Handling Responses

Handling Responses to the Salvation Message

After you know your friend has heard the four topics always shared by Peter and Paul in the Book of Acts(Problem – Answer – Invitation – Benefits), you might ask, “what do you think?”

If the answer is positive, like “sounds good to me,” you could create an opportunity for your friend to make a confession of faith.  If the person confesses faith, then you have a basis for moving on to follow-up,   baptism, and ongoing nurture. 

If the answer is negative, like “I could never accept that,” then you hope the person will be willing to discuss the reasons for their response.  You could open the door to this discussion by asking something like “what part don’t you agree with?”

Note: asking that question is better than asking “why not?”  The question “why not” might lead to areas that may be truly bothering the person, but may not be helpful in talking about faith.  By asking “what part don’t you agree with,” it is more likely that the conversation will continue on topics that are worth talking about.

If the person is willing to reveal the reasons for rejecting, you can face these reasons together as friends.  Ideas for proceeding are found at the link meeting objections.

The fact that the person rejects the gospel does not mean you did anything wrong.  For example, in one survey believers indicated they had rejected the gospel message an average of seven times before becoming Christians.  If the person you shared with rejected the gospel, you can leave the conversation with two comforting thoughts:  First, the gospel is now in the person’s brain — and the gospel is the power of God unto salvation.  Second, the person’s “seventh time” is now closer.

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