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WE ARE FIREPROOF!!! -Pillar
How should I witness to someone who belongs to a denomination, who I suspect
isn’t trusting the Savior?
The most effective way to speak about the issues of eternity to a religious
person is not to get sidetracked from the essentials of salvation. Upon
hearing a person’s background, we may feel an obligation to speak
to issues such as infant baptism, transubstantiation, etc. However, it
is wise rather to build on the points of agreement between the Bible and
the person’s denomination, such as the virgin birth, the cross,
and so on. One point of agreement will almost certainly be the Ten Commandments.
They are the key to bringing any religious person to a saving knowledge
of the gospel.
After someone is converted to Jesus Christ, the Bible will come alive
and he will be led into all truth by the indwelling Holy Spirit. God’s
Word will then give him light, and he will forsake religious tradition
as he is led by God. While there are strong biblical arguments that may
convince unregenerate people that their church’s traditions contradict
Holy Scripture, there is a difficulty. Some religious people hold the
teachings of their church to be on a par with, or of greater authority
than, Holy Scripture. It is therefore often futile to try to convince
them intellectually that their trust should be in the person of Jesus
Christ, rather than in their own righteousness or in their church traditions.
For this reason we should aim at the conscience, rather than the intellect.
Take them through the Law of God (the Commandments) to show that they
are condemned despite their works, and strongly emphasize that we are
saved by grace, and grace alone, rather than by trusting in our own righteousness
or religious traditions.
If they are open to the gospel, and are interested in what God’s
Word says in reference to their church’s teachings, they will listen
to Scripture. For example, in Matthew 8:14 we see that Peter (whom the
Roman Catholic church maintains was the first pope) was married, as were
many of the other apostles (see 1 Corinthians 9:5).
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