Think of someone who needs to hear the good news – write a letter to that person, sharing the gospel. Feel free to include things such as your own failures, why you want them to know God’s salvation, how they might receive the gospel, common misunderstandings of the gospel/good words, etc. Use at least one thing you learned in class. After you post it here, you can consider actually giving him or her this letter. You can also explain here why you think you would share this with them or not.
4 - GOSPEL SHARED
If it’s truly good news, what keeps people (and/or you) from:
a. being amazed by it?
b. sharing it in words ?–
c. Living it in actions?
For a, b, and c, feel free to use examples and/or personal stories about these ideas.
Question 4
ReplyDeleteI don’t understand why you wouldn’t be amazed by the gospel. When my Sunday school teacher shared those things with me I was just shocked on how God could do things like that. When he made that earth, when he saved Jonah from a whale, and when he parted a sea. If I ever tell those stories to someone I would imagine that they would be in shock too. Obviously the biggest story in the Bible is Jesus. How one holy man could save so many lives. If he hadn’t died for us who could have imagined where we would be right now. How could you not be amazed by His glory and His power. When I talk to my sister about it we always just think that he has disciplined someone by them getting eaten by a whale, and when he repented the whale spit him out. I think that what God does is amazing and we should be amazed by his power.
Question #3
ReplyDeleteCaton,
There's someone out there I think you should know about. His name is Jesus and he came and to save us from our sins.”For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by His grace, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.” (Romans 3:23-24) The only way to heaven is through Jesus, the son of God. There’s no way around that; No shortcuts or any excuses. “Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way the truth and the life. No one comes to the father except through me.’ “ (John 14:6) To believe in Him, you must pray and ask Jesus into your heart. “But truly God has listened; he has attended to the voice of my prayer.” (Psalm 66:19) No matter how many people are praying, He will always hear you.
Sincerly,
Anonymous
#4
ReplyDeletewhat keeps me from being amazed by the gospel is probably that i have heard it so many times it just gets old. Like when you watch a scary movie at first your intrigued because you dont know what is going to happen but after you see it 30 times you just remember all the scary parts and because you know its coming you just get bored.
We dont share the word because we are afraid others will judge us and we feel its better to keep our mouth shut then spread Gods word with the posbility of getting pursecuted.
We dont live it in actions because we dont like everyone and we are not going to save people we hate.
examples:
a) the story of how jesus died for us
b) tell friends Jesus story
c) show grace to a bully
4.) a. For me, nothing keeps me from being amazed by the Gospel. The very thought of someone that hasn't done ANYTHING wrong dying just to save me from my sins is mind-boggling, and often to put it into perspective I think about what the world would be like without the comfort of Jesus. We wouldn't know where we were going after we died!
ReplyDeleteb. I think that the thing that keeps most people from sharing the gospel is that our friends/family might think that we are wierd. Another thing that keeps us from sharing the gospel with the rest of the world is that we fear being rejected by the person(s) we are trying to share the gospel with, and them just treating us like we’re stupid and that the things we are saying aren’t true.
c. One big thing that weighs us down and keeps us from living our lives like Christians should is peer pressure. If you’re in a group of friends that you like and want to stay with, it can be hard to resist going with them to do some things that God would definately disapprove of for fear of them calling you a chicken and not liking you as much anymore.
4)
ReplyDeleteA) I think that we are not always amazed at the Gospel is because we hear it so often. I am not saying that it is a bad thing to hear it often, but to be honest, we get kind of bored with the story. We might just see it as another miracle in a book full of miracles.
B) There is a common reason that is a really lame excuse why we don’t share the Gospel. I use this also. “Well, I don’t know anyone that is not a Christian. How am I supposed to share the Gospel when I don’t know a nonbeliever?” We can still share the Gospel with our friends. We can simply ask them where they are in their faith.
C) Sometimes we think that we can’t be cool or popular if we live out our faith as Christians. We think we are cool when we gossip or tell other people things that would hurt others
Question #3
ReplyDeleteDear __________,
I know you are going through hard times, but going to God and praying to him will benefit you so much. I have been through what you are going through and at first I thought that I could just deal with it myself. I didn’t feel any better and until I realized that all the emotions were building up inside of me. I wasn’t going to feel any better unless I went to God and asked him for help. i had my family, who were great supporters and knew what I was going through, but they couldn’t help me the way God could. He reassures you and supports you in a way you’ve never felt before. All the sudden I felt much better and happy inside. I had finally found peace. Not only is God amazing in these ways, he is also amazing in many other ways as well. He may not perform a miracle in every book of the Bible but his wisdom and knowledge are amazing. He does unbelievable things, helps you along your path.
Sincerely,
Anonymous
Question #4
ReplyDeletea) One of the main reasons I believe that we have trouble being amazed by it is we experience doubt. I personally am amazed by it! God loves us so much he sacrificed his only son to save us from our sins. He still loves even though we constantly sin over and over again.
b) I believe the reason we don’t share it with words is that we are afraid of what other people may think of us. What our non-Christian friends may say. Or maybe you just say you are a Christian, but really you don’t believe. You may be a believer, but one who separates your life in two. Somebody who does good acts and puts it under the religious section of your life, and then just have your “normal life”.
c) The reasons why we don’t live the Gospel in actions, I think, are the same thing as b. We are afraid that people will assume we are weird. Like if you put your hands in the air during a worship song you might be considered weird, but at a concert you have no shame. Also you may not be a total believer, or a person who separates their life.
Question #3:
ReplyDeleteDear Cousin,
In the past, I have noticed that you haven’t have a personal relationship with Christ. At that time, I tried to convince you to accept Him into your heart, but it didn’t work out so well. I blame myself for not being assertive in this situation and would like to try again. Now what I’m about to say is life-changing and life-saving. I would really appreciate it if you would say this aloud to yourself and really mean what you say. Repeat after me: “Dear God, I know I am a sinner and that I have made some wrong choices in my life. As of now, I ask you to forgive me of all my sins. I believe that You are the son of Christ, that you died for me, and rose again. I want to live for you and serve you. I ask you into my heart to wash me and my blood. To this day, I will not leave the same as I came in Jesus’ name, Amen!” I have shared this prayer with you because I believe that as a Christian, it is my job to share the good news that Jesus shared with his disciples and that his disciples spread throughout the rest of the world. As a cousin too, I want to make sure that younger cousins of me don’t make the same decision foolish people made in Jesus’ time by rejecting Him. This is an opportunity for you to become a child of God. Please take it and be eager to experience more about His word. But until we meet again...
Sincerely,
Your Older Cousin
Question #4
ReplyDeletea. being amazed by it?
I think one big thing that keeps people from being amazed by it is the fact that we either grew up hearing the stories or that other Christians shove them down our throat. When you grow up hearing them as a little kid they are pretty cool, but as we get older and realize how awesome the stories are we are really tired of hearing them. When they are shoved down your throat they are forced into you making them seem unpleasant to have to hear.
b. sharing it in words ?
I think we don't share it because we are afraid of rejection and sometimes persecution. When we fear that it makes us hard for us to openly share God's world. I think now it is just as scary to share the gospel as it was in Jesus day because now a lot people have become adverse to Christianity.
c. Living it in actions?
I think that some people are scared to show it in the way we live because of the fear of being seen as a "goody-goody" or a "Jesus Freak". Being a christian isn't really "popular" or considered cool in today's world.
a) I am amazed by the story of Christ. However, I believe in the Messiah. People who are atheist or are of different religions, are not amazed by the gospel because they are non-believers. It does make sense why they do not believe. Just like they do not believe in the gospel, we do not believe in Buddha or Nervana (part of Hinduism). But because I believe and accept Jesus Christ as my Lord and savior, I am astounded by how courageous Jesus as to die for us sinful people. I am also touched by how much love God really has for us to kill his son for the sinful creatures we are.
ReplyDeleteb) I do personally have trouble sharing the Gospel with other people especially when they are non-believers. Whether my friend is a believer or not I am afraid of judgement or the title, jesus freak. Talking about Jesus is not typically what eighth graders discuss at sleepovers. However since coming to Westminster, I feel like I can discuss my beliefs more openly and freely without the fear of being judged. I feel this way because I know a lot of people here do share the belief that Jesus Christ is our Lord and savior.
c) Living out the Gospel is probably the most failed-attempt out of anything we try to achieve as Christians. We are not perfect creatures because of the fall. The fall as a affected us in a way where sin has entered our existence. Sin is almost an impossible thing not to do. Living out the Gospel would mean we have to live out a perfect life on Earth as Christ did. That means no lying, cheating, gossiping, judging, showing kindness , being humble, and a lot more other things we are obligated to show to our fellow brothers and sister of Christ.
4) A. I am amazed by the power of God. I feel that many people just aren't listening to what God's people say or they don't believe or don't care.
ReplyDeleteB. The reason why I don't preach the word of God is I'm not sure if I'm one of his people and that I don't have the freedom to go out and teach the word of God. The only place I really go is WCA, everyone says that they are Christians and they already have many people or teachers teaching the word of God already.
C. The reason I don't live out the Gospel is because I don't like rules and I think that I'll have enough time to change my ways later on. The reason why others don't is because they want to be "normal", they want to blend into society.
Question #4:
ReplyDeletea.) In my opinion, being amazed by the gospel is hard to do because we aren’t naturally in awe of it. Sometimes, I think that we under appreciate the gospel, or we simply forget what a blessing it is. For example, I usually forget to be thankful for Jesus’ sacrifice, and most of the time I forget about Jesus. Life is so busy, it seems like it wants us to forget God and all He’s done for us. Also, I think that people don’t realize that we should be amazed at the good news. All we have is text on a page, saying that we are saved from sin. Sometimes reading isn’t always the best way to provoke awe or emotion, and that may be the case too.
b.) Sharing the good news may seem easy, but I think that many Christians live in fear of persecution and hide their faith instead. Look at what the Romans did to believers back in ancient times. They’d send any caught believer into a battle to the death versus an animal or a gladiator. This is a overstatement of persecution compared to what happens now. I think that many Christians nowadays fear exclusion from anyone they know when they share their faith. Humans are social beings, so a ruined relationship can ruin us.
c.) I know that Mr. Scott disagrees with 8th graders not being able to do something Christian, but I still think that is a major factor in not living out our faith. We are young, and it’s hard for us to navigate this big world full of sin. Yes, there are opportunities for mission trips and the like, but I don’t think those come around that often. Also, I don’t think it’s in our nature to wake up and be like, “Let’s go help the world and tell them about Jesus!” People aren’t like that because sin has affected our minds into caring for ourselves first. We don’t think about Jesus or what He wants, we care for ourselves first, then Him.
Question 4:
ReplyDeletea) Alright, so there's many different types of people who aren't amazed by the gospel. So lets break it down.
1. There's the people who are ignorant. They know the Bible, but they flat-out refuse to believe it.
2. There's the doubters. They have heard what the Bible was, and have been ministered to, but they can't wrap their head around the magnificence of the Bible.
3. Then there's the arguers. Whenever a word about the Bible is mentioned, they spring to action and use macro-evolution to tear down the plausibility of the Bible.
4. Finally, there's the starved. They have never heard the gospel, or even know what a Bible is. They just live life according to their own ways.
b) Once again, I shall make another list of why people will not share the good news.
1. People are not believers and will not share things they don't believe.
2. People are too comfortable with their current situations and don't want to get out to share the news. Matthew 26:41 says "The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak."
3. People are scared to share the good news in fear of losing friends and being ridiculed.
c) People are not ready to live out the good news due to pride and social status. They're frightened to go out into the unknown and just want to curl up in a corner of their bedroom. It's sad but true.
Question #4
ReplyDeleteThe thing that keep us from being amazed from the gospel is we think we will be made fun of for something that everybody knows about. Also some people think that the whole book is just lies, and because it is just lies why should it be cool. The same thing applies with sharing his word others think the book is a lie and because it is a lie it is not real, so why believe something that is not real. When we tell them the good word they think that we may be crazy or something, the crazy thing is they may know stories from the Bible like David and Goliath they may think that is true , because of movies. We also don’t want to live in it’s actions, because we will be “goody two shoe” or something like that. This has happened in my life I don’t find anything amazing in the Bible because I have been a Christian since I was a kid, and I feel like I know it all. But I don’t and because I think I know it all I don’t want to share it because I feel that everyone I know is a Christian.
4a
ReplyDeleteI may not be exactly 'amazed' by the gospel because I grew up learning about it at Sunday school. I had just accepted it as fact and i never put much thought into it. It's a really bad habit to get into but that is what happens when you grow up with this taught as a fact.
4b
I think that many of us as people are afraid to disagree with other people's life choices. I know I don't really want to tell people that they are wrong. Telling people about your own opinions just seems kind of awkward all around but that doesn't mean we shouldn't do it.