Preaching Jesus Christ, and Him Crucified

I go back and forth all the time with wither or not I should tell others about my evangelism efforts or just keep quiet about them. When I do tell about them it is always for 1 of 2 reasons:
1. I believe others should take part even if only by prayer.
2. When I'm feeling down and in need of a supporting word.
Most times I do not tell what I'm doing for 1 of 2 reasons:
1. I do not do it to be noticed by men.
2. It seems that when I do tell no one really cares so why bother.
After a conversation I had yesterday afternoon I thought that it would be good and fitting to show and explain my evangelism efforts. The above video shows and the following words explain.

Yesterday there was a large family visiting our Sunday school class and church. The discussion in class was over 2 Corinthians 3:18-4:6. There was much being said in class about how we as Christians should reflect Christ into the world and how people should see Christ in us. As I often do I gave my perspective from my open-air preaching mindset. I said; "If anyone expects to see Christ in me they will be mistaken. I am not Christ nor do I look anything like Him. So how do we explain this verse in 2 Corinthians 3:18, "But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit." (NASB, 95). "I agree with what has been said that the veil is a metaphor for unbelief. We go from unbelief to belief, but I see the mirror in this passage as being the word of God, not a reflection of us but Christ. I cannot see the Lord now dimly, as it says in 1 Corinthians 13:12, "For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known. Mirrors in the first century were likely dim (as was explained by our class teacher) so you could not see clearly in a mirror as you would face to face. Now we know Jesus through reading about Him in the scriptures, but there will come a time when we will know Him fully face to face. So we look at this reflection of Jesus given by the scriptures to see if we are being transformed into His image. We do not hope that people will come to Jesus by looking at our lives, our good works are but filthy rags, we tell them about Jesus through the scriptures."

Our teacher then told the class being that there were a great many visitors with this large family and others that I was an open-air preacher. After class the wife of this large family approached me, a bold woman, she began to question me if I knew a man named Ruben Israel and several others of that same group. I told her that I knew of them. She talked about how people get in their face and argue and spit on them and things like that. I told her that I knew of them but did not personally know them.

First of all, I do not think that open-air preaching is a method for evangelism, it is a principle. Examples of open-air preaching are found all throughout scripture and throughout church history. Now while I believe that open-air preaching is a principle and not a method I do believe that there are many methods employed in open-air preaching. The method that Ruben Israel uses and the others that she mentioned is not a method I use, and sad to say I don't believe to be a good one. But when someone hears about open-air preaching what these guys do are what most people think of.

So what method do I use in open-air preachng? Plagiarism is when you take a sermon that belongs to someone else and either quote it word for word or paraphrase it and pass it off as being your own. There is nothing wrong with quoting another man's sermon word for word or paraphrasing it just so long as you give the author credit. This is what I do in my open-air preaching. Here's the deal, I did not live in the first century when Jesus walked the earth; I did not see Him, I did not hear Him, I did not see His miracles, I did not witness His trial and crucifixion, and I did not see His resurrection from the dead. His apostles did, so it is their witness that I give into the world.

God is so gracious to me, He sent His only begotten Son Jesus Christ in human flesh to live a righteous life and die in my place for my sin. Therefore, I am dedicated to telling people about Him through the eyes and ears of the Apostle John, by publicly reciting John's first hand eye witness account of our Lord. I usually conclude a reciting of a portion of the Gospel According to John with a combined brief summary and other direct quotation from scripture about creation, sin, righteousness, and Salvation vs Judgment.

In Christ alone. May the Lord bless you and keep you all. "Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord will not take into account." (Rom 4:8 [NASB]).

The Two Reasons I Preach the Gospel Publicly

Why do I go out and tell people about Jesus when the majority are obviously not even listening? Two reasons:
1. Out of love and thanksgiving for what Jesus did for me, He died in my place for my sins.
2. Out of love and concern for you, there is a coming judgment.

You were created in the image of God. God is love, but you have not perfectly loved. You have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.

A lawyer once asked Jesus a question, testing Him. "And He said to him, " ' You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. ' This is the great and foremost commandment. The second is like it, ' You shall love your neighbor as yourself. ' On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets." (Mt 22:37-40 [NASB]).

Have you loved God perfectly,God who knitted you together in your mother's womb and gave you life? Have you loved your neighbor as yourself, think about that, as yourself? Jesus did! "He is the image of the invisible God, the first born of all creation." (Col 1:15 [NASB]). He loved God with all His heart, and with all His soul, and with all His mind. He loved His neighbor as Himself.

Jesus deserved eternal life with the Father God in heaven. We all deserve death for our sin, eternal separation from God in hell. But God, being rich in mercy (Ep 2:4) and abounding in lovingkindness and truth (Ex 34:6); gave His only begotten, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life (Jn 3:16).

Jesus Promised eternal life to everyone who hears, believes, and follows Him. He calls us His sheep, He speaks to us through His word and we learn from Him. He willingly laid down His own life on the cross for His sheep. He died in our place for our sins. He was crucified, dead and buried, and then on the third day He rose from the dead. Witnessed by His apostles. He is now seated at the right hand of God, and is presently making intersession on behalf of everyone who comes to God through faith in Him.

Repent and believe in the name of the Son of God Jesus Christ. Come follow the Lord Jesus. He is the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Him (Jn 14:6).

Jesus came in human flesh for salvation. Jesus will return at a time of the Fathers choosing for judgment. "But when the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on His glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered before Him; and He will separate them from one another, as the shepherd separates the sheep from the goats; and He will put the sheep on His right, and the goats on the left."(Mat 25:31-33 [NASB]). The sheep blessed of the Father will inherit the kingdom prepared for them from the foundation of the world. And the goats will be cast into the eternal fire, which has been prepared for the devil and his angels (Mt 25:34-46), "and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever" (Rv 20:10).

God is Love

"The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love." (1 John 4:8 [NASB]). God is love, He is abounding with lovingkindness and truth. Jesus came into the world, as He told Pilate; "to testify to the truth" (Jn 18:37 [NASB]). "No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him." (John 1:18 [NKJV]). Jesus demonstrated love, He has declared God both in word and deed. "And Jesus cried out and said, " He who believes in Me, does not believe in Me but in Him who sent Me. He who sees Me sees the One who sent Me. I have come as Light into the world, so that everyone who believes in Me will not remain in darkness." (Jn 12:44-46 [NASB]). "He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation." (Col 1:15 [NASB]). God is love, therefore, the greatest learning that a man can do is to study love in truth. "Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things." (1 Cor 13:4-7 [NASB]).