How do you “Convert” somebody to Christianity?

Question

A highly debated topic I know. There are hundreds of answers for this, but I would personally like to know what the Bible says about this.

If somebody was interested in being saved, what is my responsibility as a disciple of Christ to do?

Answer 1

I don't wish to sound flippant but you don't convert anyone. God does. Having said that, our responsibility is:

• To explain the hope we have, and be ready to do this, with gentleness and respect. 1 Peter 3v15

Then we can explain the theology, if people want to know. It comes down to this:

1. God is perfect (Deuteronomy 32:4, Matthew 5:48). That's His standard and His requirement to be with Him forever.
2. No human however is perfect (Romans 3:23).
3. Jesus is God become man (John 1:14). Therefore, He is a (and the only) perfect human.
4. Jesus offers to swap His righteousness for our sins (2 Corinthians 5:21). This is possible because He sacrificed Himself for us on the cross (Philippians 2:8).
5. Therefore we can immediately, on turning to Jesus, been declared perfect (forgiven) in the eyes of God (Acts 10:43).

As one of my friends once said, summarising the whole Gospel in seven words, "We don't reach Him, He reaches us."

Answer 2

The way that has worked for me quite well is to simply lead by example. Be a nice person, don't be afraid to mention God in daily conversation, don't preach and still show that you're able to have a good time without indulging in all the common sins (pre-marital sex, excessive drinking, etc).

I'm not ashamed to answer "I went to church" if people ask me what I did on Sunday, or why I wasn't at some party.

If people can see that you align yourself with Christ, but you're still someone that they want to be friends with, they will become more and more curious about how you manage this balance, because a lot of peoples visions of religion is of an archaic, you're-all-doomed, brim and hellfire organisation that hates gay people; or of traditional, stuffy church services filled with old slow hyms and elderly people.

When people question how I can claim to be Christian and go to church when I clearly break the commandments all the time (my particular weaknesses are coveting and doing stupid things), they tend to be respectful when I explain to them that these are the exact reasons why I go to Church, and that Church is a place for people who are not perfect.

_{Small, off-topic note: The favourite church billboard sign I've ever seen said "This church is NOT full of hypocrites; there is always room for one more"}

That said, church is probably one of the last places you want to take someone when you're courting them in their newly budding faith. Church can be a scary place for many reasons, and it's often the last frontier to be conquered. Things like a non-traditional praise service, or informal meetings, church outings (wine tasting and sporting activites are popular ones where I go to church), and getting them into the fold of the church community are great stepping stones, and church will usually follow as a natural progression.

Answer 3

I think the Bible says a lot of things about this topic. First and most important of all:

John 13:34

"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.

I take this as the mental set up in order to convert someone to Christianity. You must love the brother you want to convert. I always try to avoid thinking that other one is wrong and that I must show him his errors.

I also try to think in terms of universality as it is written,

Mark 16:15 NIV

He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.

Then, I should always be ready to "preach" and to "preach" to all. No one knows when good advice will stay in someone's heart, I believe that we must plant the seed of the Word even when we are not going to see the results.

What I've found most difficult is that grace cannot be infused without repentance. I think that part of converting someone is being able to encourage true repentance of sins, as it is written.

Matthew 18:15

"If your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault, just between the two of you. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over.

1 John 5:16

If anyone sees his brother commit a sin that does not lead to death, he should pray and God will give him life. I refer to those whose sin does not lead to death. There is a sin that leads to death. I am not saying that he should pray about that.

Galatians 6:1

Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted.

I think that the most important thing of all is the example you give to your brothers. If they see how your life has changed since you accepted our Lord, if they can feel your enthusiasm and radiance when you preach, if you live according to what you preach to the limit of your strength... I believe you will convert anyone.

But don't forget to pray for them (As it is said in 1 John 5:16) because prayer is the best of weapons. With prayer demons are cast away, remember?

Hope this expansion of my question is better!