Mérida '07
On the day we made a visit a family on the southwest side of Mérida last year, I had the opportunity to bless an 8-day old girl. The girl had yet to be named and the parents did not have any money to take the child to a Catholic Church for Christening. (Apparently there is a "gift" fee of some sort.)
But is was the fact that there was no money in this house, or in the neighborhood, that was the source of my questioning the modern methods of evangelism (I had been taught Evangelism Explosion, Contagious Christianity and F.A.I.T.H. Evangelism). Upon leaving this family's house to return to CC Mérida, I looked up and down the street with the desire to knock on doors and tell all those people that they needed to accept Christ if they had any hope of a better life. But at the same time, I knew that if they were to become Christian, most likely God was not going to provide them wealth, health, jobs, etc.; all the things that are taught in many churches in the U.S.
Basically, all I had to offer was a "life enhancement Jesus" and I knew, deep down inside, that was not correct. And it bothered me.
Move ahead to early August 2006, a month and a half later. I was listening to Savage Rock Internet radio station where from 9-11 a.m. (Central time) this station airs a taped radio show where the host yelled, ranted, and raved about using the Law of God, the Ten Commandment's in evangelism. However, I thought the Ten Commandments were in the Old Testament and I was a New Testament Christian.
One day, as the show was ending and the music from Savage Rock was to begin again, this host played a snippet of a sermon about missions from what I discovered was Paris Reidhead's Ten Shekels and a Shirt. I enjoyed missions, so I listened.
The very next day as I tuned in at the end of the show (again, waiting for the music to start), this ranting and raving host played a part of another sermon by Paul Washer. Again, the snippet played was on missions. I thought since this host was playing these messages on missions that I would give a listen. And this is how God introduced me to "Way of the Master Radio (WoTM)" (w/ host Todd Friel).
At the core of the "Way of the Master" message is the belief that we need to use the Law of God FIRST in evangelism to show the lost their total depravity before a just and Holy God BEFORE we present the Good News of the kindness of God to save them. Modern methods of evangelism presents forgiveness without telling them why they need to be forgiven. The problem is that every person thinks they are basically good and therefore do not understand why they would need to be forgiven.
By using the Ten Commandments, the lost soul can understand (whether they agree or not) that God is angry with him/her because they have broken God's Laws. This morally perfect God will judge and send them to Hell for breaking His laws unless they repent and trust Christ as their Saviour...because God must punish sin.
But God, in His kindness toward us, crushed Jesus on the cross for our sins so that the justice of God, which demands punishment for sin, is satisfied. He remains Holy and offers us forgiveness if we repent and believe the Gospel.
After listened to WoTM for a few days, it all clicked. This message is the same to both poor and rich, great and small alike. It is Biblical. It is what Jesus did. (Luke 18:18-25) I now know what to say to the people in Mérida.
Therefore, this 2007 trip to Mérida would be different. We went to teach the folks of CC Mérida the "Way of the Master" Biblical evangelism. We also went to school to learn some Spanish.
signed,
d
Following is t's journal of the trip.
