TAKING THE SHEPHERDING WAY
TO PREACH THE GOSPEL AND REVIVE THE CHURCH

SERIES Two
The Outflow of the Vital and Revived Living—
Preaching the Gospel by Visitation Weekly

Message Ten
Being Flexible in the Way of Contacting People

Scripture Reading:

1 Cor. 9:22-23     To the weak I became weak that I might gain the weak. To all men I have become all things that I might by all means save some. And I do all things for the sake of the gospel that I may become a fellow partaker of it.

BEING FLEXIBLE IN OUR WAY OF REACHING PEOPLE

We must be flexible in our way of reaching people in the gospel preaching. What does it mean to be flexible? Human beings are very legalistic. We easily make everything a legality.…The best way for the saints to visit homes is to form teams. Ideally, a team should have three persons, one older, one younger, and one middle-aged, with either one sister and two brothers or one brother and two sisters. But in the United States, many have taken this as a legality. Because we could not get an older one or a younger one, we would not form a team. Therefore, nothing is done because of our legality. We all must learn to be flexible. This does not mean that I am annulling my previous fellowship. If you practice those things, they will work; but it all depends upon the situation.

The Best Way Being to Visit Your Close Relatives

The first and best way is to visit your close relatives. Suppose you go to visit your grandfather. Although your grandfather loves you, he may not listen to you, so you should take some mature brothers with you. Then when you go to visit your grandfather, he will listen to these brothers and get saved and baptized. What you could not do in twenty-five years of preaching to him, these brothers could do in a short visit.

You also have many other relatives to reach with the gospel. You should make a list of all your relatives and go to visit each one. You do not need to knock on strangers’ doors. A stranger may slam the door in your face. Those are “cold doors.” You better go first to the “warm doors.” Your close relatives would never slam the door. You have the right to visit them. There are so many “warm doors,” so many close relatives, for us to visit with the gospel.

Building Up Quite a Good Relationship with the Neighbors

The second group of people we have to visit is our neighbors. We all have neighbors, and we may have lived by our neighbors for many years. We are Christians who love the Lord and are in His recovery. We are seeking Christ and desire to live Christ, abide in Christ, enjoy Christ, and experience Christ; yet after so many years, our next-door neighbor may still not be saved.

Many sisters do not have a job, but they stay home to take care of their little children. A sister can build up quite a good relationship with her neighbors so that all the neighbors know that she is a good and proper person and that she is training her children very well. They may like to have their children go to her home, and she can open a small childrens’ meeting class with about five children. The best time is in the afternoon when the children come back home from school. Many mothers would like to have a good neighbor to take care of their children, and their children need the other little ones to be their friends. Gradually, she could have more children, perhaps as many as fifteen. Through these children, every family’s door will be open to her.

Visiting Our Friends, Colleagues, and Schoolmates

We must also visit our friends, colleagues, and schoolmates. Everyone has a friend, a colleague, or a schoolmate. If you are teaching school, all the teachers and staff are your colleagues. If you are a student, you have many classmates. First, we should try to build up a good feeling between ourselves and our colleagues or schoolmates. Then we can talk to them about Christ and make an appointment to visit them. We can ask them to give us a time to speak with them. They may try to avoid this, but if we are persistent, eventually they will give us a time to visit. Then when you visit, it is always good to bring a saint with you.

Learning to Use the Telephone Wisely

We all must learn to use the telephone wisely. The telephone can be very useful. Today there are some telephone salesmen who make over a million dollars a year. They are constantly calling people, one after another. We can use the telephone to make appointments with people to talk to them about Christ. We may even use the telephone book to call people. Simply pick a name and call: “Sir, I got your name from the phone book. I am a Christian who loves the Lord Jesus and would like to talk to you for a short time.” Most would reject you, but maybe three out of a hundred would receive you. Then you can visit these three.

We do not know when we will find a son of peace. For a hundred and four weeks we may not get one. Yet the next day we may find a son of peace. We simply have to exercise our persistence, patience, and faith. I do not believe someone can go out continuously, regularly, once every week for fifty-two weeks, and still not catch one fish. If you are persistent, surely you will catch one.

Making Appointments by Purchasing Something

If a brother goes into a stationery store to buy some stationery, and there are no other customers in the store, he can buy something, and, of course, the salesman will be happy. You should not miss such an opportunity to speak to people. It may be good to have a card printed with your name, address, phone number, and something to indicate that you are a real Christian. Then at such an opportunity, you can hand the salesman your card and say, “I would like to talk with you about Christ for only a few minutes.” Do not talk too much because that is his business time. Two minutes would be enough. Then say, “May I come to see you?” This is the way to make an appointment by purchasing something. If you are going to buy three things, do not buy all three things in one store. Buy one thing at this store, and then go into the next store and try to make another appointment. Your purchase is the bait. The sisters have to consider how many things they buy in a month. There are many opportunities to speak Christ to people.

We should not be so legal. We must exercise our wisdom. When the sisters go to the beauty shop, they must go purposefully. They should even go more often with the intention of talking to someone.…We must reach people with patience, gradually.

A DESPERATION TO GAIN SOMEONE FOR CHRIST

One thing is for sure. If we stay at home, we will gain nothing. We have been at home for years. Who did we reach with the gospel? It is worthwhile for us to pursue any way by which we can minister Christ to others. However, our crucial need is not a way but a desperation to gain someone for Christ. We must be desperate. We should not tolerate our barrenness. If we do not bear fruit, the Lord will cut us off from His enjoyment, and He will judge and punish us at His coming. It is a necessity that we preach the gospel, for woe unto us if we do not (1 Cor. 9:16). If we are desperate, surely the Lord will give us a saved sinner to offer up as a sacrifice to God. (The Exercise and Practice of the God-Ordained Way, msg. 7)