Even using the Ray Comfort method
The method was not Ray Comfort's. He simply copied it from Jesus. But in the bible, there were many preachers of righteousness. In 2 Peter 2:5, it says Noah was a “preacher of righteousness”. Then we have Isaiah, Amos, and Jeremiah. And we have Jonah, who was sent to Nineveh to tell them to turn from their evil ways. We also have Paul and Timothy. In 2 Corinthians, it says that they “Commended themselves to
every man’s conscience”. So, they too copied Jesus. And just like these men address people's conscience to show them that they are sinners, I too do this.
A key to evangelizing is going out in pairs or small groups. If anyone asks me "hey do you want to go out and witness?" The answer is going to be "yes!".
So that's what churches should do. Set up an evangelism group that gets together, has meetings, plans, and then goes out in pairs. Just like the early church sent out evangelists in pairs. Just telling Christians they need to run around town by themselves and save people really isn't practical.
There's strength in numbers.
Going out in pairs is good for the fact that there is safety in numbers. But we should want to share the Gospel if we are in groups, pairs or by ourselves. We are to be ready all the time to give a defence for our faith, and we should be ready in season and out of season.
End product bottom line from 1st John: Maturing Love.
Why? Confidence on the day of Judgment.
Fear's role: There is no fear in love.
By cultivating fear in the hearts of churchpeople, it restricts them from God's will in their life, that is to become an embodiment of love just like God is.
Since fear is the seed of cowardice, encouraging churchpeople to be afraid of God like the Hebrews at the mountain with Moses, illustrates that said church does not understand or demonstrate what Jesus did for us. "not to become a slave of fear again"
This is also irresponsible since the cowards will not be admitted into the kingdom, then why is there all these scare tactics?
1 John 4:18 does say “perfect love casts out fear.” And the end goal of the Christian life is certainly to be perfected in love so that we have confidence on the Day of Judgment. But Scripture also shows that fear has a place. Proverbs 9:10 says, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” Paul said, “Knowing the fear of the Lord, we persuade others” (2 Corinthians 5:11). Even Jesus warned His disciples: “Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear Him who can destroy both soul and body in hell” (Matthew 10:28).
So, there’s a difference between unhealthy fear that paralyses (cowardice), and healthy fear that motivates obedience (reverence and awe). The passage in Revelation 21:8 isn’t there to scare people for the sake of it; it’s there as a sober warning. God doesn’t use “scare tactics”; He speaks truth. Ignoring verses that make us uncomfortable doesn’t make them go away.
And here’s the balance: God’s love frees us from terror, but His holiness still calls us to seriousness. As John also wrote, “This is the love of God, that we keep His commandments” (1 John 5:3). Love and reverent fear work together, not against each other.
Many people do not understand what Godly fear is. Godly fear” isn’t merely respect; it’s a holy fear. The kind that keeps you from treating God casually. It’s the fear that says, “I dare not play games in His presence.”
This echoes what Mr. Beaver says about the lion Aslan in "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe":
“Safe? Who said anything about safe? ’Course he isn’t safe. But he’s good.”
We’ve lost that in many churches. People want God to be safe so that they can be casual in church. But He is holy, and holiness is not tame.
Another thought that may help some to understand the fear of God.
We all love to be around a nice warm heater. But a heater has rules, and if you break the rules, you can get hurt. So, we are afraid to break those rules. In the same way, we love our God. But God also has rules, and if we choose to break those rules, we can get burned. The fear of the Lord motivates us to righteousness.
Actually this is the scariest verse in the Bible.
Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not be condemned; forgive, and you will be forgiven;
Luke 6:37
That’s an important verse, and I agree with it completely. But we also need to read it in context (People always take that verse out of context). Jesus isn’t saying we should never make any judgments at all. In fact, in John 7:24 He says, “Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment.”
The point of Luke 6:37 is that we should not be harsh, self-righteous, or hypocritical in our judgments. We don’t condemn others as if we are the final authority; only God judges in that way. But we are called to discern right from wrong, to warn of sin, and to hold up God’s Word as truth.
So when I quote Revelation 21:8, I’m not condemning anyone, I’m simply repeating what God has already said. His Word does the judging, not me. If people feel condemnation from His word, then maybe they need to evaluate what they are doing in their lives.
So please, when using scripture, do not take it out of context to make your point.
I like to pronounce behemoth as be he moth.
