Evangelism

Evangelism
RELATED TOPICS	Matthew 28:19
SERMONS, ESSAYS AND OPINIONS
CONTENTS

Evangelism is the process of spreading the good news about Jesus. All Christians are called to do this (see for example Matthew 28:19).

Etymology

The word is derived from the Koine Greek word evangelion, which means "good news".

Mandate

(Mat 28:19-20) "Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: {20} Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen."

(Mark 16:15-16) "And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. {16} He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned."

(Luke 24:46-48) "And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day: {47} And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. {48} And ye are witnesses of these things."

(John 20:21) "Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you."

(Acts 1:8) "But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth."

(2 Cor 4:13) "We having the same spirit of faith, according as it is written, I believed, and therefore have I spoken; we also believe, and therefore speak;"

Message

(1 Cor 15:3-4) "For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; {4} And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:"

(Acts 10:38-43) "How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him. {39} And we are witnesses of all things which he did both in the land of the Jews, and in Jerusalem; whom they slew and hanged on a tree: {40} Him God raised up the third day, and showed him openly; {41} Not to all the people, but unto witnesses chosen before of God, even to us, who did eat and drink with him after he rose from the dead. {42} And he commanded us to preach unto the people, and to testify that it is he which was ordained of God to be the Judge of quick and dead. {43} To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins."

(Acts 20:21; 26:20b) "Testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ." "that they should repent and turn to God, and do works meet for repentance."

(Acts 18:28) "For he mightily convinced the Jews, and that publicly, showing by the scriptures that Jesus was Christ."

(Acts 13:38-39) "Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins: {39} And by him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses."

(Acts 26:17-18) "Delivering thee from the people, and from the Gentiles, unto whom now I send thee, {18} To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me."

(Acts 14:15) "And saying, Sirs, why do ye these things? We also are men of like passions with you, and preach unto you that ye should turn from these vanities unto the living God, which made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and all things that are therein:"

(Acts 17:22) "Then Paul stood in the midst of Mars' hill, and said, Ye men of Athens, I perceive that in all things ye are too superstitious."

(Acts 17:22-31) "Then Paul stood in the midst of Mars' hill, and said, Ye men of Athens, I perceive that in all things ye are too superstitious. {23} For as I passed by, and beheld your devotions, I found an altar with this inscription, TO THE UNKNOWN GOD. Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship, him declare I unto you. {24} God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands; {25} Neither is worshipped with men's hands, as though he needed any thing, seeing he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things; {26} And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation; {27} That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us: {28} For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring. {29} Forasmuch then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and man's device. {30} And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent: {31} Because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead."

Means and Methods

The record of evangelism by the Lord as well as that of the church in the Book of Acts evidences that the power of the Holy Spirit is the first prerequisite for believers, and a holy life. In addition, various mean methods were used, from personal witnessing, to house to house evangelism, to street preaching, and more rarely, "friendship evangelism." Tract evangelism is not explicitly manifest, but the principal is, that of bring souls into contact with the word of God, with that being used to elicit inquiry, leading to personal witnessing. (cf. Acts 8:26-39) All these methods proved to be fruitful, but the viability of a method is not necessarily determined by its immediate fruit, as the type of "ground" has much to do with such, and a method that sees little immediate fruit may be more effective in preaching the gospel to every soul in hardened areas, than a method that focuses on more fertile ground.

(Acts 10:38) "How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him."

(Acts 1:8) "But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth."

(2 Cor 6:6-7) "By pureness, by knowledge, by longsuffering, by kindness, by the Holy Ghost, by love unfeigned, {7} By the word of truth, by the power of God, by the armour of righteousness on the right hand and on the left,"

(2 Cor 10:3-4) "For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: {4} (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;)"

(Mat 9:35) "And Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people."

(Mark 6:7-12) "And he called unto him the twelve, and began to send them forth by two and two; and gave them power over unclean spirits; {8} And commanded them that they should take nothing for their journey, save a staff only; no scrip, no bread, no money in their purse: {9} But be shod with sandals; and not put on two coats. {10} And he said unto them, In what place soever ye enter into an house, there abide till ye depart from that place. {11} And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear you, when ye depart thence, shake off the dust under your feet for a testimony against them. Verily I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrha in the day of judgment, than for that city. {12} And they went out, and preached that men should repent."

(John 7:37-38) "In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. {38} He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water."

(Acts 9:20) "And straightway he preached Christ in the synagogues, that he is the Son of God."

(Acts 8:4) "Therefore they that were scattered abroad went every where preaching the word."

(Acts 17:2) "And Paul, as his manner was, went in unto them, and three sabbath days reasoned with them out of the scriptures,"

(Acts 28:23) "And when they had appointed him a day, there came many to him into his lodging; to whom he expounded and testified the kingdom of God, persuading them concerning Jesus, both out of the law of Moses, and out of the prophets, from morning till evening."

(Acts 17:16-17) "Now while Paul waited for them at Athens, his spirit was stirred in him, when he saw the city wholly given to idolatry. {17} Therefore disputed he in the synagogue with the Jews, and with the devout persons, and in the market daily with them that met with him."

(Acts 8:25) "And they, when they had testified and preached the word of the Lord, returned to Jerusalem, and preached the gospel in many villages of the Samaritans."

(Acts 8:27-31,35) "And he arose and went: and, behold, a man of Ethiopia, an eunuch of great authority under Candace queen of the Ethiopians, who had the charge of all her treasure, and had come to Jerusalem for to worship, {28} Was returning, and sitting in his chariot read Esaias the prophet. {29} Then the Spirit said unto Philip, Go near, and join thyself to this chariot. {30} And Philip ran thither to him, and heard him read the prophet Esaias, and said, Understandest thou what thou readest? {31} And he said, How can I, except some man should guide me? And he desired Philip that he would come up and sit with him." "Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus."

(Rom 15:18-19) "For I will not dare to speak of any of those things which Christ hath not wrought by me, to make the Gentiles obedient, by word and deed, {19} Through mighty signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God; so that from Jerusalem, and round about unto Illyricum, I have fully preached the gospel of Christ."

Quotes

• "If religious books are not widely circulated among the masses in this country. I do not know what is going to become of us as a nation. If truth be not diffused, error will be; if God and His Word are not known and received, the devil and his works will gain the ascendancy; if the evangelical volume does not reach every hamlet, the pages of a corrupt and licentious literature will; if the power of the Gospel is not felt throughout the length and breadth of the land, anarchy will reign without mitigation or end." — Daniel Webster

• “Awakenings resulted from revivals as the Church moved powerfully into the world in evangelism, social transformation, and mission…The two cannot be separated.” - Paul E. Pierson, Evangelical Dictionary of World missions

• "When I get to China, I will have no claim on any one for anything. My claim will be alone in God and I must learn before I leave England to move men through God by prayer alone" — J. Hudson Taylor

• “The only hope of missions lay in a revival of religion, wide-spread and deep-reaching.” - Arthur T. Pierson, The Crisis of Missions (1886)

• "And people who do not know the Lord ask why in the world we waste our lives as missionaries. They forget that they too are expending their lives…and when the bubble has burst they will have nothing of eternal significance to show for the years they have wasted." — Nate Saint

• "Had I cared for the comments of people, I should never have been a missionary." — C.T. Studd

• "Expect great things from God. Attempt great thing for God." — William Carey

• "God's part is to put forth power; our part is to put forth faith." — Andrew A. Bonar

• "I wasn't God's first choice for what I've done for China…I don't know who it was…It must have been a man…a well-educated man. I don't know what happened. Perhaps he died. Perhaps he wasn't willing…and God looked down…and saw Gladys Aylward…And God said - "Well, she's willing." — Gladys Aylward

• "If Jesus Christ be God and died for me, then no sacrifice can be too great for me to make for Him." — C.T. Studd

• "He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose." — Jim Elliot

• "Not called!" did you say? "Not heard the call," I think you should say. Put your ear down to the Bible, and hear him bid you go and pull sinners out of the fire of sin. Put your ear down to the burdened, agonized heart of humanity, and listen to its pitiful wail for help. Go stand by the gates of hell, and hear the damned entreat you to go to their father's house and bid their brothers and sisters, and servants and masters not to come there. And then look Christ in the face, whose mercy you have professed to obey, and tell him whether you will join heart and soul and body and circumstances in the march to publish his mercy to the world. — William Booth, founder of the Salvation Army

• "If sinners be damned, at least let them leap to Hell over our bodies. If they will perish, let them perish with our arms about their knees. Let no one GO there UNWARNED and UNPRAYED for." — Charles Spurgeon

• "Some wish to live within the sound of a chapel bell, I want to run a rescue shop within a yard of Hell." — C.T. Studd

• "I tell you, brethren, if mercies and if judgments do not convert you, God has no other arrows in His quiver." — Robert Murray M'Cheyne

• "Could a mariner sit idle if he heard the drowning cry? Could a doctor sit in comfort and just let his patients die? Could a fireman sit idle, let men burn and give no hand? Can you sit at ease in Zion with the world around you damned? — Leonard Ravenhill

• "A tiny group of believers who have the gospel keep mumbling it over and over to themselves. Meanwhile, millions who have never heard it once fall into the flames of eternal hell without ever hearing the salvation story." — K.P. Yohannan

• "Jehovah Witnesses don't believe in hell and neither do most Christians" — Leonard Ravenhill

• "The present unbelief in the literal Biblical Hell is increasingly manifest by a Christianity that acts like it does not really believe - or care - that souls are actually going there, and the lack of esteem for the holiness of God is manifest in apathy toward turning many to righteousness." — Anon

• "The hearers of the Word tend to look for it's interpretation by how the preachers of it translate it into their own lives." — Anon

• (1 Th 1:6-8) "And ye became followers of us, and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction, with joy of the Holy Ghost: {7} So that ye were ensamples to all that believe in Macedonia and Achaia. For from you sounded out the word of the Lord not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place your faith to God-ward is spread abroad; so that we need not to speak any thing."

• (Acts 8:4) "Therefore they that were scattered abroad went every where preaching the word."

Links

• Web Evangelism
• Evangelism links
• His-Net Evangelism links
• 9 minute video; "Interviews with Boston street evangelists"

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