Debate Quitting Atheist
Ministry Update December 10, 2017
I was bringing a message on Wednesday at Missouri State University when Quinn the skateboarding atheist stopped and gave me back the booklet How God Reveals Himself Through Science. Quinn insisted that he had to stop after a few pages because the booklet isn’t science. He continued stating that he could only make it through a few pages. The supposedly science believer ended up being a debate quitting atheist. Instead of discussing our different interpretations of science experiments listed in the book, Quinn made some mocking notes on the first few pages and quit.
So why would he choose to be a debate quitting atheist instead of standing up for his beliefs? The apostle Paul answers this question in 2 Thessalonians 2:10-11: And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie.
They Received Not The Love Of The Truth
God sends them a strong delusion that they should believe a lie BECAUSE they received not the love of the truth. Without receiving truth, without repenting and receiving Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, a person cannot be saved. This young man flatly rejects God’s truth. Quinn initially introduced himself as a gay atheist at the beginning of the school year. He’s a God mocking, homosexual, everything is relative, atheist. I don’t know how much more of a strong delusion God could send his way in order for Quinn to believe the lies of Satan instead of God’s truth. When you run from God, He allows you to run all the way to reprobation (Romans 1:26-32).
I find no pleasure in Quinn’s unrepentant condition because he will receive eternal damnation if he continues rejecting Jesus and relentlessly swallows the lies of atheism and unnatural affections. 2 Thessalonians 2:12 says: That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness. Sadly, Quinn isn’t the only lost soul at MSU. When I first started open-air preaching that day, two students walked by, both laughing and both saying that God isn’t real. Lord have mercy on this perverse generation.
Better Than Candy
I love chocolate, so I understand how people like getting candy at the Springfield Christmas parade. It’s fun seeing the floats, marching bands and the Shriners zipping around in their little go karts. But the little kids love to receive candy. They get all excited and rush around trying to pick them all up after the parade participants throw the candy toward them. So what could you receive at a Christmas parade that’s better than candy? Why a Gospel tract of course.
As much as I love candy bars, none of the temporary pleasures of this life really mean anything. Where you spend eternity is the most important thing and salvation is found in Jesus Christ alone. Six of us from Crossway Baptist Church handed out 1,200 invite cards to our Christmas musical as well as 3,000 Gospel tracts. Handing out tracts is also better than candy.
Merry Christmas!
We had a few people reject tracts and most of them said “No thank you.” But the majority of people took the tracts and invite cards. One of the guys in our group figured out that just saying “Merry Christmas” worked the best.
So we started saying Merry Christmas and most people would say it back to us. Then when we handed them a tract, a lot of people took them. A few people realized that they were Gospel tracts and thanked us for being out there. Parades are a lot of fun and a great way to get a lot tracts out quickly. Another evangelist friend was also out handing out tracts a long with a co-laborer that came with her. May God bless and multiply the tracts. We are praying that people will show them to others and we also hope people come to our Christmas musical where they will also hear the Gospel.
(These updates are provided to encourage Christians to share the Gospel with others.)