The Activator Podcast

On todays podcast I have the pleasure of Interviewing Randy Newman. Randy is the Senior Fellow for Evangelism and Apologetics at The C. S. Lewis Institute in the Washington, DC area. He has also taught at numerous theological seminaries and colleges, and served for over 30 years with Campus Crusade for Christ. He’s written many books on the topic of Evangelism, and we’re going to be discussing his book ‘Questioning Evangelism’ in our conversation today. We’re going to talk about: How Randy converted from Judaism to Christianity How we can engage our Jewish neighbours in an evangelistic conversation How we can use the ancient art of Rabbinical questioning for more effective evangelistic conversations Close off with some tips that will help anyone better engage evangelically with those around them. In our conversation today we’re going to talk about: - Where the word ‘Gospel’ came from, and what the word ‘Gospel’ means - How much of the gospel we need to share in order for a person to be able to be saved - We’ll get nerdy with some Greek words that help us better understand evangelism - How we can effectively engage with people who have different beliefs - How we have forgotten what is good about the good news In our conversation today we’re going to talk about the importance of church history for us today We’re going to talk in particular about the Moravian and Waldensian church movement… a topic that doesn’t often get covered, but one that I am particularly fascinated by What took place with the Moravians that lead to one of the biggest global missions movements in church history what the church needs to do today to engage with the culture around us Links: Communio Sanctorum Podcast https://www.sanctorum.us/ Moravian Church Documentary - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eQNWCQbm4bcShaila addresses some of the pushback people have against Alpha: We’ll address the argument that Alpha takes Evangelism out of the hands of believers and puts it into the hands of a video Whether Alpha is too preachy of a tool for the post-Christian west. How individuals and churches can utilize the Alpha Marriage course How many of our evangelistic strategies fail to recognize or depend upon the Holy Spirit.

On todays podcast I have the pleasure of Interviewing Matt Mikalatos. He has authored many books, but today we are going to be talking about his book Good News for a Change: How to Talk to Anyone about Jesus. In our conversation today we’re going to talk about: - Where the word ‘Gospel’ came from, and what the word ‘Gospel’ means - How much of the gospel we need to share in order for a person to be able to be saved - We’ll get nerdy with some Greek words that help us better understand evangelism - How we can effectively engage with people who have different beliefs - How we have forgotten what is good about the good news In our conversation today we’re going to talk about the importance of church history for us today We’re going to talk in particular about the Moravian and Waldensian church movement… a topic that doesn’t often get covered, but one that I am particularly fascinated by What took place with the Moravians that lead to one of the biggest global missions movements in church history what the church needs to do today to engage with the culture around us Links: Communio Sanctorum Podcast https://www.sanctorum.us/ Moravian Church Documentary - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eQNWCQbm4bcShaila addresses some of the pushback people have against Alpha: We’ll address the argument that Alpha takes Evangelism out of the hands of believers and puts it into the hands of a video Whether Alpha is too preachy of a tool for the post-Christian west. How individuals and churches can utilize the Alpha Marriage course How many of our evangelistic strategies fail to recognize or depend upon the Holy Spirit.

On todays podcast I have the pleasure of Interviewing Lance Ralston. He is the pastor of Calvary Chapel in Oxnard California, a history-aholic, and the host of one of my favourite podcasts: https://www.sanctorum.us/ In our conversation today we’re going to talk about the importance of church history for us today We’re going to talk in particular about the Moravian and Waldensian church movement… a topic that doesn’t often get covered, but one that I am particularly fascinated by What took place with the Moravians that lead to one of the biggest global missions movements in church history what the church needs to do today to engage with the culture around us Links: Communio Sanctorum Podcast https://www.sanctorum.us/ Moravian Church Documentary - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eQNWCQbm4bcShaila addresses some of the pushback people have against Alpha: We’ll address the argument that Alpha takes Evangelism out of the hands of believers and puts it into the hands of a video Whether Alpha is too preachy of a tool for the post-Christian west. How individuals and churches can utilize the Alpha Marriage course How many of our evangelistic strategies fail to recognize or depend upon the Holy Spirit.

On todays episode I’m speaking with Sheila Visser - who is the Senior Vice President at Alpha International. Alpha has exploded in popularity the past few years, and during our conversation today, we’ll be talking about: Shaila addresses some of the pushback people have against Alpha: We’ll address the argument that Alpha takes Evangelism out of the hands of believers and puts it into the hands of a video Whether Alpha is too preachy of a tool for the post-Christian west. How individuals and churches can utilize the Alpha Marriage course How many of our evangelistic strategies fail to recognize or depend upon the Holy Spirit.

On todays episode I’m speaking with Sheila Visser - who is the Senior Vice President at Alpha International. Alpha has exploded in popularity the past few years, and during our conversation today, we’ll be talking about: How Covid has opened up new opportunities to engage our communities The hungers that have been awakened in people during Covid, and how we can engage with our communities during this time. What the job of the church is during COvid How Alpha is more than an great Evangelism tool, but an amazing engagement and equipping tool as well. In todays episode we’ll talk about: The tactic of evangelizing with gentle questions and gentle answers How to interact with Islam as a way of getting our Muslim friends to interact with the Gospel An approach to introducing your Muslim friend to the Bible How to create forums for interfaith dialogue

On todays episode I will be speaking with Dr Gordon Nickel. He has a PhD in Quaranic Studies, and has authored a number of great books on Islam, and taught at numerous educational institutes. In todays episode we’ll talk about: The tactic of evangelizing with gentle questions and gentle answers How to interact with Islam as a way of getting our Muslim friends to interact with the Gospel An approach to introducing your Muslim friend to the Bible How to create forums for interfaith dialogue

On todays episode I will be speaking with Dr Gordon Nickel. He has a PhD in Quaranic Studies, and has authored a number of great books on Islam, and taught at numerous educational institutes. In todays episode we’ll talk about: The foundational differences between the Bible and the Quran We’ll discuss the criticism that Muslims attack the Bible with - Gordon shares about the origin of the Quaran How the Muslim understanding of Jesus differs for the Muslim How to have a meaningful and effective faith discussion with a Muslim In todays episode we’ll talk about: The hurdles Muslims have with the Bible - and the source of their suspicion towards it. The foundational differences between the Bible and the Quaran We’ll discuss the origin of the Quaran How the Muslim understanding of Jesus differs for the Muslim How to have a meaningful and effective faith discussion with a Muslim

On todays episode I will be speaking with Dr Gordon Nickel. He has a PhD in Quaranic Studies, and has authored a number of great books on Islam, and taught at numerous educational institutes. In todays episode we’ll talk about: The hurdles Muslims have with the Bible - and the source of their suspicion towards it. The foundational differences between the Bible and the Quaran We’ll discuss the origin of the Quaran How the Muslim understanding of Jesus differs for the Muslim How to have a meaningful and effective faith discussion with a Muslim

In part two of our conversation, I will be speaking with Peyton about: * Some of the shifts that need to take place to put mission back on the forefront * On how we might be misicategorizing ‘failed’ church plants * He describes ‘YOU Shaped evangelism’? * The need for the Holy Spirit in our evangelism - and what that could and should look like. * How to go from being a person who reads about evangelism to someone who does it. More @ theactivatorpodcast.com * Why we see more of the supernatural the closer to the frontline we go * How most modern church expressions have neutered their effectiveness in reaching the culture * How most of what the church is doing doesn’t require the Holy Spirit * On whether what the first century church did could be accomplished on a Zoom call More @ theactivatorpodcast.com

In part one of our conversation, I will be speaking with Peyton about: * Why we see more of the supernatural the closer to the frontline we go * How most modern church expressions have neutered their effectiveness in reaching the culture * How most of what the church is doing doesn’t require the Holy Spirit * On whether what the first century church did could be accomplished on a Zoom call More @ theactivatorpodcast.com

How seeker Bible studies might be more effective than we realize and a vital component of evangelism that we might have been skipping over How evangelism has changed in post-truth culture On how we often sacrifice truth when we focus on relationship, and can potentially sacrifice relationship when we focus on cold-hard-truth… and how to thread this needle with proper model of Biblical Evangelism.

How seeker Bible studies might be more effective than we realize and a vital component of evangelism that we might have been skipping over How evangelism has changed in post-truth culture On how we often sacrifice truth when we focus on relationship, and can potentially sacrifice relationship when we focus on cold-hard-truth… and how to thread this needle with proper model of Biblical Evangelism.

Listen on: Apple Spotify Stitcher In todays episode I will be speaking with Doug Shaupp - the National Director of Evangelism for InterVarsity Christian Fellowship. In part two of our conversation, we’re going to talk about: We’ll talk about the difference between Huddled communities, Witnessing Communities, and Conversion Communities, and how to identify which type of community you are in. We’ll then talk about how you transform a huddled community into a witnessing community, and into a conversion community Some practical pro-tips that you can implement to kick start your personal evangelistic effectiveness The most effective area that churches should invest into to promote change How to recognize the God moments that we are walking past every day. Be sure to grab a copy of Doug’s books - they are highly practical and an absolute must read! Buy ‘I Once Was Lost: What post-modern skeptics taught us about their path to Jesus’ HERE Buy ‘Breaking the Huddle: How your community can grow it’s witness’ HERE More great resources from Doug available HERE

Listen on: Apple Spotify Stitcher In todays episode I will be speaking with Doug Shaupp - the National Director of Evangelism for InterVarsity Christian Fellowship. In part one of our conversation, we’re going to talk about: What the ‘5 Thresholds of Post-Modern Conversion’ are How knowledge of these 5 thresholds can make us more effective evangelists  Whether living a moral life and waiting for people to ask you about your faith is an effective approach  Questions we can ask to more effectively engage in evangelistic conversations How we can tell when someone is getting curious about Christianity? How to help someone cross the final threshold into faith in Jesus. Be sure to grab a copy of Doug’s books - they are highly practical and an absolute must read! Buy ‘I Once Was Lost: What post-modern skeptics taught us about their path to Jesus’ HERE Buy ‘Breaking the Huddle: How your community can grow it’s witness’ HERE More great resources from Doug available HERE

Listen on: Apple Spotify Stitcher In todays episode I will be speaking with Bill Hogg, who is the Director for Message Canada. He has a long history with evangelism and equipping people to share their faith, and makes me laugh every time we talk. In part 2 of our conversation we’re going to talk about: the Spiritual gift of the Evangelist - and why it’s undervalued whether church planting is still the most effective way to reach the lost on whether the church is actually reaching the disengaged with the gospel how churches can grow through evangelizing the lost and not just shuffling sheep  how the average congregant can help to change the evangelistic pulse of the congregation  

Listen on: Apple Spotify Stitcher In todays episode I will be speaking with Bill Hogg, who is the Director for Message Canada. He has a long history with evangelism and equipping people to share their faith, and makes me laugh every time we talk. In part 1 of our conversation we’re going to talk about: how evangelism strategies have changed in the last couple generations what evangelists in the 21st century can learn from the efforts of the 20th century the modern effectiveness and place of door to door evangelism and whether large scale evangelism is a dead medium

Listen on: Apple Spotify Stitcher In todays conversation we’ll chat with Nigel Paul, who is the the founder and international director of MoveIn - a organization whose goal is to see 1000’s of regular Christians prayerfully moving in among the unreached, urban poor. Nigel see’s ministry everywhere, and has been powerfully used by God to activate Christians to mission service all around the globe. Over the course of our conversation Nigel shares so many great thoughts and insight, but the highlights include: how global missions is more accessible than it has ever been before how the gospel moves us to downward mobility rather than upward mobility how we can engage more strategically on mission right where we live and we’ll conclude by talking about a few lessons we can learn from Move In and apply to our lives regardless of where we live You can find out more about Move In HERE You can view the video Francis Chan made about Nigel’s wedding day HERE Follow Nigel on Twitter

Listen on: Apple Spotify Stitcher In todays conversation we’ll chat with Dr. Robert Tuttle. He was the professor of Evangelism at Asbury Theological Seminary and has authored a number of fantastic books - one of my favourites all-time favourites is ‘The Story of Evangelism’, which chronicles the history of evangelism throughout the ages. It’s an epic tome, and a must read for serious Evangelism scholars. And he’s most recently authored a book, called In Our Time: The Life and Ministry of E. Stanley Jones, which we are going to talk about in our conversation today. We cover a lot of ground, but the highlights are definitely: how Mahatma Gandhi taught E.Stanley Jones to be a better evangelist why Jones was such an effective missionary, and what we can learn from Jones’ method as well as the kind of evangelistic invitations that the church needs to learn to give today. Several of E. Stanley Jones’ writings were mentioned - you can buy them HERE Dr. Roberts Tuttle’s book The Story of Evangelism is available HERE Dr. Roberts Tuttle’s book Can We Talk? Sharing Your Faith in a Non-Christian World is available HERE Dr. Roberts Tuttle’s book In Our Time: The Life and Ministry of E. Stanley Jones is available HERE

Listen on: Apple Spotify Stitcher In todays conversation we’ll chat with Don Everts who is a writer for Lutheran Hour Ministries, the teaching pastor at Bonhomme Presbyterian Church in St. Louis, Missouri. He has also been a speaker and trainer for Alpha Ministries, InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, and regularly speaks on evangelism all over the place. He has authored many books including Jesus with Dirty Feet, I Once Was Lost: What Postmodern Skeptics Taught us about their Path to Jesus, as well as The Reluctant Witness… which we’re going to be unpacking a bit today. In part 2 of our conversation we’ll chat about The 5 Markers of eager conversationalists.  Some practical tools to help you grow confidence and skill at sharing the gospel How pastors can begin to change the evangelistic pulse of their congregations and kickstart church wide evangelism. What questions the culture is asking that our evangelistic presentations are lacking… and much more! Don’s books are available HERE Some of the resources that Don mentioned in todays podcast are available HERE

Listen on: Apple Spotify Stitcher In todays conversation we’ll chat with Don Everts who is a writer for Lutheran Hour Ministries, the teaching pastor at Bonhomme Presbyterian Church in St. Louis, Missouri. He has also been a speaker and trainer for Alpha Ministries, InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, and regularly speaks on evangelism all over the place. He has authored many books including Jesus with Dirty Feet, I Once Was Lost: What Postmodern Skeptics Taught us about their Path to Jesus, as well as The Reluctant Witness… which we’re going to be unpacking a bit today. In part 1 of our conversation we’ll chat about What the stats reveal about the state of evangelism today The importance of self evaluation - and how this was a historical marker of the church How many spiritual conversations the average Christian is actually having Some questions we can ask ourselves in order to  evaluate our own witness and we wrap up by discussing how Pastors can stir up evangelistic zeal in their congregations. Don’s books are available HERE Some of the resources that Don mentioned in todays podcast are available HERE