Friday February 7, 14, 21     4 – 7 PM Witnessing in San Francisco neighborhoods.

Saturday February 1, 8, 15, 22      12 – 4  PM Witnessing in San Francisco neighborhoods.

Location subject to change because of possible rain. Call 510-282-5629 on morning of outreach for location.

SOME FINAL THOUGHTS ON STREET PREACHING

Dear Christian friends,

This is the conclusion of our eight part series on New Testament preaching from the book of Acts. Preaching is found throughout the Bible. Noah was called a preacher of righteousness. The Old Testament prophets loudly proclaimed God’s Word in public places, and were usually persecuted for it. John the Baptist was a preacher. He told people to “Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matt. 3:2).

Jesus was also a street preacher. He began with basically the same message: “The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe the gospel” (Mark 1:15). His voice was loud enough that thousands of people could hear him. After His resurrection, He told His followers “that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem” (Luke 24:47). He told them “you shall receive power, after the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you shall be witnesses unto me” (Acts 1:8).

Throughout the New Testament, His followers obeyed His commandment to preach the gospel throughout the world. They preached in public places, to Jews and Gentiles, to rulers and ordinary people. After Saul persecuted the Jerusalem church in Acts 8, “they that were scattered abroad went every where preaching the word.”

Today, many professing Christians say that preaching is not appropriate for our age — especially any mention of Hell, sin, repentance, or judgment. There is no Biblical basis for such a view. Certainly, we live in an age of “moral relativism.” Many unbelievers think that Christians are intolerant because we believe that Jesus is the only way to God and that those who reject Him will be punished in Hell. It is tragic that so many people today consider themselves “evangelical Christians,” yet they reject the clear command of Jesus to go into all the world and preach the gospel of repentance and remission of sins.

Many modern evangelistic methods are attempts to “witness” for Jesus without offending anyone. Some avoid any mention of sin, repentance, or judgment and speak only of God’s love, forgiveness and healing. Was Jesus wrong when he said, “Unless you repent, you will all likewise perish” (Luke 13:5)?

Some like to misquote St. Francis: “Preach the Gospel at all times and when necessary use words.” Jesus found it necessary to use words, as did Peter, Paul, and everyone else in the Bible (even Balaam’s donkey)! Do we think we are better than Jesus? Do we think that if Jesus and Paul had used our modern evangelism methods, they could have avoided persecution? Paul said, “All who will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution” (2 Tim. 3:12). It is impossible to present the gospel in a Biblical way and avoid all persecution.

At the other extreme, there are Christians who are preaching in a way that seems designed to be as offensive as possible. They insult people with their crude, harsh, condemning language and rejoice when they are persecuted. However, they are actually bringing reproach to the gospel. Non-Christians watch them, and decide they never want to become Christians. Christians watch them, and decide they never want to become preachers.

I do believe that we need to understand the audience we are preaching to, and adapt our message to that audience. I could read Jonathan Edward’s famous sermon, “Sinners in the hand of an angry God” to a modern audience, but it would not have the same effect it did in his day. A lot of people today have a hard time with the concept of Hell, and think it is unjust for God to send “good” people there, simply for not believing in Jesus. I agree with Ray Comfort that, instead of repeatedly telling people they will go to Hell, we need to use the law to help awaken their consciences. People need to realize that they have sinned, that their sin is serious, and that God is just and must punish sin. If someone viciously murdered our child, we would want them to be punished severely. We would be angry if the judge simply let the murderer go free. In the same way, it is reasonable for a just God to punish law-breakers severely. Once they understand this, they can appreciate what God did for us in sending His Son to die in our place.

On the Streets

Our 45^th annual SOS-San Francisco outreach was held on July 10-13. Chuck Girard, Paul and Noreen Coca and Tim Moon played music on all four days. About 15-20 Christians joined us each day. On the first day of our SOS-San Francisco outreach, Wed. July 10, we witnessed at 16^th and Mission. While Chuck was singing a worship song, a demoniac grabbed one of our $700 amplifiers and threw it on the ground before running away. Fortunately, he did not throw the amplifier at Chuck or anyone else. While the protective cover came off, the amplifier still works.

Mike witnessed to Louis as he got off the bus. He asked if he could pray for him and Louis asked him to pray for his depression. Mike shared the gospel, prayed with him and invited him to City Impact. Mike also witnessed to three teenage boys. Two of them took gospel tracts and one refused the tract, but they all listened as Mike shared the gospel with them. John witnessed to three Catholic men in their early 20’s. They were smoking marijuana. They said they knew they were going to Heaven, but John told them they needed to trust in Jesus Christ, not religion, to save them.

On Thursday, we witnessed at Fisherman’s Wharf. Mike spoke with two brothers, 16 and 24, who said they were raised in a Christian home. They asked him about homosexuality. Mike responded that God created us male and female, but we all have been affected by the fall. When Mike mentioned that homosexuals were frequently molested as children, the older brother agreed. The were receptive to the gospel, and Mike encouraged them to read the New Testament.

On Friday, we witnessed on the Embarcadero near the Ferry Building. This is a large open space with hundreds of people passing by, going to and from the ferries. A 25 year old man confronted John while he was preaching. He said, “what is the evidence that Christianity is true?” John began to give him evidence, such as the Messianic prophecies in the Old Testament that were fulfilled by Christ. The man kept insisting “that’s not evidence.” Mike started talking with him so that John could continue preaching. Mike shared about the fact that everything with complex design must have a designer. The man continued to reject all the evidence he was shown and walked away.

On Saturday, we again witnessed at Fisherman’s Wharf. This area was extremely busy, with many thousands of people walking past us. Mike and Joan witnessed to Vindige, 20, who is from India. She attended a Catholic school there. Mike told her that Jesus is the only mediator between God and man, and that she did not need to go through a priest to have her sins forgiven. She agreed. They gave her a New Testament and encouraged her to read it.

On Friday July 19, we witnessed at the Embarcadero. Mike witnessed to three people in their early 20’s, Hanna, Luciano, and Jose. They were from Modesto and had been drinking. Hanna and Jose had a Christian background and some understanding of the gospel. Luciano was Catholic. They were very friendly and asked lots of questions. Mike tried to answer their questions and explain the gospel message. He told them that we are only saved by faith in Christ, not by religious works. He encouraged them to read the Bible and find a good church that preaches the true gospel.

On Friday August 2, we witnessed at 16^th St. and Mission. Mike witnessed to Brandon, 28. He did not seem to be born-again but had been around Christians and carried a pocket New Testament with him. He asked where Jesus spoke about Hell. Mike shared several scriptures with him. He explained that God is holy so must punish sin. He sent His Son to die for us so we wouldn’t have to go to Hell. Mike also witnessed to Michael, whom he had also seen many times. Mike explained the gospel to him and asked if he wanted to receive Christ as his savior. He said he did so Mike prayed a “sinner’s prayer” with him. Mike gave him a Bible and invited him to attend City Impact church.

A Final Word

Thank you for your prayers and financial support for this ministry.

We still have three openings in our ministry house. We are looking for spiritually mature young men with a serious desire to evangelize San Francisco.

San Francisco’s rainy season has begun. On many days, we are not sure whether or not it will be raining. When rain is likely, we witness at Powell and O’Farrell St.  There is a large awning over this sidewalk, but the building owner does not like us and the police lieutenant has threatened to arrest us several times, even though we are not breaking any law. Please pray that God will give us wisdom in handling this difficult situation.

I hope many of you will join one of our outreaches or witness in your own community.