Prove God Is Real

Prove God Is Real

Ministry Update March 17, 2019

A friend suggested that we witness downtown Saturday night instead of Friday night. Unfortunately, my friend couldn’t make it, but Brian and I were able to hand out New Testaments and Gospel tracts. We were anticipating large crowds since Kip Moore was performing at the Gillioz Theatre at 8 pm and the St. Patricks’ Day pub crawl was scheduled to start at 9 pm. But the crowd was much smaller than we thought it would be. Even though it was a much slower night than we expected, there were some conversations. The best conversation was with a group of four young people and one of them said, “Prove God is real.”

I countered back, “Prove God isn’t real.” They young man said some nonsensical things, but didn’t prove God isn’t real. He replied that I hadn’t proved that God is real. I asked them to look at the building behind me and I said, “Did someone build that building?” They laughed and said yes. So I asked, how is it that you can see a building and know that someone built it, but then you can look around at creation and not believe there was a Creator? The Bible says that you can look around at creation and know that there is a Creator (Romans 1:20).

Documents Deteriorate

The first young man said something about how we have to protect the actual document of U.S. Constitution or it wouldn’t remain (it would deteriorate), so he doesn’t believe that the Bible has survived all these years. I pointed out that the dead sea scrolls were preserved because of where they are located. Then one of them claimed the Bible has changed over 300 times over the years.

They went down many other rabbit holes, like how old the earth is and other such things. I pointed out to the group that we all have a day we were born and we have a day as of yet unknown to us, that we will die. We have all sinned against God, such as lying, stealing, lusting and other sins. They all agreed that they have done wrong. So when you stand before God on Judgment Day, these other questions will not matter at all. In fact, your mouth will be stopped and you will have nothing to say, nothing at all. But if you have not repented and surrendered your lives to Jesus, then you will be punished for eternity in Hell.

One of the young men named Evan replied that it’s just outer darkness, to which I said, no, it isn’t just outer darkness. Jesus said it’s a place where there’s weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matthew 22:13). Another young man said he believes when you are dead, you are dead, then nothing. The one young woman in the group kept bringing up when her dad talked to a pastor and his wife in front of her mother, and she made it sound like her dad had the better argument against Christianity, so she implied that’s why she didn’t believe.

Do You Care About The Truth?

After some more of the three-ring circus type atmosphere with several of them asking questions at the same time and asking more questions before I could answer them, I asked, “Do care about the truth?” “I know your generation think’s anything goes, but do you want to know the truth?” To which Evan replied, “Yes, I want to know the truth.” He happened to be one of them that took a New Testament, so I said, “You need to read what you are holding in your hand.

Jesus said, I am the way, the truth and the life, no one comes to the Father except through Me.” I continued that I believe if he would really read the New Testament, really looking for the truth, that Jesus would reveal Himself to him. I sincerely believe this. Because God is not willing that any should perish (2 Peter 3:9). Also, Jeremiah 29:13 says: You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. May God convict Evan and his friends and draw them to Himself.

I Thought God Didn’t Make Mistakes

Earlier in the night I handed New Testaments to two young men. The one that was more inebriated wanted to know what I handed him. I told him that it was a New Testament. Then he wanted to know what was wrong with the Old Testament, why didn’t I give him the Old Testament. To which I responded, “Since you can’t carry the Old Testament in your pocket.” Then he said, “I thought God didn’t make mistakes.” I agreed that God doesn’t make mistakes. Then he implied that God did make a mistake or there wouldn’t be a New Testament.

Before I could say anything else, he ran on ahead. His friend apologized for his atheist friend. To my surprise and dismay, the friend ran ahead, took the New Testament from his atheist friend and brought it back to me. Before I could really think about what was going on, they ducked into a building. I’m still dumbstruck on how a truly saved person would take a New Testament away from their unsaved friend. Frankly, it makes me question whether or not the professing Christian is really saved or not. May God save them both.

Planting Seeds

Another interesting encounter was when Brian was handing out tracts and I was handing out New Testaments. A couple walked by us and both of them said they didn’t need a New Testament. But then the man turned around and came back to us. He said that when he went to college in Springfield in 1978 or 1979, that he had gotten high and was walking to the zoo. As he walked by the square, there was a street preacher there who was really bringing it. Evidently this man and the street preacher got into a conversation.

The man said that the encounter made him think about Jesus and he now looks back on it as a seed that was planted. He told us that later on he went to seminary. He didn’t come right out and say it, but I think he was telling Brian and I about this to encourage us to keep witnessing. You never know what God will do with the seeds that are planted. That is what compels my friends and I to share the Gospel with others. We are merely planting seeds and God gives the increase. He also receives all the glory. May God bless the Gospel tracts and New Testaments that were handed out as well as the conversations.

(These updates are provided to encourage Christians to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ our Lord with others)