Right now, I am taking a class from Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary called Personal Evangelism. For one of the assignments, we are required to read Share Jesus Without Fear. It's not a bad book and the information that I've read so far is quite interesting. That being said, the author, William Fay, shared this story and it struck me the wrong way.
Fay said that he was driving home on night when he saw a horrible car accident. He pulled over and ran to the young man who was about to be loaded onto a helicopter and taken to the hospital. Here is the conversation he had with the driver:
I knelt by his head and whispered, "Are you a sinner?"
"Uhhhh."
"Do you believe that Jesus Christ died on the cross for you and rose again?"
"Uhhhh."
"Are you willing to surrender your life to Jesus Christ?"
"Uhhhh."
"Are you ready to invite Jesus Christ into your life and into your heart?"
"Uhhhh."
Fay goes on to say that he shared this story at one of his seminars a few months later and the grandmother of the young man (who died the next day) came up and thanked him because she believed that he was in Heaven.
Now, I'm not one to blow someone up for sharing their faith because I do not do it nearly enough. I just don't think what happened here was appropriate. I give credit to Fay for getting out and sharing the Gospel, but the groanings of a dying young man hardly equate understanding and accepting the gift of salvation. I also think that he may have been giving the grandmother false hope that she will see her grandson in Heaven. Of course, only God knows the heart (good Christian cliche).
I entitled this post "Shotgun Wedding to Jesus" because I think too often we try to cram Jesus down the throat of individuals and don't give them the opportunity to make the decision of their own desire (or the nudging of the Holy Spirit). The person prays the Sinner's Prayer just so you will shut up and leave him alone. I think we are at our best when we ask the Lord to give us opportunities to share and understand that salvation is dependent upon Him, not anything that we do.
What are your thoughts?
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