Evangelism

     It's very awkward to be around someone and want to communicate something, yet be at a complete loss of words for what to say.  For the Christian, an excellent example of this can be found in trying to share Christ.  Whether we are with friends, strangers, neighbors, or just about anyone else, we sometimes feel inadequate to do the job.  We want people to come to know Christ, but we aren't always sure what to say.  And sadly, some of us are hesitant to bring the Bible into a discussion, for whatever reason.  We may be afraid of offending them, or we don't know what verses we ought to say.  We worry so much about our delivery that sometimes we forget that the Holy Spirit works in us.  When we don't see instant results, we get mad at ourselves, or God, and wonder what is wrong.  Therefore, we are talking today about evangelism, and what is necessary for it.  You may have no problem sharing the gospel, and if that's the case, than I hope this helps to encourage you.  You may not know the gospel at all, and if that's the case, please keep reading, and thank you for your time.  If you do have trouble witnessing to others, than I hope this clarifies what we need to do it, and gives you motivation to go out and be the ambassadors of Christ.  Of course none of the things below are possible without the help of the Holy Spirit.  You must have Him to make these things work.  But we'll take Him as a given, since every true Christian has Him (by the way, a true Christian is defined as someone who has done what Romans 10:9 says: " That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.  Going to church does not make you a Christian any more than going to an arcade makes you a Pac-Man.)  The other given is practicing what you preach, which means acting your belief out in life.  Assuming these are in place, this will hopefully clarify the tools for evangelism.


     As Christians, we are called upon to preach what we know.  In the book of Romans, it says: "But how can they call on Him they have not believed in? And how can they believe without hearing about Him? And how can they hear without a preacher? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: How beautiful are the feet of those who announce the gospel of good things!"  (Romans 10:14-15 HCSB)  Paul was pretty clear in showing that someone must go out and preach the gospel to the unbelievers.  And if that's not clear enough, Jesus tells us after rising from the dead in Matthew 28 to "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen." (Matthew 28:19-20 NKJV)  We were told by Jesus, basically, to GO!  But what is necessary, besides the help of the Holy Spirit, to do this effectively?   The most basic things are prayer, the Bible, and trusting God for the rest.

     
     If you want to really get anything done, you have to pray.  On your own you can't accomplish anything (Sorry, but it's true) but when you talk to the sovereign God of the universe who is also your Father, big things start to happen.  Of course, by prayer I mean more than the Mother Goose rehearsal prayers:

"Thank You for this day O God,

That the sunshine is so bright,

That there is food on my table,

And everything's all right.

Amen!"

     This sort of prayer is easy to spit out on autopilot, and there's nothing sillier than giving God Mother Goose rhymes and expecting that to be enough.  When I say prayer, I mean the sort of prayer where you trust God to do what you ask, and come to Him knowing that He's listening.  When you stop talking to God like a robot and start praying like you're talking to a God who is your Savior and Father and who loves you more than anything else He created, that's the sort of prayer that can move mountains, make changes, and do something worthwhile.  (Just for the record, the rhyme prayer above is something I made up, so it's unlikely anyone is using those words exactly.  I just used it to make my point.)  The Bible shows us the power of prayer.  

Prayer saves lives:

King Hezekiah of Judah was going to die, God even told him so, but He prayed, and see what happened.  

2 Kings 20:4-7 shows us God's response.  "And it happened, before Isaiah had gone out into the middle court, that the word of the Lord came to him, saying, “Return and tell Hezekiah the leader of My people, ‘Thus says the Lord, the God of David your father: “I have heard your prayer, I have seen your tears; surely I will heal you. On the third day you shall go up to the house of the Lord. And I will add to your days fifteen years. I will deliver you and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria; and I will defend this city for My own sake, and for the sake of My servant David.”’”

Then Isaiah said, “Take a lump of figs.” So they took and laid it on the boil, and he recovered. (NKJV)  

Prayer overcomes physical obstacles:

Hannah was a woman who could not have children, but she asked God for a child, and would you believe she got more than one.

"So Hannah arose after they had finished eating and drinking in Shiloh. Now Eli the priest was sitting on the seat by the doorpost of the tabernacle of the Lord.  And she was in bitterness of soul, and prayed to the Lord and wept in anguish.  Then she made a vow and said, “O Lord of hosts, if You will indeed look on the affliction of Your maidservant and remember me, and not forget Your maidservant, but will give Your maidservant a male child, then I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life, and no razor shall come upon his head.” (1 Samuel 1:9-11 NKJV)

Later in the chapter:

"So it came to pass in the process of time that Hannah conceived and bore a son, and called his name Samuel, saying, “Because I have asked for him from the Lord.” (1 Samuel 1:20)  In case you're wondering, Hannah did keep her word about dedicating Samuel to God, and he grew up to be one of Israel's greatest prophets and leaders.

     That's not all prayer can do.  I like what James says about prayer in the book of James, chapter 5, verses 13-18.   He says:

"Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms. Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.  And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.  Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain; and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months. And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth produced its fruit." (NKJV, bold face added)

     Just for the record, if you know Jesus, you are righteous.  2 Corinthians 5:21 says, "For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. (NKJV)"  Prayer makes things happen, and though we don't always get the answer we expect, we can trust that no prayer goes unanswered.  If we ever dislike the answer God gives, we have to remember that He's smarter than we are, and sees the big picture.  Pray for those who don't know Jesus.  Pray, and believe that God will move their hearts.  Remember, if God can save you, there's no reason He can't do the same for others.

       The Bible is the next thing we need.  No matter how uncomfortable it sounds, you can't keep the Bible from your witnessing.  The Word of God just so happens to be as relevant and truthful today as it was 2000 years ago.  And for the record, God did not write the Bible just for Christians.  He wrote it for everyone.  We as Christians are supposed to know it's value better than anyone... so why are we so afraid of offending someone with it?  Let me tell you something.  If someone is offended by the Bible, that's their fault, not yours.  One more time: If someone is offended by the Bible, that's their fault, not yours.  This may sound insensitive, but it's not.  The gospel is contained in the Word of God, and if you try to get the gospel across without the Bible, you will fail.  God never told us to make His Word more palatable.  The Bible does not need to be watered down, revised, or made into a teen magazine in order to reach people.  The Bible is meant to be just as it is.  PERIOD.  Regardless of culture, the Bible is still relevant.  And here's why: "For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart." (Hebrews 4:12 NKJV)  Culture changes, but the Bible does not.  Instead of making the Bible fit the culture, let's make the culture fit the Bible.  Another struggle we often have is not knowing the "right verses".  But get this: God wrote a book which will not return to Him without having done something, so if you think you used the wrong scripture while ministering to someone, think again.  Unless you purposefully did twist the Bible, it will get something done.

As Isaiah 55:10-11 says:

“For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven
    and do not return there but water the earth,
making it bring forth and sprout,
     giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,

so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth;
    it shall not return to me empty,
but it shall accomplish that which I purpose,
    and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it."  (ESV)

     We never should think that the Bible is the wrong way to lead people to Christ.  That's bogus.  In fact, it's a lie from the enemy.  And we should never think that only certain scriptures will draw people to Christ.  The gospels contain the good news, but the rest of the Bible is there for a reason too.  We need to study the Bible, so that we can make the most of every opportunity to evangelize.  Study the Bible hard, study all of it, and study often.  If you don't know the Bible, you can't jolly well share it very effectively with others.  Read it with expectation and relish.  It's there to guide you along life, you know.

     Third, we need to trust God.  In today's world, when we don't see instant results, we can get very disappointed, and wonder what we did wrong.  But not everything happens in five minutes, and sometimes there's more happening in the heart than we imagine.  Remember, only God sees each man's heart, and you must trust Jesus that He's doing what you can't no matter how persuasive you are, that is, move an unbeliever's heart.  God is smarter and more perceptive that we are, and with the Holy Spirit working, only He knows what will happen.  Going back to Isaiah chapter 58:8-9, we can see that God has higher ways than ours.

  

“For My thoughts are not your thoughts,
Nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord.
“For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
So are My ways higher than your ways,
And My thoughts than your thoughts. (NKJV)

     God knows what He's doing, even when we don't.

      Evangelism is not easy, especially when people are not always easy to approach, but it is necessary, and if we stick at it, God will reward our efforts, whether now or in heaven.  The truth is that evangelism belongs to God, and if we faithfully keep at it, He'll do more with it than we ever imagined!

NKJV means New King James Version

ESV means English Standard Version

HCSB means Holman Christian Standard Bible