What is your impression of street preachers, especially on college campuses?

[SamInNi]

Likewise even moreso those not working the streets.

Well, that's a sweeping comment! But there are always issues that need to be managed. Church life is like that...

 

[Aaron112]

Well, that's a sweeping comment! But there are always issues that need to be managed. Church life is like that...

What is expected ? Honesty and Truth is hard to find anywhere, right ?

 

[Ceallaigh]

I knew sameone who would street preach on Fremont St. in Las Vegas. He had a banner saying "Jesus saves you from Hell" and used a portable microphone/megaphone. I believe he employed the Ray Comfort method of evangelizing.

 

[littleangelone]

i've never seen a street preacher scream or yell at people to share the Gospel but i've heard about them doing that in the U.K. but there might be some in the U.S.

 

[Akita Suggagaki]

Do you think they're wasting their time? What things about the person would you quickly size up before deciding to stop and listen, assuming you didn't have a class to get to right away? Why campuses? 1) high foot traffic, and 2) you're getting them while they're young, before they've spent their entire adult lives outside the will of God.

I did a youtube search, and have listened to about 4 of them, not at all impressed. One leaned against a poll (not on a college campus, just a city street), stared down reading scripture the whole time with a "don't bother me" attitude. A news reporter tried to talk to him, and was put on ignore.

Another was constantly moving up and down the sidewalk, yelling and winging it with nonsensical random stuff, even with amplification equipment.

I personally witnessed the protesting of a liberal church by so-called street preachers, ON Easter Sunday, as people arrived for church and got out of their cars. I didn't see the point. The only people that their megaphone was reaching, were not going to change. Their leader videotaped it, uploaded it to youtube, but later took it down.

Another was addressing a small handful of students who were engaging him in back and forth random conversation that didn't look like anyone could possibly be saved.

Sometimes I think these guys just want to hear themselves talk, or thinking they're engaging in good works, even if they don't produce fruit. None sounded remotely similar to good pastors giving sermons in hopes that people would come back to hear more.

I'm thinking about doing it, focusing on college campuses, telling them what I think everyone needs to hear, using a prepared script that presents important Biblical concepts and God's plan for salvation, focusing on what it means to 'follow Jesus,' to be exclusively saved in a lost and dying world, and live godly lives, not worldly lives. I would quote scripture mixed in throughout.

The emphasis would be on getting people to read their Bible - 'at least try it,' (i.e. Genesis at a minimum), to know about the fall of man, God's wrath, the great flood, and the patriarchs, emphasizing the 'character and nature of God,' then skim across other books, quoting scripture along the way, letting God take over from there.

I'm not looking to be confrontational or single people out amongst the crowd as that would interrupt and distract from my message. I've already started typing out what I want to say, and hope to keep it no longer than 30 minutes so that anyone who stops to listen wouldn't have to be there that long. Attention spans are often short. The timing would likely be around lunch time or late afternoon, or both, when there's the most foot traffic due to morning or afternoon classes being finished, and students not having someplace they have to be in the next 10 minutes.

I'm not sure how far I'd travel to get to colleges, but would like to go out of state, and eventually be a non-profit in order to do fundraising to help with expenses, so if anyone has experience running a 501(c) and can guide me along, it could help. I wouldn't even begin spending time raising finances to cover costs like gasoline, without having done it for awhile and being able to give examples of my work being productive. I'd expect to have a youtube channel to make access to what's being done an open book for all prospective donors, and anyone else for that matter, to watch.

Based on viewership, I wouldn't expect many views of my uploads cause even the best of preachers, preaching excellent sermons, don't get that many channel subscribers and views, unfortunately. But they sure do a great job of fundraising for their churches and mission causes. So do the many professional praise teams making records, like Hillsong. They fill auditoriums with concert goers, and reach a lot of people worldwide. Frankly, I don't know why there aren't more preachers out in public air, instead of just focusing on who comes to church on Sunday, as they edify to souls that are already saved. Unless it's a very large church with an alter call and 'sinners prayer,' (i.e. "repeat after me.....), they often do 'invitations' without anyone accepting, cause the people there aren't hearing anything new.
I want people to hear something new, that most pastors are not preaching, even to their church-going flocks. But I don't want to waste time either.

So back to the original question....what do you think of street preachers? Do you know any who have successfully done it? What makes a good one? Could you see yourself doing it? Why or why not? I've toyed with the idea for years, and am more strongly motivated now due to misguided non-truth I'm hearing, in more and more stunning, unbelievable churches. If people don't hear the truth from somewhere, they may never hear it, and the Bible says that ideally, we aren't suppose to just think of heaven being for us, but to try and take some people with us. That's why I chose this category to post in, about following Jesus and discipleship. I'm looking forward to seeing people I knew on earth, once I get there. The more the merrier, especially if I had a hand in them being there when they may not have been otherwise. The fact that people's lives are made better by God before they die seems like icing on the cake.

College campuses a re a great place for them. Plenty of young people with time to listen and engage. But it takes a charism. I think of St Francis of Assisi. People came to love him and Christ.

 

[Lost Witness]

I don't understand the relevance of your question.

didn't expect it

 

[St_Worm2]

So back to the original question....what do you think of street preachers? Do you know any who have successfully done it? What makes a good one? Could you see yourself doing it? Why or why not? I've toyed with the idea for years, and am more strongly motivated now due to misguided non-truth I'm hearing, in more and more stunning, unbelievable churches. If people don't hear the truth from somewhere, they may never hear it.......

Hell Justme6272, some of the questions that come to my mind are these, how is "success" (at being a street preacher) measured? Do I believe that this (street preaching) is the best use of the time the I have to spend as a witness, evangelist and/or apologist/the best way to present the Gospel to those who so desperately need to hear it? Finally/principally, am I sure that God is calling me to be a "street preacher" (and if so, why/how am I sure)?

One thing that I can say about street preachers is that they do tend to make and leave an impression. For instance, I clearly remember the main one on my college campus (from 40+ years ago), because his message and method were so simple. He handed passersby a copy of the Gospel of John and said "you're going to Hell" while doing so. That was it (that was all that he ever did or said that I know about).

I became a Christian about 10 years later, but I don't think his presentation had anything to do with it.

Praying for you!

God bless you!!

--David

 

[PloverWing]

My one experience of a street preacher showing up at my campus was a couple of years ago. The preacher had notified the campus that he was coming, so campus security set aside a place for him to do his thing on a walkway near the library. The preacher had a long list of categories of people that he didn't like, surrounded by the words "Warning: Obey Jesus or Hellfire". Campus security that day was excellent. They set up a barracade to maintain several yards of space between the speaker and the crowd of students who gathered to counterprotest, so that there wouldn't be violence. The university's official statement was "[university name] is obligated as a public university to allow freedom of expression, but we do not endorse or condone hate speech in any form."

Whatever you do, don't be that preacher.

I don't know what successful street preaching would look like. It might exist; I just haven't seen it, so I can't really imagine it. ("Success" here, I think, is if people leave thinking more positively -- instead of more negatively -- of Jesus and the Christian faith.) @Paidiske 's idea of inviting people into some kind of extended conversation over a meal sounds more promising.

 

[Unqualified]

Paul wasn’t accepted by everyone either even though he was the most gifted preacher. I guess we can do what we can though. Do what you want for the lord and what you are called to do. But there are some people who preach that give the lord a bad name to some others.

 

[NBB]

Speaking of street preachers i think john the baptist was one right? i mean he just yelled at people they 'are going to hell if they don't repent'
But today i think is even dangerous to be one, people get violent and harass them.
Is not a normal reaction.
Supposedly society wants people to be tolerant, accepting etc, but no.

 

[SavedByGrace3]

Jesus, John the Baptist, Paul, Peter, Stephen, etc etc were all street preachers.
We should follow their lead.
Faith comes by hearing and hearing by someone preaching the word of God. It is not your job to build relationships with people, argue with people, or try to talk them into something. It is the preachers job to exposé people to the Word of God and let the Holy Spirit do His job.
Don't hide in your church and expect the lost to come to you. Get out and present the word of God!
I was not blessed with a loud voice (I sometimes have to shout (or at least it feels like shouting to me) during normal indoors conversations). I am the proverbial Seinfeld "low talker." So I do not preach... but I can wear Jesus, Gospel, and Bible Tee shirts. I have a dozen or so that I wear when we go places. I think of myself as a billboard for the Lord. I get some frowns sometimes and sometimes I get smiles. Just yesterday I wore a Shirt that says "God is Good." A guy at the checkout counter smiled and said "That is true!" I responded, "Yes He is, I am not always good, but He is." To which he said "Amen!"
Preaching in the street and talking up God should not be abnormal. It should be the norm. It needs to be normalized in our culture.
I used to be ashamed of wearing these shirts... not of Jesus, but of me. I did not feel like I measured up. But the Lord said, of course you do not, but I make you measure up and you should let that be your testimony. So I got a shirt that says "Not Perfect, Just Forgiven."
If you cannot preach, you can wear a Tee-Shirt for the Lord. Be a Billboard for the Lord!

 

[FireDragon76]

Generally I think they're wasting their time. Even if their content was worth listening to (and it generally isn't), there's no point haranguing people without making any effort to build genuine relationship.

I remember confronting one years ago on our college campus, when I wasn't the least bit religious, and he was preaching a mixture of petty moralisms, homophobia, hellfire, and damnation. He was swigging bottles of some energy drink in the hot Florida sun as he stood in the middle of a semi-circle of people blathering on and on about all this, about how we were all destined for Hell because of the evil things that are bound to happen to us in college. He honestly seemed more than a bit unhinged.

Usually I am a quiet person, but for some reason I spoke out against him, disgusted by him having the gall to blather on about such obvious nonsense. I just asked him if he thought Gandhi was in Hell, and he said "of course". Then I told him, well, then I'd rather go to Hell too, than be around people like him. Everybody around me looked at me, and he was stunned. I forgot what happened after that, but it seemed like it took the wind out of his sails a bit.

So yeah, I agree with you, it's unproductive.

 

[Joy]

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