← The « Be the mission » moduleFREN
Evangelism module · serving

Leading to a decision, and baptism, without forcing

The harvest seen through this module's ethic: leading all the way to decision and baptism, without ever manipulating. Sowing patiently does not forbid reaping at the right time.

The principleIt is the Spirit that ripens, not pressure

The rest of the module has taught you to sow and to respect the other person's pace. Here is the other half, which we are wrong to leave unsaid: ripe fruit that is not picked ends up rotting on the tree.

The right tension: not forcing is not the same as never inviting. We refuse manipulation, not decision. Accompanying someone all the way to a yes is part of the service.
« I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. »1 Corinthians 3:6 (ESV)

It is not time that ripens spiritual fruit, it is the Spirit. Your role: to discern where the person stands, and to invite them to take the next step, not to leap three notches ahead. Keep in mind the safeguards: everything that follows is subject to them.

DiscernThe levels of decision

No one goes at once from indifference to baptism. We move forward step by step. Locate the person, then accompany them by one single step:

The frequent mistake: wanting a « decided » person out of an « interested » one because the campaign ends this week. Man's calendar is not the Spirit's calendar.
RecognizeWho is ready to decide

Ripe fruit shows itself. Signs, not an exact science:

Before such signs, staying silent for fear of « pressing » would also be a fault. The shepherd who sees the sheep ready opens the gate.

InviteThe appeal: an invitation, not pressure

An appeal is not an emotional trap: it is giving the occasion to respond to the Spirit now, rather than leaving without having said yes to what one already believes.

Several forms, from the gentlest to the most engaging: an appeal to prayer · a response card · an appeal to stand · an appeal to come forward (to the altar) · an appeal to baptism · a combined appeal. We rise in commitment progressively, over the course of the meetings.

Under safeguards, always

Never guilt-trip, never isolate or harass, never exploit the emotion of one evening. Let people say no without making them pay for it. An appeal that cannot be freely refused is not an appeal, it is a coercion, and what you reap that way does not hold.

The thresholdReadiness for baptism

Neither a baptism rushed on the emotion of one evening, nor one endlessly postponed. Readiness is recognized by three things:

Teach the new way of life before, accompany it after. Make baptism meaningful: it is not an end-of-campaign formality, it is a covenant.

Do not let goAfter the decision, retention

The harvest that is not gathered in is lost. The decision is not the end, it is a birth: the new believer needs to be rooted and retained.

For the follow-up visit, see The missionary visit. To carry all of this in prayer, Praying for the mission.

To disciple a new believer on video: Following the Spirit (video series).

Before you baptize — the prerequisites and documents to check (minor, divorced parents, transfer): Prerequisites & documents for pastoral acts. To organize the ceremony itself: Preparing a baptism, step by step.

CommitA name, a step

Theory baptizes no one. Name a real person and their next step.

Sources: synthesis of the training modules « 4 Levels of Decision », « Decisions », « Making Appeals », « Baptism » and « Evangelistic Visitation » (evangelism series, Southern Africa-Indian Ocean Division). Reference points: Church Manual (General Conference); Ellen G. White. Texts: 1 Corinthians 3:6; John 4:35-38; Acts 2:41 (King James Version). Filtered through the module's safeguards. Original writing and adaptation.
Suggestion