Without access to the Scriptures, a people group is significantly hindered from establishing healthy churches. We must prioritize getting all of the Bible into the hands of all people.
The most effective type of evangelism with people of other faiths is through established friendships. To share the good news, you need to establish a good relationship.
Knowing about world religions is helpful, but evangelism must take place if that information is to see transformation in the life of another. Consider these three biblical steps to evangelize someone of a different faith.
In Islam, the forgiveness of sins through Christ is not realized since Muhammed is their final prophet. They focus on their efforts, actions, and submission to Allah as their believed path to salvation.
The “religious” practices of cults may seem close to the truth with their similar terminology. However, anything that deviates and twists the truth is a lie.
Cultish communities base their claims on deceit and false teachings. When we know the gospel and how to interpret God’s Word, we avoid aligning with dangerous movements.
Due to the Old Testament, most Christians know more about Judaism than other religions. Judaism is a religion that believes in the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob but denies Jesus as the Messiah.
The goal of Buddhism is to achieve enlightenment in order to address the problem of suffering. While the path may look different for every Buddhist, there are some common concepts that unite them.
Buddhism is a religion that dates back to one man searching for liberation. His discovery and teachings would lead many others on a path to enlightenment.
India’s beliefs and gods were so varied that “Hinduism” was used to unite all the varying expressions of religion in that country. Discover the worldview of those in this religion, which comprises over 1 billion people worldwide.
A worldview is simply how someone views the world. Within that framework, even if it is never thoroughly clarified, a person interprets and reacts to everything in life.
Our world has thorough religious systems that significantly alter how people live and societies function. Learn what comprises a religion and how it should influence one’s decisions.
When encountering other religions or cults, it can be difficult to share Christ with people of religious backgrounds effectively. It is important to understand shared language and differing beliefs.
As we undertake the Great Commission, we will share the gospel with people firmly convinced of another religion’s claims. Discover the differences between the major world religions and how the Word interacts with them.
As soon as Jesus made His triumphal entry into Jerusalem, He intentionally targeted the religious community. Followers of Jesus must continually evaluate if we are fulfilling the call He has placed upon us. Mark 11:1-25 11 Now when they drew near to Jerusalem, to Bethphage and Bethany, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of his disciples 2 and said to …
The religious leaders of the day became increasingly frustrated because Jesus didn’t minister in the way they deemed appropriate. We must stop trying to fit Jesus into our religious boxes and realize that He came to do something new.
Colossians 2:16-23 Three Dangerous Self-Made Religions The Apostle Paul saw three dangerous heresies present in the church at Colossae and we experience them today. Biblical discipleship is sufficient and doesn’t need any alteration. When we are dissatisfied with the finished product of the gospel, we can easily become subtle heretics. As disciples, we must acknowledge the dangers of altering …
Mormonism Travis Agnew taught a NSU course on Mormonism on Jan. 11, 2015. You can watch the video above or read the notes below. History Mormonism’s founder is Joseph Smith, Jr. born in Vermont 1805. His father was known for hunting buried treasure and his mother was highly superstitious. He was disturbed by the numerous denominations of Christianity and wanted …
Have you ever wondered about the beliefs of Jehovah’s Witnesses? Here is a summary of their history and beliefs. History Begun by Charles Taze Russell (1852-1916) in 1872. His family was a part of a Presbyterian church in Pittsburgh. Russell had difficulty accepting the doctrine of an eternal hell. This prompted him to deny eternal punishment, the Trinity, the deity …
Ever been interested in seeing what Judaism looks like today? Here’s an intro for you.
Ever wanted to get a decent understanding of Buddhism in a few minutes? This will get you started.
In teaching world religions, I often search for an effective resource to help communicate the complex. Spending short amounts of time on world religions leaves people with often more questions than before. As I searched for videos for world religions so that others could see and hear the religion in action, the best resource I found was something that the …
The Complex Spiritual Nature of Our World His name was Yohei. It was the year 2000 in Tokyo, Japan. He told our mission team that Jesus, Allah, or anybody else who claimed to be God was probably correct. They all led to the same place, and we had everything inside of us that we needed to reach God. Upon questioning …
My dialogue with some Jehovah’s Witnesses has continued as of late. After a couple of encounters, I sent my new friends an email with some questions and asked for their leaders to help me understand some discrepancies within the New World Translation. When they showed up back at the house last week, they said they didn’t have adequate time to talk about …
The following is a message I sent to a friend who is a Jehovah’s Witness. We have had a couple of conversations about faith and the Word, and our time together has caused me to do some further study. As a resource to you, I wanted to post some of my findings. I want to thank you again for …
There is nothing like a Saturday. Utilizing sidewalk chalk to draw Creation. Creating makeshift trailers to haul things around the yard. Sitting in the shade discussing Michael the Archangel, the Deity of Christ, and Greek manuscripts. Ah, life. That’s how Saturdays have been for us lately. I was approached one Saturday by some Jehovah’s Witnesses as my children and I ran …
In the times we live, it is hard to have respectful disagreements. In this age of tolerance, people are intolerant if you say your beliefs are correct. There is no absolute truth except the absolute truth that there is none (are you getting the problem here?). In these current cultural wars, oftentimes, theological differences are accepted for the sake of …
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.” -John 14:6 (NASB) His name was Yohei. It was the year 2000 in Tokyo, Japan. He told our mission team that Jesus, Allah, or anybody else who claimed to be God was probably correct. They all …
This week’s book is God is Not One by Stephen Prothero, professor of religion at Boston University. Prothero is not an evangelical. His book is not a Christian world religions book. I think it is always wise to read people who think differently than you to see if your faith really has substance.
I read this book, because his introduction blew me away. Here was a very well-respected non-evangelical speaking of world religions with some actual solid reasoning abilities. In a post-modern world where everyone wants to claim that all religions are the same and maintain religious tolerance, Prothero thinks that type of thinking is ignorant and dangerous. A simple look at these religions show that there are remarkable differences in what they believe and how they practice. I literally was jumping out of my chair reading the introduction because someone in a different thinking community spoke solid wisdom concerning this religious dilemma.
Below, you can hear Colbert interview him concerning the book. Very intriguing:
While attempting to answer the God Question in our day and time is truly difficult, it is not impossible. Religion attempts to address the God Question and provide a belief framework by which a person can live. Religion may be defined simply as “the center of life that gives meaning.” Religion is a framework for life. Each religion attempts to …
I’m teaching RELI 101: Sacred Texts & Ideas at Lander University again next semester. The time for the class is Tues-Thurs from 1:15-2:45. I’ve had some questions about the course, so I thought I would provide some answers this morning. What does “Sacred Texts & Ideas” mean anyway? I didn’t come up with the title, in fact, before me, no …
Yesterday, we concluded the Crossroads series with a message entitled, “The Messiah Tension.” Many people are confused really if Jesus meets the qualifications of the long-awaited Messiah. I talked about three major objections to Jesus in my message before getting to the real objection. The real objection to following Jesus for many people is they simply don’t want to follow …
Today was week 2 in the Crossroads series. The message today centered on “The Muslim Salvation.” In my message, I spent half of the time giving the history of the prophet Muhammad and the foundation of Islam. For the second part of the message, I explained five key differences between Islam and Christianity. We had a recording glitch yesterday, so …
Today was the first day of the “Crossroads” series. The message topic was “The Jewish Faith.” The praise band did great today. It is such an honor to be led by worship by those guys and gal. Their exaltation of Jesus being the only way led to my message in such a simple way. The message got across before the …
Three of the major world religions all claim the same source of beginning. Judaism, Christianity, and Islam all hold Abraham to be the man from whom their religion began. But all three of these religions arrive at a dramatic crossroads at the person of Jesus Christ. The message, ministry, and life of Christ forever separated these movements. The Crossroads series …
Its 8:10. I am giving my final exam for RELI 101 at Lander. Don’t the students look so studious. They have worked so hard, they are all going to make A’s on this one. Well, maybe not everyone… It’s been an honor to teach this crew this semester. They have really thought through some sacred texts and ideas this semester. …
I taught my final class for the Fall semester at Lander today. It has been a whirlwind of a semester. I haven’t posted a ton on the class, because honestly I have been so busy just preparing for the class! That’s why I was crushed to find out the other day that my lecture notes were lost when my computer …
This week is busy. Its busy with good stuff though, but alas it is still busy. Here’s just a rundown of the stuff that’s keeping me alert this morning: CD Duplication – The company mastering our CD and duplicating them is deep in the process of it now. North Side Worship “The Time is Now” album is in mass production …
Well, I have gotten a lot of questions from friends and family about my first week of class teaching at Lander, and there is a good reason I haven’t been able to blog about it yet: because I was teaching my first class at Lander this week. This week was extremely crazy for a few reasons: class did finally start, …
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