The last words of Jesus to his disciples was for them to take the gospel message out into the world and disciple the nations (Matt. 28:18-20; Mark 16:15-16; Acts 1:8). The gospel is the good news about Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection and how belief in those truths and submission to Jesus as Lord saves a person’s soul (Acts 2:21, 4:12). Evangelism, the spreading and sharing of the good news, is the responsibility of the people of God in every age. Each generation must do all that it can to make sure the gospel is taken as far and as wide as possible so that everybody gets a chance to hear the message of hope from heaven (Col. 1:5, 1:23). As we think about evangelism in our current context and generation here are a few things to keep in mind:
- If you know how you became a Christian, you know enough to tell someone else how to become one (1 Corinthians 15:3-4)
- You don’t have to be well spoken to speak up for Jesus (1 Corinthians 2:1-2)
- Not everyone is a teacher, you may be an inviter, welcomer, or someone engaged in the follow-up study after conversion (1 Corinthians 12:29)
- We can plant and water the gospel seed, but only God causes the growth (1 Corinthians 3:6-7)
- Living the message before others is just as important as relaying the message to others (2 Corinthians 3:2)
- Teachers must be gentle, compassionate, truthful, tactful, and winsome (2 Timothy 2:24-26)
- The power to save a soul is contained in the message not in the messenger Romans 1:16-17)
- Speaking graciously and living wisely before outsiders is a part of how the lost are led to Jesus (Colossians 4:5-6)
- Not everyone is interested in the gospel, if people reject us we should go on to other interested prospects (Matt. 10:14; 2 Thess. 3:1-2)
- Make sure to emphasize what the Bible says when teaching others and not opinions or church tradition (Acts 8:26-40)
- We should think about reaching out to people and in areas where Jesus is unknown rather than simply sharing the gospel where we’re comfortable (Romans 15:20)
- Remember we have good news to share, it’s worth being excited about (John 15:11;1 John 1:4)
People still need the gospel and I’m thankful to be a part of a congregation who shares it regularly. Let us remember our limits, our responsibility, and our great God who will be with us every step of the way (Matt. 28:20).
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