3. Those who are deeply convicted of sin, and are seeking salvation.
4. Those who have difficulties of various kinds. Many believe that they are so sinful that God will not accept them, that they have sinned away their opportunities and now it is too late, that the gospel was never intended for them. Others are kept back by honest doubts regarding the divinity of Christ, the genuineness of the Bible. Others again are troubled by the mysteries of the Bible, the doctrines of election, instant conversion, etc., or they say they have sought Christ in vain, that they have tried and failed, they are afraid they could not hold out. A large class is in great trouble about feelings.
5. Those who make excuses. There is a wide difference between a person who has a reason and one who had an excuse to offer.
The commonest excuses are that there are so many inconsistent Christians, hypocrites in the church; that it would cost too much to become Christians, that they could not continue in their present occupation, etc.; that they expect to become Christians some day; that their companions hold them back, or would cast them off if they were converted.
6. Those who are not convicted of sin. Some are deliberately sinful; they want to “see life,” to “sow their wild oats;” others are thoughtless; others again are simply ignorant of Jesus Christ and His work. A large number do not feet their need of a Savior because they are self-righteous, trusting to their own morality and good works.
7. Those who hold hostile creeds, embracing sectarians, cranks, Jews, spiritualists, infidels, atheists, agnostics, etc.
Always use your Bible in personal dealing. Do not trust to memory, but make the person read the verse for himself. Do not use printed slips or books. Hence, if convenient, always carry a Bible or New Testament with you.
It is a good thing to get a man on his knees (if convenient), but don’t get him there before he is ready. You may have to talk with him two hours before you can get him that far along. But when you think he is about ready, say, “Shall we not ask God to give us light on this point?” Sometimes a few minutes in prayer have done more for a man than two hours in talk. When the spirit of God has led him so far that he is willing to have you pray with him, he is not very far from the kingdom. Ask him to pray for himself. If he doesn’t want to pray, let him use a Bible prayer; get him to repeat it; for example: “Lord help me!” Tell the man: “If the Lord helped that poor woman, He will help you if you make the same prayer. He will give you a new heart if you pray from the heart.” Don’t send a man home to pray. Of course he should pray at home, but I would rather get his lips open at once. It is a good thing for a man to hear his own voice in prayer. It is a good thing for him to cry out: “God be merciful to me a sinner!”
Urge an immediate decision, but never tell a man he is converted. Never tell him he is saved. Let the Holy Spirit reveal that to him. You can shoot a man and see that he is dead, but you can not see when a man receives eternal life. You can’t afford to deceive one about this great question. But you can help his faith and trust, and lead him aright.
Always be prepared to do personal work. When war was declared between France and Germany, Count von Moltke, the German general, was prepared for it. Word brought to him late at night, after he had gone to bed. “Very well,” he said to the messenger, “the third portfolio on the left”; and he went to sleep again.