9. Conversion

Ideally you will want to share your testimony in a way that conveys how you came to Christ.  Hopefully after hearing it, your listener may know enough to trust Christ.  I think this can be done easily by first setting the stage, then sharing the basics of the gospel message.  For instance, I was in the snack bar in West Halls and an older student shared with me that God loved me, that I was a sinner, that Christ had died for me, and that I must receive Christ as Savior and Lord.  I was familiar with the first three points, but the last one was new to me.  I had never understood what it meant to personally receive Christ.  I did it that evening. 

For many who have received Christ as a young child, you will want to focus on the time in your life where the biggest change occurred.  For instance, "I understood that God loved me, and Christ died for me at a very early age, but it was in my teens that I got really serious with God."  "I knelt in my room by my bed and gave my life to Christ in a new way when I faced this crisis, etc. That's when I really experienced the love and forgiveness Christ offered me, etc." 

Obviously, your listener may want to ask more questions about your story and there may be much to add to the gospel.  For the purposes of your testimony, you want to give a good thumb-nails sketch of the gospel.  This will help the listener understand how you came to Christ and how He began changing you.  Without this, they may imagine it was some mystical experience, or that you just started reforming yourself by your own efforts.  We want to demonstrate the life-changing power of the gospel of Christ.

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. (Romans 1:16)

Assignment:

  1. Take a few minutes and write out your account of how you came to Christ.  For those who came to Christ early, focus on the time of greatest change. 
  2. Include the essence of the gospel message in this section.  First set the stage, then tell how it happened.  
  3. Try to read it back and see if you can tell it in one minute.

 Next we will discuss your introduction and your conclusion.

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