January 4, 2010
Interview with a Street Preacher
Should you leave your sanctuary to preach on the sidewalk?
In response to my recent Out of Ur lament about street preachers, many Urbanites vigorously defended those who take to the streets to preach. I’m used to dissenting opinions here at Ur, but I was surprised by how many spoke favorably about something I’d assumed most Christians found embarrassing
One of the comments that stood out to me came from Anthony Brabazon, an architect and street preacher from Dublin, Ireland. Anthony has attended many different churches since his conversion in 1981, but he considers the Dublin streets his church and the passing pedestrians his congregation. (Here's a video of Anthony preaching on the streets of Dublin.) Having read so many fervently positive opinions about street preachers, I was curious to learn what I had missed. Anthony was gracious enough to answer a bunch of my questions.
What led you to preach on the streets of Dublin?
A few things: Primarily the command of Jesus in the great commission and his promise to be with us. Also, a love for the lost that are not attracted to church and greatly deceived by what the media says about Jesus. In Ireland virtually nobody can explain why the Lamb of God was slain at Calvary. I am also aware that time is very short and the work is very great. Because he went up that hill for me, I can be bold for him. I often think that the first 2 letters of God are GO while the first 3 letters of Satan are SAT!
Here in the USA, there has been an effort to reinvent church so the "unattracted" people will, in fact, be attracted to church. Do you think this is a valid effort, or is street preaching more effective?
In a church, Jesus-focus can shift to church-focus and the message of Ephesians 4—where the work is done by "the saints"—can be filtered out as leadership is elevated higher than servanthood and all works are checked out for approval, leading the saints to clam up and becoming spectators.
Jesus went to seek and save the lost, and I don't see him passing out flyers for the upper room meeting but healing, preaching, and ministering where people were. Many pray for seats to be filled by incoming sinners, while I often pray for them to be emptied by the outgoing saints.
Many of the street preachers I have encountered portray a very one-sided Jesus: angry and bent on sending people to hell. What do you think a person’s perception of Jesus is after encountering your street preaching?
When I speak of hell, I normally speak about it being a place I deserve. This gets people's attention because they expect me to be self-righteous and tell them they deserve hell. I also say how Jesus went there for us and speak of holy God's love for us in doing this.
I imagine you have experienced many different reactions to your preaching. Do you have a favorite story?
One night I was in a busy pedestrian zone in Dublin called Temple Bar. As I held high the name Jesus, a French atheist started asking questions. I felt the Lord told me not answer him while he began to give his opinion about the Bible being untrustworthy. I asked the Lord silently whether there was anything about this man I needed to know and then, without hesitation, I asked whether he had a sore chest. He immediately stopped talking and his eyes widened. I told him that God knows everything about him, loves him, and sent Jesus to take his sin on the cross. He slowly moved off, and when he got to the end of the street he turned around and stared back at me. I knew the Lord had given me a "word of knowledge" and that this impacted him much more than my reasoning with him would have. To God be all the glory.
Another time, after my wife preached, a young heroin addict asked how he could get this new life. We prayed with him, he repented, and over the following days we had ongoing contact. Two years later I was on the street witnessing and he came up to me with his fiancé. They both were fervent for the Lord and testified to the great work God was doing in their life. Needless to say I was blessed and encouraged beyond measure. Hallelujah!
Do you think more pastors should get out of their churches and spend more time preaching on the street corner?
If the Lord leads them to do, I would be delighted. To stand up for Jesus publicly is life changing and it would bring great new vision into any church.
If a family never goes out but only meets with its own members it goes a bit weird (although it always sees itself as normal). The church can become a bit like this when we do not regularly engage atheists and pre-believers with the message of the cross.
We have been given food for distribution in a famine land and, as the Lord leads, every distribution method should be considered. There is a war on for the souls of men and women and, while not all are called to be front line troops, all are called to help in the effort. A fisherman needs the boat builders, the fish processing plant and many other persons to be effective—but the goal is to catch fish! Pastors need not regularly preach on the street but they might be open to God calling them to do it on occasion. They certainly should lead by example and on occasion do some form of street work.
Posted by UrL Scaramanga on January 4, 2010
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Comments
You go Brother David
Posted by: John Umland at January 4, 2010
Wow!!! There is a lesson on church life and outreach. Thank you for sharing this powerful story. Are American "leaders" who are hardened in their institutionalized forms of perpetual dependency going to repent and turn from their ways? I hope God's simple revelation that instructs a very different form is enough to bring change. I hope God's only option for change is not to ruin the American economy so Americans can no longer afford to corrupt their giving because they no longer have anything to give.
Posted by: Tim at January 4, 2010
Good on ya Anthony. There is still some street preaching in and around Belfast too. Although I hear stories from time to time that some are being moved on by the police - so as not to offend! Hope this is not happening down in Dublin.
Please pay us a wee visit here
http:\\www.grovebaptist.co.uk
Posted by: Grove at January 5, 2010
Since when, David, is "embarrassment" something Christians should avoid?
"For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ."
- Gal. 1:10
And thank you, Anthony for your courage and commitment to the spread of God's glory and the proclaiming of His word!
"For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart."
- Heb 4:12
Posted by: Andy at January 5, 2010
I've been convinced for a long time that we (me especially) aren't afraid to share the true gospel because we worry that others see us as uncool but because we see ourselves that way. Amazingly, this man didn't have to 'develop a relationship' with those who needed to hear; the Holy Spirit had made their hearts ready. Sometimes we forget that Paul plants, Appolos waters, but God gives the increase. (See 1Cor.3:6)
Thank you for a lovely story to start the year.
Posted by: Melody at January 5, 2010
We (a group of believers from different churches) did a bunch of street ministry from July 2006 to Sept 2007. We didn't really "preach" on the street corner - but we met with people two-on-one or two-on-many (we went out in twos).
I can really say the whole experience changed our lives. We saw many people come to Christ - not by drawing crowds to us - but by caring for people and getting them to talk to us - and praying for them and their problems.
We came across some "street preachers" while we were out there - but we felt the more personal we got - the more effective we were.
I'm not knocking street preaching - it's like any preaching - without love - it's just a clanging cymbal. So many street preachers we felt were preaching out of obligation or religious duty. (if I don't tell them, their blood is on my hands...)
And then on the flip side - the outreach person dripping with compassion had no problem finding an attentive listener. It's the MESSAGE of Jesus Christ that creates FAITH in the HEARER. They really need to hear the message - you can't just share food and never tell them about Jesus.
Posted by: Jerry at January 5, 2010
Thanks, Dave. And thanks, Jerry. What a nudge! I confess that often I hold back from talking about Jesus because I'm concerned with what people will think about ME.
How refreshing to be reminded it's about how we can invite people to think about JESUS.
Posted by: Jarrod at January 5, 2010
Well I think it has nothing to do with what others are thinking about. It was pretty good to see somebody taking interview of street preacher around Christmas. May everyone understand the message of Jesus.
Posted by: pc joystick at January 6, 2010
First of all, thanks Dave for your spirit of humility to actually engage on a position that you weren't particularly fond of.
And Anthony's spirit is good to behold as well.
I listened to one of his videos on Youtube about "Why we don't evangelize" and he was bang on: we are fearful because we are relying on ourselves instead of on the Lord.
Great read on a Friday afternoon.
Posted by: Paul C at January 8, 2010
Anthony Here, In reply to "Grove Baptist" the police in Dublin are typically fine. They respond on occasion to "complaints" by convicted sinners and we have to be led by the Holy Spirit in our response to their requests for us to stop or move. I carry in my wallet a credit card sized laminated copy of extracts from articles 18,19,20 and 30 of the Geneva Convention (Universal Declaration of Human Rights) just in case a copper forgets the law himself! Would love to witness and preach in Belfast someday this year. Email me from the Profile page (bottom LHS) on my blog http://alienonamission.blogspot.com
Posted by: Anthony Brabazon at January 17, 2010
Thank you for posting this - I have been in some discussions about street preaching recently that have left me uncomfortable. Friends were almost repenting for having done street preaching in the past. Is it possible that we have become so sophisticated that we are a little ashamed of the gospel? We can be so concerned about not offending that our inoffensiveness keeps the gospel hidden under our polite bushel
Posted by: Colin Benner at January 19, 2010
"Should you leave your sanctuary to preach on the sidewalk?"
No David, please keep your lukewarm, emergent, seeker sensitive "gospel" inside the "sanctuary" where the false converts of Chicago pay to hear you tickle their ears...
-fleebabylon.com
Posted by: Jim at January 21, 2010
i can't help but think that there are very different kinds of street ministry, and that you were unfairly lambasted in your last post for being critical of the angry bullhorn style. anthony's an example of people who hit the streets to meet people where they are, in their brokenness and need. but not everyone is like this, and there's a world of difference between him and some of the condemnation-filled, alienating, and frankly un-Christlike street preaching i've seen elsewhere.
Posted by: stephanie at January 30, 2010
Each person has their own opinion, but I would rather have this guy on TV any day than Pat RobertsonA>. What is tragic is some of the greatest Christians die without any fanfare on the mission field, while Michael Jackson gets millions to attend his death.
Posted by: Andrew at February 4, 2010