Discipleship
From The Beginning
My testimony
(Gregory Bryant Wiles)
This
is the reason I felt it necessary to produce this Discipleship series.
I grew up in
a family without any religion. My Dad was an atheist. In public school I
learned that Evolution was a fact. There is no God. Instead, there was a Big
Bang, and over billions of years all life just happened. And I believed these scientists because they claimed to have the
evidence.
Ever since I
was a boy in 1959, people have been calling me stupid. Whenever other kids
mentioned God, I would emphatically proclaim "THERE IS NO GOD"! Then
all these religious kids would gather around me and call me names like MORON or
IDIOT! They would often ask why I didn't believe in God. I would say “because I
believe Evolution just like they teach in this school." They could never
refute Evolution, which just confirmed for me that I had the truth and all
their religions were false.
Finally, in
1973, when I was 21, a coworker showed me that Evolution was mathematically
impossible. I instantly knew that we had a Creator but
I didn't know who He was or how to find Him. But I immediately began telling
everyone that Evolution is a lie. I still thought all religions were nonsense,
so I didn't research any of them. Instead, in my mind I kept questioning God.
Who and where is He? What is my purpose and what is expected of me? If there is a heaven and hell, am I doomed
to hell for my years as an atheist? I didn't realize it then, but I was praying
and seeking Him.
All
religions claim to be true but I thought there was no
way to prove any of them. Finally, thanks to another coworker who used a
Discipleship program like this one, I accepted Christ in 1980.
In 1983 I
began trying to raise funds for my own Creation/Evolution Museum to help
Atheists find God. This was to be an actual brick and mortar building since it
was long before the internet. I could not find any support for this so just continued speaking to individuals and some small
groups.
I thought all atheists would be glad to hear
that there really is a God after all. Instead, since 1995 as I exposed
Evolution lies in my websites and YouTube videos, people would still swear at
me and call me stupid! I thought these were the atheists still defending
Evolution.
Even as a
child I knew that if there was a Creator, then Evolution was a lie and if
Evolution was a fact, then there was no God. They are completely opposites. When I was an atheist, Christians called me stupid
for not believing God.
But recently
I discovered something amazing. For decades I've been frustrated that
Christians wouldn't give financially or help me in my mission to expose the
Evolution lie. In 2019, I decided to research recent polls to get an accurate
idea of how many atheists need to be reached. I was shocked to find that today,
95% of people in the world believe Evolution! I
thought I had been trying to reach a small minority, but instead it's 95% of
the world, including religious people who are believing the lie! Since 1973,
it's still the religious people swearing at me and calling me stupid, but now because
I don't believe Evolution anymore! Also, ALL of the major religions today say that Evolution is
compatible with their beliefs! Now I know that's why nobody would support my Creation/Evolution
mission – BECAUSE THEY BELIEVE EVOLUTION!
The
information provided in this Discipleship series is very similar to what led me
to Christ. It has the power of God’s Word through the scriptures
included, and also points to actual evidences
found around the world supporting them.
This Discipleship course can save anyone, including the harshest skeptics – Atheists like me. My friend who led me to Christ had also been an Atheist, but became a born-again Christian through a similar course, by examining the EVIDENCE, and studying the Bible.
Why is this particular Discipleship series necessary?
1. I searched for Discipleship materials that started with Evidence of God, and proof that the Bible is God’s Word, but could not find a single one. So I developed this course patterned after my own path of learning. Hundreds of people have found Christ through this method.
2. Most churches offer little if any Discipleship education and training.
3. Most books and online resources do not include evidence of the Bible’s Divine Inspiration.
4. Most books and online resources do not teach that Genesis and the Creation, Sin, and Flood accounts are all TRUE EVENTS.
5. Most existing resources are inadequate.
6. I was amazed to find that there is a wide range of ideas of what discipleship involves. I believe the main purpose is to find “The Way” from the beginning (Genesis). Just like reading any story, you must start from the beginning or you won’t understand it. Also, we should try to duplicate ourselves by teaching others the foundational truths with tools to grow.
7. Surveys prove that other Discipleship efforts have not been effective.
Christian belief in foundational topics:
· The Bible 50%
· Creation 5%
· The Global Flood 5%
· The Resurrection 76%
· Jesus is The ONLY WAY 29%
· Saved by Grace 40%
Most people don’t believe the Bible is God’s Word, Creation and the Flood
were actual events, that Jesus is the ONLY WAY to salvation, or we are saved by
Grace only!
This is mainly because Church leaders do not believe the Bible either!
Surveys show that LESS THAN 50% OF CHRISTIAN PASTORS ACTUALLY
BELIEVE THE BIBLE!
Also, a 2023 survey found that 70% of Christian youth who attended a secular college abandoned their faith within one year! They obviously lacked a firm Biblical foundation!
The Goals of
This Discipleship Course
· Lead people to Christ (Don’t assume they are already saved!)
· Teach basic tools needed to properly study the Bible
· Allow and encourage the student to use these tools to further understand Scripture
· Guide the student to the foundational truths of the Bible
· Help to grow a strong belief and trust in God’s Word
· Equip the student to be a Disciple and train others if they so desire
The primary method in these lessons will be to provide many scriptures, and let the students themselves discover their meaning. Minimal commentary will be given.
Romans
10:17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing
by the word of Christ.
Similar to
the way I was saved from Atheism into Christianity, this program logically
starts at THE BEGINNING and asks:
· Does God Exist? Or did all life
Evolve from nothing?
· If there is a Creator God, who is He?
· Is the Bible Gods’ Word and is it
trustworthy?