How to Bring Men to Christ

It is R. A. Torrey's practical handbook of personal soul-winning — how an ordinary Christian can lead another person to faith in Christ. As its title page puts it, 'There is medicine in the Bible for every sin-sick soul, but every soul does not need the same medicine,' so Torrey arranges the Scriptures according to the different classes of people one meets, giving practical direction for dealing with each.

Reuben Archer Torrey was an American evangelist, pastor, and educator around the turn of the twentieth century, associated with D. L. Moody's work and known for clear, practical Bible teaching. Deeply committed to personal evangelism, he wrote this handbook to equip ordinary believers to do the work of leading others to Christ.

Around the different kinds of people a soul-winner encounters — the anxious, the careless, the self-satisfied, those with difficulties or excuses, the backslidden, and so on. For each Torrey supplies the Scriptures and approaches best suited to that person's condition, since, as he says, not every soul needs the same 'medicine.' It is arranged as a practical manual to be used, class by class.

Torrey compares the soul-winner to a physician who must diagnose before prescribing: the Bible holds a remedy for every sin-sick soul, but different souls need different remedies. So he teaches the Christian to discern where a person actually stands and to bring the fitting Scripture to bear, rather than applying the same words to everyone regardless of their real condition.

No — that is much of its point. Torrey wrote for ordinary Christians, not professional evangelists, believing every believer can and should learn to lead others to Christ. The book is deliberately practical and plain, equipping the untrained believer with the Scriptures and wisdom to deal helpfully with the different people they meet.

Because he believed the word of God, applied to a person's real condition, is the power that brings conviction and faith. Rather than trusting to argument or persuasion, Torrey directs the soul-winner to the fitting passages of Scripture, confident that God works through his own word to reach the heart — so the handbook is essentially a guide to using the Bible in personal evangelism.

Any Christian who wants to be able to lead others to Christ but feels unsure how, and anyone engaged in personal evangelism or discipleship. It has served generations as a practical training manual, and its method of matching Scripture to a person's condition remains useful for anyone seeking to point others to the Saviour.

At the beginning for Torrey's general counsel, and then by using the sections on particular classes of people as need arises — the book is a handbook meant to be consulted as much as read straight through. Many keep it at hand and turn to the relevant section when dealing with a specific person, letting Torrey guide them to the fitting Scriptures.