Launch Pad 7: Take Conversations One Step Deeper

by Editor

We’re caught up in an epidemic of superficiality. There’s a lot of pressure to give the impression that we have it all together (#livingmybestlifenow), and social media hasn’t helped this at all. It seems that this has invaded our conversations too and made it harder to get beyond the surface level that we’re all so familiar with:

“Hi, how are you?”

“Fine, thanks. How are you?”

“Good…”

And then we part ways.

It seems quite difficult to get past this level of conversation sometimes, and the idea of getting to a place where we can share our faith seems really far off. On the one end of the spectrum is the humble ‘chat’ – which I do love, and it definitely has its place – and on the other end of the spectrum, there is the conversation where we get to share the most incredible news of all time: the Good News of Jesus Christ! How do we get from one side to the other. Often it can feel like we are like Sam and Frodo in ‘Lord of the Rings’ facing a great soggy bog that we have to somehow get across to reach our goal.

Here are a few thoughts for the journey:

  • It’s not a soggy bog! – Conversation is a beautiful gift where you get to learn more about people – that’s part of loving them well. Reimagine it as a privilege.
  • Don’t put yourself under pressure. . Enjoy being there in conversation, but listen well.
  • Get some conversational tools, (here and here).
  • Gently ask a question about value, meaning, or purpose to get the conversation moving deeper.

As you begin to converse and bait your conversation with hooks, people will share things that they value, like a cause, or things they enjoy doing – like meeting up at the pub with some friends. These are things that come up quite naturally in conversation, and tee you up to move deeper.

Once they are offered up in conversation you can ask a question about them, such as:

  • Why is that important to you?
  • Do you feel that gives you purpose? In what way? Why?

These are great to get things moving deeper!

Pray: “Lord, help me to steward conversation well, and see and use opportunities to go deeper”

Previously: Launch Pad #6 Stand Out Online (For All The Right Reasons)

Next: Launch Pad #8 The Practice of Hospitality

Scripture Untangled

by Editor

Andy Bannister was recently a guest on the “Scripture Untangled” podcast produced by the Canadian Bible Society. In the discussion, they get into some of the detailds around how the Bible and Qur’an vary in their understanding of God and all kinds of other issues too!

You can watch the complete episode here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_E1pHuRP-5c&t=8s

Alternatively you can access the programme in these places:

The Canadian BIble Society Website
Instagram
Facebook

 

 

PEP Talk With Matt Frost

by Solas

Today on PEP Talk we chat with a church pastor about how sharing the gospel is a natural part of both his church work and personal relationships. With a particular emphasis on the essential role of prayer, Matt talks with Gavin Matthews about the formal and informal elements that make up a vibrant evangelistic lifestyle.

With Matt Frost – PEP Talk

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Our Guest

After 14 years as senior pastor of City Gates Church in central London, Matt Frost moved to Cirencester in July 2009 to become pastor at Cirencester Baptist Church.  Matt loves playing cricket for North Cerney CC, praying for the sick, supporting Liverpool, sharing the good news of Jesus with all kinds of people, listening to jazz-funk, bringing change, watching films of all kinds and chatting with God. You can follow Matt on Twitter here.

His podcast “Two Pastors in a Pub” is available from Apple Podcasts.

About PEP Talk

The Persuasive Evangelism Podcast aims to equip listeners to share their faith more effectively in a sceptical world. Each episode, our hosts chat to a guest who has a great story, a useful resource, or some other expertise that helps equip you to talk persuasively, winsomely, and engagingly with your friends, colleagues and neighbours about Jesus.

SUPPORT THE PODCAST

Launch Pad 6: Stand Out Online (For the Right Reasons!)

by Editor

The gospel is public truth. The good news of Jesus is not just something to think about behind our church walls, but like the first Christians in the book of Acts, we need to take the gospel into the public square.

Today’s public square is increasingly digital, with many people in the UK spending huge amounts of time online. For sure, inhabiting the digital world brings its challenges, but it also brings wonderful opportunities. So if you’re online, especially on social media, prayerfully consider how to use your online presence as a witness for Jesus.

There are two traps that Christians sometimes fall into when it comes to social media. The first trap is to be a Digital Undercover Christian; sharing nothing at all about your faith, but gumming up your feed with pictures of your kids looking cute, or cringy memes that everybody else saw three years ago.

Some of us go the other way, plastering our social media with insanely naff Christian content or worse, utterly bonkers Christian conspiracy theories. (Why would anybody think your belief in the resurrection has credibility if you spend most your time posting about how cell phone towers cause hair loss in tortoises or something similarly inane?)

So, here are some quick, easy, and practical ideas about how to stand up for Jesus online:

  1. Pray. Ensure you’re regularly committing your online life to the Lord.
  2. Fly a faith flag. Find sensible ways of signalling you’re a Christian. (Post about a good church service you went to, or a brilliant Christian book you read, or an engaging talk you found online).
  3. Share good, thoughtful Christian content. (We’ll have a whole later instalment of Launch Pad on this, but for now, try websites like Solas or LICC).
  4. Offer to pray. If a friend shares that they’re having a bad day, why not reply and say you’ll be praying for them?
  5. Follow churches and Christian ministries, or “like” their posts; the algorithms will spot this and magnify that content.

We all probably spend a bit too much time online: but given that we are online, let’s use some of that time and opportunity for the Lord.

Here’s a prayer: Lord Jesus, please help me use my time wisely. But when I am online, please help be thoughtful, Christ-like, and a witness for you. Amen!

Previously: Launch Pad #5: Baited Hooks for Gospel Conversation

Next: Launch Pad #7 Taking Conversations One Step Deeper

The Surprising Genius of Jesus – Steve Osmond reviews Peter J Williams’ new book

by Editor

I’ve always been fascinated by the parable of the two sons, more commonly known as the parable of the prodigal son. Although I’ve never done a real deep dive into the parable, it’s one that is popular enough that if you’ve spent even a little time in church you would have surely come across it being taught in some way. I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve heard a sermon on this parable – some good, some not so good.

For those who are somewhat familiar with the parables that Jesus tells in the Gospels (the accounts of Jesus life in the New Testament of the Bible), we can often look past the richness of what is going on. Our familiarity with the parables can lead us to not grasp the depth and genius of their teaching. Admittedly, not all of us have a certificate for a PhD in Old Testament studies hanging gloriously on our wall for all to see – I certainly do not – and so the genius of how Jesus’s parables draw on Old Testament stories is easy to miss.

In what is one of the most interesting reads I’ve had in recent memory, Peter J. Williams brings an absolute wealth of knowledge to this very topic – and he does it in less than 120 pages! The Surprising Genius of Jesus: What the Gospels Reveal about the Greatest Teacher  argues that Jesus should be considered a genius, not merely because a vast number of people today claim to follow him but also because of the cleverness and wisdom of his teaching. The argument is made over five short chapters, and the focus is primarily on the parable of the prodigal son found in Luke 15:11-32 – the longest parable Jesus told – although other parables are also brought in to make the case.

The opening chapter – which alone makes the book well worth the read – explains the parable of the prodigal son while connecting it to the original hearers and the way that they would have understood it. Here already Williams starts peeling back the layers of Jesus’s genius in telling this parallel, both by the fascinating elements included in the story, but also by what Jesus masterfully omits. This is the trend throughout the book, and Williams has the skill to pull this out fantastically. Whether you are a Christian who is familiar with Jesus’s parables, or perhaps you are not – Williams makes it very hard to deny that what we have in Jesus is absolute mastery in storytelling, and someone intimately familiar with the text of the Old Testament, a point he leaves no room to disagree on through what he presents in the second and third chapters.

There is another question that Williams was sharp enough to pick up on, and – as someone who sees the value and necessity of apologetics – I’m so glad he did. Is Jesus the genius behind the parables? Or, as some have contended, are these creations of the gospel writers themselves? In a succinct and precise presentation Williams traces several arguments that point in the direction of Jesus, and away from the gospel writers as the mind behind the parables – as the accounts claim. Williams moves to a concluding chapter in which he gives what he sees as the reason behind the genius of Jesus: “But once we accept that Jesus is more than simply a particularly brilliant human, we are free to see that the coordination of Genesis and Luke 15 can arise from God’s own plan to shape the Genesis narrative with the purpose, among other things, of preparing for Jesus longest story…The single best explanation for Jesus’s genius is found at the beginning of John’s Gospel, where the Word, later identified as Jesus Christ, is described both as alongside God and as God himself.”

What I appreciate about the book is it’s brevity and accessibility, but also it’s depth. Where there are areas that are perhaps not as cogent as others, the author himself points these out, but shows how they add to the cumulative case he’d contending for.

In summary, as I consider and meditate on the teaching of Jesus Christ, The Surprising Genius of Jesus is a book that I will definitely be revisiting in the future.

What is the Meaning of Life? Part Three – Purpose

by Solas

What is the meaning of life? That’s a massive question and so we’ve dedicated not one but four Short Answers videos to it! In this episode, Andy Bannister thinks about the question of purpose. What am I here for? Does my life have any kind of purpose, or am I just a cosmic accident as pointless as a leaf in the wind? We’ll see how the purpose question can help us with that bigger question of meaning.

Part One: Identity – Part Two: Value – Part Four: Agency

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Please share this video widely with friends or family and for more Short Answers videos, visit solas-cpc.org/shortanswers/, subscribe to our YouTube channel or visit us on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook.

Support

Short Answers is a viewer-supported video series: if you enjoy them, please help us continue to make them by donating to Solas. Visit our Donate page and choose a free book as a thank-you gift!

Launch Pad 5: Baited Hooks for Gospel Conversations

by Editor

Somebody once remarked that when Jesus makes us fishers of men, the process looks more like fly-fishing than trawling! Whilst a trawler uses a vast net to corral huge numbers of fish, a fly fisherman looks to entice just one to bite by using a shiny lure. So how can we make sure that our everyday conversations contain plenty of such ‘bait’, which might lead to gospel conversations?

One obvious conversational hook is: “Did you have a good weekend?” because if the question is returned then you have an opportunity to talk about some aspect of church and faith.

Asking a friend if they’ve seen the latest film or Netflix series and if they have, what they thought of it, can also be a hook, whether the programme was good (or bad!) If the film contained a redemptive narrative, it’s an obvious bridge to the gospel. If the characters got away with wickedness, then Christians have a lot to say about justice, why it matters and what it tells us about God.

Celebrities can be profound and vacuous in equal measure! “What did you think about what she/he said last night?!” can bridge through from headlines to deeper things. Other conversational hooks can be:

  • “What are your goals this year?”
  • “What’s been the best/worst part of your week?”
  • “Do you think you have changed much?”
  • “Who has had the most influence in your life? Why?”
  • “Did you grow up in a religious home?”

But not all baited hooks are questions. You can also use statements, leaving them dangling to see if anyone ‘bites’:

  • “So many people seem to lack any purpose in life.”
  • “It’s in situations like these that I find my faith so helpful.”
  • “I found this book so frustrating.”
  • “Something at church yesterday really perplexed me” is a hook loaded with intrigue and the potential of sharing a testimony of the reality of God’s work in your life.

The three key elements in baiting conversations are:

  1. Frequently hold out ‘baited hooks’, to invite, not force conversation.
  2. Be genuinely interested in people’s responses, experiences and views.
  3. Have a clearly thought-through Christian perspective, ready for when you are given the opportunity to share.

So pray: “Lord, help me to enticingly bait my conversations this week, and help me to be ready to speak winsomely for you when someone ‘bites’”.

Previously: Launch Pad #4 Mention Something About the Difference Your Faith Makes Today

Next: Launch Pad #6: Stand Out Online, (For The Right Reasons)

The Love of God

by Editor

Maddiston Community Church is a fellowship we have enjoyed friendship with for many years. Recently, Gavin from the Solas team went down to Maddiston to speak at their morning service. The topic was ‘Living in God’s Love’ and drew three major themes out of 1 John 4. You can watch the sermon here.

The Solas webinar with Tom Tarrants, that Gavin referred to in his talk: “Consumed by Hate: Redeemed by Love” can be seen here: 

If you would like one of the Solas team to speak in your church, please do get in touch. Every week, our speakers adress hot-topics and Bible texts, in churches all over the country. If we can be of service to your fellowship, please do get in touch by clicking here.

 

PEP Talk With Kevin Elliott

by Solas

Today’s guest can relate amazing stories of adventurous missions in remote areas experiencing miracles and dramatic conversions. But even if that is not what most of us experience, we can still take from it practical lessons about prayer, following the Spirit’s leading and hospitality in our day-to-day lives at home.

With Kevin Elliott – PEP Talk

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Our Guest

Kevin Elliot is chair of trustees for the Christian charity Mission Macedonia. He makes regular mission trips to North Macedonia, and has also worked alongside churches in East Africa. With 30 years’ experience in Christian youth work and church-based outreach in the UK, Kevin also has an on-line ministry, ‘allaboutjesus.info’, teaching the four gospels through video talks. Kevin’s first book, See Miracles, was published in November 2023.

About PEP Talk

The Persuasive Evangelism Podcast aims to equip listeners to share their faith more effectively in a sceptical world. Each episode, our hosts chat to a guest who has a great story, a useful resource, or some other expertise that helps equip you to talk persuasively, winsomely, and engagingly with your friends, colleagues and neighbours about Jesus.

SUPPORT THE PODCAST

Launch Pad 4: Mention something about the difference your faith makes to one person today

by Editor

How do we move a conversation to a place where we can speak about our faith? Why not try sharing just one thing about the difference that faith makes in your life today, and trust that the Lord will guide the conversation from there.

How do we do this? I hear you ask. Let me share just a few thoughts that I hope will help you.

Step 1: REFLECT!

We first need to stop and actually think about how our faith makes a difference in our lives. So let me encourage you to pause, quiet your mind, and start thinking about your life and the difference that following Jesus makes. Think about the radical grace that God has offered to sinners like you and me. Think about the things you do, or don’t do and how your faith influences those things for the better? Think about your self-perceptions, how does God’s grace to you change the way you think and feel about yourself? Think about your relationships – how has your faith changed the way you interact with friends and family?

We need to first know and reflect on the many ways that the difference our faith makes in our daily lives before we can share that authentically with others.

Step 2: PRAY!

We can call on the Lord at any time (1 John 5:15) – so as we are in conversation with people, be actively praying that you will find opportunity to share something about the difference that your faith makes.

Step 3: LISTEN!

Ask good questions (see week 2), and then focus as you listen to what the other person says, and look for a point of connection where you can then share about the difference that your faith has made given the issue or topic they have mentioned.

Step 4: SHARE!

Here’s an example: Someone mentioned to me that they were anxious about finances as the look at the year ahead. I replied that I share the feeling in many ways, but over the years I’ve seen how God has provided for me, and so I trust that ultimately He will give me what I need – and suddenly the conversation became about God, and the difference that my faith in Him makes in my life.

Prayer: Lord, help me see the ways that you have transformed my life, and to share that with others.

Previously:Launch Pad #3 The Humble Tract

Next: Launch Pad #5 Baited Hooks for Gospel Conversations

Ballymoney – Confident Christianity conference

by Editor

Andy and I had the opportunity to head over to Ballymoney in Northern Ireland for a Confident Christianity Conference at the beginning of November. The conference was held over two days, and hosted at Trinity Presbyterian Church by Pastor David Irvine. Between Andy and I, we spoke on six different topics.

I kicked things off with an equipping talk on conversational evangelism and asking questions Jesus’ way (a great resource for this is Andy’s latest book, “How to Talk About Jesus Without Looking Like and idiot”). This is a great way to set a strong foundation for people as it gives tools for evangelism that can be used in just about any conversation, no matter what the topic. It also sets things up well for the talks that follow.

Andy then spoke on Sexuality: Is Christianity Oppressive? Which led to a lively and lengthy time of Q&A before we closed the evening. There is so much confusion and fear when it comes to the topic of sexuality given the current cultural climate – but we went away from the evening encouraged by the clarity that Andy could bring through the talk and then through the Q&A time where there were many questions around how we can practically love those around us given that we may disagree on sexual ethics.

The following morning we made the long journey across the car park from the manse to the church building to pick up where we left off. After warming up with some coffee and a time of worship, the morning saw Andy and I speak on Evangelism to the Apathetic, Science & God, Where is God in a world of Suffering?, and finally Living for God While Being in Babylon. Again, we had a great time of answering questions after the talks which ranged from practical questions on evangelism, to Islam, and science.

We look forward to visiting Northern Ireland again soon as we partner with more churches there in equipping the Saints for the work of evangelism. If your church would benefit from a day or halfday of encouraging, equipping and training in sharing the gospel in today’s world – then we’d love to bring a Confident Christianity conference to your city, town or village. We work with churches in every corner of the UK, and would be happy to hear from you about what would be most helpful for your church.

What is the Meaning of Life? Part Two – Value

by Solas

What’s the meaning of life? That’s a question every thoughtful human being has asked themselves. Yet it’s so big, it can be hard to wrestle with—and it’s certainly too big for one short video. Hence we’ve made a short series of four! In the second Short Answers film in this mini-series, Andy Bannister explores the question of value. What are we worth as human beings: just the sum of our chemical parts, or is there more to us? And if there is, what’s that value based on? How does answering the value question help us with the meaning question? Watch and find out!

Part One: Identity – Part Three: Purpose – Part Four: Agency

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Please share this video widely with friends or family and for more Short Answers videos, visit solas-cpc.org/shortanswers/, subscribe to our YouTube channel or visit us on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook.

Support

Short Answers is a viewer-supported video series: if you enjoy them, please help us continue to make them by donating to Solas. Visit our Donate page and choose a free book as a thank-you gift!

Launch Pad 3: The Humble Tract

by Editor

Giving out a short leaflet or “tract” was once a very popular way of sharing the good news. However, in our post-Christian culture, the humble tract seems to have fallen into disrepute. Yet a good, short, printed explanation of the gospel can still be a useful item in the Christian’s toolbox!

Tracts are not a poor substitute for relational and conversational evangelism, but can be a helpful addition to it. If you carry a few topical relevant tracts around with you and keep on the lookout for opportunities to share them, it’s amazing what can happen. Whilst it’s still useful to have access to more substantial apologetics books for when tracts provoke deeper questions, don’t dismiss these handy conversation starters!

There are some brilliant tracts out there. There are seasonal ones around (Christmas, Easter, Halloween); tracts built around famous stories (the Titanic, Eric Liddell); the arts (such as Handel’s Messiah) and tracts themed around contemporary events (Coronations, World Cups, Olympics etc). Christmas tracts fit inside Christmas cards, while Halloween themed tracts can be given out along with handfuls of sweets to youngsters playing ‘trick or treat’. They might only be looking for sugary confectionary, but they can also be offered the words of life! Look out for election-themed ones later in the year too.

Tracts can also be left anywhere. On our podcast, Adam White talked about placing tracts in beer boxes, petrol pumps and inside books—the possibilities are endless. When left in accessible places, and done so prayerfully, it can be yet another way of sharing the gospel.

The evangelist Roger Carswell has a treasury of stories about responses to tracts he has written. His favourite is about a man who picked up a tract at work, whilst cleaning a train in Malvern. That led him to faith in Christ, and he wrote to Roger via the address on the tract and they corresponded for many years as he grew in faith.

Want to get try using tracts? Check out the brilliant range of attractively produced tracts are available from our friends at 10ofThose.

Perhaps it’s time to reembrace the humble tract! With every tract you pass on pray: “Lord, I don’t know whose hands this tract will end up in, but I ask you to bless them and to speak to them through your word by your Spirit, Amen.”

Previously:Launch Pad #2: “Wondering How to Start Conversations About Jesus?”

Next: Launch Pad #4: “Mention something about the difference your faith makes to one person today”

Confident Christianity at Christ Church Newland

by Editor

Andy Bannister drove to Christ Church Newland for an evening of ‘Confident Christianity’ with the churches there. Andy had to drive home after the event, arriving in the early hours of the morning – yet despite his tiredness, he was enthusing about these churches the next day. Their thoughtful engagement with the talks, their enthusiastic support of Solas and their highly perceptive questions made for a really great evening.

The video above is Andy’s talk on the Uniqueness of Jesus. The other talk from the evening, on conversation evangelism is also available and the Q&A session was filmed as well. These are available on link below.

PEP Talk with Nathan Rittenhouse

by Solas

One of the most effective methods for sharing the gospel is through personal conversations. But in our modern world, many of us struggle with ‘personal’ and ‘conversation’ for a variety of reasons. Today on PEP Talk we discuss the issues and struggles we have with conversation, personal connection and empathy in an age of digital distraction and polarised public discourse.

For further reading, books mentioned in this episode include Disruptive Witness by Alan Noble and Reclaiming Conversation by Sherry Turkle.

With Nathan Rittenhouse – PEP Talk

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Our Guest

Nathan Rittenhouse is a speaker, preacher and podcaster. After double-majoring in Physics and Philosophy, Nathan studied theology and pastoral studies in several institutions and holds an M.Div from Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary. Nathan has been preaching and speaking in the field of Christian apologetics at churches, campuses, and conferences for the last 8 years. He is the Co-Founder of Thinking Out Loud. Nathan, his wife Erin, and their four children enjoy the great outdoors and are grateful for the wisdom, support, and opportunities to serve and grow in their local church.

About PEP Talk

The Persuasive Evangelism Podcast aims to equip listeners to share their faith more effectively in a sceptical world. Each episode, Andy Bannister (Solas) and Kristi Mair (Oak Hill College) chat to a guest who has a great story, a useful resource, or some other expertise that helps equip you to talk persuasively, winsomely, and engagingly with your friends, colleagues and neighbours about Jesus.

SUPPORT THE PODCAST