Establishing A Culture Of Evangelism

by | Jul 23, 2011 | Articles, Written Word

All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.  Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.  Matthew 28:18-20

The last thing that Jesus tells us to do is of no small importance.  Many Christians have never witnessed (evangelized) to a friend, family member or a stranger.  I’ve known many people in my life who believed that their “religion was a private matter.”  Nothing could be further from the truth.

We must have an eye on eternity to properly engage those around us now.  I don’t know anyone who has a problem talking about the things they like or their activities.  Everyone loves to talk about their latest gadget or product that’s changed their lives, but so many believers are timid about sharing their faith.  Why?

We’ve believed the lie that our faith is private.  Jesus tells us clearly that it can’t be.  How then do we overcome the hindrances to sharing the gospel?  How can we make evangelism part of our daily experience?

  1. Passion for God
    When we become intimately familiar with the one who gave us this command, it becomes remarkably easier.  When we feel the emotions of His heart, we can carry out such a command.  It’s very difficult to accomplish large tasks like this with no emotional involvement.  God desires intimacy with us.  The greatest commandment is to “love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul mind and strength.”  (Deuteronomy 6:5)
  2. Love for others
    When we begin to love others as we love ourselves (Matthew 22:39), the commandment second in line to the greatest; then we can see them as God does.  They are lost for eternity with no hope.  If we saw someone drowning facedown in 6 inches of water, wouldn’t we help them?  In the same way, our only job is to tell people about Jesus in such a way that they can tell others.  Being able to tell a message is not a hard task unless it’s not part of our lifestyle.
  3. Lifestyle lived for Jesus
    If most of the thoughts and activities that fill our minds and time are not centered on God, we will have an increasingly difficult time telling others about Him.  The reason: we don’t think about Him much!  We have to fill our minds and our time with the Lord or we won’t be thinking about how to use our opportunities before others well.  Remember, if we’re extremely healthy we’ll live 100 years.  We’ll be with the Lord for billions.  It makes more sense now to fill our lives with the Lord.

When we live our lives on purpose for God we put ourselves in the place to be good evangelists.  If we’re constantly engaged in asking the Lord what He thinks about people and situations, we’ll be much better situated to fulfill the great commission.  Only then can it be a daily part of our lives.

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