The Gospel Coalition

One of the reasons I feel blessed to be a student at Southern Seminary is the opportunity to study under such a superb faculty.

In the past couple of years, Dr. Tom Schreiner has become one of my favorite professors. He is a terrific scholar (check out his commentary on Romans). He is also very warm and personable. I can’t wait to dig into his brand new theology of the New Testament.

I am thankful for Dr. Schreiner’s endorsement of Holy Subversion:

The Apostle John warns us to “keep ourselves from idols.” Trevin Wax in this incisive, convicting, and elegantly written book considers the false gods that insidiously corrupt our lives.

I was reminded afresh what it means to confess that Jesus is Lord and that glorifying God expresses itself in the concrete realities of daily life. What a joy to read a book that is theologically faithful and practically compelling!

- Thomas R. Schreiner
James Buchanan Harrison Professor of New Testament Interpretation
The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary

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Top Posts this Week at Kingdom People: Series on Ichabod Spencer’s Evangelistic Strategy

• Timely Truth: Ichabod Spencer’s Approach to Evangelism
• Evaluating Strengths and Weaknesses in Spencer’s Evangelism
• Implementing Spencer’s Evangelism for a Postmodern World

8 years ago today…

“I define the gospel in my Axioms message as being the good news that Jesus Christ came from heaven, died on the cross having lived a perfect sinless life, bore then in His body the full penalty of our sins, was raised from the dead. Those who repent of sin and place their faith in the perfect work of Christ can and will be saved. There’s the gospel.”

- Dr. Danny Akin, President of Southeastern Seminary, from a June 2009 interview at Kingdom People

How can Christians today learn from the example of Ichabod Spencer’s evangelistic efforts?

How can we implement some of his strategies in our personal evangelism?

There are four main insights that we can glean from Spencer’s sketches and apply to our current context.

Discern.

First, Christians should observe the person to whom they are witnessing. We must discern whether or not this person is a true believer in Christ.

In a cultural context where many profess faith and show little signs of true conversion, this area of discernment is absolutely crucial.

We must also discern what stands in the way of people following Christ.

Do they have a bad church experience in their background?

Are there outside influences that keep them from Christ?

Do they have intellectual reservations about Christian truth claims?

Decide.

Secondly, we must decide what course of action to take. Spencer did not merely discern the spiritual state of the people he visited. He decided on a course of action and immediately entered into conversation based upon that course.

Too many Christians think of sharing the gospel merely in terms of formulas and tracts that help one cover the right information. At times, these methods will be useful.

But we would do well to follow Spencer’s example and tailor each conversation for the person before us. We may have to decide whether or not we should begin by sharing our personal testimony, telling the story of Jesus, using apologetics in making a case for Christianity, etc.

Devote.

Spencer devoted time to people. He was effective in evangelism because he was there. He saw evangelistic opportunities as vitally important and was willing to devote all the time necessary to answering questions.

We can learn from Spencer’s example by imitating his passion for people. We should be willing to devote the time to others who have questions about the Christian faith.

A Calvinistic understanding of election should not lead us to the idea that “God is not a beggar.” Instead, it should embolden us to continue witnessing to people, even if they have rebuffed our initial efforts.

Direct.

Lastly, we should direct people to the correct response to the gospel.

Churches should always have a public invitation that accompanies the preaching of the gospel. This invitation might be done in a variety of methods – the altar call, an after-church meeting, a discipleship class. Spencer utilized the method of “inquiry meetings,” in which the people who heard the gospel would be directed to a meeting time for personal questions and answers.

No gospel presentation is complete without directing the lost person to their responsibility before God. We are to call people to repentance and faith.

Conclusion

Ichabod Spencer’s approach to evangelism deserves to be rediscovered in our day. Spencer demonstrates sincere love for the lost, an urgent sense of the nature of salvation, and a healthy skepticism of spiritual enthusiasm without genuine conviction of sin.

Despite the differences between his cultural context and ours, we can still learn much from his example. Specifically, we should discern the needs of the lost individual, decide on a course of action in our evangelistic efforts, devote as much time as necessary to the person, and then direct people to obey Christ by repenting of sin and trusting in him.

Yesterday, we began looking at pastor Ichabod Spencer’s approach to evangelism in the 19th century. Today, I would like to evaluate some of the strengths and weaknesses in Spencer’s evangelism. Tommorrow, I will offer some practical insights that we can apply to our own witnessing efforts.

Strengths

Devotion of Time

One of the strengths evident in Spencer’s evangelism is the amount of time he is willing to devote to each person. To Spencer, nothing is more important than the lost person to whom he is witnessing. Many of the people in these sketches speak highly of Spencer’s insistence.

“You have given me much of your time,” says one man. “Your patience has not been worn out with me. You have done what few men could do…” (48).

In this area, Spencer resembles the Apostle Paul reasoning in the synagogues every week, continuing to press upon his listeners the claims of Christ.

Rational Apologetics

Another strength in Spencer’s approach is his willingness to engage in rational apologetics. Spencer understands that intellectual obstacles must be removed in order for people to accept the truth of Christianity.

“I wish ministers in their sermons would employ this way of reasoning more than they do,” confesses one young lady (218).

Yet Spencer also realizes that apologetics can only go so far. The private example of the individual is vitally important. Truth must be embodied, not merely spoken.

The Importance of Community

Furthermore, Spencer sees the community as an integral part of coming to knowledge of the truth. When one of his listeners desires to go away and consider salvation all by himself, Spencer counsels against it. The man disregards Spencer’s advice, but when he returns, he admits:

“I found my own heart the worst companion I could have. If I cannot come to repentance in the workshop, I am sure I never can alone” (68).

Engaging People at Multiple Levels of Education and Intellect

Another strength in Spencer’s approach is his ability to engage people at a number of intellectual levels. At times, he throws out highly sophisticated arguments. At other times, he simplifies matters for those who are less theologically astute.

He also recognizes the danger of letting doctrinal differences between Christians distract from the heart issue that is at the center of his attention (236). Because he believes that salvation is more than mere mental assent to propositions, Spencer continually focuses on the heart.

“You must have more. You must trust him. You must receive him as your own Savior, and give yourself to him” (97).

There is no wedge between doctrine and experience. He expects these two aspects to blend powerfully.

Reliance on the Holy Spirit

The most important insight that one can learn from Spencer’s approach to evangelism is his reliance on the Holy Spirit. He expects to see genuine conviction in the life of a sinner. Because he realizes that the Spirit is responsible for convicting and regenerating a lost person, he understands the inherent weaknesses of his own role.

“No man can preach so powerfully as the Holy Spirit,” he writes. “It is vastly important to know when to stop” (83).

Weaknesses

When it comes to weaknesses in Spencer’s method, there are only a few.

The Transition to a Pluralistic Society

The first weakness is not an inherent flaw in his own approach, but concerns the application of his method to our culture today. It becomes very clear upon reading Spencer’s book that the people in his day who were rejecting God knew precisely what God they were rejecting.

The cultural Christianity of the day brought with it an entire list of prevailing assumptions. Many of these assumptions have disappeared today, making the task of evangelism somewhat more difficult.

Take the idea of “religion” itself, for example. In Spencer’s sketches, the subject of “religion” is seen as a proper and noble topic of conversation. The bad connotations associated with “religious” or “religion” are not present. In fact, Spencer can say “public profession of religion” in the way we would say “public profession of faith.” The antipathy toward institutionalized Christianity is not yet widespread in his day.

Downplayal of Key Doctrines

The only weakness in his methodology is his downplaying of key doctrines. Spencer wants (rightly) to keep the focus on Jesus, and he (rightly) demonstrates a noble trust in the power of the Holy Spirit to convict people of Christian truth.

But at times he takes this desire too far. He tells one lady to “be a Unitarian, if the Bible will make her one” (120).

Spencer is right to point people to Scripture, but it is counterproductive to use the element of surprise in a way that downplays doctrine. When one lady demonstrates an aversion to public baptism, he tells her,

“Dismiss all that from your thoughts entirely. You need not be baptized. You need not join the church” (137).

He then writes,

“Many convicted sinners are kept from salvation by some mere trifle” (138).

Is baptism a mere trifle?

What about the costs of following Jesus?

Should these costs not be explained from the beginning?

One observes in Spencer’s method a hasty dismissal of key Christian doctrines in an attempt to secure initial conversions. While Spencer clearly expects such doctrines to be pressed upon the Christian’s heart after conversion, he is unwittingly setting the stage for future evangelistic endeavors that do not result in Christian conviction.

Tomorrow, I will offer some practical ways we can implement parts of Spencer’s evangelistic method.

Ichabod Spencer served as the pastor of Second Presbyterian Church in Brooklyn, New York from 1832-54. During his ministry there, he made more than 20,000 pastoral visits, most of which he summarized in the form of brief sketches. Seventy-seven of these sketches were made available in the book, A PASTOR’S SKETCHES: Conversations with Anxious Souls Concerning the Way of Salvation, which ran through several editions and is now in print again today (Solid Ground Christian Books, 2002).

Spencer’s initial influence was widespread, but his work has been largely forgotten today. Today, I would like to outline the approach to evangelism evidenced in Spencer’s sketches. Tomorrow, I will evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of Spencer’s evangelism, and then on Thursday, I will offer a strategy of evangelism based upon the insights learned from Spencer’s faithful work as pastor and evangelist.

Spencer’s Approach to Evangelism

It is difficult to summarize Spencer’s approach to evangelism because he did not impose one single method upon every evangelistic encounter. In his Sketches, Spencer uses a variety of arguments in order to present the gospel in a compelling manner. Even though one specific methodology might not be easily observable in his work, there are a few themes that are common to his approach.

Timely Truth

If one had to point out the common thread that runs through each of Spencer’s evangelistic appeals, it would be “timely truth.” Spencer’s approach to evangelism centers on the “truth” of biblical revelation at the heart of the Christian worldview.

Yet this truth is “timely” in the way that he presses the claims of Christianity upon his listeners in a variety of ways. In reading his Sketches, it quickly becomes clear that Spencer starts off each evangelistic encounter by discerning the spiritual state of the person to whom he is witnessing. He decides on the best course of action only after making some initial observations.

For example, in the first of his sketches, he speaks with a young man. Early on in the conversation, Spencer realizes that he must provide a defense for the existence of God. He does not use this approach with people who are already convinced of God’s existence. But in the case of a skeptical seeker, Spencer realizes that he must provide space for the claims of Christ to be pressed upon his listener. He cannot begin his approach by saying “Turn to God” if the listener does not yet believe in the God to whom he must turn.

The Element of Surprise

Another theme that runs through Spencer’s evangelistic efforts is his utilization of “surprise.” Spencer does not bore his listeners (or readers either!). He constantly uses the arguments of people against themselves. One man says,

“You seem to be fond of turning the tables on me” (24).

It is clear that Spencer does not fear a strong debate. Though many evangelists today avoid direct confrontation at all costs, Spencer engages people winsomely, a tactic which holds the listener’s interest.

The Urgency of Repentance

Spencer also stresses the urgent nature of repentance. One sketch centers on a well-intentioned man’s advice to a lost person to continue taking time to consider Jesus. Spencer dismisses such thinking:

“He ought to have told you to turn from sin to God instantly, embracing Christ in faith, not to keep on in your wicked rebellion,” he says forcefully (85).

This sense of urgency comes from a strong passion for the lost, not the desire to manipulate people into making quick decisions.

An Empathetic Spirit

Spencer’s empathetic spirit comes out in a number of sketches. In telling the story of a woman with an abusive husband, Spencer admits that at times he had to turn away and weep (148).

Reference of the Scriptures

Another part of Spencer’s strategy is his reference of the Scriptures. Spencer is a biblical evangelist. He does not push his own opinions onto people. Neither does he focus attention on his own personal testimony of conversion. When speaking with people about the gospel, he constantly goes back to the Scriptures. In fact, he believes that the Word is essential in piercing the heart of a lost person:

“There are some Scripture arrows which we should always have in our quiver, because they are sure to hit” (88).

Discernment of Genuiune Conviction

One other theme in Spencer’s approach to evangelism deserves mention: the ability to discern religious enthusiasm from genuine conviction of the Holy Spirit. While he is not against all revival services or evangelistic preachers, Spencer remains skeptical of the “fruit” that comes from such events.

“Mere excitements of mind on the subject of religion, however powerful, unless they arise from the known truth of God, are never safe,” he writes (130).

Spencer rejects any evangelistic methodology directed by what lost people think would be best for them. He states:

“Convicted sinners are very poor judges of what ‘will do them good.’ The very things which they think they need, are often the very things which are snares to their souls” (124).

While Spencer remains utterly committed to personal evangelism, he sees weaknesses in the revivalist methods of his day, and he chooses instead to focus upon the evidence of genuine conversion brought about by the Holy Spirit.

Idolatry is a popular sin, but an unpopular subject. Some theologians believe that idolatry is at the root of every sin. What is idolatry? Simply put, it is exchanging the glory of God for the glory of something else, whether it be people or possessions.

You Are The Treasure That I Seek: But There’s a Lot Of Cool Stuff Out There, Lord (Discovery House, 2009) by Greg Dutcher is an accessible book on the subject of idolatry that accomplishes three things.

First, he exposes the hidden places of our hearts in order to bring us face to face with our own idolatry. Much of his book attempts to peel back the layers of our hearts to show us where we are infected with idolatry.

Next, Greg urges us to see the importance of fighting against idolatry. His diagnosis of our condition is unflinchingly negative, but that merely serves to motivate us to fight against idolatry with every fiber of our being. He writes:

“The battle against idolatry is a fight for our lives, the lives of others, and, most importantly, the reputation of Christ himself. I invite you to learn more about this syndrome, its pathology and its remedy, and join me, another recovering idolater, on a journey of eternal significance.” (16)

Greg frequently returns to the idea of the “idolatry syndrome.” This syndrome flares up every time we desire to find our passion and fulfillment in something other than God himself. Our pursuit of unworthy substitutes cuts us off from our ever-worthy God.

At the same time, idolatry cuts us off from other people. Greg points out:

“Idolatry cuts us off from one another. All of us are locked into personalized prisons of our own making. Is it any wonder that we’d rather chat online with a total stranger than have a day-to-day relationship with our next-door neighbors? Idolatry kills community.” (52)

Finally, Greg exposes the deceitfulness of sin. He portrays idolatry as a stealth hunter that seeks to capture us as prey. But Greg doesn’t leave us merely with truths about idolatry. He leads us back to the cross of Jesus Christ as the antidote to our sinfulness. Jesus conquers our idolatries and frees us from their enslaving grip.

You Are The Treasure That I Seek is a short book that would be terrific for a small group Bible study. The publisher includes good reflection questions that should foster good discussion. If you are tired of battling individual sins and want to get at the root problem, pick up this book. There is plenty of ammunition that will help you in your battle against idolatry.

“The ‘gospel’ is the good news that through Jesus, the Messiah, the power of God’s kingdom has entered history to renew the whole world. Through the Savior God has established his reign. When we believe and rely on Jesus’ work and record (rather than ours) for our relationship to God, that kingdom power comes upon us and begins to work through us. We witness this radical new way of living by our renewed lives, beautiful community, social justice, and cultural transformation. The good news brings new life. The gospel motivates, guides, and empowers every aspect of our living and worship.”

- Jim Belcher, Deep Church: A Third Way Beyond Emerging and Traditional

Creator of all things,
true source of light and wisdom,
origin of all being,
graciously let a ray of your light penetrate
the darkness of my understanding.

Take from me the double darkness
in which I have been born,
an obscurity of sin and ignorance.

Give me a keen understanding,
a retentive memory, and
the ability to grasp things
correctly and fundamentally.

Grant me the talent
of being exact in my explanations
and the ability to express myself
with thoroughness and charm.

Point out the beginning,
direct the progress,
and help in the completion.

I ask this through Christ our Lord.
Amen.

- Thomas Aquinas

To see this prayer translated in Romanian, click here.

Christian George describes himself as a writer, speaker and PhD student. I read and reviewed his book Sex, Sushi, and Salvation: Thoughts on Intimacy, Community, and Eternity (Moody, 2008) last year and thoroughly enjoyed it.

I am glad that Christian enjoyed Holy Subversion: Allegiance to Christ in an Age of Rivals and I’m grateful for his endorsement:

In this book, Trevin Wax returns us to a God-centeredness displayed in the Scriptures.  He reminds us that faithfulness is more important than success, humility more desirous than fame, and Christian unity can be achieved even in the face of great diversity.

I highly recommend this for anyone seeking an authentic relationship with the God who transforms our lives, our passions, and our world.

Christian George – author of Godology and Sex, Sushi, and Salvation: Thoughts on Intimacy, Community, and Eternity