Leading Many To Christ
The following studies contain basic biblical convictions & principles that one needs in order to make a decision to be baptized into Christ and follow Him. You will likely not lead these studies exactly as they are written. In studying the Bible & leading someone to Christ, you probably will not use every verse here, & you will hopefully use many that are not presented. Each person has different needs & is at a different place in their spiritual journey. These do not need to be followed in a formulaic way or presented in some particular order, although the Cross study is presented early in this series since it is the ultimate motive for all others. There is “homework” suggested at the end of each study, this could be a gauge of someone’s eagerness, if they are not putting in time and energy into seeking God on their own, be wary of proceeding with them. You may need to come up with your own unique study for someone, & you may need to break a study into more than one session. Don’t follow a formula, follow the Spirit! Pray for guidance & know your bible well, seeking to deeply love each person. Time should be spent with someone outside of the bible studies in order to build friendship and trust, you are trying to bring them into the family of God - making them your sister or brother, not just a member of a religious group! These studies are meant to be a guide to help someone make an informed decision about the lordship of Jesus in his or her life, in the end it’s all about Jesus! You will inevitably adapt your own style, scriptures and questions, but hopefully this will help you have the confidence to go out and be an effective ambassador for Christ!
(II Cor. 5:20)
Introduction: Spiritual Conversations, Seeking God
Lesson One: Jesus and the Word: Foundations for a relationship with God
Lesson Two: The Cross
Lesson Three: Lordship/Discipleship
Lesson Four: Sin & Repentance
Lesson Five: Light & Darkness
Lesson Six: Faithful to the End—Holy Spirit, the Church, Counting the Cost
Spiritual Conversation/Seeking God
As an ambassador of Christ (II Cor. 5:20), one of the toughest things about reaching out to someone is getting the relationship from ‘just friends’ to a deeper, more spiritual level. How do you know if someone is open to changing their life for Jesus? Here are some helpful tools so you can “let your conversation be always…seasoned with salt” (Col. 4:6). Remember, be genuinely interested in learning more about someone and they will open up to you! “Love never fails” (I Cor. 13:8).
Your best tools are the BIBLE and PRAYER. The Bible is our sword (Eph. 6:17)—learn to use it well. We each must be “a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth” (II Tim. 2:15). And never under-estimate the power of praying for your friends—our prayers are powerful and effective (James 5:16).
Do not underestimate the value of good old-fashioned conversation with your friend before you begin formal Bible studies. Have lunch with them. Have coffee with them. Ask questions... and then LISTEN to what’s on their heart before you jump in with all the answers! You can then open up the Word on the spot without doing a formal study series with them. You can often find out if your friend is open to changing their life by simply showing them one or two scriptures and giving them a simple challenge. See how they respond... are they eager and humble to change according to the Bible?
Often the best conversations start off on something unrelated to God or the Bible. Relationship issues (dating, family, friends, etc.), problems with school, feeling stressed, depressed, lonely, or guilty. Sometimes someone is questioning/doubting what they believe. If your friend is in one of these situations, ASK how they’re doing and be a listening ear! With all these situations, PRAY that the Spirit will guide your conversation to turn to spiritual matters…look for an opportunity to share something from the Bible as this may reveal how open they are at this point in their life.
Ideas for questions you can ask your friend:
- “Tell me about your religious background growing up. Did you go to church? How did it help (or hurt!) you?” (Share your own background, too!)
- “Do you feel like you have a relationship with God? How’s it going right now?”
- “What’s your view of God—what is he like?”
- “What is your view of Jesus? Son of God? Just a good teacher? What do you think he was like as a person?”
- “Do you read the Bible? What have you read? What’s your view of the Bible? Is it from God or man? What role do you think the Bible should play in our lives?”
Ideas for Scriptures or mini-studies you can share with your friend if…
…they need to learn more about Jesus:
-Mini Hebrews study: Hebrews 1:1-3, 2:9-11, 2:14-18, 4:14-16
-Mini John study: John 1:1-18, claims of Jesus about himself: Jn. 4:10-14, 4:25-26, 5:16-30, 6:35-40, 7:17, 8:54-59, 10:31-33, 14:1-9, 18:36-37.
…they need to start seeking God whole-heartedly:
-“Seeking God” study: Acts 17: 22-27, Acts 17: 10-11, Jeremiah 29:10-13
-Three Matthew studies on getting serious:
-Matthew 7: 7-12, 7:13-14
-Matthew 7:15-19, 7:21-23, 7:24-29
-Matthew 6:25-34, 13:44-46
…they need to get more urgent for God:
-Luke 18-19—Compare and contrast Rich Ruler and Zacchaeus, how they responded to Jesus. What are you holding back from God?
-Mark 2:1-12—The Paralytic—He overcame obstacles to get to Jesus because he wanted to get healed! What obstacles are holding you back? We are spiritually paralyzed without Jesus.
Conclusion: Set up a study with them as soon as possible (no longer than a week hopefully) in order for them to seek God.
Homework: Get a bible (help them to get one if neccesary): go over the scriptures you did with them on their own.
Jesus & the Word:
Foundations for a relationship with God
Goals of this study:
1) to establish that Jesus and his Word together form the route to a relationship with God,
2) the Bible must be our standard,
3) get them reading the Bible on their own.
Intro: This study can be useful for the non-religious and religious…you can adapt the points you emphasize and the specific scriptures you use to the needs/background of the person. Someone with very little faith in God or the truthfulness of the Bible will need additional studies to help them find faith but this is still a good starting point.
I. God came down to us through Jesus— Hebrews 1: 1-3 (alternate passage: John 1: 1-18)
Briefly discuss what each verse means…ask them to tell you what they think it means and help them out if it’s not clear.
-God has always been the initiator with us, starting w/ his prophets, now through Jesus.
-“exact representation of his (God’s) being”
Jesus was both GOD and MAN. We see God through Jesus. So the question is: what does Jesus (his life, his teachings) reveal to us about God?
II. God reached out to us through Jesus—I John 4: 9-10
So why did Jesus come? 1) To show God’s love for us. 2) To pay for our sins.
God deeply desires a relationship with us!
III. God speaks to us through Jesus—John 12: 44-50 **KEY PASSAGE**
-vs. 50—Jesus brought words of God to us.
-vs. 48—What will judge (‘condemn’) us? Jesus’ words. So what should the STANDARD for our lives be? Words/teachings of Jesus. Today, his words found in Bible…therefore, the BIBLE must be our standard. (You may want to ask them what it means when something is your standard—it is something you measure everything you do by.)
-We often make other things our standard: feelings, opinions, parents, friends, preachers. Explain how we tend to do that. Bible must be our standard above anything else.
Let’s look more at what it means to make the Bible our standard…
(Choose from the following three scriptures—you may only need to use one.)
Possible verse: John 8: 31-32
-Just believing isn’t enough—must actually hold to Jesus’ teachings.
-For those lacking faith in God/Jesus/Bible: notice the promise here that if you obey Jesus’ teaching, you will find out if this stuff is true—try it out!
Possible verse for religious person who needs to put Bible into practice: Matthew 7: 24-27
-Wise man builds house on rock => the man who hears Jesus words and puts them into practice.
Possible verse for religious person following tradition rather than Bible: Mark 7: 1-8
-God’s Word over our traditions—Bible is standard, not religious traditions we grew up with.
II Timothy 3: 16-17
-ALL Scripture from God—whole Bible, not just the parts that make us feel good.
-USEFUL for our lives: it is meant to be used! It is relevant. Are you using it?
Acts 17: 10-12
-What made them noble?
- 3 “E’s” – (Eagerly, Examined, Everyday) – they were urgent, thorough, & didn’t take someone else’s word for it … even an apostle!
*More useful verses for Word Study: II Peter 1: 20-21 (Men wrote in the Bible what God wanted in there!), Hebrews 4: 12-13 (The Word will cut and change you!)
Conclusion: God has clearly reached out to us through Jesus: are you reaching back right now? How can you? Are you willing to make the Bible your standard? What will be difficult about that for you? (Share personally from your own life.) Will you be a Berean—a man/woman of noble character?
Homework: read Bible daily. Suggest goal: read through book of John (or Acts?) 1-2 chapters per day (looking for eagerness & consistency; not volume)
The Cross
*Note: This is the ‘why’ of all that we do—the most important study. The key to leading this study is to lead it passionately and to make it personal for your friend. Most people know Jesus died for the sins of the world but they have never taken personal responsibility for the fact that their sin killed Jesus!
Intro: Romans 5:6-10
-Four words describing us when Jesus died for us: powerless, ungodly, sinners, enemies. We were NOT God’s “buddy” when Jesus died for us. He died for enemies! Many people died on crosses... Jesus took the place of his enemies on their cross. That’s what makes this so amazing!
Matthew 26:36-46
This shows the humanity of Jesus, He was sorrowful and troubled. Have you ever felt sorrowed to the point of death? What was the saddest time in your life. He was not Superman jumping confidently onto the cross, he was a man fighting to do the will of God.
C.f. - Luke 22:44—“sweat was like drops of blood” (!)
Matthew 26:47-56
Betrayed by a friend.
Legion = 6,000 soldiers. Why didn’t Jesus call the 72,000 angels to save him? Because of YOU. You would not have had a chance if he called those angels. (c.f. – Gen 19 – Sodom & Gomorrah – 2 angles destroy entire cities)
Matthew 26:57-68
Sanhedrin: 70 men, beating and spitting on Jesus.
C.f. Isaiah 52:14—he was beaten beyond appearance as a man.
Matthew 26:69-75
Disowned by a best friend. Have you ever been betrayed by someone? Describe it.
Matthew 27:11-26
They chose a notorious prisoner over Jesus. YOU are Barabbas: Jesus took your place!
Describe flogging, reference Mel Gibson’s “The Passion of the Christ” if they have seen it.
Remember: God is watching as his son goes through all this.
Matthew 27:27-31
Roman soldiers hitting his head repeatedly with a club, driving in the crown of thorns.
Matthew 27:32-44
Leaders mock him as he hangs dying.
Matthew 27:45-50
“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
What does it mean to be forsaken? =Abandoned. Why did he say this?
3-part explanation:
1) I Peter 2:21-25—Jesus took on your sin.
2) II Cor. 5:21—Jesus became sin (a sin offering).
3) Isaiah 59:1-2—Sin separates from God.
JESUS WAS SEPARATED FROM GOD, ABANDONED, FORSAKEN.
Who’s sin caused him to be separated? Not just ‘the whole world’ but YOUR SIN!
How does this make you feel?
So what do you need to do now?
Back to I Peter 2:21-25—Die to sin; follow in Jesus’ footsteps!
Conclusion: Jesus died specifically for you, taking your place with what you deserved.
Homework: Re-read the account of the crucifixion on your own, in addition to what you are reading everyday in John
Lordship/Discipleship
Intro: At this point your friend should be eagerly reading the Bible on their own. I do not recommend proceeding with someone that isn’t willing to seek God on their own time (maybe do another study to show them the importance of personal Bible study and prayer if this is an issue for them).
How should we respond to the love Jesus has shown for us on the cross?
Matthew 22:34-35
Love him back with everything you have! So how do you show this kind of love?
1) He must be Lord of your life. 2) You must become his disciple.
The first ‘gospel’ sermon: Acts 2: 22-24, 32, 36-41
God made Jesus both Lord and Christ.
Christ = Messiah, the Savior
Lord = Master, Ruler
- Many ppl want Jesus as their Savior... few are willing to make him the Lord of their life.
Matthew 7:21-24
Jesus being your Lord means more than just saying words, more than being religiously active. Must put his words into practice!
John 8:31-32 - Hold to teachings = really his disciple.
- What is a disciple in your own words? Simple definition: a learner/follower. What is difference b/w disciple and Christian?