On the Street Sunday Morning Before Church - A Conversation with Brian

My time on the streets has been very limited recently, and I want to change that moving forward. This morning, I left my apartment around 8:45 and headed to Detroit Road in Rocky River. I started out at Wright and Detroit in Rocky River at 9:00.

I stood nearby a coffee shop which had a steady flow of customers coming and go. After about 20 minutes, I walked east down to Detroit across from Rocky River United Methodist Church. A man in a large truck pulled up a minute later and completely blocked my cross, so I went across the street to face traffic pulling into the parking lot of the church.

The church parking lot is located down a dead-end street, so anyone headed to the parking lot saw my cross. I had one woman ask what my sign said, and she said she was ready. I wasn't sure if this was something I wanted to do or if I would be associated with the church, but I got to thinking of Matthew 7: 21-23: "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?' And then will I declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.' "

I know there are some who may criticize me for standing outside a church, but Jesus Himself said there will be many false converts. I, myself, used to be one of them. Around 10:00, as service inside the Rocky River United Methodist Church was starting, three young men passed by me and one stopped to ask me some questions. One of their names' was Brian.

One question Brian had was about how we can have free will, yet God knows ahead of time what will happen. This is one area I really haven't given too much thought to- it is something I just more accept, although I don't understand it. I explained to them that it wasn't something I understood, just like when a creationist will say, "God created the world," and the return question will be, "Well, who created God?" I will say that we live in the dimension of time and God exists outside that dimension.

Either Brian or one of his friends replied that no one created God- he always existed, which is something to take into consideration- am I talking to a believer or an unbeliever? I didn't talk to Brian long, but from the short time I talked to him, he seemed to know parts of the Bible well. He asked if Jesus knew ahead of time what would happen to Him on the cross. I said He did. He asked why Jesus would pray to the Father to let this cup pass if He knew that it wasn't possible.

I responded that I believed it was an example of prayer for us because I have prayed it myself. I was talking to someone in church about this and they told me that it shows the humanness of Jesus. Although he was fully God, he will also fully human. Brian's friend asked about original sin and whether or not it was absolved at baptism. I didn't get the chance to answer that question because Brian asked something else.

Into our brief conversation, Brian asked if any sin he committed was already forgiven. I didn't get the chance to really elaborate, but I did explain that the Bible does says that "unless you repent, you will perish" (Luke 13:3) and that one must repent (turn from their sins) and place their trust in Jesus. I also very quickly explained substitutionary atonement to them.

I did make sure I mentioned that I can't recall all the questions Brian asked, but he left with a gospel tract. It was now about 10:10 and I headed off to my church's services that started at 10:30. Please be in prayer for Brian and his friends. I hope to make Sunday morning a regular time to be on the street with the cross.

A Quote From John MacArthur

"It is not faith plus obedience [that] equals salvation. No, it is an obedient faith [that] equals salvation." -John MacArthur, from his sermon on Romans 1:4-7 on March 29, 1981, "The Provision, Proclamation, Privilege, and Purpose of the Good News."

I Haven't Forgotten You, North Olmsted - 9/12/2010

Today, I went back to a spot I haven't been to in a while- Dover Center and Lorain Road in North Olmsted. I was out from 2:40 to 3:45 and a lot of people in their cars got to see the cross, but I didn't have any conversations. I am have a full time job now and won't be able to go out as much as I used to, but I hope to still go out on the weekends a bit. I need to hit up all the old spots I used to go to- I've been in Lakewood a lot recently.

I Wish I Could Start Today Over

The weather today was beautiful- wall to wall sunshine with not a cloud in the sky and in the upper 70's to low 80's. My wife and I had breakfast this morning and after wards went to Wal-Mart as we always do on Saturdays. After that, we headed over to church to help out with the 2nd annual 2010 Evangelism Boot Camp my pastor was presenting.

I took some pictures and my wife and I assisted cleaning up after the teams headed out for the streets. We then came home and I headed back out to Lakewood with my cross from about 3:30 to 4:45. For dinner, we grilled out at a park on Lake Erie and watched the sun set. We went to Dairy Queen after that and then came home. It was the first weekend I wasn't stressed out about not having a job, as I just started one last Monday. Although it was a busy day, it was a nice day.

Then, around 10:00 PM, the phone rang. It was one of my wife's coworkers. Another coworker's husband had suddenly died today. He was at the prime of his life, about 35 years old. Had I known what was to take place today, I would have gone through this day completely different. My wife and I were even invited to a party that this coworker and her husband attended today but we did not.

While I was out with my cross today, I had a conversation with a man named John. He was happy to see me out on the streets spreading the Gospel. I shared some of the Way of the Master analogies with him and mentioned that 150,000 people die every day, most without knowing Christ. He said that was a good statistic to use- little did I know that my wife's coworker's husband would become a part of that statistic.

I wish I could start today over and go to that party. I would have pleaded with this man to repent of his sins and to place his trust in Jesus Christ for his salvation and would not left until he had. This also makes me reanalyze the way I interact with everyone else in life. Why don't I have this urgency all the time?

God demanded payment to be made for this man's sins today. It is either his soul in hell for eternity or the blood of Jesus Christ on the cross. If it is the latter, he will spend eternity with his Savior in heaven. None of us really know for sure of another person's salvation, but I hope the penalty for his sins was already paid for by the perfect sacrifice of Jesus' life's blood.

If you do not know where you are going when you die or you aren't saved, please read "The Message of the Cross" blog post and get right with God today. You may not have tomorrow.

Going Back to Work - 8/20/2010

On Monday, I start a new job at a call center taking inbound customer service calls. This is not what I went to school, but if this is what God wants me to do right now, I will be obedient. Aside from working for the U.S. Census, some very limited side work, and a temporary job that last less than two weeks, this is the only real door that has opened up for me.

I would still like to go out with my cross, but my street evangelism will most likely be limited to the weekends, now. I'm not quite sure where I am headed right now, but I am trying to follow what the Apostle Paul said in Colossians 3:1-2: "If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth."

Dover Center and Detroit in Westlake - 8/16/2010

Yesterday, I returned to a spot I used to frequent a lot but have neglected for the past months as I have hit Lakewood hard: Dover Center and Detroit in Westlake. I have neglected the spots I used to frequent in favor of Lakewood for the past months, but I need to come back to those spots. I didn't hand out any tracts (although I had the opportunity to hand out a few, fear came over me- which it does at times) and was out from 3:45 to 4:45.

Professing "Christians"

I have been carrying the cross in some shape or form for just over a year now. Countless thousands have seen the cross, my largest viewing probably at the Komen Race for the Cure in 2009 in Downtown Cleveland.

I've had quite a few conversations over the past year, including the Catholic Church, the Church of Christ, Baptismal Regeneration, and the list goes on. I've also had a lot of witnessing encounters and passed out many tracts. Shortly after I started going out with the cross, I successfully branded myself as the "Cleveland Cross Guy." I wanted people who saw my cross, with a reference to doing a search on Google for "Cleveland Cross Guy" to be able to find this blog and find out what the message behind it was.

A year after I started going out with the cross, I realize I have effectively done the branding, but at times I feel it has been to my detriment. During or after several job interviews I have had, prospective employers have found this blog by searching for my name.

I have often times considered taking down this blog for that very reason, but Jesus' words echo in my ears: "For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels" (Mark 8:38).

I know I am viewed as one of the "fanatics." I see the odd stares and hear the blasphemies and curses riddled toward me. One person thought my cross was in reference to the shutting down of some local Catholic churches as he walked by me one day. I know I am the "fanatic," but I want to turn the tables.

It is the rest of America that has it wrong. A recent survey (from 2008) has 76% of Americans professing to be Christians. That is 3 out of every 4 people in the U.S. With those kind of numbers, our highways and byways should be flooded with traffic on Sunday mornings, but that is when traffic flows the easiest. What creates traffic jams in Downtown Cleveland? Four things come to mind: rush hour traffic, Indians games, Cavs games and Browns games.

Jesus told His disciples in Mark 16:15 to "go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation." Considering 76% of Americans claim to be Christians and that is our command from our Lord and Savior, every 3 out of 4 people should be telling you about how Jesus died on the cross for your sins. I am guilty of not doing it myself- why should I be afraid to talk about Jesus in public when 3 out of 4 people are Christian? Perhaps because they aren't.

“Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of My Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?' And then will I declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness'" (Matthew 7:21-23).

If you read that previous paragraph and are one of those who "think" you are a Christian because you merely profess it, please scroll up above and click on "I have seen the cross. What does it mean?" It is the most important message you will ever read.