Witnessing To Door-To-Door Religious People

It's a fact that our home is a place where we hang our hat. Our home is where after a long day you just want to relax, spend time with your family, and maybe catch up on some shows you have on you DVR. Saturday mornings are good for sleeping in when you got nothing else planned or just getting some reading done while everyone in the house is doing their own thing.

All seems to be going when all of sudden your doorbell rings, and you open it to find two people dressed up with a Bible in their hands saying good morning then reading a verse from their Bible which is an inaccurate translation saying some stuff you have no idea they are saying when you begin to think about those pop tarts you left in the toaster.

Does this sound like a typical day on the weekend for some of you? I know for a lot of people including myself, this is a fact of life. Some religious groups go door-to-door promoting their "gospel" using their "Bible," which for those who study their Bible and follow Jesus knows it is a false gospel. Obviously this is a perfect opportunity to share Christ with them. You have a great arsenal of Bible verses and quotes from your favorite theologians and it just seems not to get through. You tell them your faith is based on the finished work of Christ and God became a man named Jesus who was not a man who became a god. After talking with them for 15 or more minutes they go over to the next house and you wonder if anything you said clicked.

I know for me that has happened on several occasions. What is really funny about those groups that come to my house, I never see the same ones from the last visit (I keep thinking I might have scared the others away). Witnessing to these people can be difficult and you may not win any of them over to follow Jesus. You did your part in being faithful witnesses for Jesus to them even though they went away still believing in their "gospel." Here are a few things to consider when witnessing to door-to-door religious groups:

First, pray for them. Ask them for their name and pray to God for them by name. Do not give up on them, keep praying even if you never see them again. Also as you begin to talk with them, ask the Holy Spirit to fill your mind with the right words to say to them so Jesus can get all the praise and they hear the truth of the gospel.

Second, do not shut them out. What I mean is you do not become religious and tell them to leave your property. There is a verse from the Bible that many Christians have greatly misunderstood which is found in 2 John, "Everyone who goes on ahead and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God. Whoever abides in the teaching has both the Father and the Son. If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house or give him any greeting, for whoever greets him takes part in his wicked works" (9-11). Many Christians think they have a right to kick them out of their house or ask them to please go away because of this verse. What John is saying here is not about welcoming people in the church with a false doctrine such as the Galatian church welcoming those who think observing the law will save them. John is not trying to get Christians separated from those who are lost but to separate those with false doctrines.

Third, know what they believe. You have information on every religion at our fingertips. Not only know what they believe, know what you believe. Mormons win over Christians because they did not know what they believe verses false religions.

Finally, rest in the gospel. Your experience with door-to-door religious people may not go well, but that is when you rely in the message of the gospel and not yourself. The gospel is about Jesus not how many people you can win to the Lord (which can lead to evangelistic legalism if you allow it). Rest in the gospel knowing they have heard it and pray the Holy Spirit will speak to them.