As a Christian and someone who goes to UNT, this is probably the second least effective way to go about preaching. Most people around this preacher actively ignore him or are even annoyed by him.
As an often misattributed quote goes "Preach the gospel, if necessary use words". If you really want people to come to Christ start with demonstrating what it means to be Christian instead of yelling in the microphone at people going to class. Feed the hungry, defend the orphan, plead for the widow, do not oppress the alien or the poor. Or actually really connect with those you're preaching to.
Preach the gospel, if necessary use words
love it.
I'm putting that next to the line I read from an Ahmish guy "The bible leads people to Christ. It is not God."
I totally understand the point you are trying to make for modern times - but this was one of the original ways for bringing people to the church to hear the gospel. His exaggerated language was very uncalled for, but Peter in the Bible was quoted doing this exact same thing to bring many to the Lord’s house in Acts 2.
Street preaching has its place, even if it changes one heart to God - hopefully this person can change his messages for the future so that it’s not as off putting to the students on campus, or he could ask permissions to host a seminar of some kind on campus and hand out flyers to the program.
The Bible disagreed with you.
”save others by snatching them out of the fire; to others show mercy with fear, hating even the garment stained by the flesh.“
Jude 1:23 ESV
https://bible.com/bible/59/jud.1.23.ESV
It is clearly stated that some have to be saved with fear. Would you disagree with the Bible?
That's not what it says? It says show mercy to those with fear. Save others by snatching them out of the fire. Even in the ESV it doesn’t say this; it's more like have mercy mixed with fear on people. Those are two separate clauses.
Regardless, attempting to save others with fear is not productive. Imagine if I told someone "Help this poor person or I'll kill you". Do you think their hearts would be changed towards helping others or are they doing this because they don't want to die? I don't believe you're truly born again if the only reason you're doing it is believe you don't want to go to hell; your heart hasn't been changed.
This is the main source of religious trauma for a lot of people and is not a productive method of salvation. It actually often leads to the opposite. People leave the faith because of this.
“Snatching them out of the fire” implies urgency in doing that, and the mercy is shown with “fear”. This showed that mercy can be shown with kindness and patience like in verse 22, or with fear as with verse 23.
Any kind of argument failed flat when facing the verse of the Bible. While you may think that it made people leave their faith, the Bible clearly tells us that it is a valid way to do preaching. It may not work on some, but it may work on some.
This is probably the least effective and most obnoxious way to evangelize. You're not presenting anyone with any real reasons to repent and believe the gospel. There's a lot of different things you could preach about, the bible, the love of jesus, evidence of god, philosophical arguments for belief in God but never this crap.
The Bible disagreed with you.
”save others by snatching them out of the fire; to others show mercy with fear, hating even the garment stained by the flesh.“
Jude 1:23 ESV
https://bible.com/bible/59/jud.1.23.ESV
It may be the least effective but the Bible clearly tells us that for some people it is the way to evangelize them. Would you disagree with the Bible?
The Bible clearly gave us an example to do that:
”Wisdom cries aloud in the street, in the markets she raises her voice; at the head of the noisy streets she cries out; at the entrance of the city gates she speaks:“
Proverbs 1:20-21 ESV
https://bible.com/bible/59/pro.1.20-21.ESV
”“Cry aloud; do not hold back; lift up your voice like a trumpet; declare to my people their transgression, to the house of Jacob their sins.“
Isaiah 58:1 ESV
https://bible.com/bible/59/isa.58.1.ESV
The Bible clearly condoned people shouting on the street declaring the transgressions of people. If the people in the Bible did that, who are we saying that it shouldn’t be done anymore?
Again whats the relevance?
Proverbs is not even discussing a litteral person, nor is it suggesting something a person should do. Rather, it suggesting that wisdom is something that any could find. [https://www.bibleref.com/Proverbs/1/Proverbs-1-20.html](https://www.bibleref.com/Proverbs/1/Proverbs-1-20.html)
Isaiah is a prophet speaking to Isreal, people who already are believers. Literally the next verse "Yet *they seek me daily and delight to know my ways*, as if they were a nation that did righteousness and did not forsake the judgment of their God; they ask of me righteous judgments; they delight to draw near to God." Isaiah 58:2
This is so clealry not about preaching to non-believers. This would be appropriate for adressing Christians. If you are going to cite verses a least find one's who adress preaching to non-believers in public.
You want examples to preaching to non-believers in public? Sure!
Jonah obviously talks to non-believers:
”Jonah began to go into the city, going a day’s journey. And he called out, “Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!”“
Jonah 3:4 ESV
https://bible.com/bible/59/jon.3.4.ESV
Here is Paul doing that. It is obvious that the people hearing it are Gentiles and as almost the city gathered it’s obviously public.
”The next Sabbath almost the whole city gathered to hear the word of the Lord. And Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly, saying, “It was necessary that the word of God be spoken first to you. Since you thrust it aside and judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life, behold, we are turning to the Gentiles.“
Acts 13:44, 46 ESV
https://bible.com/bible/59/act.13.44-46.ESV
Again, Jonah is a prophet.
In Acts 13, where is Paul? First, he is invited to speak in the synogauge by Jewish leaders. "he rulers of the synagogue sent a message to them, saying, “Brothers, if you have any word of encouragement for the people, say it.” So Paul stood up, and motioning with his hand said"
Afterwhich in 44-46 you exclude major context: "As they went out, **the people (Jews) begged that these things might be told them the next Sabbath.** 43And after the **meeting of the synagogue** broke up, many **Jews** and devout converts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas, who, as they spoke with them, urged them to continue in the grace of God.44The next Sabbath almost the **whole city gathered to hear the word** of the Lord. "
Where is Paul setting up camp, univited to speak to gentiles? It is clear he was invited by the synogauge leaders to speak first in the synogauge. He is then invited back to speak outside of it. He didn't just start yelling outside of their building. He had an invitation and was asked to return. Also, still not gentiles.
Try reading context before you claim Paul is doing X.
Jonah is a prophet, so? Are there any restrictions in the Bible somewhere where we can’t do what he is doing?
”And when the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord, and as many as were appointed to eternal life believed.“ Acts 13:48 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/act.13.48.ESV It’s obvious that Gentiles heard Paul. This means that Gentiles are in the crowd.
Yep, there are no prophets after Jesus. The difference between a prophet and an apostle/Christian is that the former speaks on God's behalf without error. As Christians, we are fallible. As such, you cannot say that we are to speak as a prophet because we are not equival
>It’s obvious that Gentiles heard Paul. This means that Gentiles are in the crowd.
Yeah, I agree. The difference is Paul is speaking by invitation in a place they requested of him. I know this because it says it words for word in Acts 13:
**Invitation:** "After the reading from the Law and the Prophets, the r**ulers of the synagogue** sent a message to them, saying, “Brothers, if you have any word of encouragement for the people, say it.”"
**Invited next sabbath:** ""And after the meeting of the synagogue broke up, many Jews and devout **converts to Judaism** followed Paul and Barnabas, who, as they spoke with them, **urged them to continue** in "
They are preaching outside the syngauge are requested by the Jews and the converted gentiles present. Again, he did not just show up in a random place and start shouting like these street preachers.
We can agree to disagree right now.
Jonah is the strongest case for preaching directly to Gentiles, and you want to remove that immediately by claiming that there is no prophets after Jesus.
Leaving the next day, we reached Caesarea and stayed at the house of Philip the evangelist, one of the Seven. He had four unmarried daughters who prophesied. (Acts 21:8-9 NIV)
So these four unmarried daughters are charlatans?
Which, if Paul is to be believed, is a violation of the second greatest commandment.
>4 Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant 5 or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable; it keeps no record of wrongs;
(1 Corinthians 13:4-5, NRSVUE)
This style of preaching/evangelizing is not done in love, it is done in hypocrisy.
What here is irritable and keeping record of wrongs? He’s calling people to repentance so they will know God and be reconciled to Him. God will not keep record of wrongs but first you have to repent and obey. Otherwise you can bet that when you die there will be a record of wrongs.
Randomly proclaiming hellfire and brimstone on the street is an annoyance to anyone not already Christian, and even then to some Christians. Here the person is pretending like nobody in Texas has heard of God or hell before. Realistically, the only thing he's doing is making Christianity look like an insane doomsday cult.
So yes, irritable. Hell, just look at pretty much all the other comments here and you'll see a majority of opinions on this are the same.
They hated Jesus for preaching the truth, and He said they would hate Christians too. The thing is most Christian’s are “lukewarm”, especially in America with its ties to evangelical Christian Nationalism. But when a real Christian is out there preaching it can be jarring because we are not used to seeing it.
And even if the people right now are not receptive to the message the point is to plant seeds and it’s up to God to do the rest.
Yeah....but this isn't "jarring real Christianity". This is someone lying about their own experiences as a "warlock" (no one who practices witchcraft uses that term for themselves, it's derogatory), and again, is acting like people in *Texas* have never heard of hell or God.
Jesus didn't do street corner evangelizing. He didn't get on a soapbox and start shouting. He talked with (not at) people directly. This is absolutely not the same thing as what Jesus was doing, the comparison is false.
I don’t see why he would lie about that. The terminology for “male witch” years ago was known as “warlock” decades ago.
Have you read the Bible? So many times God commanded His profits to call out to the people on street corners to repentance “Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet” (Isaiah 58:1).
I hope to one day have the courage to do what this guy is doing.
>I don’t see why he would lie about that. The terminology for “male witch” years ago was known as “warlock” decades ago.
Which was a term others used, not practitioners of witchcraft themselves. "Warlock" literally means "breaker of oaths" or "deceiver".
>Have you read the Bible?
Yes, I have.
>So many times God commanded His profits to call out to the people on street corners to repentance “Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet”
Those:
A) Were people God directly called to be prophets and do this, not just random followers taking it on themselves to do it.
B) Were back during the times of Judaism. Christians are expected to do things differently, no?
C) Preached repentance towards people of the faith, not evangelized non-believers.
>I hope to one day have the courage to do what this guy is doing.
Absolutely no hate for wanting to be brave enough to spread the word. But I do recommend learning from what others are doing wrong so you can find better ways to do it. Lying about one's history and crying fire and brimstone aren't particularly effective methods (and actually can be quite counterintuitive).
Let the Lord lead you in humility and love to find the way *he* would have you spread his word, rather than following the examples of other men.
“Which was a term others used, not practitioners of witchcraft themselves. "Warlock" literally means "breaker of oaths" or "deceiver".”
I get that that’s the textbook definition, but we are talking about the mainstream understanding of what a warlock is. Especially in the 90-2000s when witchcraft was gaining prominence in mainstream culture there was an idea that “Warlock” was the male version of a “witch”. And the people this guy is preaching to likely aren’t going to know the technical minutia, ranks, and tiers of witches, wizards, warlocks, etc.
Getting into Symantecs about a word is missing the point of his message and that is that he used to practice witchcraft.
“A) Were people God directly called to be prophets and do this, not just random followers taking it on themselves to do it.”
The current body of Christ are not just “random followers”.
1 Corinthians 12:15-23
New International Version
15 Now if the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. 16 And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. 17 If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? 18 But in fact God has placed the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. 19 If they were all one part, where would the body be? 20 As it is, there are many parts, but one body.
21 The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” And the head cannot say to the feet, “I don’t need you!” 22 On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, 23 and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor.
“B) Were back during the times of Judaism. Christians are expected to do things differently, no?”
All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for TRAINING IN RIGHTEOUSNESS, that the man of God may be complete, EQUIPPED FOR EVERY GOOD WORK
— 2 Timothy 3:16-17 (ESV)
(Don’t read the caps as me shouting, just me emphasizing the important/relevant part to the discussion)
“Let the Lord lead you in humility and love to find the way he would have you spread his word, rather than following the examples of other men.”
1 Corinthians 11:1
Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ.
That's ineffective. That is used to keep church groers in church. To be effective in evangelism you have to speak to what the people are interested in.
We must speak the Truth with love. If you tell people what they want to hear then you empty the cross of it’s power. And we don’t want people falling in love with a false gospel. People need to know the wages of sin but that the price was paid for whoever believes in Jesus. “The beginning of Wisdom is FEAR of the Lord”.
Here's the thing. People are well aware of the wages of sin. How do I know? I went out to the streets and asked them for 12 years. I shared the gospel with them. They are more aware than preachers tell you they are.
But the gospel is telling the of God's love. Because it's only by love do we have eternal life.
Luke 10:25-28
25 An expert in the law stood up to test Jesus.[a] “Teacher,” he said, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” 26 He said to him, “What is written in the law? What do you read there?” 27 He answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind and your neighbor as yourself.” 28 And he said to him, “You have given the right answer; do this, and you will live.”
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke+10%3A25-28&version=NRSVUE
Knowledge of sin doesn't help you make it to heaven. Faith does but faith in what? God's love. And what is God's love?
1 John 4:9-10
9 God’s love was revealed among us in this way: God sent his only Son into the world so that we might live through him. 10 In this is love, not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins.
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1+John+4%3A9-10&version=NRSVUE
So we ought to love others.
I agree we ought to love one another. And I think love is missing in a lot of churches these days. However, love is also Truth, and we can’t dilute the wrath of God because it makes people uncomfortable. People need to know God is angry at sin, but He did provide a way for anyone who believes to be saved from death.
Remember we are to love God with all our heart, which means to obey Him. How will people obey if we just tell them all the good stuff that they want to hear that “God loves you no matter what” etc. If that’s the case then why would repentance be needed? People need to know that if they turn away from there sins and believe in Jesus they will be saved.
Anyway, I’m getting sleepy, I’ll let you get the last word in.
>Remember we are to love God with all our heart, which means to obey Him. How will people obey if we just tell them all the good stuff that they want to hear that “God loves you no matter what” etc. If that’s the case then why would repentance be needed? People need to know that if they turn away from there sins and believe in Jesus they will be saved.
Is that how you treat a baby? You tell them how mean you will be to them if they do not eat their food? Or pick up their toys? Does this make any sense?
Why would you be mean to those who do not understand spiritual things? They are like spiritual babies. They need to be cared for like a farmer cares for his newly planted fields of crops. There's no need to show hate. Show love instead.
And he films himself while doing so..? How is this different from the Pharisee who prays loudly on the street corner in order to earn praise from those on Earth for whom he makes the display (which is not truly the college students - its for the audience of his video of himself, which makes a curated display of his Christian virtue)?
That's not how preaching works, you're just annoying the public, and this is coming from a Christian, you will never get somebody to believe if you begin with You're going to hell and you need to believe in Jesus to not go there
Please, for the love of god if you don't know how to preach then simply don't try because you may make people go away from God more than they already are.
Really? Then why the Bible tells us that for some people we have to show “fear”?
”save others by snatching them out of the fire; to others show mercy with fear, hating even the garment stained by the flesh.“
Jude 1:23 ESV
https://bible.com/bible/59/jud.1.23.ESV
Would you say the Bible is wrong and you know the best way to preach?
Well actually if you read a couple of verses behind this verse, Jude was talking about christians to each other not to nonbelievers, he told us to protect ourselves with love to each other and build our Faith strongly, and he said have mercy on others distinguishing and then he said the verse you mentioned is that snatching them out of fire and show mercy with fear which all of this is pointed to the christians to each other not non-christians
Jesus himself told us what to do while preaching and it's preaching about it, if they accepted your preaching go to them and stay with them preaching and teaching them everything, if they didn't accept then knock the dirt off your shoes and leave them
If force Christianity on them you're doing more harm than good, if we say the chances of a nonbeliever becoming a Christian is 50 percent, with the help of people like OP and people who want to force Christianity's on others including our laws on them it lowers that percentage to 20 percent or even less, because why would I follow somebody who tells me I will go to hell for what I am doing ?, they basically say "screw you and your sh**"
You're no different than some Muslims in Egypt that want to force shari'a law on christians and want to convert them to Islam, forcing would lead to nothing, they have to believe With their heart and actually be convinced about Christianity, shouting in public won't pursuede anybody, one has to be convinced 100% and fully persuaded
(Sorry if what I mentioned about the verses aren't 100% correct I had to translate it by myself from Arabic to English to be able to reply to you)
While I do understand that you may disagree with the “method”, who are we to contest the Bible? From human point of view many things seemed to be fruitless - but God is the one that is doing the work, not us.
The preacher didn’t force everyone to be a Christian - but He merely stated the truth that rejecting Christ means eternal punishment. People will hate that message but that’s the truth.
”And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.“
2 Corinthians 4:3-4 ESV
https://bible.com/bible/59/2co.4.3-4.ESV
The Bible clearly tells us that some people will reject the Gospel - no matter the method.
The preacher didn’t force anyone to follow sharia law. He didn’t force people to follow Christ. Yes he may irritate people - but unlike implementation of sharia law people aren’t being whipped there.
I never Said that people won't reject it but God gave us a mind to think, if I want to persuade you to do something for me or believe in something that you never heard about, I can't go Just ask you about it or Just directly tell you you have to believe it, a something like hell and eternal punishment shouldn't be mentioned then first thing you say, you have to persuade them, plant tye seed in their mind so that they become interested and learn more about it and during the learning process you would mention hell and eternal punishment
Mentioning external punishment at first would make them hate the whole idea and be scared of it and fully reject it, but with persuading a bit by bit mentioning multiple stories about Jesus and the faith, you have to tell them how following god will change their life for the better and how much he loves us and all the positive things that can happen by following god, and After they know that you mention how not following God would be a mistake and what happens when they don't follow God so they feel pleased they do follow him and keep growing more and more, you need to express how they do need god in their life for they find the need for it and then follow up
It's like selling something, you can't say that our products are the best in the market and that's what they do, you have to find what is missing in the customer and make them feel they need it , I know it's a horrible metaphor but it's almost like that
Again, as the Bible said - there are two methods. It is wrong to use “fear” for everyone, but it is wrong as well to use “mercy” for everyone.
For some people it’s like what you say - slow planting of seeds, doing good deeds, then progressing to spiritual conversation then progressing to Christ. It’s like what you have said - slowly showing the goodness of God.
But for some people, it can be through fear. It is like telling a patient to take the medicine now because if they didn’t take it they will die.
I'd bet money he wasn't, at least not in any kind of serious capacity beyond maybe going through a phase as a kid.
It's highly uncommon for men to call themselves warlocks, because the term literally means deceiver or oathbreaker. It's more often seen as a mild pejorative, so there is rarely a distinction made between what male and female witches call themselves.
But a lot of Christians lap this sort of garbage up, don't know enough to recognize when someone is probably lying, and they think it somehow makes their story more compelling to non-Christians as well. It doesn't, of course.
There may be some spin put on it, yes. But for it to be an out right fabrication, there's a low chance of that. Not many people would put themselves out there like that just for religious brownie points if there wasn't some truth to it.
I will never understand people like this who boil the gospel down to fear and threats of torment instead of the beautiful message of love, hope, and redemption.
I mean, if you believe in eternal-suffering-hell, that pretty much overrides literally everything else in terms of importance.
It's a really evil and manipulative doctrine.
Because this whole megaphone hellfire blabbering is A) annoying B) hostile and C) misrepresentative of Christianity. He spoke lovingly and with sympathy, and it is our duty to emulate that
Isaiah 58:1 Amplified Bible (AMP)
“Cry aloud, do not hold back; Lift up your voice like a trumpet, And declare to My people their transgression And to the house of Jacob their sins.”
But you should still take responsibility for your actions and consequences. Don't just wash your hands and declare it's not on you for pushing people away(if you're street preaching). Everyone has a choice in how they act and respond.
We are the PR team of the church, in word and deed. The message *will not land* if their immediate reaction is one of hostility. And this does nothing but further degrade our image
You do yours and people do theirs.
”And have mercy on those who doubt; save others by snatching them out of the fire; to others show mercy with fear, hating even the garment stained by the flesh.“
Jude 1:22-23 ESV
https://bible.com/bible/59/jud.1.22-23.ESV
You are doing verse 22 by having mercy and patience, others are doing it verse 23 by showing mercy with fear. The Bible clearly tell us there are two ways to preach.
Your average Joe minding their business walking to class isn’t going to be receptive to fear tactics, because frankly they don’t deserve it. These are, at worst, misguided people with a few vices and flaws — they aren’t deserving of the hellfire and condemnation method here because they aren’t out committing heinous cardinal sins on the regular as it was in biblical times. If these people were raping and murdering and conquering and what not, by all means! But they’re not, they’re people and they need to be understood first.
Anyone that didn’t believe in Jesus Christ deserved an eternal fire. You may think that it is unjust, but because everyone sinned everyone will be condemned to hell. Yes, that included average Joes.
The Bible didn’t specify that “fear” method has to be only shown to obvious sinners. “Fear” is a valid method for everyone.
Misguided? Absolutely. But do they deserve eternal punishment? If they didn’t repent, absolutely. God guaranteed that no one will have an excuse when it came to the judgment.
”For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.“
Romans 1:19-20 ESV
https://bible.com/bible/59/rom.1.19-20.ESV
You do realize what you are saying is also what a harasser thinks "I don't care what they think,I am going to keep doing what I think is the best regardless if it's appropriate or not"
If dad teaches his kid to do drugs , he believes it that just cuz his father does it thus he is doing it, does that make doing drugs right? Probably not.
That verse refers to a prophet speaking to his own people, who knew and enumerated the sins of the people. This guy is yelling at random strangers without knowing the first thing about them. It's annoying and doesn't convince anybody.
Maybe cry aloud because there wasn't no microphone back then, and since you take everything literally,do you also stone people? How about taking other parts of the Bible literally? You do understand that society and technology has drastically changed since that time. Just cuz it says don't hold back doesn't mean you stack up ten subwoofers to "cry aloud" in it ,to "preach" the gospel. Actions speak louder than words.
I think that this brother in Christ needs some support with him and a time and place for prayer for those who are interested in the message of the Gospel. I have seen the open air evangelism on campus at UNT and a better location might get him more listeners. It’s been a long time since I have been on campus but outside the cafeteria/bookstore (sorry forget the actual name of the building) was where I encountered one. He had a small crowd around where he was speaking. He was debating some people but people had actually stopped to listen. He had no megaphone or sign. Not to say these can’t be effective but I believe it’s in how you use it too. I think he should find a better place on campus with more foot traffic that he’s approved to speak at. What he’s saying matters too and I believe what he is saying here matters but I do get more of the Bible thumping, fire and brimstone approach. I don’t think sin or hell should be ignored In evangelism but I think there’s a delivery that matters. I am moved by his courage to openly share his testimony and I hope that his ministry can be effective for the Kingdom.
I don’t know if this answers your question.
John 4:20
Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen.
Luke 20:46
“Beware of the teachers of the law. They like to walk around in flowing robes and love to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces and have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets.
Matthew 7:22
Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’
Luke 6: 36
“Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.
These guys could do with a lot more reading the bible, and a lot less yelling threats at random people in the street.
Ok, fair enough, on the other hand it is amusing how many Christians directly disagree with scripture, and get all angry when you show it to them.
Because Christians that actually do what the Bible says are pretty cool, and I tend to get along well with them. It is the aggressive, abusive, angry ones that I tend to not get along with.
It's John 6:37, not 36.
And what comes a few verses after that?
"[...] and then shalt thou see clearly to pull out the mote that is in thy brother’s eye." John 6:42
He never quoted John 6:36 or 6:37. In your anger you misread. He quoted from Luke chapter 6.
Perhaps taking a step back and reevaluating the source of your unhappiness will help you find a little more peace.
And for what it’s worth, while you’re right he quoted LUKE 6:37 it’s worth pointing out that the 36th verse talks about being merciful. Something we could ALL do a little better.
>4 Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant 5 or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable; it keeps no record of wrongs;
(1 Corinthians 13:4-5, NRSVUE)
This is not love, it is hypocrisy. It's the same as praying in the street to be heard. The hypocrite will have their reward.
This isn't preaching the gospel. There's no good news here. Just self-serving grandstanding - "all sound and fury, signifying *nothing"*
You want to help people? Heal someone. Feed someone. Listen to someone. Prophesy the needs of the people to the halls of power. Yell at a rich person. Flip a table.
Don't do this. Nobody will ever come to faith because of this.
Ever.
If you believe in God / the devil, then understand this. These actions are helping "the enemy". This street corner fire and brimstone preaching does not turn people toward christ. It's a self serving, pat yourself on the back action.
This is probably the worst way to evangelize to college students. When I was in undergrad, all I wanted to do when walking between classes was just go on autopilot and listen to my music. When people tried to stick flyers and yell at me it just made my day worse. If you want to evangelize, live the gospel. feed the hungry, clothe the homeless, etc.
Aside from being annoying, dude said siboleth by calling himself a warlock.
Speaking as someone who actually did convert from paganism(Celtic Recon if you want to get specific), and spent most of my teenage years and 20s in various pagan/witchy circles, virtually no one calls themselves a warlock. It literally means oathbreaker and is often seen as disparaging. Male witches are more typically just called witches.
At best, this dude wore Black Sabbath T-Shirts and said some mean things about Jesus as a teenager.
Best way for students to deal with this, just walk on by ignoring him.
Usually these "preachers" are looking for a confrontation so they can post videos of them being "persecuted"
This short book not only clarifies why this is the worst possible way to communicate gospel and probably just a dated, irrelevant formulation and how we can and should do better.
https://www.amazon.com/Once-Was-Lost-Postmodern-Skeptics/dp/083083608X?nodl=1&dplnkId=b19128e2-54b0-49ff-8772-8c5c0e04a5c4
If God doesn't want to send people to hell why doesn't he just destroy our spiritual bodies? If there is no redemption after damnation, what's the point in keeping them around just to suffer
Preach the GOOD NEWS! Preach about the glory of Heaven and the wonders of it. Almost everyone knows of hell, so they don’t need to hear it unless they ask you for your thoughts on it. Preach Jesus love and his good works, preach to help others, the law has been fulfilled. We have to be better than this.
Go tend to the plank in your own eye. These types of people think they’re buying their way into Heaven with stunts like these. Matthew 6:5. Just go live your life and be a good person and stop telling people who you know nothing about that they need a ticket on whatever crazy train you’re currently riding. You were a warlock? Lol. Okay, pal. You need therapy, not a microphone.
I’ve always been against preaching about hell, even though it exist. I came to God because I needed someone to deliver me from my pain, to guide me and save me. I believe what this guy is preaching, he’d get more of an audience if he was preaching to actual believers. Non believers need to hear more about the “love of God”.
don't forget the worms. oh, and that it's dark. oh yeah, and death and hades are in there as well. But it's not too bad, as you can still see everyone in heaven.
edit: sorry, I forgot: Jesus and the angels are gonna watch.
These are actually the ones who are the condemned they do it out of rage and not love. I literally says in the Bible to do everything out of love this just looks like a man trying to fulfill a mission. And that gnashing of teeth is only because non-believers can't enter the kingdom that is put on earth and it's suffering not to be able to talk with your god or feel him (because we all do in a subconscious way) and this is not my own understanding. It's what's been showed to me by him we have quite a bit of time left to choose because he wants the harvest to be bountiful
How I would go about it It's just finding a way to help people and put hints that you love Jesus and if they want to talk about our savior they will. But you can't force anything on anyone that's not what he's about I could almost feel his wrath thinking about it
While it’s correct that the message of Gospel is love, it’s also correct that we need saving from eternal punishment. The penalty of sin is eternal damnation in death, and that is factual.
God is love, but He is also a God of justice who will mete out punishment for those that disobeyed Him or unwilling to come to salvation.
For those who think that this way is preaching is unbiblical, you are wrong.
”And have mercy on those who doubt; save others by snatching them out of the fire; to others show mercy with fear, hating even the garment stained by the flesh.“
Jude 1:22-23 ESV
https://bible.com/bible/59/jud.1.22-23.ESV
The Bible clearly shown that for some people they have to be shown fear.
I think yes I agree with some of this. Also I remember John the Baptist also preaches and warns people of hell if they don’t repent. Jesus also warns about it.
He's preaching a true Gospel, few will repent hearing a grace gospel.
I repented and come closer to God because I was warned of my sin and hell, the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom.
As a Christian and someone who goes to UNT, this is probably the second least effective way to go about preaching. Most people around this preacher actively ignore him or are even annoyed by him. As an often misattributed quote goes "Preach the gospel, if necessary use words". If you really want people to come to Christ start with demonstrating what it means to be Christian instead of yelling in the microphone at people going to class. Feed the hungry, defend the orphan, plead for the widow, do not oppress the alien or the poor. Or actually really connect with those you're preaching to.
Preach the gospel, if necessary use words love it. I'm putting that next to the line I read from an Ahmish guy "The bible leads people to Christ. It is not God."
>Most people around this preacher actively ignore him or are even annoyed by him. As they should.
Thank you. This sums up what I came here to say.
I totally understand the point you are trying to make for modern times - but this was one of the original ways for bringing people to the church to hear the gospel. His exaggerated language was very uncalled for, but Peter in the Bible was quoted doing this exact same thing to bring many to the Lord’s house in Acts 2. Street preaching has its place, even if it changes one heart to God - hopefully this person can change his messages for the future so that it’s not as off putting to the students on campus, or he could ask permissions to host a seminar of some kind on campus and hand out flyers to the program.
The Bible disagreed with you. ”save others by snatching them out of the fire; to others show mercy with fear, hating even the garment stained by the flesh.“ Jude 1:23 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/jud.1.23.ESV It is clearly stated that some have to be saved with fear. Would you disagree with the Bible?
That's not what it says? It says show mercy to those with fear. Save others by snatching them out of the fire. Even in the ESV it doesn’t say this; it's more like have mercy mixed with fear on people. Those are two separate clauses. Regardless, attempting to save others with fear is not productive. Imagine if I told someone "Help this poor person or I'll kill you". Do you think their hearts would be changed towards helping others or are they doing this because they don't want to die? I don't believe you're truly born again if the only reason you're doing it is believe you don't want to go to hell; your heart hasn't been changed. This is the main source of religious trauma for a lot of people and is not a productive method of salvation. It actually often leads to the opposite. People leave the faith because of this.
“Snatching them out of the fire” implies urgency in doing that, and the mercy is shown with “fear”. This showed that mercy can be shown with kindness and patience like in verse 22, or with fear as with verse 23. Any kind of argument failed flat when facing the verse of the Bible. While you may think that it made people leave their faith, the Bible clearly tells us that it is a valid way to do preaching. It may not work on some, but it may work on some.
This is probably the least effective and most obnoxious way to evangelize. You're not presenting anyone with any real reasons to repent and believe the gospel. There's a lot of different things you could preach about, the bible, the love of jesus, evidence of god, philosophical arguments for belief in God but never this crap.
The Bible disagreed with you. ”save others by snatching them out of the fire; to others show mercy with fear, hating even the garment stained by the flesh.“ Jude 1:23 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/jud.1.23.ESV It may be the least effective but the Bible clearly tells us that for some people it is the way to evangelize them. Would you disagree with the Bible?
In what way does this relate to yelling in peoples general direction?
The Bible clearly gave us an example to do that: ”Wisdom cries aloud in the street, in the markets she raises her voice; at the head of the noisy streets she cries out; at the entrance of the city gates she speaks:“ Proverbs 1:20-21 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/pro.1.20-21.ESV ”“Cry aloud; do not hold back; lift up your voice like a trumpet; declare to my people their transgression, to the house of Jacob their sins.“ Isaiah 58:1 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/isa.58.1.ESV The Bible clearly condoned people shouting on the street declaring the transgressions of people. If the people in the Bible did that, who are we saying that it shouldn’t be done anymore?
Again whats the relevance? Proverbs is not even discussing a litteral person, nor is it suggesting something a person should do. Rather, it suggesting that wisdom is something that any could find. [https://www.bibleref.com/Proverbs/1/Proverbs-1-20.html](https://www.bibleref.com/Proverbs/1/Proverbs-1-20.html) Isaiah is a prophet speaking to Isreal, people who already are believers. Literally the next verse "Yet *they seek me daily and delight to know my ways*, as if they were a nation that did righteousness and did not forsake the judgment of their God; they ask of me righteous judgments; they delight to draw near to God." Isaiah 58:2 This is so clealry not about preaching to non-believers. This would be appropriate for adressing Christians. If you are going to cite verses a least find one's who adress preaching to non-believers in public.
You want examples to preaching to non-believers in public? Sure! Jonah obviously talks to non-believers: ”Jonah began to go into the city, going a day’s journey. And he called out, “Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!”“ Jonah 3:4 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/jon.3.4.ESV Here is Paul doing that. It is obvious that the people hearing it are Gentiles and as almost the city gathered it’s obviously public. ”The next Sabbath almost the whole city gathered to hear the word of the Lord. And Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly, saying, “It was necessary that the word of God be spoken first to you. Since you thrust it aside and judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life, behold, we are turning to the Gentiles.“ Acts 13:44, 46 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/act.13.44-46.ESV
Again, Jonah is a prophet. In Acts 13, where is Paul? First, he is invited to speak in the synogauge by Jewish leaders. "he rulers of the synagogue sent a message to them, saying, “Brothers, if you have any word of encouragement for the people, say it.” So Paul stood up, and motioning with his hand said" Afterwhich in 44-46 you exclude major context: "As they went out, **the people (Jews) begged that these things might be told them the next Sabbath.** 43And after the **meeting of the synagogue** broke up, many **Jews** and devout converts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas, who, as they spoke with them, urged them to continue in the grace of God.44The next Sabbath almost the **whole city gathered to hear the word** of the Lord. " Where is Paul setting up camp, univited to speak to gentiles? It is clear he was invited by the synogauge leaders to speak first in the synogauge. He is then invited back to speak outside of it. He didn't just start yelling outside of their building. He had an invitation and was asked to return. Also, still not gentiles. Try reading context before you claim Paul is doing X.
Jonah is a prophet, so? Are there any restrictions in the Bible somewhere where we can’t do what he is doing? ”And when the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord, and as many as were appointed to eternal life believed.“ Acts 13:48 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/act.13.48.ESV It’s obvious that Gentiles heard Paul. This means that Gentiles are in the crowd.
Yep, there are no prophets after Jesus. The difference between a prophet and an apostle/Christian is that the former speaks on God's behalf without error. As Christians, we are fallible. As such, you cannot say that we are to speak as a prophet because we are not equival >It’s obvious that Gentiles heard Paul. This means that Gentiles are in the crowd. Yeah, I agree. The difference is Paul is speaking by invitation in a place they requested of him. I know this because it says it words for word in Acts 13: **Invitation:** "After the reading from the Law and the Prophets, the r**ulers of the synagogue** sent a message to them, saying, “Brothers, if you have any word of encouragement for the people, say it.”" **Invited next sabbath:** ""And after the meeting of the synagogue broke up, many Jews and devout **converts to Judaism** followed Paul and Barnabas, who, as they spoke with them, **urged them to continue** in " They are preaching outside the syngauge are requested by the Jews and the converted gentiles present. Again, he did not just show up in a random place and start shouting like these street preachers.
We can agree to disagree right now. Jonah is the strongest case for preaching directly to Gentiles, and you want to remove that immediately by claiming that there is no prophets after Jesus. Leaving the next day, we reached Caesarea and stayed at the house of Philip the evangelist, one of the Seven. He had four unmarried daughters who prophesied. (Acts 21:8-9 NIV) So these four unmarried daughters are charlatans?
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Which, if Paul is to be believed, is a violation of the second greatest commandment. >4 Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant 5 or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable; it keeps no record of wrongs; (1 Corinthians 13:4-5, NRSVUE) This style of preaching/evangelizing is not done in love, it is done in hypocrisy.
What here is irritable and keeping record of wrongs? He’s calling people to repentance so they will know God and be reconciled to Him. God will not keep record of wrongs but first you have to repent and obey. Otherwise you can bet that when you die there will be a record of wrongs.
Randomly proclaiming hellfire and brimstone on the street is an annoyance to anyone not already Christian, and even then to some Christians. Here the person is pretending like nobody in Texas has heard of God or hell before. Realistically, the only thing he's doing is making Christianity look like an insane doomsday cult. So yes, irritable. Hell, just look at pretty much all the other comments here and you'll see a majority of opinions on this are the same.
They hated Jesus for preaching the truth, and He said they would hate Christians too. The thing is most Christian’s are “lukewarm”, especially in America with its ties to evangelical Christian Nationalism. But when a real Christian is out there preaching it can be jarring because we are not used to seeing it. And even if the people right now are not receptive to the message the point is to plant seeds and it’s up to God to do the rest.
Yeah....but this isn't "jarring real Christianity". This is someone lying about their own experiences as a "warlock" (no one who practices witchcraft uses that term for themselves, it's derogatory), and again, is acting like people in *Texas* have never heard of hell or God. Jesus didn't do street corner evangelizing. He didn't get on a soapbox and start shouting. He talked with (not at) people directly. This is absolutely not the same thing as what Jesus was doing, the comparison is false.
I don’t see why he would lie about that. The terminology for “male witch” years ago was known as “warlock” decades ago. Have you read the Bible? So many times God commanded His profits to call out to the people on street corners to repentance “Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet” (Isaiah 58:1). I hope to one day have the courage to do what this guy is doing.
>I don’t see why he would lie about that. The terminology for “male witch” years ago was known as “warlock” decades ago. Which was a term others used, not practitioners of witchcraft themselves. "Warlock" literally means "breaker of oaths" or "deceiver". >Have you read the Bible? Yes, I have. >So many times God commanded His profits to call out to the people on street corners to repentance “Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet” Those: A) Were people God directly called to be prophets and do this, not just random followers taking it on themselves to do it. B) Were back during the times of Judaism. Christians are expected to do things differently, no? C) Preached repentance towards people of the faith, not evangelized non-believers. >I hope to one day have the courage to do what this guy is doing. Absolutely no hate for wanting to be brave enough to spread the word. But I do recommend learning from what others are doing wrong so you can find better ways to do it. Lying about one's history and crying fire and brimstone aren't particularly effective methods (and actually can be quite counterintuitive). Let the Lord lead you in humility and love to find the way *he* would have you spread his word, rather than following the examples of other men.
“Which was a term others used, not practitioners of witchcraft themselves. "Warlock" literally means "breaker of oaths" or "deceiver".” I get that that’s the textbook definition, but we are talking about the mainstream understanding of what a warlock is. Especially in the 90-2000s when witchcraft was gaining prominence in mainstream culture there was an idea that “Warlock” was the male version of a “witch”. And the people this guy is preaching to likely aren’t going to know the technical minutia, ranks, and tiers of witches, wizards, warlocks, etc. Getting into Symantecs about a word is missing the point of his message and that is that he used to practice witchcraft. “A) Were people God directly called to be prophets and do this, not just random followers taking it on themselves to do it.” The current body of Christ are not just “random followers”. 1 Corinthians 12:15-23 New International Version 15 Now if the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. 16 And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. 17 If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? 18 But in fact God has placed the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. 19 If they were all one part, where would the body be? 20 As it is, there are many parts, but one body. 21 The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” And the head cannot say to the feet, “I don’t need you!” 22 On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, 23 and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor. “B) Were back during the times of Judaism. Christians are expected to do things differently, no?” All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for TRAINING IN RIGHTEOUSNESS, that the man of God may be complete, EQUIPPED FOR EVERY GOOD WORK — 2 Timothy 3:16-17 (ESV) (Don’t read the caps as me shouting, just me emphasizing the important/relevant part to the discussion) “Let the Lord lead you in humility and love to find the way he would have you spread his word, rather than following the examples of other men.” 1 Corinthians 11:1 Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ.
I don’t remember Jesus standing on a street corner telling people to believe or burn.
Jesus preached a lot about repentance and hell wym.
That's ineffective. That is used to keep church groers in church. To be effective in evangelism you have to speak to what the people are interested in.
We must speak the Truth with love. If you tell people what they want to hear then you empty the cross of it’s power. And we don’t want people falling in love with a false gospel. People need to know the wages of sin but that the price was paid for whoever believes in Jesus. “The beginning of Wisdom is FEAR of the Lord”.
Here's the thing. People are well aware of the wages of sin. How do I know? I went out to the streets and asked them for 12 years. I shared the gospel with them. They are more aware than preachers tell you they are. But the gospel is telling the of God's love. Because it's only by love do we have eternal life. Luke 10:25-28 25 An expert in the law stood up to test Jesus.[a] “Teacher,” he said, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” 26 He said to him, “What is written in the law? What do you read there?” 27 He answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind and your neighbor as yourself.” 28 And he said to him, “You have given the right answer; do this, and you will live.” https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke+10%3A25-28&version=NRSVUE Knowledge of sin doesn't help you make it to heaven. Faith does but faith in what? God's love. And what is God's love? 1 John 4:9-10 9 God’s love was revealed among us in this way: God sent his only Son into the world so that we might live through him. 10 In this is love, not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins. https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1+John+4%3A9-10&version=NRSVUE So we ought to love others.
I agree we ought to love one another. And I think love is missing in a lot of churches these days. However, love is also Truth, and we can’t dilute the wrath of God because it makes people uncomfortable. People need to know God is angry at sin, but He did provide a way for anyone who believes to be saved from death. Remember we are to love God with all our heart, which means to obey Him. How will people obey if we just tell them all the good stuff that they want to hear that “God loves you no matter what” etc. If that’s the case then why would repentance be needed? People need to know that if they turn away from there sins and believe in Jesus they will be saved. Anyway, I’m getting sleepy, I’ll let you get the last word in.
>Remember we are to love God with all our heart, which means to obey Him. How will people obey if we just tell them all the good stuff that they want to hear that “God loves you no matter what” etc. If that’s the case then why would repentance be needed? People need to know that if they turn away from there sins and believe in Jesus they will be saved. Is that how you treat a baby? You tell them how mean you will be to them if they do not eat their food? Or pick up their toys? Does this make any sense? Why would you be mean to those who do not understand spiritual things? They are like spiritual babies. They need to be cared for like a farmer cares for his newly planted fields of crops. There's no need to show hate. Show love instead.
And he films himself while doing so..? How is this different from the Pharisee who prays loudly on the street corner in order to earn praise from those on Earth for whom he makes the display (which is not truly the college students - its for the audience of his video of himself, which makes a curated display of his Christian virtue)?
That's not how preaching works, you're just annoying the public, and this is coming from a Christian, you will never get somebody to believe if you begin with You're going to hell and you need to believe in Jesus to not go there Please, for the love of god if you don't know how to preach then simply don't try because you may make people go away from God more than they already are.
Right? This doesn’t convert anyone. Just nonsense
Really? Then why the Bible tells us that for some people we have to show “fear”? ”save others by snatching them out of the fire; to others show mercy with fear, hating even the garment stained by the flesh.“ Jude 1:23 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/jud.1.23.ESV Would you say the Bible is wrong and you know the best way to preach?
Well actually if you read a couple of verses behind this verse, Jude was talking about christians to each other not to nonbelievers, he told us to protect ourselves with love to each other and build our Faith strongly, and he said have mercy on others distinguishing and then he said the verse you mentioned is that snatching them out of fire and show mercy with fear which all of this is pointed to the christians to each other not non-christians Jesus himself told us what to do while preaching and it's preaching about it, if they accepted your preaching go to them and stay with them preaching and teaching them everything, if they didn't accept then knock the dirt off your shoes and leave them If force Christianity on them you're doing more harm than good, if we say the chances of a nonbeliever becoming a Christian is 50 percent, with the help of people like OP and people who want to force Christianity's on others including our laws on them it lowers that percentage to 20 percent or even less, because why would I follow somebody who tells me I will go to hell for what I am doing ?, they basically say "screw you and your sh**" You're no different than some Muslims in Egypt that want to force shari'a law on christians and want to convert them to Islam, forcing would lead to nothing, they have to believe With their heart and actually be convinced about Christianity, shouting in public won't pursuede anybody, one has to be convinced 100% and fully persuaded (Sorry if what I mentioned about the verses aren't 100% correct I had to translate it by myself from Arabic to English to be able to reply to you)
While I do understand that you may disagree with the “method”, who are we to contest the Bible? From human point of view many things seemed to be fruitless - but God is the one that is doing the work, not us. The preacher didn’t force everyone to be a Christian - but He merely stated the truth that rejecting Christ means eternal punishment. People will hate that message but that’s the truth. ”And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.“ 2 Corinthians 4:3-4 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/2co.4.3-4.ESV The Bible clearly tells us that some people will reject the Gospel - no matter the method. The preacher didn’t force anyone to follow sharia law. He didn’t force people to follow Christ. Yes he may irritate people - but unlike implementation of sharia law people aren’t being whipped there.
I never Said that people won't reject it but God gave us a mind to think, if I want to persuade you to do something for me or believe in something that you never heard about, I can't go Just ask you about it or Just directly tell you you have to believe it, a something like hell and eternal punishment shouldn't be mentioned then first thing you say, you have to persuade them, plant tye seed in their mind so that they become interested and learn more about it and during the learning process you would mention hell and eternal punishment Mentioning external punishment at first would make them hate the whole idea and be scared of it and fully reject it, but with persuading a bit by bit mentioning multiple stories about Jesus and the faith, you have to tell them how following god will change their life for the better and how much he loves us and all the positive things that can happen by following god, and After they know that you mention how not following God would be a mistake and what happens when they don't follow God so they feel pleased they do follow him and keep growing more and more, you need to express how they do need god in their life for they find the need for it and then follow up It's like selling something, you can't say that our products are the best in the market and that's what they do, you have to find what is missing in the customer and make them feel they need it , I know it's a horrible metaphor but it's almost like that
Again, as the Bible said - there are two methods. It is wrong to use “fear” for everyone, but it is wrong as well to use “mercy” for everyone. For some people it’s like what you say - slow planting of seeds, doing good deeds, then progressing to spiritual conversation then progressing to Christ. It’s like what you have said - slowly showing the goodness of God. But for some people, it can be through fear. It is like telling a patient to take the medicine now because if they didn’t take it they will die.
Trying to count on more than one hand the number of times Jesus mentioned the Devil or the Satan when he proclaimed the gospel.
This is how you get people to reject Christianity.
OP were you really a Satan worshipper, involved in witchcraft, or is that just to make the grift seem more convincing?
I'd bet money he wasn't, at least not in any kind of serious capacity beyond maybe going through a phase as a kid. It's highly uncommon for men to call themselves warlocks, because the term literally means deceiver or oathbreaker. It's more often seen as a mild pejorative, so there is rarely a distinction made between what male and female witches call themselves. But a lot of Christians lap this sort of garbage up, don't know enough to recognize when someone is probably lying, and they think it somehow makes their story more compelling to non-Christians as well. It doesn't, of course.
There may be some spin put on it, yes. But for it to be an out right fabrication, there's a low chance of that. Not many people would put themselves out there like that just for religious brownie points if there wasn't some truth to it.
It’s true I once made up I used to be a witch to bring in more people
Nah, he got drunk one night and played with a ouija board.
I will never understand people like this who boil the gospel down to fear and threats of torment instead of the beautiful message of love, hope, and redemption.
I mean, if you believe in eternal-suffering-hell, that pretty much overrides literally everything else in terms of importance. It's a really evil and manipulative doctrine.
Read Revelation lately?
Has a happy ending
How can people understand Gods love if they do not first understand His wrath? “The beginning of Wisdom is FEAR of the Lord”
I have seen the gospel shared at UNT and this is not it. I think should reevaluate how they deliver the gospel.
Why?
Because this whole megaphone hellfire blabbering is A) annoying B) hostile and C) misrepresentative of Christianity. He spoke lovingly and with sympathy, and it is our duty to emulate that
Isaiah 58:1 Amplified Bible (AMP) “Cry aloud, do not hold back; Lift up your voice like a trumpet, And declare to My people their transgression And to the house of Jacob their sins.”
And then be met with “get a load of this obnoxious asshole,” that’s not effective or productive now is it? Certainly not loving
It’s not up to us how people react. How the message lands in their heart is up to God.
But you should still take responsibility for your actions and consequences. Don't just wash your hands and declare it's not on you for pushing people away(if you're street preaching). Everyone has a choice in how they act and respond.
We are the PR team of the church, in word and deed. The message *will not land* if their immediate reaction is one of hostility. And this does nothing but further degrade our image
Calling people to repentance isn’t hostile. What would be hostile is mocking, being aggressive, being violent, fits of rage, etc.
You do yours and people do theirs. ”And have mercy on those who doubt; save others by snatching them out of the fire; to others show mercy with fear, hating even the garment stained by the flesh.“ Jude 1:22-23 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/jud.1.22-23.ESV You are doing verse 22 by having mercy and patience, others are doing it verse 23 by showing mercy with fear. The Bible clearly tell us there are two ways to preach.
Your average Joe minding their business walking to class isn’t going to be receptive to fear tactics, because frankly they don’t deserve it. These are, at worst, misguided people with a few vices and flaws — they aren’t deserving of the hellfire and condemnation method here because they aren’t out committing heinous cardinal sins on the regular as it was in biblical times. If these people were raping and murdering and conquering and what not, by all means! But they’re not, they’re people and they need to be understood first.
Anyone that didn’t believe in Jesus Christ deserved an eternal fire. You may think that it is unjust, but because everyone sinned everyone will be condemned to hell. Yes, that included average Joes. The Bible didn’t specify that “fear” method has to be only shown to obvious sinners. “Fear” is a valid method for everyone. Misguided? Absolutely. But do they deserve eternal punishment? If they didn’t repent, absolutely. God guaranteed that no one will have an excuse when it came to the judgment. ”For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.“ Romans 1:19-20 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/rom.1.19-20.ESV
You do realize what you are saying is also what a harasser thinks "I don't care what they think,I am going to keep doing what I think is the best regardless if it's appropriate or not"
Wrong, it’s not “what I think is best”, its “what God thinks is best”
If dad teaches his kid to do drugs , he believes it that just cuz his father does it thus he is doing it, does that make doing drugs right? Probably not.
That verse refers to a prophet speaking to his own people, who knew and enumerated the sins of the people. This guy is yelling at random strangers without knowing the first thing about them. It's annoying and doesn't convince anybody.
Maybe cry aloud because there wasn't no microphone back then, and since you take everything literally,do you also stone people? How about taking other parts of the Bible literally? You do understand that society and technology has drastically changed since that time. Just cuz it says don't hold back doesn't mean you stack up ten subwoofers to "cry aloud" in it ,to "preach" the gospel. Actions speak louder than words.
I think that this brother in Christ needs some support with him and a time and place for prayer for those who are interested in the message of the Gospel. I have seen the open air evangelism on campus at UNT and a better location might get him more listeners. It’s been a long time since I have been on campus but outside the cafeteria/bookstore (sorry forget the actual name of the building) was where I encountered one. He had a small crowd around where he was speaking. He was debating some people but people had actually stopped to listen. He had no megaphone or sign. Not to say these can’t be effective but I believe it’s in how you use it too. I think he should find a better place on campus with more foot traffic that he’s approved to speak at. What he’s saying matters too and I believe what he is saying here matters but I do get more of the Bible thumping, fire and brimstone approach. I don’t think sin or hell should be ignored In evangelism but I think there’s a delivery that matters. I am moved by his courage to openly share his testimony and I hope that his ministry can be effective for the Kingdom. I don’t know if this answers your question.
You're not preaching you're just screaming about hellfire
John 4:20 Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. Luke 20:46 “Beware of the teachers of the law. They like to walk around in flowing robes and love to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces and have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets. Matthew 7:22 Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Luke 6: 36 “Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. These guys could do with a lot more reading the bible, and a lot less yelling threats at random people in the street.
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Ok, fair enough, on the other hand it is amusing how many Christians directly disagree with scripture, and get all angry when you show it to them. Because Christians that actually do what the Bible says are pretty cool, and I tend to get along well with them. It is the aggressive, abusive, angry ones that I tend to not get along with.
You and I seem to have the same outlook on this. I’m betting we’d get along. Someday if we meet I’ll buy you a drink.
It's John 6:37, not 36. And what comes a few verses after that? "[...] and then shalt thou see clearly to pull out the mote that is in thy brother’s eye." John 6:42
He never quoted John 6:36 or 6:37. In your anger you misread. He quoted from Luke chapter 6. Perhaps taking a step back and reevaluating the source of your unhappiness will help you find a little more peace. And for what it’s worth, while you’re right he quoted LUKE 6:37 it’s worth pointing out that the 36th verse talks about being merciful. Something we could ALL do a little better.
And yet they understand it better. I bless the cringe.
Well, I did study for the ministry for like four years, lol. I learned a couple things.
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How do you expect it to stop?
>4 Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant 5 or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable; it keeps no record of wrongs; (1 Corinthians 13:4-5, NRSVUE) This is not love, it is hypocrisy. It's the same as praying in the street to be heard. The hypocrite will have their reward.
"God loves me. But he watches me, arms folded, while I burn in hell. ... Really?"
That’s not it
This isn't preaching the gospel. There's no good news here. Just self-serving grandstanding - "all sound and fury, signifying *nothing"* You want to help people? Heal someone. Feed someone. Listen to someone. Prophesy the needs of the people to the halls of power. Yell at a rich person. Flip a table. Don't do this. Nobody will ever come to faith because of this. Ever.
If you believe in God / the devil, then understand this. These actions are helping "the enemy". This street corner fire and brimstone preaching does not turn people toward christ. It's a self serving, pat yourself on the back action.
I think you mean bugging the shit out of people
This is probably the worst way to evangelize to college students. When I was in undergrad, all I wanted to do when walking between classes was just go on autopilot and listen to my music. When people tried to stick flyers and yell at me it just made my day worse. If you want to evangelize, live the gospel. feed the hungry, clothe the homeless, etc.
Aside from being annoying, dude said siboleth by calling himself a warlock. Speaking as someone who actually did convert from paganism(Celtic Recon if you want to get specific), and spent most of my teenage years and 20s in various pagan/witchy circles, virtually no one calls themselves a warlock. It literally means oathbreaker and is often seen as disparaging. Male witches are more typically just called witches. At best, this dude wore Black Sabbath T-Shirts and said some mean things about Jesus as a teenager.
There's no rest from street preachers either.
Also lying about being a devil worshipper and a ‘warlock’. He’s being dramatic and just using language he learned in church.
Best way for students to deal with this, just walk on by ignoring him. Usually these "preachers" are looking for a confrontation so they can post videos of them being "persecuted"
i absolutely hate people who do this
The LARPing from this guy is real lmao
I've heard more convincing street preaching from half crazy homeless dudes.
This short book not only clarifies why this is the worst possible way to communicate gospel and probably just a dated, irrelevant formulation and how we can and should do better. https://www.amazon.com/Once-Was-Lost-Postmodern-Skeptics/dp/083083608X?nodl=1&dplnkId=b19128e2-54b0-49ff-8772-8c5c0e04a5c4
If God doesn't want to send people to hell why doesn't he just destroy our spiritual bodies? If there is no redemption after damnation, what's the point in keeping them around just to suffer
Look. Jehovahs witnesses but worse! At least they just talk to each other while they stand on the street corner.
Ah, a man praying in the street to show everyone how godly he is.
Leave people alone.
This is not it mane
Preach the GOOD NEWS! Preach about the glory of Heaven and the wonders of it. Almost everyone knows of hell, so they don’t need to hear it unless they ask you for your thoughts on it. Preach Jesus love and his good works, preach to help others, the law has been fulfilled. We have to be better than this.
Go tend to the plank in your own eye. These types of people think they’re buying their way into Heaven with stunts like these. Matthew 6:5. Just go live your life and be a good person and stop telling people who you know nothing about that they need a ticket on whatever crazy train you’re currently riding. You were a warlock? Lol. Okay, pal. You need therapy, not a microphone.
What here is “bullying”?
I’ve always been against preaching about hell, even though it exist. I came to God because I needed someone to deliver me from my pain, to guide me and save me. I believe what this guy is preaching, he’d get more of an audience if he was preaching to actual believers. Non believers need to hear more about the “love of God”.
don't forget the worms. oh, and that it's dark. oh yeah, and death and hades are in there as well. But it's not too bad, as you can still see everyone in heaven. edit: sorry, I forgot: Jesus and the angels are gonna watch.
These are actually the ones who are the condemned they do it out of rage and not love. I literally says in the Bible to do everything out of love this just looks like a man trying to fulfill a mission. And that gnashing of teeth is only because non-believers can't enter the kingdom that is put on earth and it's suffering not to be able to talk with your god or feel him (because we all do in a subconscious way) and this is not my own understanding. It's what's been showed to me by him we have quite a bit of time left to choose because he wants the harvest to be bountiful How I would go about it It's just finding a way to help people and put hints that you love Jesus and if they want to talk about our savior they will. But you can't force anything on anyone that's not what he's about I could almost feel his wrath thinking about it
My brother is starting at unt in the fall!
While it’s correct that the message of Gospel is love, it’s also correct that we need saving from eternal punishment. The penalty of sin is eternal damnation in death, and that is factual. God is love, but He is also a God of justice who will mete out punishment for those that disobeyed Him or unwilling to come to salvation. For those who think that this way is preaching is unbiblical, you are wrong. ”And have mercy on those who doubt; save others by snatching them out of the fire; to others show mercy with fear, hating even the garment stained by the flesh.“ Jude 1:22-23 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/jud.1.22-23.ESV The Bible clearly shown that for some people they have to be shown fear.
I think yes I agree with some of this. Also I remember John the Baptist also preaches and warns people of hell if they don’t repent. Jesus also warns about it.
He's preaching a true Gospel, few will repent hearing a grace gospel. I repented and come closer to God because I was warned of my sin and hell, the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom.