Door Knocking Question.

I personally have found this to be the weakest method, and I know I'm not alone. Training people to share, multiplying witnesses as Jesus did, is most effective. Truest converts are won through the attractive witness and lifestyle of holy believers.

 

A local Bible college (that shall remain nameless) where I used to live blacklisted our house. They required all students to spend so many hours per day door knocking. They came to my house, and asked, "May we share some things from the Bible with you?"

I said, "Certainly! Just a moment." Called down my wife, got out my Greek textbook, Greek text, and lexicon, and sat down with them.

More than one confrontation was had back in the classroom, so they were prohibited from visiting my house again, but I would often visit the neighbors' houses (who were all also Christian, but fed up with the way the door knocking was handled) when door knocking time came around.

Truth was presented to at least a few of those graduates, and that made some of the teachers quite uncomfortable when they were asked questions they were either unprepared or unable to answer about what was being presented.

But, back to the issue at hand, door knocking is one of the weakest forms of evangelism around, and in most cases, depending upon how it's presented, is quite damaging to witnessing.

It's also not a good idea to stand on the street corner and scream and yell and have spittle at everyone who passes by that they're going to hell!

TomVols has the right idea.

 

I know door knocking can vary from area to area, and in some places it may be weak, in others it may be completely ineffective, but I don't think that is what the OP was all about.

I do door-to-door and I would agree, it does not bear much fruit. But there are several reasons I think it should be done.

1. It may be the only way some people receive the Gospel

2. It gives the opportunity to comprehensively share the Gospel in any given community.

3. Sometimes, it does work.

4. For start up ministries it may be the only way to make initial contacts.

I think door-to-door can be done in a way that is offensive and instead of the Gospel it is the method that offends. But I also know that there is an approach that can be used that works.

My goal is not always to share the whole gospel at every door, but just to continue building relationships, letting people know where we are and that we are there to help. It is one of several ways that we use to get the Gospel out.

As for the college situation, I can imagine having regular visits would get old pretty soon. I would try to go to the doors of homes in the communities maybe once a year.

I don't want to derail this thread, as I guess the original question was not about whether or not we should do it, but how long do we do it.

I would spend about 2-3 hours a week going door-to-door.

 

door knocking

The only problem I have with door knocking is that around here there are a few Jehovah's witnesses. I think a lot of people wouldn't answer the door, afraid it would be them. That being said, our actions, the way we live, how we present ourselves in front of sinners, would do more than just knocking on a door. Action speaks louder than words!!

 

I don't do door-to-door evangelism. I don't like someone coming to my door trying to "sell" me something, and I don't want to do it to anyone else. There are other far better methods.

The home visits that I make are done after making appointments with the people. That way, I'm not intruding.

 

You should qualify your statements. It may be true of you and your area, but it is not so in the every place in the world.

As for there being far better methods, again, maybe so, but it varies from place to place.

It is true that actions speak louder than words, but words speak specifics, and you need the specifics to understand the Gospel.

 

Relationship evangelism is effective.

 

After I went to be last night, this is what I got to thinking about.

The way it's presented in most cases is offensive, and that's the image that I (and most others with whom I have talked about it) have.

I do understand that it's occasionally effective, but I would still say in most cases, that it's weak and ineffective. But, if there are exceptions to it, more power to you!

However, there's another issue that I have with it, and that is the idea that everyone is supposed to do it, x amount of time per week. 2 dear friends of mine insist that everyone in their congregation do it at least a certain amount every week, or they're not "doing their job for Jesus". (One of them puts a time expectation, the other a geographic area.)

God gives different people different gifts. Some are evangelists. Some are pastors. Some might be the housekeepers. (However, we are all to be a good witness.) I have no problems going to talk to someone at their house at their request, at the request of others, or whatever. I will go to the hospital to visit a friend, and I will end up talking to others, praying with them, or even sharing the gospel.

But, for every person who has a positive story about having received the gospel through door knocking, I have heard a hundred negative ones, from those who were saved at the time or saved later, but completely turned off by the door knocking, and it wasn't always by the presentation. (FWIW, I don't buy from solicitors that come by uninvited either. I run a business, and they are interrupting me. If they want to make a visit, they can call me, and if I'm interested, I'll make time.)

Now, I have one very big caveat to this observation. Those who go around door knocking promising some kind of goody are very successful. Around here, the Mormons are very successful because they go around telling people what they're giving away. However, I don't think this would justify competing with them on the same level.

What the JW's do is much more acceptable. They will simply give you some reading material, then if you want to talk hang around. If we as Baptists would do our door knocking in that manner, then even if it's ineffective, it would not be offensive. (However, whatever you do, don't give them Chick tracts!) My friends that I was talking about above, although they are both quiet and not terribly aggressive, when they go around, if the person doesn't want to talk, they will ask them something like, "You do realize that you might be headed for hell, don't you?"

So, with the proper presentation (presentation is important, don't scream and yell and get aggressive), I guess I would say instead of setting an artificial time limit of, "I have to do this much!", do what God leads you to do. If you're having an evangelism event at your church, go around and invite people. (OK, I realize that church is not the place for unsaved people, but still...)

Accountable was just up here visiting, and he felt bad that in this one church he visited, there were a couple of Russian Old Believers visiting. They came in, sat in the back, no one visited them, then they left. He felt bad that no one went up and talked to them. However, us locals who have experience with them know that one way to run them off is to go up and talk to them. If they want to talk, they will approach you, and odds are, as long as their husbands don't find out they visited an infidel (IOW, anything non-Russian) church, they will be back.

So, I guess what I'm saying is, don't be like those guys in Matthew 7 who have done all these wonderful works, but have done it under their own idea of what needed to be done. Don't say, "Well, if I don't door knock people and annoy them into being saved for a certain number of hours, I'm falling short." Pray about it and do what God leads you to do.

 

That school prepared their kids for everything but someone who was already saved and they didn't prepare them for someone who would show the major flaws in their teachings.

I found that quite ironic that they assumed that everyone was unsaved. I was at someone else's house when they knocked. "Are you saved, ma'am?" "Yes, I have been for many, many years." "Are you sure?"

However, one other thing that they weren't prepared for, and I'm not sure anyone is, is when they got to the house a couple of blocks over that a group of us had been praying for. I'm pretty sure that the kid was demonized. I felt sorry for the kids that day, and I don't know that I could have given them any advice.

 

I've enjoyed reading the last few posts.

 

I replanted a church that was nearly extinct and had people that did not know what to do. Every church begins by someone meeting people.

Once I began to be more proficient at meeting people at the door God blessed my efforts more and more. I learned to trust God and began to see where people came from. I met people who were Christians who told me they were already involved in a church but liked what I was doing and sent people to us. Out of the time of knocking on doors we had more people in Bible studies in the community than we had in church. Knocking on doors was a great tool to train men to do the work of ministry and stand for their faith instead of hoping they could do ministry.

In my early years in college I went to a church that was pastored by a man who regularly knocked on doors in the city. At the time the church was slightly over 100. Eventually the church grew to about 2200. Once that pastor left, the next pastor came and did not knock on doors. Eventually the church became complacent. The pastor failed in his ministry by doing some things with another woman that was not his wife and the church crashed.

 

You are absolutely right. On the other hand, some people mistakenly think that relationship evangelism occurs when you are nice enough long enough that someone asks you why.
The Gospel is independent of my niceness. Although of course I should be nice. But there are lots of really nice people around here that are not Christians. There has to be intentional telling of the Gospel at some point.

I live in a part of the country where door knocking is effective. mnw makes lots of good points.
I would add that lots of people don't have the ability to make long-term relationships with all the people that need to be witnessed to.
People don't have front porches, downtowns have been replaced by Walmarts. There are many ways in which many people naturally see far fewer familiar people than they used to, all the while living among a great number of strangers in the suburbs.

There are many ways to do evangelism, and different people have various spiritual gifts, but I see no reason to automatically assume door knocking is outmoded.

 

Ehud, I think this is a good average for a pastor, who also has to prepare messages and Bible studies, visit members, visit the sick, do office work, etc., etc. Don't let the naysayers on this thread bother you about it! You're doing great. :thumbs:

I am always amazed at otherwise good Christians who denigrate a particular method of evangelism they don't use. Paul said, "I am made all things to all men, that I might by all means save some" (1 Cor. 9:22). I say use all methods to win folk to Christ.

I just got back from some direct evangelism (tract distribution) with my good buddy Habazaki San. He was saved when he got one of my tracts and wrote on a post card just four Chinese characters meaning, "I want to enter your teaching." I visited him and led him to Christ the first time I met him.

At 1:00 Mrs. Fujii is coming over to our house to make homemade ice cream with my wife (indirect evangelism, or friendship/relationship/lifestyle evangelism) for our ice cream social on Saturday evening. I met her when I was getting out tracts in our neighborhood (direct evangelism). Man, why should we limit ourselves to one method? Let's use every method we can to witness for Christ!

 

Nice enough Long enough?????

Heck, sometimes being rednecked in a relationship helps!!!!!!!!

 

Mat 10:16 (Geneva Bible, 1560):
Behold, I send you as sheepe in the middes
of the wolues: be yee therefore
wise as serpents,
and innocent as doues.

not slimy as serpents;
and stupid as doves

 

Wow. Sometimes after reading some of these posts that is all one can say. (shakes head in shame).

In regards to the OP. I don't think there is a set average of hours, nor do I think every church has to do this along with every member. We do door to door at our church. At the moment, we average about 1.5 - 2 hours a week, give or take. Since all the men that are active in this at our church work other jobs, this is about all we have time for since these men are also active in teaching classes at church, in the jail ministry, or preaching on the streets. Unfortunately, with the necesarry amount of time spent on the job and with families and with other ministries within the church and with sleeping, that is all the time we have put aside at the moment.

With that said, I do believe it is effective because of the blatantly obvious reason that we are NOT called to give the increase, God is (I Cor. 3:6). So many people classify increase as godliness and effectiveness. This is not so brethren. (I Tim. 6:5-6).

Door to door ministries are effective in giving out the gospel in accordance with the commandment of going. The only "alternative" mentioned that I saw was "lifestyle" evangelism. This is not going, this is waiting for someone to notice you and come to you. Why not mention other forms of ministries of outreach? Methinks people don't like door to door b/c it involves being a bold witness for Jesus Christ, and most are far from that. Methinks correctly because meknows.

 

I like ministering to the homeless and otherwise rejected of society. For some reason I feel drawn to them. My famous analogy is a starving man don't care about the table cloth or china.

There are starving people everywhere you go just waiting for a fishing lesson. Timing has a lot to do with it also. A person who was previously disinterested may not let you leave on another day. Do what the Lord puts on your heart and he will say well done.