Roman Catholics, a Zombie, and Gospel Truth – Portsmouth Evangelism
After the heavy rain and wind of the past few days, it was nice to have some sunny weather. Even though it was still a bit breezy, we were able to set up in Portsmouth for a couple of hours of evangelism. There were just four of us on the team today, so we couldn’t run our usual literature table. Instead, we just had the open-air board.
The city centre was a bit busier due to the half-term school holidays. As we handed out tracts, we noticed that people were a little more hostile than usual. Rather than politely declining a tract, we had numerous comments directed at us that cannot be repeated!
For the first thirty minutes, we focused on handing out tracts and trying to engage people in conversation. Quite a number of Muslims received the tract, “Are You Good Enough to Go to Heaven?” In fact, Muslims seemed more open to receiving literature than non-Muslims!
When it came time to preach, I spoke on John 3:16. At the end of the message, I offered copies of John’s Gospel to anyone who wanted to find out more about the Lord Jesus. Three people responded. One older lady also took a Gospel, but then handed it back to me, saying, “It would be wasted on me.” She wouldn’t elaborate on why she thought this, so I pointed her back to my text and urged her to trust in Jesus.
Next up to preach was Jim, who spoke on the wonder of wonders: God became a man! It was a good, Christ-exalting message, full of Scripture quotations and numerous quotes from gospel hymns. As Jim preached, a homeless man who had been listening came up to ask if he could have a copy of John’s Gospel. We happily gave him one, and he left saying that he wanted to read the truth.
As Jim preached about God being the Judge, a man yelled out, “I’m the Judge!” He then pointed to some graffiti on the wall and said, “They too are the judges!” The man then claimed to be a Christian who had come to faith many years ago, and also claimed that he was a zombie. It was clear that this man was a false convert who was confused by some very bad theology. Before anyone could speak with him, he walked away.
I also had the opportunity to speak with a Roman Catholic lady whom I’ve spoken to on many occasions over the past few years. She told us how much she enjoys reading the Bible and the leaflets we give away. Matt encouraged her to take an extra copy to give to her priest, which she did, and I gave her a tract designed for Roman Catholics. I also shared with her the story of former Roman Catholic priest Richard Bennett.
Matt preached next, speaking well on the subject of the Good News. A few young people listened but seemed more interested in mocking us. Still, the gospel seed was sown! Our Roman Catholic friend said she enjoyed the message, but Matt hadn’t preached the full truth because he never mentioned the Eucharist as the path to salvation. This gave me an opportunity to speak further with her about the Gospel.
Over at the board, two young ladies stopped to browse the literature. One of them professed to be a Christian but admitted to struggling with guilt and trying to earn God’s love. She had also become intrigued by Roman Catholicism. Her friend, on the other hand, admitted that Christianity is all true, but she just doesn’t want to believe because she is too selfish and doesn’t want to change her life. I commended her honesty!
We had a good conversation about the gospel of grace and how no one can earn God’s love. We also discussed the folly of saying something is true while living in the opposite way. Both took tracts and said they appreciated the conversation.
As the outreach finished, I was the last man left on the team. I began to pack away the board when Jim’s heckler returned. This time, he seemed much more coherent and friendly. He asked if he could have something to read, so I happily gave him a tract and a copy of John’s Gospel. He listened to the Good News, shook my hand and went on his way.
It was a good time in Portsmouth. I will miss being here over the next month, but I am confident that the team will keep proclaiming Christ. Please pray for all those who heard the Gospel.
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