The Call Of God To Evangelize

by E. Sampou, Port Harcourt, Nigeria | Category: General | Dec 1991

We recognize the courage and tenacity of our spiritual forebears in their fight for, and stand in defence of, the truth of God which is taught in the New Testament.

Over the years faithful believers have defended and taught through their writings the sound teaching of our Lord Jesus Christ on the pages of this magazine. While we recognize the need for believers to be grounded in the Faith which was once for all delivered to the saints, emphasis should also be placed on our commitment to faithfully launch an offensive in the gospel.

Definition

In a day when many are making unscriptural claims and some Christian people are focusing on a gospel which they hope will bring prosperity and physical deliverance, it is proper to give the New Testament definition of evangelism. Evangelism is the telling forth of the good news of God through Christ to those who do not know Him as Saviour. The Christian then becomes the mouthpiece of God's message of mercy to sinners. Those who tell good tidings do not major on bad news, neither is it defined in terms of good results. This article explains evangelism and also encourages the practical expression of it: In 1 Corinthians 15:34, Paul the apostle expressed the gospel which he proclaimed in this way: "Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures

He was buried ... He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures" (NIV). As far as Paul was concerned, the gospel was not politics, a philosophy, or mere religion, but the facts of the death and resurrection of

Christ.

Mandate

Our initial responsibility towards our fellow men and women is to tell them of God's love for them through Jesus Christ: This is in obedience to the mandate of Matthew 28:19-20: "Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you" (NIV). The responsibility to declare this good news to hearers has been committed to us, not to the angels. All who tell must seek grace to speak this message simply, clearly and authoritatively from the Scriptures. If you and I do not spread the gospel the task will not get done. Men and women are lost except they repent and believe the gospel. It was Paul who said "Woe is unto me, if I preach not the gospel ... I have a stewardship intrusted to me" (1 Cor. 9:16-17). God calls us to declare His grace, to direct men and women to the Cross, to point out the way of peace with God, to call them to repentance towards God and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.

The Content of the Message

The Lord Jesus Christ is the central figure of the message. He is the Son of God incarnate who died on the Cross for our sins. He is risen and is now the perfect Saviour. His death for sinners remains the only way to God. Christ is the ground in which forgiveness is given. There must be conviction before conversion, an awareness of a wrong relationship with God, a sense of guilt for sin. Sin in mankind must be faced in spite of the fact that many people are living apparently decent lives. The gospel is a summons to repentance and faith. "God commands all people everywhere to repent". Repentance and faith must be expressed for a person to be born again. Repentance is not mere regret, a remorse or sorrow for the past: it is a change of mind and heart. Faith is not mere optimistic feeling, but is essentially the casting and resting of

ourselves upon God and having confidence in the work of Christ, and His promises. Submission to the will of Christ as Lord is inherent in the message.

The Motivation

Effective evangelism will flow from hearts constrained by love to the Lord and compassion for men and women who are lost: We do not evangelize because we want an increase in the size of our local churches, although if we evangelize, the assemblies will grow numerically. We must be motivated by love to the Lord and to our fellow men and women. We must glorify our Saviour by obeying His command to tell others. This love is expressed to others as we desire to see them saved. Apart from faith in Christ the whole world is lost: One day in the future God will judge the world. Some of the elect are yet unreached. Christ's great sacrifice should serve as our inspiration. These are some facts that should motivate the Christian into action.

Method

A simple way of spreading the good news is by telling the story of your own conversion: what life was like before you received Christ; how you came to know Him as your Saviour, and what life has been like since you received Him. It may be a good suggestion not to have too big ideas, but to adapt our methods to the people that we are trying to reach, noting that in spite of people's cultural background the truth of the gospel does not change.

Conclusion

We cannot keep this message to ourselves. The power to proclaim it has been given to us. "For God gave us not a spirit of fearfulness; but of power and love and discipline". This is the greatest service to our fellow men. God will use us if we are willing to be used. His good Spirit will fill us and empower us for this task. God will help us to see the urgency of this task and help us not to be just spectators, commentators or agitators. God is expecting to see Christians who have a mind to work, and that work is evangelism.

E. Sampou, Port Harcourt, Nigeria | Dec 1991
General