Heckled by a Satanist and a Muslim – Southampton Evangelism
Three of us went out into the cold and wind of Southampton today to share the good news. At first, we thought the day would be quieter, but the Lord had other plans.
We started the outreach by handing out tracts and seeking to chat with people. After doing this for about thirty minutes, it was decided that the time had come to start the preaching. I was the only preacher for the day, and I ended up speaking twice.
My first open-air message of the day was on “The Message of the Cross”. As I preached, it seemed that not many people were paying attention; however, at the end of the talk, three people responded to the offer of a copy of John’s Gospel.
During this time, Nigel was busy talking with a Romanian man who is attending a Mormon meeting. The gospel was clearly explained to him, and the man was urged to find a biblical church.
David was also busy in conversation. He spoke with a couple, one of whom professed to be a Christian, but the other did not. However, both thought their deeds and goodness were enough to merit God’s favour. David shared the gospel with them and urged them to trust in Christ alone.
Over at the literature table, I found myself in conversation with a Scottish man who is visiting Southampton. He had recently started attending a Baptist church near Glasgow and was going through a course meant to introduce people to the gospel. He was very open and interested. As we chatted, I made sure to explain the good news, and then offered him a copy of ‘Why Christianity’. He gladly received it, along with a New Testament.
After a bit more tract work, I thought it was time to preach again. I honestly expected it to be fairly quiet, but I was wrong; it was lively from the beginning. As I preached on “The Big Picture of Easter”, a few people gathered to listen. It was then that a lady who is a professing Christian, and who does not like me (because we would not give her all our tracts), decided to interrupt. She went up to people who were listening, telling them to leave as I am a ‘false teacher’. Those listening ignored her, and I asked, “What am I teaching that is false?” There was no answer, so I continued preaching.
At this stage, a young man began to heckle. He was one of those hecklers who oozed pride and thought he knew how to destroy Christianity. He claimed that no historical record outside the Bible mentioned Jesus, which is wrong. He then claimed that ‘Christ’ was just a metaphor — wrong again. Next, he said that many people who were crucified went on to change the world; he just could not name one or explain what they did. I answered his questions, then kept bringing everything back to the gospel.
Around this time, he revealed that he is a Satanist and that he thinks the Bible and the Book of Satan teach the same thing. I demonstrated that this was false and took him back to the gospel. His brother also joined in the heckling, but he seemed much more willing to listen and engage.
The final objection he raised was about all the evil and suffering in the world, so I explained how all people have rebelled against God and corrupted creation. Then I went back to the gospel. Both the Satanist heckler and his brother received copies of John’s Gospel and were friendly. They then had a long conversation with Nigel.
I thought the heckling was over at this point, but I was wrong. A Muslim woman decided that she was going to take over the open-air and preach about Islam. She began to object to Jesus being divine, stating that He was nothing more than a prophet. I replied by showing from the words of Jesus how He claimed divinity. She then objected to the claim that Jesus died on the cross.
Something I have noticed is that when Islam is challenged in public, people stop to listen, and even those who may not normally be on your side end up backing you. As I dealt with her claim that Jesus did not die, I pointed out that, according to the Qur’an, Allah deceived people by making someone else appear as Jesus on the cross. I then asked why I should trade the God of the Bible, who cannot lie, for the god of Islam who deceives people. The lady could not answer, so she decided it was time to leave. Thankfully, those listening stayed.
I was able to explain that the God of the Bible only speaks truth, so we can trust what He says. Then I took those listening back to the gospel, finishing with the words of Jesus in John 14:6, where He says He is the truth. Numerous booklets and tracts were taken by those who listened.
One man who listened is a hardline traditional Roman Catholic. He was not happy that I am a Protestant, but he said he was thankful that Islam was challenged. He also liked the fact that I am Trinitarian. We had a nice chat, and he took a booklet designed for Roman Catholics. As he left, he called out, “You need to submit to mother church — Rome!” I replied, “You need to read the Bible, as it is the only authority in the church!” He laughed, waved, and went on his way.
The outreach ended up going much longer than usual, but we are thankful for the many gospel opportunities that arose. Please pray for all those who heard the good news.
SDG!
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Josh Williamson is a full-time evangelist with The Open-Air Mission. Since 1853, OAM has been sharing the good news on the streets of the United Kingdom. To stay updated about the work of the Mission, please sign up for the free quarterly magazine and monthly prayer notes.SUBSCRIBE TO OUR MAGAZINE AND PRAYER NOTES