by Kingdom Discipleship | Jun 23, 2022 | EVANGELISM
May the following tips help to inspire and spark your own creativity in sharing the most important good news ever told – the Gospel.
- Develop the Passion à know your BIG WHY
- Knowing Your Identity as a Rescuer
- Knowing Your Identity as Christ’s Ambassadors
- How Badly Do You Really Want it? – Do you get to or do you really have to do it? Realize that It’s a Big Privilege to be Entrusted with This Command and Responsibility
- Develop Courage & Getting Out of Your Comfort Zone
- Have the Following Confidence Builders: the method is simply sharing your story, the persuader is the Holy Spirit Himself (not you), the authority is God’s Word, the message is Jesus
- Chart Your Road Map to Success – Power of Planning Ahead – Have a Game Plan
- Put on Your 4D Glasses – See the world around you the way Jesus sees them
- Rearrange Your Priorities in Life – Making Him Known Should be at the Top of Them
- Sow Seeds Everywhere – It Makes a Difference to This One – We must sow – we may water – we may reap – Joining God where He’s already working – Looking for people of peace
- Develop and Compile a Name List Journal – Power of Being Intentional
- Develop Persistence & Perseverance and a Never Give Up Attitude
- Know the Power of Preparation & Practice
- Overcome Fear of Witnessing – Have Your Fear Directed Upwards (Involve the Holy Spirit and He will give you boldness for it)
- Building Friendship Bridges Effectively – Be there for the Good and Bad Moments & Genuinely Show Interest / Care for them
- Practice Active Listening Skills
- Present the Hope you Have with Gentleness and Respect, Your Conversations Should Always Be Full of Grace
- Making Use of Every Opportunity In Season and Out of Season
- Try to Have Multiple God-moment and Touch Points
- Go Out of Your Way to Pursue Touch Hearts, Seek and Save the Lost
- Realize the Power of Your Personal Testimony and Start Crafting One – a Customized Connection with the Lost – Your Pain Is the Platform – it’s a Story only You can tell – Your Story is not About You but About Him
- Create the Hunger and Thirst for the Hope You Have
- Know the Push and Pull Factors – Connect on the Symptoms and Deliver Cure for the Disease
- Build Your Personal Testimony Toolbox – God Stories in Your Life
- Use Diagnostic Questions as Springboard for Evangelism
- Use of Tools, Common Cultural Objects or Other Creative Methods to Propel You into Gospel Presentation
- Turn Casual Conversation into Spiritual Conversation Masterfully– Find the Hook
- Share About the Risk vs Reward of Trusting in Chris
- Create Various Opportunities for Gospel Presentation
- Make Use of the Power of 3 Open Prayers: Open Door (Natural Opportunities), Open Heart (Holy Spirit’s Conviction) and Open Mouth (Courage and Boldness to Share)
- Come up with a Record Book of Prayers – Pray for Natural Opportunities, for Prepared Hearts, for Your Heart, for a Paralyzed Enemy, for God’s Words & His divine Power
- Know the Power of Focused Prayers
- Have an Outline for Simple Gospel Presentation
- Share A Message About a Relationship – There’s a relationship you’re created to have – it’s a relationship you don’t have-because of what you’ve done – it’s a relationship you can have because of what Jesus did – It’s a relationship you must choose
- Realize that It’s All by the Grace of God to Pull Man to Himself, Not Your Own Power or Intelligence
- Stress on the Sinfulness of Man
- Talk about the Nature of God
- Explain About the Great Substitute on the Cross
- Understand What Saving Faith Is All About for Sharper and More Focused Evangelism
- Learn How to Handle Common Objections
- Be Equipped on How to Answer Honest Skeptics’ Questions
- Use the Judo Technique When Someone Throws a Difficult Question at You
- Build a Strong Evangelism Team & Networks
- Strengthen your 3 Pillars – Prayer Partner, On the Job Training (OJT), and Qualified Trainers
- Make It a Ministry of Multiplication – Equipping Others to do the Same
- Immediate Discipleship – Don’t Make Converts, Make Disciples
- Build the Big Mo (Read: Big Momentum) – Keep Being Consistent, Caring and Open at All Time till the Wave will Flow in Your Favor
- Make Evangelism a Lifestyle, not a Program
- Develop Your Evangelism Toolbox – Know What Works and Keep Adding These to Your Toolbox
- Use Effective Stories to Illustrate Important Points
- Develop Creative Witnessing Ideas and Opportunities
- Compile Testimonial Stories of Ordinary People doing Extraordinary Things in the name of Jesus
- Depend on the Demonstration of the Spirit’s Power
- Little Acts of Random Kindness Goes a Long Way to Create Big Impacts
- Attend Evangelism Training Workshops to Be Sharper in Your Personal Evangelism Skills
- Upgrade Your Witnessing Skills from Time to Time
- Memorize Key Helpful Scriptures
- Show and Tell, Preach and Pray
- Practice Makes Perfect – Go On More On the Job Trainings
- Strategic Fishing – Go to the Deep End Where the Fish Is – Thinking Lost – Thinking Missionary , by all means I can save some
- Invite the Person to an Outreach Event
- Stop Using Christianese – Non-religious glossary of lifesaving words
- Know the Road Map for the Rescue: John 4
by Kingdom Discipleship | Jun 23, 2022 | EVANGELISM
The Holy Spirit plays an important role in evangelism and in helping us to be Christ’s witnesses. The fact is Jesus has not left us with this important task alone without help. He has promised to give us His Holy Spirit before He ascended to heaven.
The fact is many people are afraid of witnessing because they fear being rejected, criticized or misunderstood. However, Christ knew that every single individual needs a Spirit empowered testimony to be delivered from an eternity in hell, sin and misery. Without the strength of the Holy Spirit, the facts of Christ’s life, forgiveness and promise for eternal life will have little impact.
Too many Christians allow themselves to become frustrated with evangelism because they are relying more on information than the transforming power of the Spirit to bring about internal changes in the hearts of people.
Ask the Lord to help you daily share the love of Christ to people through the empowering authority of the Holy Spirit.
In Mat 28, before Jesus ascended to heaven, we read about how the disciples’ interests were still directed toward the prospects of their earthly kingdom and power. Like many people in today’s world, the disciples were looking for deliverance from their social, political and economic problems.
The disciples thought if they could just be liberated from their foreign oppressors most of their problems would disappear. Jesus corrected their thinking by telling them to refocus their attention on God’s purposes, plans and processes and away from their own earthly concerns.
Ask the Lord for the wisdom, tact and love to help refocus your people’s attentions to God’s purposes, plans and processes and away from their selfish ambitions.
The apostles knew that their identities, roles and responsibilities were wrapped up in being “sent out ones”. However, Jesus knew that the apostles could not succeed unless they were continually filled with the Spirit’s divine grace, power and love for people who are struggling with their sins.
Application: Ask the Lord to give you a greater burden for those who are yet to find forgiveness through faith in Christ’s gracious substitutionary payment for the penalty of sin. Only the Spirit can help you fulfill your calling.
Jesus knew that being a witness encompassed all aspects of a person’s life. Our Lord taught the apostles that effective witnessing would be an outgrowth of a fruitful spiritual life and intimate relationship with God. Christ expected the disciples to witness with their teaching, conduct, suffering, love, faith, purity, and work.
Application: Ask the Lord to help your witnessing be a holistic expression of a fruitful spiritual life and an intimate relationship with our great God.
Jesus gave the apostles His divine plan for worldwide evangelism when He said, “You shall be my witnesses in Jerusalem (Acts chapters 1-7) , then Judea and Samaria (Acts chapters 8,9) and to the uttermost parts of the earth (Acts chapters 10-28).”
The Lord knew that the Spirit would continue to provide whatever is needed to see that His plans were carried out. Dr. Luke, the writer of Acts, gives us a glimpse of how the Holy Spirit worked through the apostles in this first century model for witnessing.
Every church is expected to learn from the ways that the Spirit empowered the early Christians to complete God’s will.
Application: Ask the Lord to help you continue to learn and model your ministries after Christ’s divine plan of concentrating first on your own communities before bridging to outlying areas, people group and nations.
Jesus knew that people would continue to seek after forbidden knowledge rather than focusing their attentions on God’s priorities. The apostles craved for the secrets of when the kingdom of God would be restored to Israel. Christ provided a better solution to their problem than a political one with a spiritual formula that would give them greater satisfaction, meaning and eternal rewards when He said, “BUT, you shall receive power… and you shall be my witnesses.”
The Lord knows that the best ways to solve our problems are found in doing the will of God rather than by looking to humans for solutions.
Application: Ask the Lord to help you find your real fulfillment in carrying out all God’s will. Trust Him to help you become a better testimony to His great love, grace, power, wisdom, satisfaction, peace and salvation.
Jesus offered the apostles real power that would give them the capacity to overcome any difficulty. Christ’s power endowed the apostles with a supernatural mental, emotional, social, physical and spiritual capacity to conquer any problem.
The Lord’s power would be an inexhaustible supply of supernatural authority that would produce holiness, truthfulness, love and peace for all who allowed it to flow through their lips and lifestyles. Ask the Lord to help you to be a channel of His mighty power for the benefitting of others in every way.
Jesus wants his followers to avoid being distracted by theological arguments, political debates and all kinds of non-essential pursuits.
Application: Trust the Lord to help you to avoid giving into the “tyranny of so called urgent matters” that are not directly related to the fulfilling of Christ’s great commission of Matthew 28:18-20. Only the Holy Spirit has the ability to keep us on tract when we divert to secondary agendas.
by Kingdom Discipleship | Jun 23, 2022 | EVANGELISM
When Dr. D. James Kennedy had died at age 76 of complications from an earlier heart attack, many people’s hearts sank. Knowing that Jerry Falwell died in May, and considering that Billy Graham is not in good health, I wondered who could possibly replace these stalwart Christian statesmen.
The congenial Kennedy, who usually wore an austere clerical robe when he preached on his popular television broadcast, founded Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church in Fort Lauderdale 48 years ago. Yet his formal appearance was misleading—since his life’s mission was to train the average layperson to share the gospel.
Indeed, Kennedy’s most enduring legacy was Evangelism Explosion, a training course he started in 1970. Used in thousands of churches, it has helped Christians develop a confident approach to personal witnessing. Countless people have been trained to ask a simple question—“If God were to ask why He should allow you into heaven, what would you say?”— to jumpstart conversations with unbelievers.
It was that trick question, overheard on a radio broadcast, that led Kennedy to Christ in 1953. He gave the rest of his life to help people find the right answer. Now that he is dead, I pray his passion can be ignited in our hearts.
It seems as if personal evangelism is a dying art. Fewer of us are taking our faith beyond familiar circles of friends and family. Witnessing has become intrusive in a culture that demands tolerance and diversity. Knocking on doors is illegal in most neighbourhoods. “Soul-winning” is an outdated term.
Polls show that few Christians today have ever led a person to faith in Christ.
As our society has become more secular, our faith has become more timid. It is no longer cool to declare Jesus is the only way. So we don’t say it—we just hope people will figure out our message by listening to our music or by wandering into our churches at an odd hour on Sunday mornings.
I am especially disturbed that personal evangelism has lost its importance among those of us who call ourselves Pentecostal or charismatic. Many of our best evangelists have also passed into glory or are getting feeble. Yet when I look at the younger generation, it seems many leaders are focused on the inside of the church rather than the harvest fields.
Please don’t misunderstand me. I know we need prophecies, visions, dreams and spiritual experiences. We also need solid Bible teaching, powerful exhortation and the inspiration that comes from praise and worship. But it seems today our focus has turned totally inward. The church is ministering to the church. The pastor is preaching to the choir. And our message isn’t reaching beyond the vestibule.
When Jesus began His earthly ministry, He read from the book of Isaiah about the promise of the Holy Spirit. The passage in Isaiah 61:1 says: “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the afflicted …” (NASB emphasis added).
This verse, which so dramatically captures the essence of Jesus’ ministry and ours, clearly lists evangelism as His priority. The Holy Spirit’s anointing does a lot of things—but we are told here that He clothes us with divine power so we can announce good news. In other words, we are not anointed simply to prophesy, receive revelations, experience spiritual goose bumps, shake, quake, rattle, roll, shout, raise hands, take offerings, receive offerings or obtain blessings and breakthroughs.
All those things are great, but if we have them without evangelism then our faith becomes inverted and self-absorbed.
I’ve been in some great charismatic meetings where everyone falls on the floor at the altar. Some get up and go back for more anointing. In fact, we are known to pray: “More! Lord, give them more fire!” Then the people swoon again, roll around and act drunk. And they come back three more nights to have hands laid on them again.
We’ve become like actors in a perpetual dress rehearsal in which we repeat our lines over and over but never actually perform for an audience.
What good is the anointing if we just wallow and splash in it like hungry hogs at a slop trough? I love the anointing as much as the next person. But when will we actually open our mouths and use it to preach to unbelievers? I want to stand up and scream, “Get off the floor and do something with this power!”
- James Kennedy was an evangelical brother who did not preach about the baptism of the Holy Spirit, yet he taught people to pray for boldness and to look for every opportunity to share their faith. What would happen if churches that fully embrace the Spirit’s anointing broke out of their self-imposed isolation and started preaching to everything that moves?”
My question is have you made it a priority to spread the gospel?
Are you guilty of the quote “Fewer of us are taking our faith beyond familiar circles of friends and family.”?
Or do we hope as quoted that “people will figure out our message by listening to our music or by wandering into our churches at an odd hour on Sunday mornings.”
What a person stands to lose (i.e. their soul) if they step out of this world without Christ is unimaginable. That thought alone should move us to get out of our comfort zone and reach out to the lost. If we don’t, then can we truly say that we have love for the lost if there is no action behind our words?
I will leave you with a quote from John Piper
“Never forget that people who do not obey Christ forfeit eternal life and go out into eternity under the wrath of God. John 3:36, “He who believes in the Son has eternal life; he who does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God rests upon him……….In other words, keep before your mind the terrible reality of entering eternity without Christ.”
by Kingdom Discipleship | Jun 23, 2022 | Uncategorized
Her daughter was tugging on her sleeve, but Susanna was lost in thought. Her eyes followed the Master as he got out of the boat and huddled with the twelve, but her mind was still on the story he had just told the crowd.
The tugging continued.
“Mamá, Mamá!” Joanna got her mother’s attention.
“Yes, Joana, what is it, dear One?”
“Why did he throw seed in the bad places? Didn’t he know it wouldn’t grow there?” Joanna asked her mother innocently.
“What, Honey?” her mother replied.
“Why did the Farmer throw seed on the pathway, and in the rocks, and in the thorns? Seeds don’t grow there. Didn’t the farmer know that?”
“Well yes, I suppose he did. But I’m not sure that the farmer meant to throw seed in the pathway, or the rocks, or even in the thorns. You see, the farmer had come out some time before and tilled his farmland,” Susanna explained to her daughter.
“Tilled?” Joanna asked with a puzzled look on her face.
“Yes, Sweetie, “tilled” means the farmer prepared the soil. He went out to his farmland—probably something like this rectangle of land right there—and he dug it up, turned it over, picked up the stones that were in the field and threw them off to the side. He got his land all ready to receive the seed.”
As Susanna spoke, it hit her. Could this be the lesson—at least part of it—that the Master was trying to teach with this story of the Sower? She glanced back to the shore, pensively. The Master and the Twelve were finishing their meeting.
“Mamá!”
Startled, Susanna turned back to her daughter. “I’m sorry, dear. The farmer prepared his field at least the day before. Then, he came out to his prepared field there (gesturing to the rectangle) and started to sow the seed. He threw it onto the field and as he went along—wanting to be sure to get seed in every corner of his field—he overthrew some of the seed. It landed in the rocks he piled up at the edge of his field. Some of it landed in the thorns just outside his beautifully prepared field. And some landed in the pathway, just like this one that people use to walk by farmland.
Joanna tugged again on her mother’s sleeve. She turned to her smiling. She saw her daughter wide- eyed looking just above her. Joanna pointed.
Susanna turned to see the Master right behind her, listening. She stood quickly, blushing. “I’m sorry, Master.”
He simply gave her an affirming nod, smiled warmly, and led his disciples to their next appointment.
The mother and daughter watched Him walk down the road, talking with His followers. When they were out of sight around the bend in the road, Susanna commented, half to her daughter, half to herself, “The Master’s stories are always so fascinating, but I don’t always understand. Your question helped me understand what I think is the point to this one: Just
as the soil needs to be prepared for seed to grow, so our hearts need to be prepared to receive the word of God so it will produce fruit in our lives. Come on, I’ll race you home!”
What did you think of that story? Can you imagine telling it as
you open a discipleship class session or as you start a message
in church? Every time I have told that story, you could hear a
pin drop as people sat on the edge of their seats, eyes wide
with anticipation. There is something about a story that gets
people’s attention and gets to their hearts. Why is that? I
believe it has to do with the way God made us. Let’s look at
four examples of using story in evangelism and discipleship (teaching).
Some Biblical Examples
Stop and think for a minute. Can you come up with personalities in the Bible who used story in their teaching in both the Old and New Testaments? After you think of a few, ask yourself the question: “What was the desired outcome?”
How did you do? I believe there could be many, but we will touch on just three. Who is the most conspicuous example in the Bible? Everyone at once: Jesus! That’s right. And we all would cite the parables as the most obvious teaching stories of all.
But another example in the New Testament is Stephen. He didn’t have a long ministry, however he did tell a long story that became famous. But was he successful? You are probably saying, “You cite Stephen as an example of using story in evangelism and you’re not going to get a lot of followers!” Maybe, but we’ll touch on his success in just a moment.
First, let’s go to the Old Testament. Do we have any examples of story in teaching (discipleship) there? One stands out: Nathan. He told King David a nice little story about a man and his lamb, didn’t he? And he got a response. That leads us to the next question:
What was the desired outcome? In each of these instances in the Bible (Jesus with His parables, Stephen with his long story, and Nathan with his short story) what were they looking for in their hearers? As I have asked that question on several continents, two one-word responses come back more than any other: change and emotion.
I tend to agree. In each instance, the story-teller is looking for change (repentance) in the lives of the hearers and he probably is trying to get the emotions of the hearer involved as well. Whether the second one is a stated goal or not, it becomes obvious very quickly that emotion is evoked.
Why are the parables so popular even today? They are stories to which people can relate. Why did Stephen get stoned? Because he told his story and told his hearers they were just like their fathers—
Just as the soil needs to be prepared for seed to grow, so our hearts need to be prepared to receive the word of God so it will produce fruit in our lives.
and they proved it by killing him. (By the way, he may not have been successful by our standards, but Jesus gave him a standing ovation!) Why was Nathan successful in encouraging repentance from David? He told a story to which David could relate (and boy, did he relate!) and then said “You are the man.”)
These stories evoked emotion and called for change. What are we looking for in our evangelism and discipleship, whether we are sharing one-on-one or with a group? What the profs taught me in Bible College was that we teach and preach for change. Stories can help. They did for Jesus, Stephen, and Nathan.
Consider using stories in your evangelism and discipleship. Start with your faith story. Maybe tell a story of another person with whom you have shared who responded positively to the gospel. Think of some other possibilities.
In discussing the use of story in evangelism and discipleship, we have cited biblical examples (Jesus, Stephen, and Nathan). Another example comes from a growing movement in missions called the International Orality Network (ION).
The Example of the International Orality Network (ION)
These leaders from mission organizations, training schools, and other ministry organizations encourage the telling of Bible stories. They differentiate (and rightly so) between Bible story teaching and Bible story telling. When we teach the Bible we normally seek to analyze, summarize, make conclusions, and apply the story to the lives of our students. The Orality Network encourages the telling of the story and letting the story do the work. That doesn’t mean we don’t ask questions. Quite the opposite is true as we will show below. However,
emphasis is on the story itself and allowing students to make the conclusions and applications themselves.
After telling a Bible story, ION proponents (and others) will ask at least four or five questions like the ones listed below to get learners interacting with the story and with each other. Not only do the questions help the hearers apply the story to their lives, but because many times the people are oral learners (they don’t read or write), the interaction and repetition of the story helps them to truly learn the story so it can be told again; passed on to others.
Simply tell the story (after having studied and practiced it) and ask:
“What did you like about that story?”
“What didn’t you like?” or “What bothered you about that story?” “What did you learn about God?”
“What did you learn about yourself?” etc.
In oral cultures this is an excellent way to evangelize and disciple especially in the early stages in any given location before literacy training takes place, because people can’t read the Bible or any other book. However, many are finding this methodology to be effective in secondary oral learning situations as well. Secondary oral learners are those who know how to read and write (They may even have college degrees!), but they choose to learn orally now. Many people today don’t read another book after they graduate from college.
In oral cultures telling Bible stories is an excellent way to evangelize and disciple especially in the early stages in any given location before literacy training takes place, because people can’t read.
The Story of Hope is a great tool you can use to tell the Bible’s story. Related resources can also help:
Visuals (laminated or non-laminated 10” x 12” picture cards (Use with small groups.)
Cell phone images (Use on a bus, plane—anywhere you are with an individual.) ChronoBridge Cards (Use with an individual or small group to tell abbreviated stories.)
The Story of Hope powerpoint (Use in a larger group with computer and/or video projector.
(These and other resources can be found at http://www.goodsoil.com/resources)
Telling Bible stories and asking questions can be an effective way to evangelize and disciple. Try it!
You might like it.
People are more wide-eyed- on-the-edge-of-their-seats with me when I tell the story.
People like stories. Stories communicate truth and challenge us to change. Once again I will say: Try it! Telling stories could make a difference in your evangelism and discipleship.
by Kingdom Discipleship | Jun 23, 2022 | EVANGELISM
What is the best method of evangelism? Depending on whom you ask, the answer will vary. The only correct answer, however, is “whichever one presents the gospel clearly and asks for a response.” Unless the gospel is explained and the person is asked to respond to the gospel, then there is no evangelism.
There are multiple evangelism methods people and churches use to share Jesus with others, but each one has its own strengths and weaknesses. The one that works best is the one that is most comfortable to each person and most appropriate for each situation. This article will highlight some of the more common methods of evangelism, briefly providing some strengths and weaknesses of each.
Note: While the exact definition of each method may vary somewhat, this article uses generally understood meanings of each.
Lifestyle Evangelism
Lifestyle evangelism is often understood one of two ways:
- Live right and people will see the gospel in one’s life
- Live right and people will ask about God
This method is built on the foundation of how one lives, with the idea that one’s life will lead others to Christ, or at least lead others to ask about him.
Strengths
- Encourages righteous living and self-evaluation
- Helps one’s life accord with the gospel
Weaknesses
- It is not biblical evangelism, only a means to possible evangelism
- Employs a highly passive approach
Final Analysis
Lifestyle evangelism is best summed up in a phrase I’ve heard many times: “My life is my witness.” That statement, however, falls apart when one considers being a witness (cf. Acts 1:8). This is best illustrated by a story a former professor of mine often told his evangelism students.
Court is in session, and the prosecutor calls his star witness. As she takes the stand, the jury awaits her testimony. The lawyer asks the woman, “Did you witness the events in question?” She replies, “Yes, I did.”
“Please tell the jury what you saw,” he says.
The witness sits there smiling. Unsure if she heard him, the prosecutor repeats, “Ma’am, will you please tell the jury what you saw.”
“I did,” she replies, continuing to smile.
Frustrated, the prosecutor retorts, “No, ma’am, you did not. Again, please tell the jury your testimony!” Yet, she continues to sit there smiling.
Impatient and angry, the prosecutor asks the judge to order the witness to answer the question. “Ma’am, you will tell the jury what you saw,” instructs the judge. “You will say what you witnessed.”
Insulted, the woman replies to the judge, “Your Honor, I did share my testimony. My life is my witness!”
The woman honestly believed that her life served as her witness, but she never shared her experiences. She did not serve as a witness for the prosecution, but only as a courtroom seat warmer. In the same way, many Christians warm the church pews, and although instructed to be witnesses, they silently sit there expecting their lives to be their witness.
Living is not evangelizing; lifestyle is not evangelism. Only proclaiming the gospel is evangelism, and one’s life affirms or detracts from the credibility of our testimony.
Servant Evangelism (aka Service Evangelism)
Popularized by Steve Sjogren’s Conspiracy of Kindness and Alvin Reid’s manual, Servanthood Evangelism, this approach uses simple acts of kindness, or service, for evangelism.
Strengths
- Emphasizes showing love as a way to open doors to evangelism
- Simple and often affordable to implement
- Can be done at any time
- Tries to create opportunities to share the gospel
Weaknesses
- People can improperly believe the service to be evangelism
- Serving may be emphasized, evangelism de-emphasized
- Limited training on personal evangelism
- Though doable by individuals, seems more apropos for group outreach
Final Analysis
I am a fan of servanthood evangelism, especially for churches, small groups, and youth groups. It doesn’t require a large budget, can be done with relative ease, can be exciting and fun, and has a tremendous opportunity to open doors to the gospel. The world accuses Christians of preaching love and not showing love; evangelists critique Christians for showing love and not preaching love. Servanthood evangelism done properly shows love and preaches love, addressing both criticisms.
Event Evangelism
This is a popular method among churches and groups, the most famous of which are revival services, vacation Bible school, and Halloween alternatives (often called “Harvest Fests” to avoid the clear association with the secular holiday). An outreach event is held, the public is invited, and ideally the gospel is shared with those who attend.
Strengths
- Builds on public interest
- Can generate name identification for the church or group
- Large crowds increases potential evangelistic encounters
Weaknesses
- Often builds name identification for the church or group, very little for the gospel
- Can be very expensive
- Attendants is often primarily those within the church sponsoring the event and other community churches (especially with revival services, gospel concerts, and similar events)
- Most Christians do not have to evangelize or choose not to evangelize
- Evangelism limited to a scheduled event rather than a regular, daily activity
Final Analysis
Evangelistic events are a wonderful idea, if they are evangelistic. To be evangelistic, they should be about promoting the gospel, not promoting the church. That means event promotion should be to the community, not merely to other churches, and should ensure that the gospel is clearly presented in every way possible. However, events are never a substitute for a churchwide personal evangelism strategy.
Neighbourhood Evangelism (aka Door-to-Door Evangelism)
Jehovah’s Witnesses and Mormons—that’s what many think of when they hear about door-to-door evangelism. This method involves going to homes and sharing the gospel with those who answer. Many Southern Baptist churches do this type of door-to-door visitation on a weekday evening.
Strengths
- Great for generating personal contact with new visitors
- Easily scheduled and inexpensive
- Great method for low-cost event promotion
- Common practice among many churches—easy to implement
Weaknesses
- Participation is generally very low
- Ubanization, gated communities, technological advances, and other cultural changes reduce access in many communities
- Evangelistic effectiveness is generally very low
- Often becomes more about church promotion and new visitors than gospel proclamation and new believers (cf. the evangelistic delusion)
- Public response to this method is often negative
Final Analysis
Door knocking, though a traditional approach to evangelism, is becoming less effective as an evangelistic strategy and more effective as an event promotion strategy. Society has changed, along with its ways of communicating and the way people live. Door-to-door evangelism may be effective in one area and nearly impossible in another (a church can be banned from some areas if the residents desire). It is best to determine its usefulness based not on history, but on the current situation (tradition is rarely a valid basis for future success or future plans).
Street Preaching Evangelism
This is a method greatly used by John the Baptist and Ray Comfort to share the gospel with others. It involves someone standing at a location with pedestrian traffic and proclaiming the gospel to passersby.
Strengths
- Effective at getting attention
- Gospel can be clearly articulated
- Can lead to opportunities for one-on-one evangelism
- Low-cost, and not audience dependent
Weaknesses
- Limited captive audience—most people will ignore the speaker
- Apologetics often necessary
- Requires thick-skinned practitioners—there usually arises those who are hostile
- Public perception and response is often very low
Final Analysis
This method is not for everybody, and its effectiveness is limited, though it’s secondary and tertiary impact is potentially greater than many other forms. It’s recommended that those interested in this method be well-versed in Scripture, ready to address questions often asked by non-Christians (apologetics), and be able to articulate clearly.
Tract Evangelism
Tract evangelism uses gospel tracts to present the gospel. There are three ways to use tracts: (1) take someone through the tract, using it as a visual aid, (2) sharing the gospel then giving the person a tract for further consideration, or (3) leaving the tract for someone without a personal conversation.
Strengths
- One of the most simple and versatile methods of personal evangelism
- Ideal for situations where a conversation is not feasible (e.g., busy store cashier, passersby, waiter/waitress, etc.)
- There is a wide variety of tracts available for almost any style of gospel presentation
- Can be great conversation starters
- Many appeal to a visual-based audience
Weaknesses
- Tracts can become substitutes for or tools to avoid personally witnessing to others
- Requires purchasing tracts (or the expense of self-printing)
- Some are wordy and thus may not be read
Final Analysis
When it comes to personal evangelism, tracts are one of the greatest tools available, second only to Scripture. Their best use is that of visual aid and guide. Some people aren’t sure how to explain the gospel, and the tract addresses that uncertainty. Furthermore, the tract can be left with the person to read through later. When using tracts as a guide, it’s best not to read the tract, but to summarize the message.
High quality gospel tracts are available from any of the following sources:
Conversational Evangelism (aka Relational Evangelism)
Some may distinguish between “conversational” and “relational.” Conversational evangelism is starting a conversation for the purpose of sharing the gospel; relational evangelism is seeking to relate to the person, looking for permission—i.e., an open door—to discuss spiritual matters. While they may be technically different, their general approach is the same: sharing the gospel during a normal conversation. Thus, they are treated as one in this evaluation.
Conversational evangelism is the method most often used by Jesus. It involves finding ways in normal, everyday conversations to share the gospel with someone else. This can occur in a store checkout line, at a sporting event, on an airplane, or almost anywhere.
Strengths
- It is personal evangelism
- Evangelism can occur anywhere at any time with any person
- A variety of tools can be used (tracts, the Bible, etc.)
- Doesn’t require schedules, only willingness
- Can be done by anyone
- It is the method used regularly by Jesus and the disciples
- It involves going out and sharing
Weaknesses
- Can be intimidating to some
- It is often misunderstood: some think it requires special training or special gifts
Final Analysis
In case you haven’t figured it out, this is the method that is most highly recommended. There are a plethora of ways to engage in conversational evangelism. One can use apologetics, a Q&A format (cf. Questioning Evangelism), tracts, a pocket Bible (cf. Share Jesus Without Fear), one’s personal testimony of how they became saved, or many other means.
Although conversational evangelism is probably the least common method of evangelism, it’s undoubtedly the most effective. It is simply sharing Jesus with someone in a normal, everyday conversation.
Conclusion
Some people prefer one method over the other; some may disagree with my overall assessment of each method. Regardless, none of these methods of evangelism alone constitute a comprehensive churchwide evangelism strategy. However, all of them can be part of that strategy, and John Rothra Ministries can help your church develop it.
When it comes to evangelism, there really is no wrong way of doing it, there’s only evangelizing and not evangelizing. As the professor who told the story of the courtroom witness always said, not everything we do is evangelism, but everything we do can be evangelistic. Sadly, though, most of what we do is neither evangelism nor evangelistic. That can change, if we are willing to become gospel-centered believers and gospel-centered churches.
