You have just said to your prospect . . . "Jesus is waiting to come into your heart. Will you open the door? Will you let Him come in?" He makes no reply. Great forces are at work inside him. His soul is a battlefield. The Holy Spirit and Satan want his decision. You wish you could jump into his heart and help him, but you can't. So you do the one thing you can do . . . press him to make a decision . . . one way or the other.Sound familiar at all?
CAUTION: You can't leave him in "no-man's land." The Longer you wait, Satan's advantage increases. So silently start your countdown . . . 5-4-3-2-1. That's it. You wait no longer. Lay your hand on his shoulder (or arm if a man is dealing with a woman) . . . and with a semi-commanding voice say . . . "Bow your head with me."
Note: Do not look at him when you say this. He won't act if you do. Instead, bow your head first. The sight of your bowed head, the authority in your voice, the touch of your hand on his shoulder and the witness of the Spirit combine to exert terrific pressure. Out of the corner of your eye you will see him look at you with wonder. Then, as his resistance crumbles, his head will come down in jerks. When your hand feels the relaxation of his shoulder, you'll know his heart has yielded.
Note: If your man is going to say, "NO," he has to do it now. You've brought him to the place of decision under terrific psychological pressure. If he can't bring himself to receive Christ, he'll say to you . . . "I can't do it." Then deal with him as you would the person who says, "NO."
[Emphasis and punctuation are original.]
17 comments:
With gratefulness to God above, this does not sound familiar at all! What an abomination.
This is exactly how is it done among churches that are in tightest orbit around Hammond. I have been a part of this kind of "soulwinning" before and despise it.
Yes, it sounds familiar. This was one of my Personal Evangelism textbooks in Bible College along with Lovett's other book "Visitation Made Easy."
My wife went to an Assembly of God Bible College, and they used the books "Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God" by J.I. Packer and "Tell the Truth" by Will Metzger. I've never quite understood that.
Ben,
I haven't read this yet, but I think I have dealt with its sequel, "Perseverance Made Well-Nigh Impossible."
I was at FBC Hammond from 1975 until 1997 and I have no idea what you are talking about!
Just kidding now--nice find and no doubt old Jackie boy had this guy's book on his shelf.
Matthew
Oh yes, I've heard that before but thankfully it is a distant memory: NBT, summer of 1997.
Well, I wish I could say this were unfamiliar to me. Whether it's the flaming objects of the karate demonstrations with a quick transition to a pressure-packed invitation, or the Christian university's drama team that came down into the pews to compel people to the front who had raised their hands but refused to "come forward," to any number of other less poignant moments that have faded by now, these memories left a lasting impression with me.
In other words, this is the stuff of mainstream revivalist fundamentalism (even if they're sophisticated enough not to articulate it this bluntly), not just the Hyles crowd.
Paul, thanks for the NBT recap. I remember hearing stories of burning garbage cans during sermons that were enough to scare any junior higher into filling out a decision card.
Joey,
What Bible College?
I'm working on the sequel right now, if anyone's made easy, but I can't get the title. Maybe someone could help:
Martyrdom Made Easy
Evangelizing in the Streets of Tehran Made Easy
Sacrifice for Dummies
That is the surest way to make a two-fold child of hell.I fear for the people who have the blood of sinners on their hands because of that kind of filth.
Did you find the excerpt from C.S. Lovett's book on your own, or did you lift it from Mark Dever's book?
C'mon Ben, you can't post these quotes without posting the corresponding photos. While reading the description was helpful, it wasn't until I saw the black and white images, where it became abundantly clear how to "win a soul."
Ben,
I wouldn't give revivalist Fundamentalism all the credit. See things like "Heaven's Gates and Hell's Flames" and such dramatic "conventional" outreaches.
Shannon,
What photos? I'm only looking at a photocopied spread from the book--the pages with the passage I quoted. I'd love to see the photos.
Pearson,
By no means do I suggest revivalist fundamentalist is the sole proprietor of these abominations. Just a willing participant. You don't mean to say that because other sects do it too that fundamentalists shouldn't repudiate the propagators of this stuff, do you?
Nope. Definitely agree they should be graciously repudiated on all fronts.
Nothing better then preaching to him the Gospel
Nothing better then preaching to him the Gospel
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