At the risk of sounding like a Hallmark commercial, when we care enough to give the very best, it’s a no-brainer that we want to tell people about Jesus. He is the best thing that you or I have to offer.

So when some folks tell us we must earn the right to share the gospel—what then?

As ambassadors for Jesus (2 Corinthians 5:20), be encouraged! Reaching out to people with the truth of the gospel is a right, a responsibility and a privilege that God Himself has entrusted to you. No prerequisites. Always be ready to offer the truth of Jesus with kindness and humility; God will bless you and make you a blessing!

Kindness, at times, calls for us to care for people’s earthly needs. And humility informs us that people might require us to show that we can be trusted in order for

them to open up about spiritual matters. But these things are not particularly prerequisites or qualifications for faith-sharing—they are qualities of life God wants us to live out no matter what we are doing.

That said, many Christians have asked us questions about trust and relationships as these issues relate to sharing the faith, so we hope you’ll find the following useful.

How much of a relationship is necessary before sharing my faith?Peter shared the gospel on Pentecost and 3,000 people responded in faith, not because he had relationships with them, but because of the power of the Holy Spirit. Sure, most of us are more likely to be called to witness to people one at a time, but it is often possible to share the gospel one-on-one with strangers. On an airplane for example, (continued on page 2)

Prerequisites to sharing your faith? 1

Bits from our branches in Chicago and Israel 3

Prayer prompters 4

Keeping it safe: conversations about Jesus 4

insideJULY 2017

PREREQUISITES TO SHARING YOUR FAITH?by Ruth Rosen, editor

When some folks tell us we must

earn the right to share the gospel—

what then?

THE NEWSLETTER FOR CHRISTIANS WHO

WANT TO KNOW ABOUT JEWS & EVANGELISM

the stranger seated next to you may open up about subjects she isn’t comfortable discussing with family members or friends. “Divine appointments” happen everywhere.

Long ago I was handing out tracts at a location famous for drug deals and prostitution. I saw a young man leaning against a chain link fence and could not ignore the growing sense that I was supposed to tell him something. Though it was the last thing I wanted to do, I walked over and without a word of introduction, quietly said, “Excuse me. I think God wants me to tell you that He loves you and wants to set you free.” His eyes widened as he replied, “I just got out of jail. I was supposed to be on my way to a job interview and instead I came here to get high.” I shared Jesus with this stranger and he responded in faith to ask for God’s pardon. I didn’t earn the right to get in this guy’s business, I just did what I was told.

Even so, most people, including Jews for Jesus, want to invest in longer-term gospel conversations within the context of trusting relationships.

How long does it take to build trust?Deep and lasting trust is normally built over time, as people go through trials and/or conflict resolution together. Most do not require that level of trust to have a spiritual conversation. However, Jewish people—and others who aren’t part of what they perceive as a Christian majority—do need to sense your respect for

them. Many can size up your sincerity and sensitivity fairly quickly, and might even say something deliberately provocative to see whether you will judge or ridicule them for stating an opposing view.

Most people won’t distrust you based on differences of opinion if you state your difference respectfully. Show respect by asking questions and being a good listener. It probably won’t take long to build enough trust to begin a spiritual conversation. Take cues from the other person about how much to say or ask, and continue to nurture trust with each interaction.

What if I try to share my faith and the person responds negatively?Remember: “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast” (Ephesians 2:8–9).

Salvation by grace applies not only to those who receive the life-giving message, but also to those of us who offer it. We look for thoughtful and creative ways to share the gospel. But isn’t it liberating to know that when someone comes to faith, it wasn’t because we somehow managed to do everything right? It was God’s grace. Pure, simple, mind-boggling, heart-rejoicing grace.

This summer, as Jews for Jesus reaches out to strangers and friends alike all over the world, please pray that He will pour out His grace on our efforts. And for your own evangelistic efforts, pray for grace, practice grace . . . and watch God lavish His grace where you least expect it!

Ruth Rosen, the younger daughter of Jews for Jesus founder Moishe Rosen, is a writer, editor and speaker who loves to discuss the glory, grace and transforming power of God through the gospel of Jesus. Next month you’ll get to hear from our executive director, David Brickner, as usual!

Jews for Jesus international headquarters: 60 Haight Street, San Francisco, CA 94102-5895; phone: (415) 864-2600;

email: jfj@jewsforjesus.org; web: jewsforjesus.org; also working in: Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Hungary, Israel, Russia,

South Africa, Switzerland, Ukraine and the United Kingdom; editor: Ruth Rosen; art director: Paige Saunders;

design and illustration: David Yapp; ISSN 0740-5901 Volume 10:5777, July 2017; ©2017

established 32 a.d., give or take a yearWe exist to make the messiahship of Jesus an unavoidable issue to our Jewish people worldwide.

(continued from page 1)

Phot

o by

Get

ty Im

ages

Reaching out to people with the truth of the gospel is a privilege that God Himself has

entrusted to you. No prerequisites.

From Chicago, David and Arielle Randle report: “About a month ago, Dinah came to our Shabbat dinner outreach at the invitation of Jacob, a childhood friend of hers. During dinner she was telling Arielle what it was like growing up in West Rogers Park, an ultra-Orthodox neighborhood in Chicago.

“Then she confessed that Jacob (who also is Jewish and not a believer in Jesus) had been inviting her to come to our Shabbat dinners for months, but she declined because of rumors she’d heard about Messianic Jews. Eventually she decided to attend ‘with an open mind,’ but with her guard up. To Dinah’s surprise, none of us were anything like the dangerous cult members she had heard about.

“Dinah was the very last person to leave our house that night. She told us about her disillusionment with Orthodox Judaism. ‘I’m not free to say what I really think in my community,’ she admitted. ‘But the truth is that I’m not sure what I believe.’

“Over the next few weeks, we started asking people to pray for Dinah’s heart to become open to the truth of Jesus. We sent her an online invitation for Shabbat dinner and not only did she RSVP within minutes, she forwarded the invitation to several of her friends!

Please pray for God to touch many hearts through our Shabbat dinners, and especially for Dinah and Jacob to find the peace and hope that Jesus wants to give!”

From Israel, Igal Vender* reports: “As the congregation I attend provides food packages to those in need, I was particularly moved by the situation of one Jewish lady, Lena. She immigrated to Israel to flee the war in Ukraine. With her two sons remaining in Ukraine, she’s had absolutely no one in Israel.

“She found it difficult to comprehend why strangers were willing to help her, spend time with her and also pray for her. But when she attended our congregation she said that she immediately felt at home, and she loved the atmosphere there. She felt that for the first time in her life she belonged somewhere.

“This week when Lena came to our service, she asked me if she could pray to ask Jesus into her life. Hallelujah! Please pray that the Lord would strengthen her in her new faith, and pray for us to be better tools in the hands of our Savior.”

*Igal is a missionary with Christian Witness to Israel, working in partnership with our Jews for Jesus team in Israel.

Names of many people we meet are changed to protect privacy.

bits from the BRANCHES

David and Arielle Phot

os ©

Jew

s fo

r Jes

us/P

aige

Sau

nder

s

IgalPhot

os ©

Jew

s fo

r Jes

us/V

lad

Mitn

itsky

jewsforjesus.org/publications/realtime

You’ll also find a subscribe button there, so you can receive great content directly.

For online news of Jews for Jesus around the world go to:

KEEPING IT SAFE

PRAYER PROMPTERSPlease pray for:

continuing follow-up from our recent outreach in Kiev

God’s blessing on this month’s outreach in Berlin

our Massah team to communicate the good news of Jesus effectively as they engage with Israeli backpackers in India

God to use our summer camp program to help raise up the next generation of Jews for Jesus

final details to come together for our Co-Laborer in Messiah training next month and our Budapest outreach in September

salvation for Dinah and Jacob and continued fruit from our Chicago Shabbat dinners; grace and strength for new Jewish believer Lena in Israel, continued growth in the faith for Bruce in Southern California

For your convenienceThe enclosed envelope is not a request, but a convenience for those who want to give. For those who want to give online, this URL makes it easy and secure:

j4j.co/nl1707

Front cover photo by Getty Images. Photo this page ©Jews for Jesus and Getty Images

I became part of Bruce’s journey to faith six years ago when he asked (somewhat sarcastically), “So, are you Jewish or a Christian?”

I responded that the answer was simple, but he wouldn’t understand it. “It’s not because you’re stupid or anything like that. It’s just that you have been indoctrinated to think it’s impossible. The answer is ‘yes.’ So, would you like to get a cup of coffee and talk it over?”

Just last year, after many interactions, Bruce received the gift of faith in Jesus. I recently asked what got him thinking about the message. He simply said, “You made it safe.”

Missiologist Donald K. Smith says that all communication is cross-cultural. So even when I think I know what another person is saying, I need to confirm it with them. I must be respectful, gentle and patient to understand the other person’s perspective.

For example, once when Bruce mused out loud about Jesus I asked, “So, who do you think Jesus is?” That question often prompts some “strange” responses, at least to my thinking. But I’ve learned to listen, giving as much respect as I would hope to receive if asked a thought-provoking question. That is one way to make someone feel safe in conversation.

I might even say that the purpose of the question is not to find agreement, but to grow in our understanding of one another. Wow, that takes patience and gentleness—virtues with which I’m not naturally endowed.

However, we who believe in the unseen God have the blessing of an unlimited spiritual asset: the Holy Spirit who dwells within us. The Lord isn’t limited by all the cross-cultural stuff. We can pray, “Lord, in the power of your Spirit, be the love, the joy, the peace, patience, the kindness, goodness, faithfulness, the gentleness and self-control that I need as I speak with this person who doesn’t yet know You.” God is a full partner in communicating in ways that make other people feel safe in conversation.

Many answer the question, “Who do you think Jesus is?” with something like, “Well I think Jesus was a good man, maybe an avatar for a prophet, but he wasn’t God, because God wouldn’t come to earth in human form!”

I might respond, “Hmm. Okay, that’s a little different from the way I understand Jesus. But I think I get your point of view. So, why do you say that ‘God wouldn’t come to earth in human form?’ Can’t God do anything?” That’s what creating a safe place for conversation sounds like.

Bruce helped me to think about how to help others feel safe in a spiritual conversation. I was reminded of the need for a continuing harvest of the fruit of God’s Spirit in my own life—so that I can partner with Him in the lives of others.

by Tuvya Zaretsky