Bibliographical Entry
Fay, William. Share Jesus Without Fear. Nashville: B&H Publishing Group, 1999.
Author Information
William (Bill) Fay provides his own background story in Appendix 5 to his book. He recounts his testimony of how he came to be a Christian out of a life of money, greed, gambling, and selfishness.
He was raised into a wealthy family and sought to be number one in everything, regardless of what it cost him or did to those around him. Fay married a girl that he got pregnant while he was 16, then went off to college where he learned how to be a professional gambler and cheat at cards. After graduating, he divorced his wife and sought out his career, and another woman to marry.
He was hired as a salesman at a company where he quickly advanced through the ranks up to being a regional manager. Fay boasts of paying for his country club membership “by cheating those foolish enough to play gin rummy with me”.[1] Due to his reputation as a gambler, Fay attracted the attention of Las Vegas, where he eventually connected with a man related to the mafia. Living a double life, he continued to work in the business world, steadily scaling the corporate ladder, all while wholesaling mafia money across the United States.
After divorcing is second wife and marrying another woman on a whim, Fay moved to Denver to become the CEO of large multinational corporation. His third wife left him, and as he was dating the woman who would become his fourth wife, Fay decided to build Fantasy Island, a house of prostitution in Lakewood, Colorado. Soon after, the police raided the house and put a warrant out for Fay. The corporation that he worked for fired him, as they did not want their CEO to be on national news every night being called a pimp.
Years later, after involving himself again in illegal dealings, Fay attended an Easter Service and was struck by the message given. It was still at least year before Fay accepted Christ because of the witness of a Jewish Christian friend that he played racquetball with.
After accepting Christ, Fay he began leading others to Christ and eventually graduated from the Denver Seminary. He currently serves as a chaplain with the Federal Drug Enforcement Agency and hosts a syndicated radio program.
Content Summary
Share Jesus Without Fear starts out by establishing that a person sharing Christ cannot fail. This is the theme of the entire book. Anyone who simply shares their faith with others has succeeded in being obedient to the call placed on the Christian’s life. William Fay uses the rest of the book to explain various ways to interact with people when sharing, but the simple fact that the Christian is talking with others about their faith is enough. The results of that sharing are not dependent on the individual, but on God.
In the next two chapters, Fay discusses how Christians cannot be silent about their faith and ways to overcome the fear that many experience when considering sharing. He uses the example of an island where people are saved from drowning, yet many of the people who are rescued out of the water simply sit on the shore, not attempting to help those who are still drowning. He compares this to Christians who have been saved, yet don’t share what has changed their lives with those around them, effectively leaving them to die without Christ. The author then turns to excuses that Christians make to not share their faith, reasons why they don’t want to talk about Jesus with those around them. He lists six reasons (i.e., I don’t know how, I’m afraid of being rejected, etc.) and provides refutations to each of them.
The real meat of the book begins in chapter 4 when the author discusses his five “share Jesus questions”, which he uses as a funnel to lead into a discussion about Christ. This gives way a discussion of the power of Scripture, and seven verses specifically chosen for the non-Christian to read and respond to, requiring little action on the part of the person sharing other than simply to lead the conversation down a certain path.
The largest section of the book deals with replies to common objections that people may have about the Christian faith. Fay lists 36 different objections and deals with each one individually. Following that is a chapter on how to develop and keep non-Christian friends, what Fay calls lifestyle evangelism (pg. 126). The importance of prayer is discussed, including praying before sharing, and keeping a list of all of those who the Christian is praying for.
The final chapter is an encouragement to just share, tying back in to the beginning of the first chapter. Simply by sharing their faith with non-believers, Christians are following the call that God has given to all, the call to go and make disciples of all men.
Evaluation
William Fay does a great job of presenting a way to share the Gospel with others that is easily approachable and simple to learn. It is not intimidating to read and really does encourage one to share their faith more with others.
The different lists that Fay provides through the book provide a very thorough overview of common things that can come up when sharing your faith. He makes the statement that God wants your ‘want to’, not your ability (pg. 90), which is a great truth. So many people get hung up that they don’t know enough or don’t have the ability to share, when God really wants Christians to simply share.
One criticism of this method is that it could lead itself to being more of a script than an organic, free-flowing way to share. The Christian may get thrown off-script when a non-believer asks a question or makes a statement that is not covered in the book. However, this complaint can be met through more experience. Education is one thing, but one will not learn how to be more effective in sharing without actually gaining experience doing it.
Another criticism which can be leveled at the book is that it sometimes can seem like an advertisement for his other Share Jesus Without Fear products. There are several mentions of the New Testament that is branded with Fay’s method. This sometimes can be seen as commercialism of the Gospel and can be off-putting.
Overall, Share Jesus Without Fear is a well-reasoned, easily read book which should be helpful to those who are new at sharing their faith, or even new Christians who want to share but need a place to start.
[1] William Fay. Share Jesus Without Fear. (Nashville: B&H Publishing Group, 1999). 186.
Add me to your reader!