Prepping for personal Christmas evangelism

In this introduction to some of our new resources, Ian Carmichael attempts to tie three resources together into one post… 

Book 1: Gospel Speech

Let’s cut to the chase. The big point of Lionel Windsor’s new Brief Book Gospel Speech is this: we Christians have a confession to make.

In other words, being a Christian impacts the way we speak, and in particular this means that the words of the gospel will not only be in our heart but also on our lips. The gospel is our signed statement of confession—the confession Paul talks about in Romans 10:10: “For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved”.

Lionel’s point is a really helpful one, flowing as it does out of his keen observations about speech in the Epistle to the Romans. It provides a wise and alternative approach to the old (and singularly unhelpful) “Are all Christians commanded to evangelize?” question.

Of course, a Christian’s confession is not a once-off thing, and it can be made verbally or in writing in an ongoing variety of ways. For many of us, in fact, giving friends and family a gospel book is a useful way of confessing or speaking the gospel to them.

And that’s where these two other new books come in handy in the lead up to the Christmas gift-giving season…

Book 2: A Very Different Christmas

At this time of year, an inexpensive, attractively produced gospel book with a Christmas theme is just the ticket. And, if you’ll pardon me for the festive pun, Rico Tice’s book A Very Different Christmas is a cracker.

Rico and his co-author, Nate Morgan Locke, invite readers to look at the four gifts under God’s tree: a gift for the world from the Father; a gift to the Father from the Son; a gift to the Father from the Son and you; and a gift to you from the Spirit. In looking at these gifts, readers will discover some very different things about God, themselves and about Christmas, and how Jesus really is everything they could ever hope for.

A Very Different Christmas is engagingly written, with a light touch of humour, and contains a gospel message that is powerfully, clearly and persuasively presented. 

It’s not a Matthias Media book. But—to be brutally honest—I wish it was. When I read an advance copy a couple of months ago I was so impressed I wanted Matthias Media to help get it into as many hands as we can. (Readers can also get it through the publisher, the Good Book Company.)

Book 3: The Book of Books

The Book of Books, by Geoff Robson, is an evangelistic book too, but in a different sort of a way. Geoff’s goal with his new book is to get people reading the Bible so that they can discover the gospel of Jesus for themselves.

To do that, he firstly argues for the significance of the Bible, pointing out that any book that has had the impact on our history and society that the Bible has had deserves to be read. He also makes a strong case for the integrity, reliability and trustworthiness of the Bible. Then he explains the structure and overarching story, before providing some practical advice about how to go about reading it in an intelligent way—not necessarily by yourself, but potentially with another person too.

The obvious Christmas gift for a friend would be to give a copy of The Book of Books, perhaps packaged with a modern version of the Bible (best not to assume they have a copy). You could say something like this:

“Hey, Jo, I’ve been reading the Bible for [x] years now, and I have to say I find it a really rewarding book to read. But I know it can also be a bit intimidating to start. So I thought you might enjoy this short book. It’s basically a little introduction and guide to reading the Bible. I’d love you to read it. Then maybe we could start reading the Bible together and talking about it, or if you prefer you could just read it yourself and ask me if you have any questions.”

All three books mentioned above are available now from: Matthias Media (AU), Matthias Media (US), 10ofThose (UK).