Witnessing to atheists?

[Punchy]

How do you do this? I seem to fail at wittnessing to atheists. They just completely ignore my message, which is trying to get them to come to Jesus Christs or believing in God. There is this message board i've posted at that has an atheist forum where they discuss religion. It seems like Christians get double teamed by atheists on the message board.

I could give you the link to the message board if you want to see what i'm talking about.

[cindylou]

sure...I'll check them out.

[Punchy]

sure...I'll check them out.

http://www.gamefaqs.com/boards/263-religion/61052173

There's the link. As you can see it was 1 vs about 15 atheists.

[HisLeast]

Well, if one is going to ask that kind of question to atheists, one should take the time to consider their responses carefully.

There are many ways to witness to someone. If you were witnessing to an atheist neighbor, I'd say the way you're living your life would be just as important as the answers to questions. There are no neighbors on the internet though. Its just a giant anonymous idea exchange. In that medium you need three essential qualities:
i) The ability to receive insult without retaliation.
ii) The ability to recognize and (more importantly) avoid logical fallacies
iii) An extremely solid philosophical understanding of what Christianity is.

Modern evangelism has, in a number of ways, become valueless. Everyone alive can see what a terrible existence many humans are doomed to, yet most of what they hear from Christendom is stuff like "God has a plan for you" or "God will watch over you" or "the Holy Spirit makes it all better". What evangelists offer today are insultingly blithe answers to the Problem of Pain.

So if I were to advise anything about witnessing to atheists it would be....
i) Don't assume you have all the answers.
ii) Read the works of heavy thinkers until your eyes dry out
iii) Resist the urge to provide quick answers to real, legitimate dilemmas

EDIT:
I'd also start familiarizing myself with authors such as Ravi Zacharia, NT Wright, CS Lewis (not his Narnia works), and Timothy Keller

[cindylou]

http://www.gamefaqs.com/boards/263-religion/61052173

There's the link. As you can see it was 1 vs about 15 atheists.

Punchy, there are reasons for belief. How do you know Christianity is true? You probably know that Christianity is true because of your experience with the Holy Spirit, but can you show it to be true with argument and evidence? You should be able to answer the questions they bring up, all of those questions have answers, all of their statements have a response and you should be prepared to show them if you want to witness to them.

On a side note, just because someone says they are reasonable does not mean they are reasonable. Many younger kids take the label as atheist because it automatically makes them reasonable, logical, and knowledgeable about science, when in reality they are none of those things; using arguments from new atheist material only and not doing any of their own introspection and soul searching and truth seeking. In other words; it's easier. You can show them how coming to the conclusion that you've arrived is every bit as reasonable as their conclusions.

Outside of that; no one comes to Jesus through arguments alone, but through the power of the Holy Spirit. If the power of God isn't doing something, the power of Man isn't going to do it either. All you can do is lay out your argument, but just because they are not convinced does not mean that it is ineffective. The gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life. Those who find it are few. I've had a very rewarding journey for why I believe what I believe through the study of developing an apologetic, a short time in bible college, and studying church history which I believe are the first steps to learning how to evangelize, but don't forget the ultimate apologetic is your life. It is who you are, not what you say. Good luck!

The answer to the first question: why can't you be happy living life instead of answering to a sky genie? Do you have an answer for that? Can anyone really be happy if there is no God? What is a thinker to do when they think this question? The only way to be happy without God is to not think about it. Man, the universe, energy, everything will end. This will happen unless there is a God to stop it. There is no hope of escaping that. The life lived is pointless and has no meaning. The only way to be happy is to live in denial of that fact, it's not being honest like so many atheists put it. Any meaning you assign to your life (kids, family, career, pursuits of knowledge) is still utterly meaningless than if you moped around and did nothing. What is the point in living to see my daughter get married if my experiences with her are just sensory input, forgotten when I'm dead and when she's dead. There is more to life than this, an unseen world, more than what is material. Meaningless..it's all vanity. The only way for the atheist to be happy is to live in denial and continually make leaps of faith to add value or meaning to his life by pretending the universe has meaning. Lying to themselves is the only way to survive because to realize that is despair! Even if we are deluding ourselves that there is a Creator and a God to be happy they are doing the same. Don't allow them to judge you for doing the exact same thing they have to be doing.

Good luck Punchy!

[Punchy]

I'm pretty new at witnessing and especially witnessing to atheists. I'm just not good at it. No matter what you say to an atheist they will never listen because there is " no evidence or reason to believe ". They see the bible like the rest of the world religions and they classify Christianity the same as Buddhism, Hinduism and Islam.

And as you could have seen from that topic I posted i'm not very good at it.

To those of you that actually know how to share the gospel to atheists, how would you do it?

[HisLeast]

I'm pretty new at witnessing and especially witnessing to atheists. I'm just not good at it. No matter what you say to an atheist they will never listen because there is " no evidence or reason to believe ". They see the bible like the rest of the world religions and they classify Christianity the same as Buddhism, Hinduism and Islam.

And as you could have seen from that topic I posted i'm not very good at it.

To those of you that actually know how to share the gospel to atheists, how would you do it?

A good number have that response, yes. Of that group, a large number are like that because they've experienced a pitiful excuse of Christianity. If you're going to "witness" on the internet, you must acknowledge that its a battle ground of ideas only. To that end you need to be able to challenge people's philosophies and present philosophies that are more consistent and more valuable. This will never be achieved by first assuming Christianity is (i) obvious and (ii) true, then pleading to those assumptions. An example of this is "Christianity is right because the Bible tells us Jesus is Lord".

That kind of knowledge isn't going to come overnight, so its time to put some serious study in. A good place to start is Timothy Keller's "The Reason for God". He outlines the most popular and most compelling philosophical arguments against both theism and Christianity and demonstrates in layman terms their inconsistencies. Keller is excellent reading to prepare you for the kinds of highly thought out arguments you'll encounter. Next is Ravi Zacharia, who's probably one of the foremost and compelling speakers in the world on the objectivity of moral standards and their pointing to a God. After that I'd read NT Wright's "Simply Christian" which describes the "hints" within reality that point to a God, specifically the God of Christianity. While doing this, be reading everything by CS Lewis, who was once an atheist himself and put substantial thought into answering their toughest questions (especially "the Problem of Pain")

Beyond lots and lots of research the only other thing you can do is avoid certain mistakes.
1) Do not suffer temptation to retaliate when they insult you.
2) Do not, like most other "evangelist" simply assume that these people are fools and treat them accordingly.
3) Do NOT answer unless you can honestly say that you've considered their question carefully.

[PJW]

Dear Punchy,
Romans 10:17 says, "So then, faith cometh by hearing,..." Why are you using a method where they can't hear you? You do believe the Word of God, don't you?
Don't waste your time with an organization who's only purpose is to refute the Word of God.
Witnessing is done by example. Carry your Bible everywhere you go, live your life like Jesus lived His, and those with an interest in godliness will approach you.

[Punchy]

Thanks for the responses everybody, they're helpful

[TrustGzus]

Punchy, one thing I don't normally like to do is recommend something that costs money because not everyone has money to spend. However, Greg Koukl's book, Tactics, is an inexpensive book that gives outstanding advice on how to talk to anyone. It takes practice. But if you work at the things Greg teaches, you can become very good at it.

If money is a problem, I'd be glad to send you my copy or get a new one for you. It would help you by leaps and bounds and it's a short book.

[cindylou]

I'm pretty new at witnessing and especially witnessing to atheists. I'm just not good at it. No matter what you say to an atheist they will never listen because there is " no evidence or reason to believe ". They see the bible like the rest of the world religions and they classify Christianity the same as Buddhism, Hinduism and Islam.

And as you could have seen from that topic I posted i'm not very good at it.

To those of you that actually know how to share the gospel to atheists, how would you do it?

But there is evidence and reason to believe! You should have an answer for that! You should have an answer for the hope that is in you!

I would first start at the argument for the existence of God. Once they are backed in a corner they will change the topic to Christianity on their own. Let them move the conversation, and never let yourself get angry. He who angers you controls you. Always be in control of your emotions. Once they move the debate to that direction, you'll be ready to answer why Christianity? Why we can rely historically on the gospels ( you will need to brush up on history and the philosophy of how history is researched and taught...what is a historical fact...this is one of THE most important arguments), the historical Jesus, and finally to the virgin birth, miracles, (a response to Hume's argument) and the resurrection. To be honest, I don't think you're quite ready to debate with atheists, but maybe in a couple months you will be. I also recommend reading William Lane Craig. If you have a background in philosophy then read "The Blackwell Companion to Natural Theology" if not then "On Guard" or "Reasonable Faith" are both good books to start. Good luck on your journey punchy. You have exciting times ahead!

Thanks to everyone else, I heard some titles in here that I hadn't read yet. Off to my kindle!

[one_lost_coin]

You keep on praying and growing and trying. I checked out that board you posted the link to who do you post on there as?

[Gilligan]

If an atheist is interested, then I would say we should witness to them. If they're not, then it is like beating a dead horse, or as Jesus said "casting pearls before swine."

[Punchy]

You keep on praying and growing and trying. I checked out that board you posted the link to who do you post on there as?

I'm OrangePoet... I created the topic.

[JRFifty]

I was kind of getting at the same thing in the evolution thread. I think you have to breakdown the fact that evolution just can't be true scientifically. But it is being indoctrinated in all schools, with plenty of embellishment in the textbooks. The so called-intellectual types are very concerned by a piece of paper that says your smart. I think I can disprove evolution in a couple of steps. Same thread.
Biogenesis is the law that living things come only from other living things. Wikepedia Abiogenesis (pronounced /ˌeɪbaɪ.ɵˈdʒɛnɨsɪs/ ay-by-oh-jen-ə-siss) or biopoesis is the study of how biological life arises from inorganic matter through natural processes So its the study of something that violates scientific law. The only logical explanation therefore for life is supernatural creation
Only God who is spirit can create space time, --------Gen 1In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.------where as these other folks see god in the trees, in oneness, in you. Because they believe we are at one with the earth. Then with the New Age stuff from there. And many more serious ramifications such as global sustainability.