Liberty Theological Seminary

Share Jesus Without Fear: A Review

A PaperSubmitted to Nicholas Dodson

In Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the Course

Contemporary EvangelismEvan 565

ByChad Ressler29 May 2010

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Bibliographical Entry

Fay, William, and Linda Evans. Share Jesus Without Fear. Nashville: B&H Publishing Group, 1999.

Author Information

In his former life, William Fay was a man with no need of God. Fay had met with

success in life. He was the CEO of a major company, and had acquired a large amount of wealth

through his ties with the mafia. His involvement with the mafia meant a life of crime and

villainy. Fay was involved in all the quintessential mob activities: racketeering, gambling, and

prostitution. Yet, despite who he was, God saw fit to intervene in Fay’s life and open his eyes to

the Gospel. Early one day, Fay received information that one of his prostitution houses had been

raided. After he was arrested and tried, Fay mercifully received only probation. He lost his job

and began to reflect on what was missing in his life. Though his initial encounters with the

message of the Gospel yielded little, however a meeting with a believer on a racquetball court

would put Fay on the path of meeting the risen Savior. Since Fay’s regeneration, he has

tirelessly taught his non-confrontational style of sharing the gospel, and has seen how God has

blessed his work.1

Content Summary

Fay’s book, Share Jesus Without Fear, presents the reader with a non-confrontational,

linear method for sharing the gospel suitable for relatives, friends, and strangers. Fay’s method

is designed to outline for believers a method of sharing the gospel that is easy to remember and

that relies on the power of the Holy Spirit and Scripture to speak to the lost. Prior to the actual

presentation of method, Fay sets forth the rationale for why believers need to be sharing the

1 http://www.bhpublishinggroup.com/truthquest/static/fay.asp

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Gospel. He writes, “You see, success is sharing your faith and living your life for Jesus Christ.”2

Anticipating the fear of many when it comes to witnessing, Fay presents common objections that

individuals have and presents answers to those objections. Once an individual has come to the

point where they are ready to share the Gospel Fay presents a method that is both non-

confrontational and linear. He begins by offering some conversational joggers designed to

position the evangelist in a situation where he can use Fay’s “Share Jesus Questions.” Fay’s

Share Jesus Questions3 are:

1. Do you have any kind of spiritual belief?2. To you, who is Jesus?3. Do you think there is a heaven or a hell?4. If you died, where would you go? If heaven, why?5. If what you are believing is not true, would you want to know?

Once the evangelist has presented these questions Fay’s method takes the individual

directly to Scripture. Fay outlines for the evangelist 7 Scriptures to have the potential convert

read4: Romans 3:23, Romans 6:23, John 3:3, John 14:6, Romans 10:9-11, 2 Corinthians 5:15,

and Revelation 3:20. The linear progression of Fay’s method is designed to allow for the

evangelist to bring the potential convert to the point of decision. The Share Jesus Questions are

utilized to indicate their current spiritual condition and level of understanding with respect to

Christianity. Fay’s choice of Scriptures demonstrates to the would-be convert their exact

spiritual condition, Christ’s offer of salvation, and how they can obtain that salvation. Fay’s

method is designed to avoid, as much as possible, any kind of apologetics in a witnessing

encounter and focus strictly on the conscience of the sinner. While Fay’s method hopes to see an

2 William Fay and Linda Evans, Share Jesus Without Fear (Nashville: B&H Publishing Group, 1999)

3 Fay, 39-40.

4 Fay, 54-55.

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individual come to Christ, his measure of success is simply sharing the gospel whatever the

results. Following a decision, Fay presents practical advice for helping someone assimilate into

the body of Christ, and the responsibilities of the evangelist to follow up with converts.

Understanding that no witnessing encounter proceeds without objection, Fay presents the

reader with 36 common objections to the gospel. This apologetic section is designed to provide

the evangelist with basic answers to objections. The answers to the questions, like Fay’s method

as a whole, are non-confrontational and focused on tackling the objections in a spirit of love. To

share the gospel, however, one must have individuals to share it with as well as preparing oneself

to be a witness. Fay concludes his work by encouraging the reader to develop non-Christian

friends, and offers several helpful suggestions as to how one can go about this. Most

importantly, Fay instructs the reader on how to pray for unbelievers.

Evaluation

Fay presents the reader with a sound method for sharing the Gospel. He begins by

probing for the sinner’s knowledge of the Gospel, their own spiritual condition, and their desire

to know the truth. This linear progression of sharing the gospel has the advantage of helping

the evangelist know where he is at during the conversation. Should the unbeliever divert the

evangelist’s attention by the introduction of a red herring, the evangelist can easily find his

place in the conversation and return to Share Jesus Questions. Once the witness has secured

permission to move ahead with Scripture, Fay’s method of having the non-believer read the

Scriptures out loud is very unique. This allows for the unbeliever to more fully process what

God is saying through both visual and auditory mediums. One of the strengths of Fay’s method

is that it is pre-suppositional at its core. His method does not meet the unbeliever on neutral

ground, but rather confronts the believer with Scripture in order to challenge the unbelief

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inherent in their worldview. His pre-suppositional approach is evident in his handling of the 36

common objections to Christianity. In each of the objections, Fay either incorporates Scripture

or demonstrates how the unbeliever’s worldview prevents them from seeing the truth of God’s

Word.

One potential weakness in Fay’s method is the insufficient explanation of sin to the

unbeliever. While Fay presents such Scriptures as Romans 3:23 and Romans 6:23, this simply

does not go far enough in helping the unbeliever to understand, exactly, the seriousness of his

spiritual condition. His presentation gives the impression that sin is something they do, rather

than something that affects their entire being. His presentation would be strengthened by the

use of the Ten Commandments prior to citing the verses from Romans. By contrast, this is the

method espoused by Ray Comfort and Kirk Cameron in the Way of the Master. Ray Comfort

writes, “When the definition of sin is separated from the Law, it can become merely an abstract

concept in the minds of sinners.”5 As Psalm 19:7a teaches, “The law of the LORD is perfect,

restoring the soul.”6 Fay’s use of Romans 3:23 is an excellent first Scripture to present to

unbelievers, however the word ‘all’ in the verse could diffuse the responsibility in the mind of

the unbeliever. All people have sinned, yes, but specifically what have they done. More

specifically, what has this individual done and why is it really that bad. Sin offends a holy and

perfect God, and the Ten Commandments are representative of that holiness. The sinner must be

made aware that they have violated those commandments, individually, and thus have offended

God by virtue of their own actions. Sin is the disease, and the Gospel is the cure. The

unbeliever must be shown to have the disease before he is presented with the cure.

5 Comfort, 89.

6 Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.

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While Fay rightly ascribes the credit for regeneration to the Holy Spirit, his belief in

decisional regeneration is evident in his use of Revelation 3:20. There are no such expressions

of “make a decision for Christ” or “accept Christ in into your heart” in Scripture, and his use of

Revelation 3:20 is taken out of context. Revelation 3:20 states, “Behold, I stand at the door and

knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with

him, and he with Me.” John MacArthur notes in his commentary, “Rather than allow for the

common interpretation of Christ’s knocking on a person’s heart, the context demands that Christ

was seeking to enter this church that bore his name, but lacked a single true believer.”7 This

interpretation is further supported by Dr. Ed Hindson in his work on Revelation when he writes

regarding Revelation 3:20, “Nor is it an evangelistic appeal to the unsaved.”8 Should an

individual utilize Fay’s method in their evangelism, this verse should be dropped from the

repertoire.

Overall, Fay’s method is a solid method for sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It is

simple, linear, and non-confronational. The individual utilizing it does not have to worry about

having a degree in apologetics or theology, but can rest on the strength and truth of the Christian

worldview by using Scripture to confront unbelief. As the second Share Jesus Question revolves

around Jesus, the believer should have a basic understanding of correct doctrine when it comes to

the person of Jesus Christ in the event they are witnessing to cult members or fielding certain

specific questions regarding Jesus’ nature and work on the Cross. This method would be

beneficial to believers of all ages and evangelistic abilities. Fay’s method would be a strong

addition to a Church’s small group curriculum.

7 John MacArthur, The MacArthur Bible Commentary (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2005), 2001.

8 Ed Hindson, Revelation: Unlocking the Future (Chattanooga: AMG Publishers, 2002), 50.

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

Hindson, Ed. Revelation: Unlocking the Future. Chattanooga: AMG Publishers, 2002.

http://www.bhpublishinggroup.com/truthquest/static/fay.asp

MacArthur, John. The MacArthur Bible Commentary. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2005.