ET Session 5 - "What is Salvation?"

(Mar 1:15) and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.“

God clearly requires repentance and belief in this news.

What are we saved from?

(John 5:24-34) Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life. (25) "Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming, and is now here, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. (26) For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself. (27) And he has given him authority to execute judgment, because he is the Son of Man. (28) Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice (29) and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment. (30) "I can do nothing on my own. As I hear, I judge, and my judgment is just, because I seek not my own will but the will of him who sent me.

(John 3:36) Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.

(1Co 15 1-2) (1)Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand (2) and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you--unless you believed in vain.

Chapter 11: Of Justification (London Baptist Confession of 1689)

Those whom God effectually calls, he also freely justifies, not by infusing righteousness into them, but by pardoning their sins, and by accounting and accepting their persons as righteous; not for anything wrought in them, or done by them, but for Christ's sake alone; not by imputing faith itself, the act of believing, or any other evangelical obedience to them, as their righteousness; but by imputing Christ's active obedience unto the whole law, and passive obedience in his death for their whole and sole righteousness by faith, which faith they have not of themselves; it is the gift of God.

(1Co 15 1-2) (1)Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand (2) and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you--unless you believed in vain.

Chapter 13: Of Sanctification (London Baptist Confession of 1689)

They who are united to Christ, effectually called, and regenerated, having a new heart and a new spirit created in them through the virtue of Christ's death and resurrection, are also farther sanctified, really and personally, through the same virtue, by His Word and Spirit dwelling in them; the dominion of the whole body of sin is destroyed, and the several lusts thereof are more and more weakened and mortified, and they more and more quickened and strengthened in all saving graces, to the practice of all true holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord.

You have to listen to these!

http://www.whitehorseinn.org/

Click on the above link and listen to Tactics part 1 and part 2. You will find these episodes extremely beneficial and helpful in terms of how to tactically navigate your way through an evangelistic discussion.

ET Session 4 - "What Is Evangelism?"

Very simply it is the proclamation of the Gospel.

What is Evangel?
G2098 (Evangel) – Jesus is “the Evangel”
εὐαγγέλιον
euaggelion
yoo-ang-ghel'-ee-on
From the same as G2097; a good message, that is, the gospel: - gospel.

What is Evangelism?
G2097 (Evangelism)-telling others about “the Evangel”
εὐαγγελίζω
euaggelizō
yoo-ang-ghel-id'-zo
From G2095 and G32; to announce good news (“evangelize”) especially the gospel: - declare, bring (declare, show) glad (good) tidings, preach (the gospel).

The Promise of the Gospel:

Gen 3:8-15 And they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden. (9) But the LORD God called to the man and said to him, "Where are you?" (10) And he said, "I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked, and I hid myself." (11) He said, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?" (12) The man said, "The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit of the tree, and I ate." (13) Then the LORD God said to the woman, "What is this that you have done?" The woman said, "The serpent deceived me, and I ate." (14) The LORD God said to the serpent, "Because you have done this, cursed are you above all livestock and above all beasts of the field; on your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life. (15) I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel."

--The promise of the Evangel – Protoevangelion of Gen3:15

What is Evangelism?

1.The telling of the Good News.
2.Jesus is the focus.
3.His person and work are the news.

What is the context for the good news?

Context [The Context for the Gospel (Good News) is the Bad News.]

Rom 3:23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
1Jn 3:4 everyone who practices sin also practices lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness
Rom 3:10-12 as it is written, "THERE IS NONE RIGHTEOUS, NOT EVEN ONE; (11) THERE IS NONE WHO UNDERSTANDS, THERE IS NONE WHO SEEKS FOR GOD; (12) ALL HAVE TURNED ASIDE, TOGETHER THEY HAVE BECOME USELESS; THERE IS NONE WHO DOES GOOD, THERE IS NOT EVEN ONE.”

Rom 6:23a For the wages of sin is death

Rev 20:11-15 Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat upon it, from whose presence earth and heaven fled away, and no place was found for them. (12) And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life; and the dead were judged from the things which were written in the books, according to their deeds. (13) And the sea gave up the dead which were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead which were in them; and they were judged, every one of them according to their deeds. (14) Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. (15) And if anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.

Christ [The Gospel]

1Co 15:1-4 Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, (2) and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you--unless you believed in vain. (3) For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, (4) that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures,

In accordance with the Scriptures Jesus is both law keeper (righteousness) and sin bearer (sacrifice).

Rom 3:21-26 But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it-- (22) the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: (23) for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, (24) and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, (25) whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. (26) It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

Never ever forget to give them the reason why they can trust that Christ is their only hope for righteousness. The RESURRECTION!

Command [Repent and Believe]

Mar 1:14-15 Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, (15) and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel."

Repent-
Act 17:30-31 "Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent, (31) because He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to all men by raising Him from the dead."

Believe-
Rom 10:8-13 But what does it say? "THE WORD IS NEAR YOU, IN YOUR MOUTH AND IN YOUR HEART"--that is, the word of faith which we are preaching, (9) that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; (10) for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation.