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SOS Monthly Newsletter - March 2007Street Preaching in the New TestamentDear Christian friends, (Continued from the Feb. 2007 Newsletter. Edited from www.soulwinning.info/sp/lessons/01.htm) We now turn our attention to the New Testament. Beginning with John and moving to our commission to the whole world we are instructed in Mark 16:15, “Go ye into all the world, and preach the Gospel TO EVERY CREATURE." Our job is to PREACH THE GOSPEL TO EVERY PERSON IN THE WORLD. Simple logic will show the best way to accomplish this is to find where the most "people" are in one place at one time and proclaim the message loud enough for them all to hear. "Whom we preach, WARNING EVERY MAN and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in CHRIST JESUS." (Colossians 1:28) The first PREACHER in the NEW TESTAMENT was JOHN THE BAPTIST. Once again, his preaching lacked comfortable buildings, music, entertainment, etc. John was an OPEN AIR PREACHER: "In those days came John the Baptist preaching in the wilderness of Judea, and saying, REPENT YE, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." (Matthew 3:1-2; see also Mark 1:4; Luke 3:3) Matthew says Jerusalem, and all Judea, and all the region round about Jordan came out to hear John preaching (Matthew 3:5-6). John was baptizing in the river Jordan. Jews who traveled back and forth to Galilee refused to take the direct route through Samaria (John 4:9), but rather went to the Jordan River and followed it up to and from Galilee, so John picked out a place to preach repentance and baptize at a place of heavy traffic, with large crowds. There is not much "one-on-one witnessing" talked about in the BIBLE; the emphasis is on PREACHING TO CROWDS. We are not saying to stop witnessing one-on-one. We do it; we encourage it. However, the method most commonly mentioned in the Bible yet ignored by most Christians today is OPEN AIR PREACHING. In the 4 Gospels, covering 2-3 years of CHRIST’s ministry, we find only about THREE cases of personal witnessing: Nicodemus, the woman at the well, and Zaccheus. The Gospels spend much more time pointing out CHRIST’S dealings with "MULTITUDES:" Matthew 4:25; 5:1; 8:1; 18; 12:15; 13:2,34; 14:14; 15:10,30-35,39; 17:14; 19:2; 21:8,11… JESUS’ most famous sermons were delivered OUTDOORS. For example, the sermon ON THE MOUNT (Matthew 5,6,7). In Luke 6:17 he preached to a "great multitude" in "the plain" (outdoors). The "Olivet discourse" (Matthew 24) was delivered on the Mount of Olives (outdoors). In Matthew 13 His well known parables were preached to "great multitudes" by "the sea side" (JESUS was a "beach preacher".) He sat in a boat and taught the multitude on the shore. Matthew, Mark, and Luke devoted most of their attention to Jesus’ ministry in Galilee, where He lived most of the time. But several times a year, all Jews would go to Jerusalem for the Feasts (see Exodus 23:14,17). Christ would go to Jerusalem and PREACH to these large crowds gathered there. The Gospel of John is concerned with these trips of Jesus to Jerusalem during these feasts. The PASSOVER is mentioned in John 2:13; 6:4; and 12:1. The feast of TABERNACLES is mentioned in John 7:2. Another feast is mentioned in John 5:1. HANUKKAH is mentioned in John 10:22. JESUS CHRIST came to Jerusalem to cleanse the Temple (at least twice) and PREACH TO THE MULTITUDES. "In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and CRIED, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink." (John 7:37). JESUS commanded His apostles, "What I tell you in darkness, that speak ye in light, and what ye hear in the ear, that preach ye upon the housetops." (Matthew 10:27) His apostles carried this out in the book of Acts. On the day of Pentecost (Acts 2), we find one of the greatest examples of STREET PREACHING of all time. The charismatics read Acts 2, see tongues, and say: We need to speak in tongues like they did in Acts 2. Some fundamentalists read Acts 2 and see 3000 added to the church in one day, and they say: We need to have large church growth like they did in Acts 2. What is missing is the recognition of the delivery and method of STREET PREACHING found in Acts 2. TONGUES drew a crowd, Peter preached REPENTANCE (Acts 2:38), and the church grew. "Now while Paul waited for them at Athens, his spirit was stirred in him, when he saw the city wholly given to idolatry. Therefore DISPUTED he in the …market daily.” (Acts 17:17) Yes, the apostles’ evangelism often involved "DISPUTING" and judgment, not just preaching GOD’s love (see Acts 6:9; 9:22,29; 11:2; 15:2,7; 17:2; 18:19,28; 19:8,9; 28:23; see also Neh. 13:11; 17,25; Proverbs 28:4; Ephesians 5:11; I Thess. 2:2; Jude 3,9; see also examples in Matthew 22; John 7,8). Why the market? Crowds! The apostles wanted to get the Gospel to the most people at one time, so they went to the markets where crowds gathered, and disputed, preaching the kingdom and wisdom of GOD in the open air. In conclusion, we can focus on how things "could" be. Public open air preaching of the Gospel and the Kingdom of GOD is imperative for the fulfillment of the GREAT COMMISSION. This is an attainable goal within each of your groups, fellowships, and churches. It is not unreasonable to think that of every 50 or so believers ONE could do this work. The help of GOD is available, and when you add them up a city of say the size of San Francisco would net at least 500 men to shoulder the plow in this great harvest field. The impact of such a group would be immediate and powerful. GOD’s mind and being would be shown to all. "He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully." (2 Corinthians 9:6) ON THE STREETSOn January 13 we witnessed at UN Plaza. It was a beautiful, sunny day. Paul and Noreen Coca and Mark Whitehead played music. Several people from Victory Assembly of God in Ceres gave out sandwiches and hot chocolate to street people. Loretta and Jesse witnessed to Ramon, a Catholic who was quite receptive to the gospel. Mark prayed with Frank, who said he wanted to be saved. About a dozen people responded to altar calls that afternoon. On February 10 we witnessed in Berkeley. Tim Moon and Phil Taylor ministered that afternoon. It rained almost the whole day. Our canopies kept our musicians and sound system dry. Loi, May and I passed out tracts while standing under the awning across the street. Despite the rain, a lot of people were on the streets that afternoon. They all heard about Jesus.
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