Evangelism: 
The Joy of Sharing the Good News.

Part 12.

This week, we will look at some way to maximize the impact of your gospel conversation with transition questions.

In his book Tell the Truth, Will Metzger provides four guiding principles for turning a conversation into a gospel conversation.  

1. Take every possible chance to ask a searching question and then keep When we’re talking, we’re not learning anything.

2. One thoughtful question is worth a dozen inquisitive In other words, the “prod-and-pry” approach makes people clam up.

3. Be prepared to wait. Sometimes a long silence can be more rewarding than another question.

4. Ask what our motive is in asking question. Are we just leading someone on in order to argue or trap him, or do we really care for the person? Only a listening, loving heart can help bring down the walls.

With those guiding principles in mind, we want to establish rapport, pray for sensitivity, and ask good questions. In short: be interested in the person. Raise questions and make a point — conversations begin through listening, and by a series of questions the conversation gradually moves from common interests to values to personal beliefs. Consider Jesus’s encounter with the Samaritan woman in John 4:7-26.

Here are some general questions you can use to point the conversation in a spiritual direction.

1. Have you come to the place in your spiritual life where you know for certain that if you were to die today you would go to heaven? This one of the key transition questions used in the Evangelism Explosion (EE) method.

2. Suppose you were to die today and stand before God and He were to say to you “Why should I let you into heaven?” What would you say? (This also is from the EE method.)

3. Do you think much about spiritual things?

4. How has this event, experience, book, etc. affected your view of God?

5. Do you have a church or religious background?

6. Do you attend church services now? Why or why not?

7. For years I failed to understand what the Bible taught about how we enter heaven when we die until someone shared that with me. Has anyone ever shared that with you?

8. If you are using some gospel pamphlet or track you may introduce it in this “I’ve found most people have a Bible, but not everyone understands it. I have a little booklet that summarizes the basic message which has been very helpful to me? May I share it with you?”

A great opportunity to share the gospel is after non-Christian has attended a Christian event or read (or listened to) some Christian material. Some transition questions for this scenario could be “What did you think of it?” or “Did it make sense to you?” Then ask another appropriate transition questions such as the EE questions or others listed.

With your neighbors, the next time you ask, “How are you?” be attentive for opportunity in their response. If the person expresses a problem, listen. After a few minutes of conversation ask, “Have you ever considered a spiritual solution to that problem?”

If the person is responsive, you have an open door: “If you’re interested, I would be happy to explain what gives me the ability to put up with those kinds of problems.”

It is typical that people will reciprocate when you ask them certain questions like, “How was your weekend?” If they in turn ask you the same question you can mention, for instance, what you’re learning or experienced in church. “How about you, do you go to a church?” Let that lead into a conversation about spiritual things.

Colleagues at work are additional people who you have existing relations with.

Probably the best time to talk is during one of your breaks — lunch or after hours. Try inviting a co-worker to lunch. After talking for a while you may say something like: “Harry, I’ve known you for a few years. You know that I’m a Christian, but I don’t think I’ve ever told you how I became a Christian. I didn’t always believe this way. Have I ever shared my story with you?”

Transform your trials into opportunities to communicate your faith. Your co-workers and friends are usually not as interested in how you handle success as much as they are in how you handle problems. Use your difficulties to turn your conversations to Christ. Don’t be afraid to let people see you struggle. When a crisis hits and your friends ask how you are doing don’t simply say, “Fine.”

Instead, let them know that even though you’re facing a tough time, your relationship with Jesus is sustaining you. Then ask, “Who do you turn to during tough times?” Be prepared to share your testimony.

Another opportunity is with the person standing in line with you. Break the ice with some questions like, “It looks like we’re going to be here awhile. Are you from around here?” If not, ask where they are from originally. If the person does live in the area, you might ask if he has found a good church nearby. If not, invite them to your church — sharing something positive about it!

Life issues are common ground for all of us. Here are some ideas for transitional questions in a conversation about specific issues:

• Relational problems — “You know, Jim, I’ve learned that when someone is rightly related to God, God enables a person to relate to others in a new way. People have a lot of ideas about solving problems in life, but there is only one solution that is a permanent and can truly change us from the inside May I share with you what I’ve learned?”

• Current events — After you have been talking about the bad news in the headlines with someone, say this: “There seems to be endless bad news in the I am grateful there is one book that tells us good news as a solution to all this bad news. Sam, has anyone ever taken the time to explain to you the good news that Jesus taught in the Bible?

• Science — Just as there are physical laws that given the physical universe, the Bible says there are spiritual laws that govern our relationship with God. Has anyone ever explained that to you before?

• Business — Just as a manager is accountable to a company for the profit or loss of the business, so we are accountable to God for our lives. Unfortunately, we have all fallen short, but there’s a solution. Has anyone ever taken the time to explain to you what that is?

• Philosophy / Religion — Religion and philosophy have been defined as man’s best attempt to find God. Christianity has been defined as God’s effort to find Has anyone ever shared with you why Jesus is unique?

The gospel is like a jewel of many dimensions. As you interact and listen, consider what aspect of the gospel to emphasize as an entry point to share with your friend (Childers).

Note that these transition questions are not the gospel, but serve as a bridge to an explanation of the gospel. We will cover and memorize the gospel message itself over the next few weeks.

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