A Biblical Understanding of Evangelism 

What is evangelism?  How should we evangelize?  What is our responsibility in the evangelistic endeavor?  These are important questions that deserve time and attention.  As we consider the next Mark of a Healthy Church, we will consider a biblical understanding of evangelism.  Let’s start out with an illustration from the opening chapter of Will Metzger’s outstanding book on evangelism, entitled: Tell the Truth (pp.23-24):

 “I waited expectantly as the speaker began his comments.  His topic was evangelism.  I was taken aback when he started using the phrase ‘soul winning’ to describe his evangelistic practice.  ‘Okay,’ I thought to myself, ‘so this impersonal phrase grates you.  Let’s see if the rest of the talk gets any better.’  It didn’t.  What followed was a string of success stories about people he had let to Christ.  He reinforced his point citing famous stars and athletes as victorious evangelists.  Then came an emphasis on techniques and manipulation of people reminiscent of cults I had studied.

 “His crowning Illustration of how to ‘get the gospel out to every person’ was a detailed set of instructions on how to roll up a gospel tract in such a way that it could be accurately dropped from the window of a moving car.  The object was for it to drift to the feet of a hitchhiker—as you passed him by!  He justified this technique on the basis of the startling story of a young man who was converted by this sort of ‘gospel bomb.’  The speaker’s conclusion, ‘It works,’ sounded to me like the unbiblical idea ‘the end justifies the means.’  As I left the church that night I wondered, Instead of sending His Son, why didn’t God just send a tract?”

 What is Evangelism?

Is it sharing our personal testimony?  Is it inviting someone to church?  Is it wearing a shirt that says “Got Jesus”?  Is it debating a co-worker on Creation v. Evolution?  Is it simply living our lives before others?  Is it trying to close the deal and get someone to make a profession and pray to receive Christ?  Let’s look at a few Scriptures that instruct us in some of the practical methods of evangelism. 

 First, evangelism does not require tremendous skill in speaking, nor persuasiveness.  Evangelism involves simply preaching the Gospel, which is the means by which God exercises His power through the Holy Spirit to save men.  Consider Paul’s self-description in the following passages:

 17 For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel, and not with words of eloquent wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power. 18 For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. (1 Cor 1:17-18)

 And I, when I came to you, brothers, did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom. 2 For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. 3 And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling, 4 and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, 5 that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God. (1 Cor 2:1-5)

 Our great attention to rhetorical style and techniques to move people can actually hinder the work of evangelism, rather than prosper it.  Ultimately, it will not be our “plausible words of wisdom” but “the power of God” through the preaching of the Gospel that will convert a soul.  If it is God who converts souls, through the Gospel message, then it is imperative that we articulate faithfully and clearly the Gospel message.  It will not be our ability to manipulate or tug at the emotions of people that will save a soul, but God through the Gospel.

 Second, we are all called in evangelism and in our lives to be “ambassadors for Christ” representing the Savior to this World, understanding that He has given to us “the ministry of reconciliation”. 

 18 All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; 19 that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. 20 Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.  (2 Cor 5:18-20)

 This is important, because we never have the right in our lives to talk based upon our own agenda.  Every moment of this life we operate as ambassadors for Christ.  An ambassador does not speak for himself, but for his sovereign.  Our sovereign is Christ and it is His message and His mission that we are on, always.  Evangelism is not simply what takes place on a formal outreach or missions trip.  We are always on call as ambassadors and should prayerfully looking for opportunities to share the Gospel message.

 Consider a couple of definitions of evangelism:

 “To evangelize is to spread the good news that Jesus Christ died for our sins and was raised from the dead according to the Scriptures, and that as the reigning Lord he now offers the forgiveness of sins and the liberating gift of the Spirit to all who repent and believe.”  Lausanne Covenant, 1974

 “evangelism is just preaching the gospel”  J.I. Packer, Sovereignty of God in Salvation

 These are good expressions of the heart of evangelism.  It is not that complicated, but it is warfare.  The heart of evangelism is more than an activity, it is about the message itself.  We were reborn as followers of Christ for the purpose of proclaiming this message.  Consider the following passages:

 This is how one should regard us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God.  (1 Cor 4:1)

 but just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, so we speak, not to please man, but to please God who tests our hearts. (1 Thess 2:4)

 Notice that Christians are “stewards of the mysteries of God” “entrusted with the gospel”.  We carry a vital, life transforming message.  Evangelism is the activity of being faithful stewards of the message.  Which means our life really is about a message…a message of truth and reality…but a message that must be proclaimed.

 What is the Goal of Evangelism?  The goal of evangelism is simply faithfulness.  As humans, we are never under any pressure to try and get results.  Denominational goals and church growth expert statistics should never sway us.  We should never develop our evangelistic strategy aiming for particular results.  When man focuses on results, he has left the realm of his jurisdiction.  In fact, he has placed himself in the realm that God alone should occupy.  The results belong to God.

 What then is Apollos? What is Paul?  Servants through whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each. 6 I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. 7 So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. (1 Cor 3:5-7)

 So, man is responsible for evangelism, but God is responsible for the results.  What are the results of evangelism that only God can affect?  Conversion, salvation, new birth, a changed life!  These are all in the realm only of God’s sovereign gracious power.  These results will be seen in a changed life.  “The results of evangelism include obedience to Christ, incorporation into his church and responsible service in the world.” (John 10:4; 1 John 3:14-15; Acts 26:18-23) Lausanne Covenant, 1974

 Therefore, our responsibility is to faithfully and carefully proclaim the content of the Gospel.  That does not mean we do not aim for conversion (James 5:19ff; Acts 26:17ff).  That does not mean that we do not plead for a response.  It is more than just informing, it is inviting!  Our Lord called His disciples and said, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men (Matt 4:19).”  That reminds me of a bumper sticker: “A bad day of fishing is better than my best day at work.”  When we go fishing, we are not primarily aiming at getting the bait in the water.  But if we do not get the bait in the water, the fish will not bite the hook.  Our desire is to see souls saved.  And we are urged to entreat people to come to Christ, “Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God (1 Cor 5:20).”  But at the end of the day, our goal is disciples not decisions (Matt 28:18-20).  Our prayer is for conversion, not merely confession. 

 Who should evangelize?  It is clear that all of us are called to the ministry of evangelism.  Again it is the heart of our kingdom mission in this life.  All believers should evangelize, though all believers are not gifted evangelists (Matt 28:18-20; Acts 8:1-4; 11:19-21; 1 Pet 3:15).

 How should we Evangelize?  We are always looking for methods.  We are always looking for something easy and formulaic to help us.  Methods are not inherently bad.  In fact, they can be very helpful and strengthen our Gospel presentations.  But remember, we will be strong Gospel communicators to the degree that we know and love this Gospel.  Above all, our priorities in evangelism require the following:

 Be Clear with the Gospel

• For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. (Rom 1:16)
• It is the Gospel that is powerful, not our evangelistic method.
• “The test of our evangelistic method is a simple question: does it make justification clear?  The vital question is for people to know whether they are acquitted by God.” Metzger
• Have a GOOD Gospel Outline memorized
  • God—Man—Christ—Response
  • The Two Ways To Live tract
  • Come Home—in Will Metzger’s book, Tell the Truth (Appendix B)
• Use the Bible!

 Be Clear on the Response to the Gospel

• “it is even more dangerous for a man whose conscience is roused to make a misconceived response to the gospel, and take up with a defective religious practice, than for him to make no response at all.  If you turn a publican into a Pharisee, you make his condition worse, not better.” J.I. Packer, Evangelism & The Sovereignty of God
• Define faith.  Define Repentance.  Our culture does not know what it means to rely on something in faith.  They do not know what it means to repent.  They have it all confused, and so we must help explain these terms lest people think that their mental assent is enough to save them.  The Two Ways to Live tract does an excellent job expressing the idea of faith and repentance in more understandable terms.

 Embrace God’s Sovereignty and Human Responsibility

• “What is true is that all Christians believe in divine sovereignty, but some are not aware that they do, and mistakenly imagine and insist that they reject it…The irony of the situation, however, is that when we ask how the two sides pray, it becomes apparent that those who profess to deny God’s sovereignty really believe in it just as strongly as those who affirm it.  How, then, do you pray?  DO you ask God for your daily bread?  Do you thank God for your conversion?  Do you pray for the conversion of others?  If the answer is ‘no’, I can only say that I do not think you are yet born again.  But if the answer is ‘yes’—well, that proves that, whatever side you may have taken in debates on this question in the past, in your heart you believe in the sovereignty of God no less firmly than anyone else.  On our feet we may have arguments about it, but on our knees we are all agreed.” (J.I. Packer, Evangelism & The Sovereignty of God, pp.16-17)
• These truths are side by side in a number of places in Scripture: John 1:12-13; 6:37-40; 2 Thess 2:13-15; Eph 2:8-10.  But, why are these both necessary to embrace in the evangelistic endeavor?
  • Our firm grasp of human responsibility (Jn 5:40; 3:19), will make his guilt all the more real in our minds.  It emphasizes the necessity of the Gospel and the urgency.
  • The sovereignty of God in salvation is the only hope we have in evangelism because of

1. Man’s inability in sin (1 Cor 2:14; Rom 8:7ff; Eph 2:1; Rom 3:10-12).
2. Man’s powerlessness over Satan (Eph 2:2; 6:12; 2 Cor 4:4).

• The sovereign power of God alone is able to break the shackles of man’s sin and Satan’s power (Col 1:13; Eph 2:1-5; Titus 3:3-6; Heb 2:14).
• There is always a potential for error when any doctrine is taken farther than Scripture allows.  There is a temptation for those who love God’s sovereignty to lose sight of the Church’s responsibility.  A well known example of this is seen in the response to William Carey’s desire to found a missionary society.  The chairman of the ministers’ fraternal said to Carey: “Sit down, young man.  When God is pleased to convert the heathen, He will do it without your aid, or mine!”  This hyper-calvinistic response misses the biblical reality that God in His sovereignty has called upon man to be His agents in the evangelistic endeavor.  Thankfully, William Carey, a Calvinist himself, was not swayed by the chairman’s response and went on to be considered the father of modern missions.
• “Evangelism is man’s work, but the giving of faith is God’s”, says Packer.  This ought to compel us to be bold, to be patient, and to be prayerful.

 Be Humble

• We are simply beggars telling other beggars where to find some bread!
• We need to invest in people, not simply throw truth at them (1 Cor 9:19ff).
  • This means coming along side and trying to understand a person, not abandoning principles to try to manipulate a decision.
  • But we ought to be aware that there are a number of cultural prejudices that we may unwittingly have that put stumbling blocks in a person’s path.

 So why should we Evangelize?  Let it, be I trust, for the right, biblical reasons: love for God and His glory, love for people and their souls, and joy in obedience to His call.

In the Appendix to his book, Thoughts on Religious Experience, Archibald Alexander includes a section entitled “Counsels to Christian Mothers”.  I encourage all to read this wonderful essay.  Though I would love to reproduce the entire chapter for you here, I am going to quote some choice excerpts from this elegant insightful piece.

“Hannah waited with God for her Samuel; and no doubt before the child was born, she consecreated him to God, from whom she received him; and when she embraced him in her arms, and nursed him at her breast, she continually darted up petitions for God’s blessing upon his own precious gift.  And O! how richly was she reward.  I have read or heard that someone asked an uncommonly devout woman, how it happened that all her children became pious at an age so early.  The good woman modestly disclaimed all merit or agency in the affair; but said she, ‘as many children as I have nursed, I never took one of them to my breast, to afford it the necessary nourishment, but at the same time I lifted up my heart in prayer to God for his blessing on the dear little infant.’  Would not this be a good rule for mothers universally to observe?  Who can tell what the effect would be on the next generation?  The question is often asked, ‘By whom shall Jacob arise?’  One answers one thing, and one another; but if I may be permitted to give a partial answer, though I believe a true one, I would say, by pious mothers.  Yes, as a woman had the unspeakable blessing of being the mother of our Lord and Saviour; so woman, collectively, shall be the mother of the church.  Ten thousand Loises and Eunices will, at the same time, be training their little Timothys on the knee, and with sweet and persuasive speech, instilling into their opening minds, the words of those ‘Holy Scriptures, which are able to make them wise unto salvation, through faith which is in Christ Jesus.’  A genuine and thorough reformation must commence in the family, which is the foundation of all social institutions, civil and religious.  Here is the root, whence springs the whole tree with all its spreading and towering branches.”

“It is exceedingly important in the education and discipline of children, not to confound their notions of right and wrong by treating little matters with the same seriousness and severity as great.  Our instructions and conduct towards children, should be as to present to their minds, virtues and vices, according to a just graduation.  If we pursue a peccadillo with as much severity as a great crime, the danger is, that a great crime will be committed with as little sense of its evil as a fault of the minor class.  It is also dangerous to proclaim a crusade against some one vice, and magnify its evil beyond comparison, while other vices equally or more malignant, pass unnoticed.  So one virtue or duty may be held up so continually, and placed in such bold relief, that other virtues, equally important and valuable, are left concealed in the background.  As in the Christian character, symmetry or a due proportion of every grace, is essential to perfection; so in teaching morality, a strict regard should be had to the magnitude and proportion of every part of the system.  Let all vice be treated as vice; but let not all vices be treated as equal; so let every virtue occupy its proper place, and fill its due space.”

“It is a good rule, even in the government of children, not to legislate too much.  Vex them not with trivial and unnecessary rules.  Train them to govern themselves as much as possible.  That child who is obedient only when the eye of the parent is on it, has not been properly managed.  Allow children liberty in such things as are innocent, and to which they are inclined by the instinct of nature.  It is a poor, short-sighted plan to keep children moping all day over their books; they learn far more that is valuable while spirting in the fields, than we can teach them by such a process in the house.  It is wonderful how much they learn without effort, both of words and things.”

We may even exceed the mark by inculcating religion upon their tender minds to incessantly.  Mothers should watch the favourable moment for instilling religious instruction.  One sentence at the favourable moment is better than a long lecture at an unseasonable time.  Holiness cannot be rendered pleasing to the natural heart, but religious instruction may be made interesting.  Indirect methods of reaching the conscience are often better than the more direct.  Occasional remarks not seeming to be intended for them, are often noticed and remembered; especially conversation with respectable strangers in their presence, has a wonderful effect.”

“I would also caution mothers against the foolish ambition of trying to make prodigies of their children; and against the vanity of so exaggerating their smart speeches and exploits as to make them appear to be prodigies…Rest assured that other people do not take as much interest in the subject as you do…Children may be so trained as to perform wonders, but what good can come of it?  Do we not see pigs trianed in the same way?  Exercise a salutary discipline towards your children, even with the rod, when it is necessary; but let this species of discipline be the last resort, and used rather seldom.”

“O mothers! plead for your dear offspring at the throne of grace, travail in birth for them, a second time.  God is gracious.  God will regard the fervent, importunate cry of Christian mothers.  Bespeak also the prayers of friends.  Get them to unite with you in social prayer.”