Sharing Your Faith
What the Bible says about sharing your faith:
Old Testament
"How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of the messenger who brings good news, the good news of peace and salvation, the news that the God of Israel reigns!" -Isaiah 52:7
"Publish his glorious deeds among the nations. Tell everyone about the amazing things he does." -Psalm 96:3
Jesus
"Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age." -Matthew 28:19-20
"Again he said, 'Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I am sending you.'" -John 20:21
New Testament
"But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." -Acts 1:8
"For I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes—the Jew first and also the Gentile." -Romans 1:16
Four Ways to Share Your Faith (with your words)
God / People / Jesus / Response
Remembering these four words not only tells the story of God, but also how the story of God intersects with the story of the person you are sharing with!
GOD– God created the world and it was perfect. The Creator, who is eternal and perfect, declared His Creation good.
PEOPLE– Despite living in this good world, Adam and Eve disobey God. This disobedience introduces sin into the world. Every bad or painful experience traces back to this first sin and what comes next.
JESUS– God loves the world and each of us. To fix and restore our broken relationship with God, God sends Jesus (his Son) to rescue us. Jesus lived a perfect life and took our sins on himself when he was crucified. When he rose from the dead, he defeated sin and death on our behalf.
RESPONSE– We see throughout the New Testament that we are to respond in three ways. (1) Repent, which means to admit our sin and turn from it. (2) Believe that Jesus Christ is the son of God who died on our behalf and rose from the dead. (3) Choose to accept his grace and follow him. Accepting his grace is a one-time decision and often looks like a prayer asking for forgiveness, giving your life to God and inviting him to be the Lord of your life. Following is a daily decision to live in response to what Jesus has done and how he calls us to live.
15-Second Testimony
The 15-second testimony helps us to naturally and specifically name how Jesus has impacted our story.
To come up with your 15-second Testimony, finish the sentences and follow the instructions below!
Before Jesus…. Choose one or two words that describe what your life was like before Jesus.
In Jesus…. Share what you found in Jesus. Forgiveness? Hope? Purpose? Rescue?
And Now… Describe what your life is like because of Jesus.
Example: Before Jesus, I attached my value to what other people thought of me, but in Jesus I found real love and chose to follow Him; and now, I have joy knowing that what God says about me is true.
5 Minute Spiritual Story
Using the 15-second testimony as a starting point, take some time to write down the key moments of your spiritual story. Preparing your 5 minute spiritual story will help you be prepared to share different aspects of it as opportunities arise!
Before. Write 3-4 sentences describing your life before or without Jesus.
In Jesus. Write 3-4 sentences describing what you came to realize Jesus did for you and how you responded to him.
And Now. Write 3-4 sentences describing your life since you gave your life to Jesus.
Three Circles
Three circles is a visual guide that, with practice, you could even learn to draw it while in a conversation with someone.
If you find yourself in a conversation about what you believe, what it means to be saved, what is the Gospel, etc… this visual sets up what could be a life-transforming decision for the person you are speaking with!
Here is the photo with a description of what each of these items represents below
Circle on the left. This represents God’s design for the world and creation. He created it to be good and for humanity to be in harmony with him.
Arrow with the person moving away. This shows People’s fall and sin. It’s pointing to the circle on the right.
This circle on the right represents the brokenness of the world that we all experience.
Arrows going away from the circle. These are our attempts at getting out of the brokenness. These are some of those themes that we’ve talked about in our stories, things like success, relationships, being good enough, etc. They are drawn squiggly to suggest that they bounce us back to the brokenness eventually, like a bungee cord.
Bottom Circle. This is the Jesus circle. It has a few elements including the name Jesus and the arrows pointing up and down. This is the idea that Jesus came to earth, died on the cross for our sins, and is now in heaven.
Arrow to Jesus circle and man kneeling. This is the confession or response piece. It’s surrendering to God.
Crown on the circle. This is here to show us that it isn’t just a magic prayer. That it is about surrendering ourselves to King Jesus and following him as his disciples.
Arrow up with Don Ball Cartoon. This is about the new life available in Jesus. It’s about being restored to God’s original design and living a new life in his goodness.
Note: We have a four-part video series that takes a deep dive into each of these four ways! Click here to see it!
Four Ways to Share Your Faith (beyond your words)
Love the family of believers
In John 13:34-35, Jesus says, “So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.”
Committing to being a part of a community that loves, supports, prays for, and lifts up each other is a way that Jesus Himself says others will know that you follow His ways and is a great opportunity to share your faith.
Love the people who are not a part of the church
In Matthew 5:43-45, Jesus teaches us to love those who do not love us: “You have heard the law that says, ‘Love your neighbor’ and hate your enemy. But I say, love your enemies![r] Pray for those who persecute you! In that way, you will be acting as true children of your Father in heaven. For he gives his sunlight to both the evil and the good, and he sends rain on the just and the unjust alike.
One of the most counter-cultural things you can do is love those who you do not agree with. Followers of Jesus should be the radical people who know what they believe without wavering on the truth, yet take the call of loving others seriously! When we do this, we are showing the outside world the transforming work of Jesus.
Follow Jesus 7 Days a Week
In Romans 12:2, Paul commands the church in Rome to live differently than the culture they found themselves in. He says, “Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.”
Influencing others for Christ is a lot more challenging if your life looks exactly like the life of an unbeliever. Following God’s Word and modeling your life after Jesus will raise some questions and curiosity from those who observe the way you live! The more culture goes against the ways of Jesus, the more your life will shine!
Walk with Hope
Peter, one of the disciples of Jesus says this in 1 Peter 3:15b “And if someone asks about your hope as a believer, always be ready to explain it”
Peter’s command is, of course, about being ready to explain the powerful work of Jesus in our lives, but he also specifically notes the hope we have as a believer. We know that we have reason to hope because there will be a day when Jesus returns to redeem all things. Living in this hope will, especially in the midst of a broken world, will cause other people to observe your life and wonder what is different. Your hope can open the door for spiritual conversations!
One final (extremely important) reminder
Sharing your faith is not a solo project! The Spirit of God will work in you and give you the words to say. You must depend on Him and pray, asking God for guidance, courage, and faith to trust that He will take your words and cause them to be understood by the person you are speaking to! Sharing your faith must be covered in prayer and dependence on God to do what only He can do!
Want to grow deeper?
Here are 4 resources that can help you SHARE YOUR FAITH:
Sharing The Gospel with Ease by Thom Rainer
Life in 6 words Phone App
GodTools App