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Lesson #7
Closing the Study

(After Being Properly Taught)

1) Establish A Need – Before one can be led to obey the gospel, he must first realize he is a sinner doomed to the fires of Hell.
2) Display A Loving And Caring Attitude - Use a low, calm tone of voice.
3) Eliminate Objections Before The Close – "John, if in the course of our study tonight you were to discover something the Lord wanted you to do that you have not done, would there be anything to keep you from doing it tonight?"
4) Ask The Individual To Respond. "John let's go to the church building right now so that you can be baptized into Christ."
5) Close In The Affirmative – By asking a series of questions which he answers yes to.
A. Do you love Jesus?
B. If you love Jesus will you obey Him?
C. Do you want to please Jesus?
D. Do you want to go to heaven?
E. Is it your understanding that one has to be baptized to be saved?
F. Since Jesus wants you to be baptized and you understand the importance of being baptized, wouldn’t it please Jesus for you to be baptized right now?
G. Fine let’s go right now. (Stand up)
6) Silence – Ask the one to be baptized and then remain silent.
7) Change Places With Him – "Suppose that you are me and I am you, and you have taught me what God wants me to do to be saved. Let’s suppose that I see that I need to be baptized for the remission of my sins so I can be saved and go to heaven, but I don’t want to do anything about it. What would you tell me? No really tell me what you would say if you really loved my soul and wanted me to go to Heaven?"
8) Emotional Close – Relate an incident with which you are personally acquainted with in which the sinner hesitated to obey the gospel and died lost. "But the tragic thing about it is he will not have another opportunity. You have an opportunity right now, but do you know if you will have another opportunity after tonight? Then let’s go and take of this matter right now."
9) Help The Individual Face The Consequences – "John, do you realize what you have just said? You are telling God that the death of His Son on the cross on your behalf is not important to you. You are rejecting the salvation that God wants to give to you. John, God is going to put you in one of two places: Heaven or Hell. Now you have just rejected Heaven. What does that leave you?" (Remain silent and wait for his answer.)
10) Reassurance – "1. John have I shared anything with you that is not from the Bible? 2. Have I taken anything out of context? 3. Then the conclusions you have come to are your conclusions based on God’s word, aren’t they? 4. So if you do these things who will you be obeying? 5. Can you go wrong if you do what God’s word says to do?
11) Comparison – Compare what he believes with what the Bible teaches. Or compare the advantages of being in Christ with that of being outside of Christ. "Which one is according to the Bible?" or "Which one will God accept?"
12) Welcome Objections - Don’t Be Afraid Of Objections. Objections tell you what he thinks and feels? 1. "John, your question is why wasn’t the thief baptized, is that right? 2. John, do you have any other questions? 3. If we can answer this question to your satisfaction is there anything else that would keep you from being baptized tonight."
13) Key Words To Use In Closing –
1. Why or Why Not – The individual cannot answer honestly without committing himself. "Why are you waiting?" "Why not now?"
2. Let’s – This is a cooperative and unselfish word, which leaves the idea that you and the one you are studying with are trying to work the matter out together. "Let’s see what the Bible says." Or "Let’s go now to the building and baptize you into Christ."
3. When – Helps nail down a specific time and impress upon him the urgency of the matter. "When does the Lord want you to be baptized."
4. Which – "Which one is according to the Bible?" "Which one will God accept?"
13) Every Time You Try to Close you are checking the individuals spiritual pulse to see how near he is to being baptized. If you try to close and he does not respond, give him some more teaching concerning the questions he has and try for a close again. Continue to persuade as long as you can. Acts 2:40 "And with many other words he testified and exhorted them, saying, Be saved from this perverse generation."
14) Always Leave The Door Open For Further Studies – Try other studies such as OBS, Jule Miller, etc.

Scriptures To Use In Closing

1. Mark 9:43-48 "Cast into Hell, where their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched."
2. Luke 16:19-31 Rich man and Lazarus.
3. Hebrews 9:27 "It is appointed unto man once to die, but after this the judgment."
4. James 4:14 "For what is your life? It is as a vapor that appears for a little time."
5. John 5:28-29 "All that are in the graves shall come forth, they that have done good to the resurrection of life, they that have done evil to the resurrection of damnation."
6. Matthew 16:26 "What is a man profited if he gains the whole world and loses his own soul."
7. Hebrews 5:8-9 "He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him."
8. Ephesians 5:23 "He is the saviour of the body."
9. Acts 26:27-28 "You almost persuade me to become a Christian."
10. 2 Thess 1:7-9 "Vengeance on them that know not God and that obey not the gospel."
11. John 12:48 "He who rejects Me and does not receive My words has that which judges him"
12. Mattthew 7:21-23 "Not everyone who says to Me, Lord, Lord, shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father in heaven."
13. Luke 6:46 "But why do you call Me Lord, Lord and do not the things which I say?"
14. Revelation 20:10 "Devil was cast into lake of fire and brimstone and tormented day and night"
15. Revelation 20:15 "Anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire."
16. Matt 25:41 "Depart from Me, into the everlasting fire prepared for the Devil and his angels."
17. Matthew 7:13-13 Few saved, many lost.
18. Acts 22:16 "And now why are you waiting, arise and be baptized and wash away your sins"
19. 2 Corinthians 6:2 "Behold now is the accepted time, behold now is the day of salvation."
20. John 14:15 "If you love Me, keep My commandments." (Do you love Jesus?)

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