Evangelism

And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;

Ephesians 4:11

Evangelist is listed as one of the 5 fold ministries here in Ephesians. To evangelize means to spread the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ. It means to share the truth about Christ’s death and resurrection, freedom from sin, victory over the devil and man’s whole duty to fear God and keep His commandments. It is understood that a man or woman should be first filled with the Holy Spirit before undertaking any of the 5 fold ministries. We need His guidance and leading before we can be witnesses of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

The call to be an evangelist is not for all Christians. We are a body with different members doing different functions. One should seek the Lord for what calling and ministry He wants them to walk in. My calling to be an evangelist came through a series of dreams the Lord gave me where I saw myself on the streets, preaching the gospel with power and authority. If not for those dreams, I would probably not have continued as an evangelist. It makes all the difference when you KNOW that you are doing the will of God!

And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.

Mark 16:15

God wants all people everywhere to be saved. Without the calling of an evangelist, how will the people hear the good news? Someone must be tasked with being a preacher of the good news on the streets. God has ordained street preaching as a means of winning the lost to Christ. It’s interesting to note that I did not wait to be called as an evangelist before I started doing street preaching. I simply obeyed this verse where Christ told all his disciples to go into all the world and preach. After the Lord saw I was faithful to preach on streets, He gave me the formal call into ministry. If you are burning with the desire to evangelize, I say go for it! God will be pleased if you speak the truth in love. You can do all things through Christ which strengthens you.

Not all Christians are called to be evangelists. For some, their ministry is more subtle than banging people over the head with the gospel. However, ALL Christians are called to be witnesses of Jesus Christ. At some point, when opportunity presents itself, you are going to have to open your mouth and speak the truth from your heart. Christ says if we are ashamed of Him and His Words, He will be ashamed of us at His 2nd coming.

Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thine heart: thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy neighbour, and not suffer sin upon him.

Leviticus 19:17

This was a law given to the nation of Israel. If someone saw their neighbor sin, they were given permission by God to rebuke or correct them. If they were to be quiet, it would be counted as a sin to them. If you see someone committing a sin, REBUKE THEM OPENLY! This is love and it pleases the Lord. Your neighbor is anyone who crosses your path in the course of life, just like the story of the good samaritan.

Open rebuke is better than secret love.

Proverbs 27:5

Love is not meant to be done in private. It’s meant to be seen openly, in front of the whole world. God wants us to influence each other through the power of love and righteousness. Open rebuke is open love. Do not be ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believes!

We must guard our hearts. Before we preach to anyone, we must be sure we are free from sin through faith in the blood of Jesus. Otherwise, we are hypocrites telling people not to sin when there is sin in our lives. First take the beam out of your eye, then you will see clearly to help your brother take the mote out of their eye.

And the lord said unto the servant, Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled.

Luke 14:23

God wants heaven to be filled with saints. That is, filled with holy people that follow and obey Jesus Christ. In order to fulfill that mission, someone must go into the streets and preach the gospel. We are using persuasion, understanding that each person is made in the image of God with a freewill. God will not force anyone into heaven or to believe in His Son Jesus Christ. We are to sometimes gently and other times more forcefully persuade and reason with people to enter the kingdom of God. While all Christians are to witness of Christ, evangelists are called to be more direct and aggressive in their preaching of the gospel. Sometimes witnessing one on one in a normal tone of voice, other times lifting up the voice for all to hear in a crowded place. An evangelist’s job is to make sure people hear the gospel, praying beforehand and afterwards to make sure the Word is not stolen out of their hearts by the devil. An evangelist is first a praying man or woman. To evangelize without praying is to waste the effort. The ground of mankind’s hearts must be prepared through prayer.

God wants the full gospel to be preached. When we preach, we should emphasize God’s holiness and righteousness and that He calls us to be holy, too. We shouldn’t be ashamed to preach the truth about hell and the lake of fire, or the truth about homosexuality being an abomination to God. Rely on the Holy Spirit to bring the right Truth to mind at a given time. He knows the history of the person and can reveal secret sins that the person thinks they are doing without anyone knowing. Finally, be bold and confident in your witness. You know more truth than the average person that is not serving God. You have something they need to hear! Share freely from the heart, with the spirit of love, and God will be glorified and pleased. God bless you as you share the GOOD NEWS. Amen.