To make your church, organization, or individual web site a more effective and dynamic means for communicating the gospel and Christian message across the street and around the world, check the following principles for effective communication:
The only country in the world that bans the use of the Internet is North Korea. China alone were expected to have 100 million users less than two years ago. ACTS International is only a small organization with two staff members in our North American office and in the last quarter viewers from 125 countries visited the ACTS' web pages, and in this same time received over 950 salvation responses from around the world.
Perhaps God has given today's church the greatest resources, the greatest training, the most powerful technology, and the most effective means of communication ever in order to reach the ends of the earth with the gospel in preparation for the Lord's return. And even if the Lord doesn't return in our generation, we only have our generation to reach our generation.
While businesses, spammers, and pornographers are taking the fullest possible advantage of the world wide web to "sell their wares" the average church web site is designed to communicate to it's members and fellow Christians in christianeze—language that is mostly understood only by Christians—as are 99% of the books in the average Christian bookstore.
2. Opening Closed Minds
Churches, organizations, and individual Christians are in a prime position to evangelize the world as never before. But to effectively communicate the gospel (or any other message), it is imperative that we understand the fundamental principles of effective communication.
Scratch 'em where they itch: To put it in a word, to effectively communicate to people we need to "scratch 'em where they itch." That is, we need to reach people at their point of felt need in language they understand. People today are continually bombarded with endless messages via radio, TV, bill boards, news papers, E-mails, the Internet, and so on. However, the only messages they attend to are those that speak directly to their felt or perceived needs and interests. All other messages are filtered out.
Even a casual reading of the gospels reveals that this is the way Jesus communicated his messages. He always addressed people at their point of need: "Do you want to be made well?" he asked the sick. "Come down out of your tree," he said to Zacchaeus, the social outcast, "I'm coming home to dinner with you." "What do you want me to do for you?" he asked others.
Meeting people at their point of felt need is the most powerful and effective means of communication. In fact, it is the key to opening closed minds. In all communication it is imperative to meet people where they are, not where we are or where we expect or presume them to be. And then, of course, it is also crucial that we minister to the real needs of readers and not "Christianize complexes" by giving over-simplistic solutions to many of life's complex problems. To be effective communicators of the gospel we not only need to understand sound Biblical theology, but like Jesus, we also need to understand people and their total needs—physical, emotional, and social as well as spiritual. Remember, too, that felt needs ultimately lead to real needs.
Avoid christianese: As Nicodemus was confused when Jesus told him that he needed to be born again, if we use such terms, it is important that we explain what they mean. For example, what does the question, "Are you saved?" mean to the non-christian? Think too of terms such as sanctification, the Holy Ghost, redemption, regeneration, and even repentance—terms that are not only totally misunderstood by non-Christians but can be a real turn-off. Always strive to communicate in non-churchy language.
3. Process Evangelism
Realize, too, that evangelism is a process, not an event. Most people who become Christians rarely make that decision the first time they hear about Jesus and what he has done for them. Physical birth is a nine-month gestation process. Spiritual birth may happen quickly but more often than not it is a much longer period of gestation—even years for some people. This is why it is imperative that we "keep on sowing our seed."2 Or as the Apostle Paul said, "It is God himself, in his mercy, who has given us this wonderful work [of telling his Good News to others], and so we never give up."3
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4. The Spiritual Decision Scale4
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| +8 |
|
Continued growth, maturity, and service |
| +7 |
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Continued growth, maturity, and service |
| +6 |
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Discipleship and service |
| +5 |
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Exhibiting the fruits and gifts of the Spirit and service |
| +4 |
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Christian maturity and service |
| +3 |
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Christian growth and service |
| +2 |
|
Fellowship in the church |
| +1 |
|
Post-decision evaluation |
| 0 |
|
A person's point of conversion or new birth |
| -1 |
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Repentance and faith in Christ |
| -2 |
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Decision to act |
| -3 |
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Personal problem/need recognition |
| -4 |
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Understanding of the gospel |
| -5 |
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Increased understanding of the gospel |
| -6 |
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Some understanding of the gospel |
| -7 |
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Introduction to the gospel |
| -8 |
|
Sense of a Supreme Being but no understanding of the gospel |
Arriving at Christian faith is a process that takes time—a process that is activated by a combination of many events such as the influence of Christian parents, a friend, teacher, youth leader, a sermon, a book, a piece of literature, an e-mail, blog message,or Internet message, and so on.
Communication specialist, Dr. Jim Engel, has illustrated this spiritual decision process illustrated in the graph above. At -8 a person has a believe in a "Supreme Being" but has no effective understanding of the gospel. At zero he/she makes his or her commitment to Christ. The plus side of the scale represents Christian growth and service.
In evangelism, as in all major life changes, people change slowly. As a general rule (to which there are always exceptions) to move a person from -8 to -7 and so on takes many events, each of which is a vital part of the evangelism process as moving a person from 1 to zero his/her point of conversion.
People are not ready for the "John 3:16" message until they are where Nicodemus was, at -3. It can take months or years of continual sowing to bring a person to this place. To "Push" people too quickly into making a decision can have a boomerang effect and drive them farther from the cause of Christ. It can cause spiritual still birth.4
Furthermore, for a continual harvest, continual sowing is essential. In selling it takes an average of seven calls to make a sale. How much more is required to change the total direction of a person's life? This is why effective evangelism needs to be treated as a process, not just a single event.
5. Add Articles to Your Site That Address Felt Needs
You can syndicate or add articles to your web site without charge from ACTS' web site—articles that are based on the latest methods for effective communication and apply the gospel and Christian message to the needs readers feel—a major key for all effective communications.
When you syndicate ACTS articles, they blend into your own web site and match exactly the layout and design of your pages thereby becoming an integral part of your site.
Click HERE for an example of a web site that includes ACTS "Current Article" which changes automatically every weekday of the year.
ACTS articles include the following:
Effective Pre-evangelism:To help readers (who have little, if any, effective understanding of the gospel) progress on the Spiritual Decision Scale from -8 to -3 to where they are ready for a direct gospel message, it helps to read articles that speak to their every day issues. That is, they need to read articles that address the needs they feel—articles that have a Christian application that is based on sound biblical principles. ACTS articles do this.
ACTS Weekend Encounter is also another means for effectively sowing the seed of the gospel. Click HERE for the current issue.
ACTS main gospel message, "How to Be Sure You're a Real Christian" has been used for more than three decades in pritned form and has received several thousand salvation responses. Since going online a few short years ago, ACTS has received more than 10,000 salvation responses from around the world. Back to the Bible also use this gospel message on their web site and have received more than 8,000 salvation responses. In the current quarter ACTS has recived more than 800 salvation responses.
This gospel message can be added to and made an integral part of your web site so that salvation responses can come back to you, or if you prefer, they can come to ACTS. We recommend to have them come to you for your more personal contact.
ACTS Follow-up articles are also available for syndication to your web site. You can choose the ones you wish to use. They include articles such as, "How to Grow," "What a Good Church Can Do for You," "Is the Bible the Word of God?" and more. Click HERE to see these articles.
To add any or all of ACTS articles to your web site click on the Syndicate button link below for further instructions and application.
"I Hate Witnessing" audio is a condensed version of Dick Innes's seminar based on the bestseller book with the same title. It is obviously a tongue-in-cheek title and shares the latest principles for the effective communication of any message in general and the Christian message in particular. It is shared in an easy to understand manner and is sprinkled with humor.
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