Evangelism on the street and discipling from zero

A few weeks ago I was out in a park with a friend sharing the gospel. Although he had witnessed to friends and family, it was his first time to walk up to strangers and tell them about Jesus. At first he watched as I spoke to a few people, and then he started. “I’m a Christian, and we are telling people about Jesus,” he said boldly. “Do you have a minute to hear my story?” He asked about five people before someone responded. One young man walking past us, likely a university student at a nearby college, stopped and said, “Sure.”

My friend then proceeded to share his personal testimony about how he met Jesus. He shared how under the Old Testament law, priests would have to offer animal sacrifices for sin again and again, but Jesus was the perfect sacrifice once and for all, that his sacrifice fulfilled what animals couldn’t do under the Old Testament.

Oh, I thought to myself, he probably doesn’t need to launch into a description of the Old Testament and animal sacrifices. This guy won’t have a clue what he’s talking about. I thought a little about how I would coach him afterward.

To my surprise, this young Japanese man responded by saying, “Oh, I know some of what you are talking about in the Old Testament and have read parts of it, but I don’t know anything about Jesus.”

Well, so much for my advice. The Holy Spirit knew just what he needed to hear. When you see something like that, you know he is working and leading you to the right people.

The experience was also transforming for my friend who was doing the sharing. “I knew the whole time that it wasn’t me, the Holy Spirit was speaking,” he related to me afterward.

That’s it—he’s got it. That’s what I want everyone to experience at least once: the work of the Holy Spirit empowering you to share the gospel with someone. Once you taste it, you are hooked. You are going to tell people about Jesus for the rest of your life.

He led someone to the Lord the very next time we went out.

Discipleship from ZERO

Kumi and I are enjoying this wonderful rhythm of evangelism and discipleship. We had an amazing time last Sunday taking everyone out after the worship service. More than half the church went out, excited to go, and they all came back excited to share what they had experienced. For the last couple months, we have been having a few people saved here and there every week. “Like popcorn,” my pastor friend commented.

Now we are in the next stage: discipling those who have prayed to receive Jesus. Seeing people come to an understanding of God, watching them come to know Jesus for themselves and grow in their faith, is one of the most rewarding things in your life in God. But it takes time, and it is a lot of work.

This is really where the bulk of ministry is in Japan. My Japanese pastor friends and I call it discipling from zero. “Zero” can be a little hard for us from the West to understand. For example, if I say the word “God,” most Americans and probably a lot of Europeans will imagine something based on a Judeo-Christian context: An all powerful being. The creator of heaven and earth. One sitting on a throne and clothed in bright clouds. These are all images that come from the Bible. But say “god” to the average Japanese, and they are going to picture a spirit world full of creatures and entities that fill rocks, mountains, trees, dolls, bathrooms, shrines—you get the idea. Just bringing people to an understanding of the God of the Bible, one God who alone is worthy of our honor and worship, involves a significant reframing and rethinking of the way they view the spiritual and the unseen. If you are discipling a new believer one on one and meeting with them for a couple of hours per week to teach them from the Bible, you may spend the first three of four weeks just on this topic alone before you see the lights begin to come on. That is what I mean by “discipling from zero.”

Right now we are experiencing the fruit of the gospel being preached and people believing on Jesus. That means pouring into people as they disciple these new believers. It’s a struggle, but it is a healthy part of the process of growth. I notice that more and more of our time and energy is being spent coaching and discipling others as they do the work of ministry.

Pray for us and for these new believers, that they will grow in their faith and in their revelation of Jesus.

-Jeremy