John 16:12 might be one of the most important principal verses to remember when it comes to personal evangelism. Jesus told His disciples, “I have many more things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now.” In this context, Jesus explained that He was going away, and the Comforter would come in His place. However, the point is this: Jesus had much to tell the disciples about what was going to happen, but He knew they were not ready for it. Therefore, He did not burden and overwhelm them.
When it comes to evangelism, we feel like we need to teach everything all at once, and that is a huge mistake. When we teach, we need to have a plan, and we need to keep it simple. We have a lifetime to teach about the church functions, the home, gender roles, end times, church history, etc., but those are things that can wait. So, let’s focus on the most important things first: Establish the principles of authority and obedience. Take a biblical account like Noah, Naaman or any number of others and show (don’t tell) that to be saved we must do what God says the way He says to do it. Then, show in the New Testament what God said to do to be saved.
[Editor’s Note: The “whole counsel of God” (Acts 20:27) cannot be presented in a single occasion of Bible study. Yet, there are fundamentals of which a prospective candidate for conversion must be aware and accept (e.g., three persons in the Godhead, the one church, Christian worship, Christian living). Biblically, one who would obey the Gospel (2 Thessalonians 1:8; Romans 6:17) may need to be apprised of known, specific sins for which he needs to repent (Acts 2:36-38) or of sins characteristically practiced by non-Christians (Acts 21:25). For instance, awareness that persons are cohabiting without marriage or that the practice is rampantly practiced and accepted in a society warrants introduction of appropriate Scripture treating the topic. ~ Louis Rushmore, Editor]
