Tony Guinn & Evangelism: Seminar Reflections
Since the Gospel is one of my favorite things to talk about, I’m always surprised at how difficult it is to turn an everyday conversation into a Gospel conversation. I can turn almost any conversation into a guitar conversation, into a lawn care conversation, or into a book conversation. Why is it so hard to jump the gap and talk about Jesus? The more I get to know my church members, the more I realize I’m not alone.
That’s why I’m thankful for Tony Guinn, Pastor for Equipping at LifePoint Church here in Indy. Tony visited our church recently to help us get over that very hurdle, the difficulty of turning everyday conversations into Gospel conversations.
When he first explained how he does it, I was almost underwhelmed. He simply laid out a series of questions. “Well goodness,” I thought, “even I can do that.” But that’s the genius of it. In a culturally Christian city like ours, Tony’s three simple questions (also found in his book, 5–P Evangelism: Loving God and Our Neighbor) are so accessible that anyone can use them. In a conversational tone, he walked through these questions in a way that encouraged our most faithful evangelists and also helped those of us who feel behind the game.
First, he asks, “Can I ask you a serious question?” Eternal and spiritual things can be hard for sinners to talk about, so easing into the Gospel like this is wise, polite, and gentle. This is important in evangelism, because “the Lord’s servant cannot be quarrelsome but kind to everyone” (2 Timothy 2:24). Using the word serious is wise here because it signals that we’re headed away from cicadas and coffee varieties into weighty matters.
“The Lord’s servant cannot be quarrelsome but kind to everyone.”
Second, he taught us to ask, “How do you think a person gets into Heaven?” When Tony first shared this with me, I wondered if it was wise to assume that the person believes in God, morality, Heaven, and Hell in the first place. But the more I talk with people in south Indy, the more I see that we’re less secular than we’re said to be. Sure enough, Tony says 90% of the people he talks to give the same answer: good works. We may live like God isn’t real. And we may use him as a means to a more successful life. But our belief system still has enough of a Christian framework to make a question like this helpful.
“Once the door is open, you can share with them the wondrous truths of the Gospel.”
Finally, Tony taught us to ask, “Do you mind if I share with you what the Bible teaches?” Here, again, the wisdom is in the gentleness. Now you can be bold in sharing the Gospel without being intrusive, because you were polite enough to ease into these weighty things. Almost everyone Tony asks this question says “yes,” which opens the door to fully proclaim the Gospel. This person, whom God has placed near you for perhaps a short time, has even given you outright permission to proclaim the Gospel to them.
Once the door is open, you can share with them the wondrous truths of the Gospel: our need for forgiveness, our inability to secure it, Jesus’ work securing it for us through his life, death, and resurrection, the call to faith and repentance, and God’s great promises for those who wait for him. Those points call for an article of their own (or, appropriately, a chapter in Tony’s book). But what we needed that day was a simple way to turn conversations we have every day into Gospel conversations. In warm, plain language, Tony gave it to us.
The seminar did more than just help us. It was also a perfect example of what ITS is all about: making Bible teaching clear, faithful, and plain. The truths of the Bible are lofty, but good theological training shouldn’t produce teachers who are hard to understand. What it should produce is unassuming servants filled with the Spirit of God and a love for the people they are talking to. With God’s help, may ITS raise up many servants of the Lord just like this.
Dave Cook, Senior pastor of Calvary Baptist Church in Greenwood, Indiana
Tony Guinn, Pastor for Equipping at LifePoint Church.
Contact Tony Guinn to request a similar seminar.