# Street Preaching On College Campuses and Outreach for Small Presbyterian Church



## Backwoods Presbyterian (Aug 29, 2013)

We have a residential junior college in town here in Ellisville that has approximately 4,000 students. This will be the third school year (starting this week) since I moved to town. In the past two years I have just kind of "made myself available" on campus, i.e.- sitting in high-use areas reading and putting a little sign next to me inviting folks to stop and talk/pray as needed. I have had some success in reaching souls for Christ (none that resulted in any direct effect on our congregation) and comforting the afflicted. 

However this year I have been convicted that I need to do more than this and actually verbally engage the students/faculty/workers with the gospel. The quasi-liberal/moderate United Methodist church in town has a Full-Time "campus minister" and the Baptist churches in town support a "student union" that has all the bells and whistles including a cafe, a gym, etc. However both of these groups really only minister to the "reached" on campus and there is no point in me/our church trying to "compete" with these kind of activities. 

I have identified a couple good places and times where there are a lot of students moving at the same time and that are visible from all four directions. I am interested in doing some street preaching/active outreach from these points and was curious if the PB would point me to some resources that would help make this an effective use of my time and energy. The elders at church are fully on board with this when/if I go and do it. 

Blessings and Thanks.


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## Backwoods Presbyterian (Aug 29, 2013)

I have not done so down here, no.


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## earl40 (Aug 29, 2013)

> Many will likely assume you're "catholic," and that opens the door, I would assume, for a great discussion of the Gospel.



Seems deceptive?


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## Bill The Baptist (Aug 29, 2013)

> Do you wear your collar in public? That seems to invite conversation amongst several folk.



Not to get off topic, but do many Presbyterian ministers wear collars?


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## Zach (Aug 29, 2013)

Our church is a small church plant that also cannot compete with the mega-ministries many of the churches in town have. Our Pastor began to preach on the campus two years ago and we've seen some fruit from it. One student even professed faith in Christ and has attended our church off and on when he is here. I can give you our Pastor's contact information if you'd like to email him and get his feedback as a Minister.

Here's the link to our churches webpage on it. We call it Discuss Your Faith


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## Backwoods Presbyterian (Aug 29, 2013)

That is some good stuff Zach. Thanks!


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## Quatchu (Aug 29, 2013)

earl40 said:


> > Many will likely assume you're "catholic," and that opens the door, I would assume, for a great discussion of the Gospel.
> 
> 
> 
> Seems deceptive?



The clerical collar was actually invented by a Presbyterian minister. I have known Baptist's as well as Presbyterian's Anglicans ect use the collar. Maybe its time we take it back from the RC.


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## Zach (Aug 29, 2013)

Backwoods Presbyterian said:


> That is some good stuff Zach. Thanks!



You're welcome. The one thing we've tried to do is to keep the preaching relatively short. Usually 5-15 minutes. That gives us more opportunities for interaction and contacts. A lot of people will stop to listen for five minutes and talk with us afterward, but they probably would not listen to 30 minutes of preaching.

Another key is to have a "team" if at all possible. Four of the students at our church and some others that we're acquainted with through other campus ministries will listen to the preaching. This helps encourage other people to stop and listen because very few people want to be the first to stop to listen but are more comfortable if there are others listening. 

Oh, and one thing our Pastor said about preaching (I have no experience with this) is avoid making eye contact with people that you don't know who stop. Apparently whenever he would do this they would bolt.


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## SinnerSavedByChrist (Sep 10, 2013)

Bump. 

*Charles Spurgeon* has ENTIRE volumes of Street preaching, notably in "Lectures to my students". See here: http://www.gostandspeak.com/Open Air Preaching - Spurgeon.pdf / http://www.gostandspeak.com/Street Preaching by Spurgeon.pdf

Secondly, *Paul Washer* has some great videos on Youtube. Paul Washer Open Air Preaching in Lima (English Subtitles) - YouTube 

*Jeremiah Cry* is the organisation of Calvinistic-soteriology Street preachers. 

*Ray Comfort* is a street preacher in a sense, though he does a lot of personal evangelism too. He single-handedly popularisde the Law-before-grace presentation of the gospel in the last 20 years. (Yes I know the puritans have always done it, but modern preachers really lack the sting!) Here is a blessed sample https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OW0z_Z75QG4

*Kevin Williams* of Puritan Fellowship has a great article here and an awesome video of 59minutes on the various pitfalls and precautions to street preaching: Guidelines for Open-Air Preaching - YouTube

P.S.
*Jesse Morrell* is the modern day Charles Finney... believes in sinless perfection/denial of original sin.... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ulOxNoZQr8 people like Jesse give Street preaching a bad name, so people write off street preachers as nuts. In actuality, open-air preaching is the _biblically mandated_ mode of delivering the gospel to unconverted masses.


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## Jerusalem Blade (Sep 10, 2013)

Glad to hear you're going to do this, Benjamin. I'm going to speak with my pastors about starting some kind of street preaching ministry -- it needs to be done.

I'll be teaching six classes on Revelation starting this coming Sunday, so I will have opportunity to speak into the church "culture"; one of the pastors, and some elders may come.

This is from Dennis Johnson's _Triumph of the Lamb_:
Because the enemy attacks ruthlessly, employing the intimidating force of Rome's armies and, by implication, the politico-military muscle of Rome's lesser successors, the people of Jesus must steel their hearts to endure persecution in persistent hope. "Here is the perseverance of the saints who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus" (Rev. 14:12). The call to perseverance is obeyed not through monastic withdrawal from the hostile surrounding culture but through evangelistic confrontation with the culture. Perseverance is therefore related to the call to be a faithful witness on behalf of Jesus. "I, John, your brother and fellow partaker in the tribulation and kingdom and perseverance which are in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus" (1:9). It was John's faithful testimony on behalf of Jesus that plunged him into the tribulation of exile on the prison-island Patmos. He is therefore an empathetic and credible witness to be sent by Jesus, the faithful witness (1:5; 3:14), to encourage and summon the churches to persevering hope and witness not in isolation from the world but in interaction with it. (pp. 17, 18)​


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## PaulCLawton (Sep 10, 2013)

Rev. Leon Brown's YouTube channel has several videos of his street preaching, some of which are very compelling.


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## GloriousBoaz (Sep 10, 2013)

I've done street preaching myself and I wish I could fill you in on all the insights but really its a prayer thing, and bring people with you to pray, and Spurgeon said if you know anyone who can sing bring them too, Michael already gave you a great treatise by Spurgeon on street preaching if it is the one i'm thinking of. Here are a couple other links.

I haven't watched this yet just found it but i'm sure it's good Dustin is the man, he goes out at least twice a week to NCU and is a master at presuppositional apologetics.
Dustin Segers Super Bowl 2012 Preaching - YouTube this is next on my list!

tool around on here, invaluable information, sye ten bruggencate's website, he street preaches quite a bit too, he is a full time apologist

Proof That God Exists

If you haven't seen this yet here are some great approaches

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0u3-2CGOMQ

Let me know when you are going out, just shoot me a private message with the time you will be out preaching, just shoot me a PM anytime you want and i'll pray for you

lastly I'll leave you with this great stuff
Paul Washer Open Air Preaching in Lima (English Subtitles) - YouTube


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