Becoming a Contagious Christian (Paperback)

Chapter One

OVERVIEW

In Session 1 you will:

1. Describe what Relational Evangelism is not

2. Identify the components of Relational Evangelism

3. Revisit the biblical basis for evangelism

4. Begin an Impact List of relationships to build

RELATIONAL EVANGELISM

1. AUTHENTIC

2. __

3. __

4. VERBAL

And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? (Romans 10:14)

5. __

6. TEAM-ORIENTED

A person's coming to Christ is like a chain with many links. There is the first link, middle links, and a last link. There are many influences and conversations that precede a person's decision to convert to Christ. I know the joy of being the first link at times, a middle link usually, and occasionally the last link. God has not called me to only be the last link. He has called me to be faithful and to love all people.

7. "PUTTING OTHERS FIRST"

VIDEO: WHY BECOME A CONTAGIOUS CHRISTIAN?

1. As you watch the video, listen for the reasons why you would want to become a contagious Christian.

2. Write your responses in the space provided below.

BEGIN AN IMPACT LIST

1. Carefully consider the people in your life to whom you could give concentrated effort in the attempt to bring them to the next step in the evangelism process.

2. List the names of these people in the space below.

Please note that these names will change as these people become Christians or move out of your sphere of influence. This list, therefore, should be an ongoing part of your lifelong evangelism strategy.

Remember it is important to develop no-strings-attached friendships with the people on your list. Let them know by word and action that they matter to you, regardless of whether or not they agree with the Christian message.

PRAYING FOR THE PEOPLE ON YOUR IMPACT LIST

Begin to pray for the people on your Impact List. Ask God to work in their lives and to give you wisdom on how to effectively reach out to them. In praying for them, keep in mind the following three areas:

Them Ask God to:

Pull them toward Himself

Open their eyes to the emptiness of life without Him

Help them see their need for forgiveness

Remove the confusion they have about Him and the life He offers

Help them grasp the meaning and importance of the cross of Christ

Open the person's heart to God's love and truth

You Ask God to:

Help you live a consistent and attractive Christian life

Make you authentic and honest as you deal with life's ups and downs

Give you wisdom in knowing how to approach the relationship

Expand your knowledge so you will be ready to define and defend the Gospel message

Grant you appropriate boldness and courage

Use you to help lead this person into a relationship with Christ

Us Ask God to:

Cause depth and trust to grow in the relationship

Open doors for spiritual conversations

Guide those conversations in pace, frequency, and content

SESSION SUMMARY

In this session you:

Described what Relational Evangelism is not

Identified the components of Relational Evangelism

Revisited the biblical basis for evangelism

Began an Impact List of relationships to build

SUGGESTED READING: CHAPTERS 1-3

(Becoming a Contagious Christian companion book)

For more information on the topics we will cover in each session, we will provide a "Suggested Reading" section from the companion book for this course, Becoming a Contagious Christian (by Bill Hybels and Mark Mittelberg, Zondervan, 1994).

For this first session, we encourage you to read the first three chapters. As you'll see, they illustrate and expand upon the principles we're discussing in this course. Other reading suggestions from this book will be listed at the end of later sessions.

Chapter 1 reinforces the value that all people matter to God. Chapter 2 explores the overwhelming rewards of becoming contagious Christians. And Chapter 3 spells out a biblical formula for influencing our worlds for Christ: HP + CP + CC = MI. The first element, HP, refers to high potency (chapters 4-6 in the book lay out three character traits to help us achieve this). The second is CP, which means close proximity with those we hope to influence-we've got to get close to them. The third is CC, clear communication of the gospel message itself. As we combine these three things, God will use them to produce MI, maximum impact on others.

PREVIEW OF REMAINING SESSIONS

Session 2-Being Yourself

Session 3-Building Relationships

Session 4-What's Your Story?

Session 5-What's His Story?

Session 6-Crossing the Line

Session 7-Putting It Together

Session 8-Objection!

Course Goal: To Become Contagious Christians!

Christians who are equipped with the knowledge and skills needed to effectively communicate our faith.

Continues...