The Gospel Makes Inroads in Brighton
Brighton is well-known for its alternative lifestyles and culture; today, we saw much of that as the Fringe Festival was taking place. Along the road where we preached, there were people selling tickets to comedy shows, ladies supporting conscientious objectors, and an anti-Israel/pro-Palestinian protest. Into all of that, we partnered with Grace Church to proclaim the message of God’s love and grace.
The first gospel encounter of the day took place while we were still setting up. As we put material onto the literature table, a Roman Catholic man asked for a Bible. He admitted to not being a good Catholic, but he did want to investigate the Scripture. He wasn’t too open to chat, so we quickly shared a few words and gave him a Bible and a gospel booklet.
One of our team members tried something different today; Julian had a whiteboard that he hung around his neck with a question on it – “Do You Know the Bible’s Message?” He would simply indicate at the sign and ask people how they’d answer. This was a good way for him to have conversations, as many people wanted to answer the question and talk further.
I started the open-air preaching by speaking on “Your Life!” A few people paused to listen to the message, including one man who stayed for most of the talk. Julian spoke with him afterward; the man said the Bible was allegorical. Julian countered this position and shared the truth. While preaching, a builder came over from the worksite opposite to ask for the Scripture. He gladly received a copy of John’s Gospel.
It was around this time that a small anti-Israel/pro-Palestinian protest formed near us. I wondered if they’d interrupt the preaching, but they kept their distance – though one did heckle me later!
Skully preached next. Taking John 3:16 as his text, he explained the gospel. A man listened to the preaching, then clapped (in a friendly way) when the preaching finished. Skully went over to chat with him, and they had a great conversation about the gospel, exchanged contact details, and arranged to meet for lunch tomorrow. Please pray that this gentleman would come to know the Saviour.
There were so many good news opportunities in Brighton; for instance, Simon spoke with a young Muslim man who took a Gospel book. I was then brought into the discussion to answer some apologetic questions. The Muslim man was friendly and open to chatting.
I preached once more to finish the outreach; this time, I asked, “Are You Good Enough for Heaven?” As I built upon this question, a pro-Palestinian protester heckled me. His heckling wasn’t directly related to what I said; it was more of an attack on Israel. He then wanted to know if I would condemn the killing of civilians and children. I declared that I was against sin, and if Israel targeted children, then I would condemn their actions. Then I asked him, “Would you condemn Hamas for killing civilians and children?” The man wouldn’t answer; instead, he questioned if they had ever done that. I wasn’t there to talk geopolitics, so I swung the conversation around to the heart of the matter – the heart of man!
I explained that we have evil in the world because humanity is sinful – our hearts are wicked. I asked the man how he would end the evil and change the heart of humanity. He replied by saying that protest and political pressure were needed. So, I countered by asking how politics would change humanity’s heart. The man admitted he didn’t know the answer, but before we could go any further, the police moved him away and asked if we were okay. I assured them we were fine, and the man was friendly, but it was now too late; he had left.
The void left by my heckler was quickly filled by another; this one wasn’t as friendly. A drunk homeless man aggressively challenged the gospel. His argument centred around the fact that his daughter passed away from cancer. Clearly, the man was hurting, so I did my best to engage him and answer his question. But he was very closed and becoming increasingly hostile. Instead of turning to God, the man turned to the bottle.
Another man who heckled was a homeless drug addict. He was friendly and engaging. He blamed the politicians for messing up the world, but I pointed out that we are the people who corrupt everything. As I explained sin, he agreed. Then, as I went to explain the gospel, a professing Christian in a suit interrupted and began to speak against me. Thankfully, Skully was able to chat with the homeless man, and I was able to speak further with him afterward.
The professing Christian admitted he didn’t attend church and considered Jesus his ‘mate’ and equal. The comments he made revealed that his views were closer to communism than Christianity. The man refused to acknowledge Jesus as Lord, stating it would make Jesus superior. I quoted Romans 10:9 to him, which he didn’t like. He decided to instead speak to other team members and left while swearing at me.
It was a strange day in Brighton, but the gospel made many inroads. Please pray for all those who heard the good news.
SDG!
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Josh Williamson is a full-time evangelist with The Open-Air Mission. Since 1853, OAM has been sharing the good news on the streets of the United Kingdom. To stay updated about the work of the Mission, please sign up for the free quarterly magazine and monthly prayer notes.
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