Are All Means Justified To Save Souls?

It’s a problem, that nagging issue of honesty…

“What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed; and in this I rejoice.” Phil 1:18

History is replete with men who try to justify Machiavellian actions with “the ends justifies the means.” Just read the book, “The Prince” and tell me I’m wrong (on second thought don’t… read the one at the bottom of this article). But is this what Paul meant when it comes to the Gospel? Should we use whatever means work to save some, regardless of the other results? Does “all heaven rejoice” at the saving of even one soul with deceptive means?
A wise man of God once said he would rather all mankind be damned that he should tell a single lie. The question I would guess to hear would be “Is deception a lie?”

If you have to ask that question you have many more problems than just being a deceiver.

See, I grew up in the American South where there have been scores of men, and women, who have used deceptive, evil, practices in preaching their version of the Gospel of Jesus Christ to bamboozle millions out of their hard-earned money; snookered SO many into believing they are right with a Just and Holy God just because they said a prayer or signed a Decision Card. And yes, I AM talking about MAJOR denominations here.

But anyone who is a Christian knows Repentance is not a single act, and Redemption not just a mental assent. but a complete turn about, a complete surrender; a New Life.

Isn’t the subject of the letter James wrote, to have positive proof of whose you are?

So, in such matters we have to take a few principles and apply them to this verse to determine if this is actually what Paul meant, that the end justifies the means as long as some are saved, is what he meant, so that we know what to do in our Gospel presentations.
Context: Paul was discussing his imprisonment and the results on his imprisonment of those preaching to make him suffer from envy.
Cultural Influences: (Was the author using slang, a figure of speech, a local colloquialism?): Nothing noted…
Consistency: What is the message from God on this subject?:
Just the opposite of “follow-up” is demonstrated; Jesus let people walk away.

So, should Pastors follow up on those who have filled out Decision Cards from a local evangelism outreach? Is this practice, this idea, Biblical, or even practical? Do Pastors really need to chase after someone who may not want to be there, may not be a Christian?

Should we not let the heat of persecution prove the new convert first?

A new convert will have to face his fears, his friend’s mockery, the biting ridicule of his family, in order to even GO to Church. So I suggest a local Church contact card, with the times for their services be handed out instead. Pastors DO NOT need false converts in the Church, they have enough to be concerned with.

Evangelistic outreach ministries report they only ever achieve a 5% recitivism rate from their outreaches a year later. Did you get that? Only 5 out of 100 can ever be found in local fellowship just one year later. Thats is a 95% FAILURE rate. And this is the standard result of most evangelical ministries that use methods like decision cards in their ministry, who bother to check. I mean, if the number of people saved of all of these outreaches was true then the entire country should be Christian by now, no?

Paul was speaking, in his letter to the Philippians, of his incarceration as a prisoner. And the context of verse 18 showed he was saying he was glad the Gospel was heard, even by those who were speaking from a motivation to hurt him in prison. He said they did so from envy and jealousy, but he was glad some heard. He was merely exclaiming that it did not matter what happened to him because of their speaking, as long as the Gospel was preached. He was NOT saying what these envious people were doing was good, that the ends justified their means!

See what you understand when you bother to read the verses in context?

Recently I was in a discussion with a founder and leader of a very large evangelistic ministry, about his use of “Decision Cards” in his evangelistic outreaches. His followers go all over the world preaching the Gospel and he just claimed to have garnered over 22, 000 “decisions” in a recent outreach. When I reminded him that the use of “Decision Cards” to “count heads” is a temptation to pride and power best not participated in by the evangelist, he got pretty perturbed. I also reminded him that you cannot allow peer pressure, and the emotion of the moment, to be used for coercive decisions.
American history has demonstrated the adage of the state of man’s heart when it comes to under-handed methods to garner funding, and gain notoriety, especially among the professing “brethren”. I should know, I got called on it myself by another brother. I was very grateful he took the time, and cared enough, to tell me the truth.

Listen, when you can turn to a prospective supporter and say, “We got 22,000 decisions for Jesus on our last outreach!”, you can get alot of ‘atta-boys’, followers, and funding! And when someone comes along and reminds you this is not a wise thing to do, you might just get worried that he is going to affect your funding and means by which your ministry is noticed by those who fund Christian Ministries.

It’s a problem, that nagging issue of honesty.

But if you do like Ray Comfort of LivingWaters.com does, if you leave the matter of “follow-up” to the condition of a professing convert, the oil for their Fire of Conviction up to the Holy Spirit, whose job it is to keep you growing in Christ, well then you won’t get a lot of money people impressed by your efforts…

…but you will be doing what Jesus did.

Think about it…

The question you have to ask yourself is what is important? Personal aggrandizement and gratuity, or the truth?

Now, you may think I’m being a tad harsh, and maybe I am. But the Truth isn’t something to be played with, the Name of God is not what I appreciate being pulled through the mud by ANYONE. When I smell a dead fish I speak up. To use the same methods of those who have produced SO MANY false converts brings shame to Jesus’ Name and smells to high heaven of coercion.

And, on another note, I get REAL mad that even ONE person is led to believe they are saved when they are NOT. I was one of those for FAR too long and that kind of fake religion just makes me furious!

That’s my take on the matter.
You can send me your thoughts here.

Patrick Burwell
OnlyJesusSaves.com Ministries

May I suggest every Christian read this book?