Battle Log

Wednesday, 17 October, 2018

Posted 20 October 2018, 1:20 PM by Matthew Andersen. Permalink

On Wednesday in Brisbane City, the team was continuously swamped. Again, there were more people wanting to do flip charts, than there were flips charts, or people to man them! Although it is exciting that many people are wanting to engage in the Gospel and many more are hearing the Good News, the current limitation to the advancement of the Gospel in our Wednesday afternoons, is actually the amount of team members out. It is fitting to say, that the harvest is plentiful but the labourers are few.

Would you consider joining the team on a Wednesday afternoon (1-5pm), to, in the power of the Spirit, equipped with the Gospel of grace, declare to the people of Brisbane city, one conversation at a time, who God is and what He has done?

Outside of the flip charts, there were also many other conversations. Two conversations happened back to back. Firstly, with Fraser a young man. He raised all sorts of objections to Christianity and his original main point was, "there is no evidence of God". The response to this, that often stumps people (and had Fraser floundering) is, "What are you expecting as evidence?" "What would have to have done, for you to know He exists?"

A few simple explanations were given for things we would expect if there was a Creator. For example, a finely tuned functioning world, intelligently designed animals and humans, a standard of right and wrong. Fraser then went on to try and give other explanations for these things. One at a time as his explanations were shown to have holes or issues it was made clear that it wasn't that these ideas and theories were more plausible or gave real answers, rather it became clear that they were being used as excuses and scape goats to try and avoid God and ultimately to try and avoid God's judgement.

It was pointed out that our rejection of God isn't intellectual, we don't reject God on the basis of external evidence, rather we try and use anything that seems mildly plausible to try and convince ourselves and justify to ourselves, our prior rejection of God.

Fraser, understood. It was even further stressed that we use intellect as a scape goat from God's wrath (avoiding God's existence and therefore avoiding God's wrath), where in reality, the only one who can protect us from God's wrath, is God Himself. The Gospel was present to Fraser, the truth was explained and he was left to choose, to continue to live his own way in God's world and incur the wrath or to turn to the save that has done everything required for sinners to be forgiven, we simply have to trust in Him.

Fraser said he would consider it and was thankful for the conversation.

A conversation that backed straight off that one was with Emma. There were five highschoolers behind Fraser who had been listened, so when he left, the same question was posed to them, "What do you think will happen after you die?"

Four of the group weren't really interested and just day dreamed, made silly comments and ended up leaving. Where as Emma was interested and stayed and talked for almost sixty minutes. It was an encouraging conversation in which Emma came to understand the Christian message, the glory of the Gospel and the call it has on her life, to turn from sin, to Jesus.

She too was encouraged to consider what Christ commanded and was encouraged to pick up her Bible at home and start reading.

Please be praying for Fraser and Emma that they will each heed Christ's command and rely upon Christ's salvation.