Saturday Study
The Spiritual Discipline of Evangelism (3-4-17)
What is Evangelism?
2 Corinthians 4:1–2
1Therefore, since through God’s mercy we have this ministry, we do not lose heart. 2Rather, we have renounced secret and shameful ways; we do not use deception, nor do we distort the word of God. On the contrary, by setting forth the truth plainly we commend ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God.
The Ministry Paul speaks of here is: The proclamation & testimony of the Gospel.
The word gospel comes from the Greek term “ev-angelion.”
An ”ev-ange”’ was news of a great historical event, such as an important victory in war or the rise of a new king. It wasn’t just news you heard about and then forgot, but instead was news that changed the listeners’ condition and required a response after hearing it.
So the Christian gospel, also known as “The Good News,” is the news of what God has done to reconcile us to Him. It is the good news proclaiming how Jesus lived the life we should live and paid the penalty we owe for the rebellious life we do live (Mark 10:45; 2 Cor 5:21).
So evangelism is the sharing or proclaiming of this EVANGEL (this GOOD NEWS).
Evangelism= The proclamation and testimony of the gospel.
The gospel we proclaim is from the Word of God.
This is an important clarity because all too often, man has decided he can present a better gospel in order to attract people to Christianity. The problem with this is in the end they are not attracting people to Christianity but something else altogether.
This is a perfect example of deception. Another I hear often is a sales pitch for heaven.
“You don’t want to go to hell, right? To go to heaven, you must believe in Jesus.”
Although it is true that if you truly repent and believe in Jesus you will be in heaven after you die, the Good News being sold is: “believe so you can have heaven.” Instead of the true Good News which is “believe so you can have God!”
2 Corinthians 4:3 & 5
3 and even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing.
5 For we do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake
The people of God practicing the discipline of evangelism is God’s vehicle by which He opens the eyes of the blind to see the truth and beauty and worth of Christ.
Hear me clearly today: When we begin to truly understand the Gospel and God’s intention for evangelism, it will feel less and less like a duty and more and more like a unbridled passion.
It will become in us an excitement. Like Andrew had when he came to faith:
John 1:40-42 40Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of these men who had heard what John said and then followed Jesus. 41The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother, Simon, and tell him, “We have found the Messiah” (which means Christ). 42Then Andrew brought Simon to meet Jesus…
-Andrew didn’t just start thinking about how great his life was now that he was saved from sin and death. He didn’t keep Jesus to himself. He didn’t make excuses why he wasn’t equipped to tell others about Jesus.
He immediately went and began to bring others to meet Jesus.
Today’s discipline is a vital one! Because evangelism is one of the main reasons why you and are still here on earth and not called by God to heaven. Because He has ordained interactions He has in front of each of us that will mean the seed planting of faith or the harvesting of new faith in Christ.
Why Should We Practice Evangelism?
2 Corinthians 4:3-4
3And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. 4The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.
WHY SHOULD WE PRACTICE EVANGELISM? 1. Because darkness has mankind consumed unto death.
Billions of people on this earth are desperate for the LIGHT OF THE GOSPEL, and it is God’s design that those who are saved bring it to them.
Do you realize: If we find the answer to life in JESUS and we come up with excuses as to why we don’t practice evangelism, we are essentially telling the rest of the world to go to hell!
We need to practice evangelism because of SIN! Because of death.
Because there is no answer for sin or death other than Jesus Christ.
And the CHURCH– the saved, the redeemed, you and me– we are the means by which God intends for a dead and dark world to hear the GOOD NEWS of Jesus, which brings life!
WHY SHOULD WE PRACTICE EVANGELISM? 2. Because Jesus said to
Matthew 28:18-20 18Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given complete authority in heaven and on earth. 19Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. 20Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
LET ME ASK YOU TODAY: HOW ARE YOU “GO”ING LATELY?
The Ultimate Goal of Evangelism
Look at the last verse of our 2 Corinthians passage. Verse 7:
2 Corinthians 4:7 But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.
What is the treasure Paul speaks of?
In verse 4, this light is called the “light of the gospel of the glory of Christ.”
“We have this treasure (this light of the gospel) in jars of clay.”
Jars of clay is a reference to us. We are the jars of clay.
That is, compared to the treasure that is in us, we are clay.
We are not gold. The gospel is gold.
We are not silver. The news about Christ is silver.
We are not bronze. The power of Christ is bronze.
This means that if you feel average or below average in your fitness to share the gospel treasure, you are closer to the truth than someone who feels powerful and wise and self-sufficient.
Paul wants us to realize that we are clay pots.
Not gold or silver or crystal.
He wants us to realize that from the most sophisticated to the most average, we are all clay pots when it comes to containing and sharing the gospel.
The treasure is so valuable and so powerful that any thought of its container being something special is foolish.
Paul modeled this for us when we talked about himself and Apollos, the two most eloquent Christians in the first century!
1 Corinthians 3:5-7 What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each. I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth.
This passage is a great reminder to take the pressure of conversion off of you.
It is not your job to get those in your life or path saved! God does the saving.
So what’s the point of being a clay pot?
Back to:
2 Corinthians 4:7 But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.
God’s aim is that His own power through the gospel be honored, not us.
This means that if you feel average or less than average in your sense of fitness to tell the gospel, you are the person God is looking for: a clay pot who simply shares the treasure of the gospel; not the glitzy intellect, not the glitzy eloquence, not the glitzy beauty or strength or cultural cleverness.
Then God will do His work through the gospel, and the surpassing power will belong to Him and not to us.
Be encouraged, ordinary Christian. You are appointed, precisely in your ordinariness, for the greatest work in the world… Showing the treasure of Christ to a lost and dead world. Don’t keep it to yourself. Share it with the world around you.
By His grace and for His glory,
Pastor Joshua Kirstine
Disciples Church