Why Gospel Tracts (The Pre-Show)
Some years ago, while I was enrolled in Taylor University Online, I did a research project for my English course about writing good, sound Gospel tracts. I recently rediscovered the proposal to the project, which serves as an introduction to what the report is about. I'm putting it and my research project (coming soon) online as a resource and hope that it blesses you.
Rebecca Jefferson
Professor Jones
ENG 110E Module #4 Research Proposal
6 November 2011
One of the main challenges facing Christianity today- and especially those involved in missions work- is how to reach the lost, those who reject the person and deity of Christ by their beliefs and lives. Of the many ways to evangelize the lost, one way that has been found to be very effective, despite criticism from some circles in recent times, is gospel tracts. Gospel tracts have been credited for opening up the spiritual eyes of many people, including such noted Christians as the late missionary Hudson Taylor.
Perhaps the most powerful piece in a missionary's arsenal, a gospel tract is practical because its message continues with the person who has been given the tract long after the fact, even if not words are actually spoken by the evangelist. With the watering down of the Christian message over the past half-century, the usefulness of the gospel tracts has also been downgraded. The message behind many gospel tracts has generally changed from a pleading for people to repent to a comforting answer to the needs of the many.
The missionary who believes in Biblical doctrine can be part of the solution to the problem of unbiblical gospel tracts by not only buying good gospel tracts but by also writing good gospel tracts. A good gospel tract must be both effective and sound. The missionary must prepare himself for this task so he can learn how to write in a clear manner and to implement a message that complies with the Gospel.
Of first importance, however, is to know why to write clearly. In order for people to understand what is being written, the language must be clear rather than obscure. A few, in misunderstanding the Gospel, refer to God's plan for mankind as "God's dream." Not only is this doctrinally erroneous, but terms like this confuse readers and observers. In the Bible, the call to salvation in Christ is both simple and understandable. In order to believe in what the tract is proposing, people must first understand it. As philosopher John Stott said, "God certainly abases the pride of men, but he does not despise the mind which he himself has made" (17).
Missionaries and other gospel tract writers must take necessary steps to meet their readers where they are by making their writing coherent rather than talking above their readers. Fostering clear writing comes with writing repeatedly, so tract writers should write often. Some outlets for writing may include keeping a journal or a blog. In addition to adding to Christian growth, writing in a journal or blog makes invisible thoughts visible and encourages creativity and recall. The thoughts expressed in these pages or posts, whether it be musings on current events or spiritual lessons learned, also encourage effective writing because the writer is letting his passions and emotions flow freely.
Another way to encourage effective writing is to write letters to persecuted Christians. There are many benefits of doing this, but one of the main reasons why this is helpful to a tract writer's overall writing skills and outlook is that the writer learns to express his love and concern in Christ on paper to an actual person. The tract writer who utilizes this opportunity can offer this same love and concern to an unsaved audience in his gospel tract, for love and concern are the very characteristics the lost need to see in a gospel presentation.
Reading Christian books is also helpful to the gospel writer's outlook. The tract writer, in addition to reading for himself, can also observe how the authors methodically make their points and can capture the spirit behind what they are saying. He can then apply a similar organization to his own writing and learn from the authors' attitudes toward their readers.
Just as crucial to writing clearly is writing truthfully. This is sometimes made difficult or awkward by the pressure put on the missionary to compromise his message by making it more palatable to his readers. The truth cannot be changed, however, by readers who do not agree or accept what is being promoted, and tract writers should anticipate the many possible conflicting points of view that an an audience might bring towards an argument (Harrington, et. al. 185).
For the gospel tract writer, this responsibility is furthered by a higher responsibility under God not to be ashamed of the Gospel. Despite pressure from both inside and outside Christianity to cave to the laxity and ambiguity of modern times, the missionary must never deny the Gospel's power to save, for it is the very source that saved him from his sins. Much like journalists are expected to report accurate news, missionaries are also under obligation to share truth. The responsibility of a journalist is to respect the integrity of a basis of a work, to write intelligibly, and to write in a way that answer the questions readers will have concerning the work (Sherman et. al. 7). Missionary writers can hold themselves to the same standard as journalists and learn to utilize skills from good writing to pen sound gospel tracts.
Having such a fidelity to the truth will help missionaries to avoid writing in a manner that softens the issue of eternity or the character of God. A biblically-minded missionary would not write statements that would appeal to the unsaved such as, "The moment you were born into the world, God was there as an unseen witness, smiling at your birth" (Warren 63). Missionaries do not focus on speculation but on truth. They do not attempt to use emotional or mental ploys like a pitchman, but speak objectively and plainly like a journalist. To avoid writing in what may be a manipulative manner, missionaries must approach this with much prayer and ask God to help them to thoroughly love his Word so they will not be ashamed of his story of redemption, the Gospel.
I have perceived that some missionaries and missions organizations, but not all, have fallen into erroneous views of the gospel, especially social justice. This greatly concerns me, as the souls of many are at stake. Since my desire after I leave college is to be a missionary at some point in the future and use writing as a means to not only support me but to help others, I want to learn how to write accurate and Biblical gospel tracts. I want to guard against a wrong perspective on the Gospel, despite what may be otherwise promoted on television, the Internet, and other outlets, because my perspective will ultimately determine what I write. The purpose of this research paper is to explore how to write a sound gospel tract and the influences, both practically and spiritually, a writer should surround himself with in order to do so.
Current Thesis:
How a missionary writes a successful gospel tract largely depends on his spiritual outlook, his effectiveness, and his writing skills.
