him it’s okay. His weak mind helps him justify doing things that are bad for him. A weak mind is a result of wrong thinking or wrong conclusions about what results your actions will bring. Here are some examples that I have seen over the years.

How do you get permission to share Christ?

How Do We Gain “Permission”?

For Permission Evangelism to work, we need to learn to recognize a heart that is open to hear the Gospel. There are times when people are openly asking us to share our beliefs and talk about our relationship with Christ—and we don’t even know it. Quite often, unbelievers and seekers open the door for us to share Christ with them without expressing that desire in words. For some seekers, an invitation for us to witness to them can be found in their actions or conversations.

Always look for an occasion to share the Gospel with someone, whether that someone is a friend, relative, or a recent acquaintance. God gives us divine appointments, and we need to be alert and able to recognize the opportunities He gives us to share our faith.

Confrontational or Permission Evangelism

Two Types of Evangelism

There are basically two ways to share the Gospel of Christ with a person, and both are found in the Bible. In the first kind, Confrontational Evangelism, two people tend to argue or have a “war with words.” Throughout the Bible, there are situations in which people were confronted with the Gospel. Jesus, John the Baptist, Peter, and Paul confronted the religious, the unbeliever, and the antagonistic people of their day. This type of evangelism feels more like a dispute or altercation.

The other type, Permission Evangelism, involves developing a relationship with a person to gain his or her permission before sharing the gospel. Through one-on-one ministry, group meetings, and other events, Jesus and his disciples shared the Gospel in a way that captured the hearts and minds of the people. As miracles and healings took place, people opened up to the message of the Gospel and often begged to hear more. The results are likely to be more positive than Confrontational Evangelism because you first gain the other person’s permission/ approval/ consent to share. And that permission is gained through dynamic spiritual relationships.

Evangelism is Relational

It is vital to develop a friendship – in fact, a dynamic spiritual relationship with someone before sharing the Gospel. You first need to gain a person’s trust. You may not always have the time or opportunity to develop a close relationship, but you can build rapport in a short time.

Acts 16:14-15 gives one of many scriptural examples of relational evangelism:

¹⁴One of those listening was a woman named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth from the city of Thyatira, who was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message. ¹⁵When she and the members of her household were baptized, she invited us to her home. “If you consider me a believer in the Lord,” she said, “come and stay at my house.” And she persuaded us.

WHAT KIND OF EVANGELISM DO YOU EMPLOY?