2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Christ's Evangelism As A Model for Us!, June 25, 2010
This review is from: Learning Evangelism from Jesus (Paperback)
For many of us, evangelism involves handing someone a tract, sharing four spiritual laws, or telling our testimony of coming to Christ. These approaches are not necessarily wrong, but are they the best way to share the Gospel? Does one size really fit all as we seek to communicate Christ with those we love and those we meet? Jerram Barrs suggests that if we want to be more biblical and loving in our evangelism, we should consider how Jesus, the greatest evangelist of all time, interacted with people during his earthly ministry.
The author says that "the theme of this book is that Jesus, the Son of God, shows the way to be in the world. It is my deep conviction that our evangelism, both in theory and in practice, must be shaped not only by the general teaching of Scripture but also, indeed most of all, by imitating the pattern of Christ." (pp. 14-15). To do this, he takes many of the encounters that Jesus has with people in the Gospels, and takes a closer look at them. In each story, he observes what Jesus did and said, the spiritual state and attitude of the person Jesus spoke with, and then, he gives a summary of what we can learn from each encounter for our own lives and witness to the people we encounter.
I found this to be a wonderful book to read. Not only does this book give great insight into the variety of ways we need to reach different people, but it also reminds us anew of our own need for the Gospel. For example, in his chapter entitled, "Revealing the Pharisee's Heart" (from Matt. 9:9-13 & Luke 18:9-14):
"Once our hearts are in the right place before Jesus, we will begin to think very differently about our fellow sinners who, like ourselves, are trapped in sin of one kind or another. In fact, it may be stated as an absolute principle: if I have a hard heart toward the unbelievers and sinners around me, then it is a certain sign that I do not have a good understanding of my own sin and unbelief, nor of my own need before Jesus for his continual mercy and forgiveness. That is why the Lord's Prayer teaches us to ask for forgiveness for ourselves just as we offer forgiveness to those who have sinned against us. I am to know that I am just like my neighbors. They need forgiveness and so do I. They need the gospel and I do, too." (pp.159).
And another similar example of how the lessons from this book help us both with evangelism and with better understanding our own relationship with the Lord occurs in the chapter about Jesus calling Zacchaeus (Luke 19:1-10):
Jesus has to make the first move with Zacchaeus if there is going to be any possibility of a relationship with him. Because he is a social and moral outcast, Zacchaeus cannot invite the Lord to his home, or into fellowship. We learn from Jesus in this encounter how necessary it is for believers to take the initiative with those who are outcasts, indeed with any who are despised or looked down on, socially, economically, culturally, racially, or even morally. In truth, in all relationships Christians should be glad to take the first step in seeking to get to know people, for this is what grace is. We did not go looking for the Lord, for no one seeks God. Rather, the Lord came looking for us." (pp. 94).
As you can see, this is more than just a "how to" book on evangelism - it is in fact, a deeper examination of the implications of the Gospel on us, how we see ourselves, how we view others, and how the Lord's grace changes all of our relationships. It also is a book that gives much wisdom for us, as we look at the way Jesus, our model and source of wisdom, dealt with people's hearts. It really fleshes out many of the Gospel stories that we have frequently read by giving the cultural and Biblical backgrounds for those stories to help make their meaning much clearer and more vivid. As you read this (and I hope you will), you will get a greater understanding of your Savior's love for you, patience with you, and mercy to you! It will convict you of your pride, your unbiblical thinking, and your idolatry. But, it will also encourage you that God can even work through you to love those you encounter!
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Jesus as the Master Evangelist, January 15, 2011
This review is from: Learning Evangelism from Jesus (Paperback)
Clearly, Jesus is the Master and Teacher when it comes to the kingdom of God, how we live in it, how we relate to one another. But Jesus is also the Master and Teacher when it comes to evangelism as well. It stands to reason that we would then carefully study what He did and how He went about the task of evangelism so that we could emulate Him.
What we find in all of the encounters Jesus had with people and in the stories He told is that there is no set pattern. Every encounter was different. Sometimes He used theological discussions. At other times he only spoke gently and graciously. On a few occasions He actually told people to go away and learn what the law really meant for them. Why was He successful? How, then, do we do what He did?
Jerram Barrs gives us some answers. Like Jesus, there are rarely cookie cutter formulas. Instead, Jerram digs into the stories to discover what is going on. He examines the events, conversations, and reactions of Jesus, the disciples, and the people. Fundamentally, what he shows us is that Jesus related to people as people. Jesus asked questions, told stories, looked at motives. From these interactions with people He was able to lead them to the truth that they needed that would show the kingdom of God to them and what they needed to do to enter it. In every sense Jesus treated people with dignity and grace, often going out of His way and against Jewish customs to do so.
There are many good tools to help us with evangelism. No doubt, each one of these tools has its' place. Certainly the sovereign Lord can use these. But Jerram Barrs takes us to the heart and asks us to emulate Jesus. It is my belief that this kind of attention to where people are at will greatly benefit Christians in there evangelism as well as those we are reaching out to.
I do have to say that I wish there was a little more guidance on how to become the kind of person who can do the things Jesus did. It is one thing to know that we should ask questions of people and listen to them. It is quite another to know how to discern the kinds of questions to ask. In the end there must be some technic and some training for developing those skills that would benefit us. Still, being reminded that it is about relating to people as persons made in the image of God is a good and necessary reminder.
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3 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Beneficial tool of reflection but limited angle, October 22, 2009
This review is from: Learning Evangelism from Jesus (Paperback)
I purchased learning evangelism from Jesus after reading "the Heart of Evangelism" by the same author. The idea of learning evangelism from Jesus appealed to me as extremely sound. But I was a bit disappointed. The author selected some accounts as representative of the evangelism of Jesus and each chapter is dedicated to pondering one account. I found that the author selected mostly accounts that were similar and support his views, with the result that the whole is unbalanced. Often, I thought that the author imported declarations in his analysis that had more to do with modern Western evangelical theology than was shown to issue from Jesus' teaching and example. But in all fairness, he makes many very good points too. Though I have been frustrated by what seems to me an obvious interpretative slant and selectiveness, it still caused me as a reader to ponder these accounts, even on points where I disagreed with the author. So, as long as someone is ready to weigh the author's points carefully and not just swallow everything (especially as it agrees with what culture wants us to make of Jesus), then the reader may find the trip beneficial. I have. The Heart of Evangelism was much better though.
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