After more than a month of persistence from the Mormon missionaries, my wife and I finally set aside time to meet with them.
Last night two Mormon elders came to our house to share with us their message of the “complete” gospel. I have to be completely honest—I know almost nothing about Mormons. To show my ignorance on the topic, I learned for the first time last night that Joseph Smith—the founder of the movement—was only 14 when he received his “first vision.”
That’s young.
First Encounter
As we welcomed them into our house, my wife and I quickly noticed the missionaries’ observations about us—that we have a Strong’s Concordance, Scripture artwork, etc.—even though we tried not to let them know too much up front.
This was our first experience together with Mormons, and we wanted to hear from them as if we were just another couple. Needless to say, we were just another couple to them, and they did make their assumptions about us before sharing anything. Read More »
August 10, 2007 – 10:46 pm
Law vs. Beliefs
Gregory Boyd, author of Myth of a Christian Nation, reveals a very different approach to evangelism than that of Ray Comfort.
While Ray’s primary method of evangelism is centered on the law—more specifically the Ten Commandments—Gregory emphasizes building a case for Christ from what the receiving audience already believes.
This approach is illustrated by Paul when addressing a non–Jewish audience.
Rather than making his case on what he, as a Jew, believed, he made his case on the basis of what his Gentile audience believed.
Truth from their Beliefs
The clearest example of this approach is found in Acts 17. Paul is discussing Christ with a group of non–Jewish philosophers (Acts 17:19), and instead of pointing to their sin, he immediately commends them for being so religious (Acts 17:22). Read More »
Who or What is Being Saved
Who did Christ die for?
You could easily start some serious debates by asking that one little question.
But, what if you changed it to ask: What did Christ die for?
What if the New Testament view of salvation isn’t limited to human beings?
My thoughts for this week have been primarily focused on answering that very question after I came across a quote of James Kallas, saying:
…. since the cosmos itself is in bondage, depressed under evil forces, the essential content of the word “salvation” is that the world itself will be rescued, or renewed, or set free. Salvation is a cosmic event affecting the whole of creation….Salvation is not simply the overcoming of my rebellion and the forgiveness of my guilt, but salvation is the liberation of the whole world process of which I am only a small part. 1
Read More »
