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WhatEvangelismIsNot.docxWhat Evangelism Is Not
A few years ago I had the misfortune of discussing the idea of evangelism with a high ranking administrator at a major Christian institution in the Midwest. While he was appreciative of the many ways that our organization was willing to serve and assist his students by providing motivational speakers and opportunities for outreach, he was perplexed by the use of the word evangelism in reference to promoting our ministry to his student body. He even went as far as to state, “Evangelism is a negative term for our students!” I recall thinking, “Wow . . . when did Evangelicals become offended by the concept of evangelism?”
Unfortunately, I have had similar experiences working with college students, pastors, and other church leaders. In fact, it is common to meet Christians like this college administrator who place a low value on the concept of evangelism. The question is . . . why?
Much of the reason is because the church has believed a series of false assumptions related to evangelism. Here are a few examples:
1. Evangelism is not a choice. It is generally accepted in Christian circles that the majority of believers rarely share their faith with another unsaved person. I have noticed this in my undergraduate and graduate-level evangelism classes. By a simple show of hands, well over half of the students will admit that they rarely share their faith with an unsaved person – most admit that they were never taught to do so by their church. One of the contributing factors is that evangelism is taught as an individual choice rather than a biblical command. This is misleading and dangerous in reference to the Great Commission. Consider what Jesus says in Acts 1:8: “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” The phrase “you shall be My witnesses” is written as a direct command of Christ. The aim is to mobilize His disciples into the world to fulfill His earlier promise as recorded in Mark 1:17: “Follow Me, and I will make you become fishers of men.”
2. Evangelism is not just Passing on Biblical Information or Making an Apologetic Presentation. There are hundreds of ways to effectively share Christ with an unbeliever. In doing so, one must remember that evangelism is not just sharing the right biblical information. As I always tell my classes, “You cannot divorce Jesus’ message from the life He lived.” This simply means that Jesus not only shared the truth in word; He also embodied that same truth through a consistent lifestyle. While it is very important to share the correct biblical knowledge related to salvation, always remember that the knowledge you share is validated to the world through a consistent testimony of a changed life. As Paul reminds us in First Thessalonians 2:8, “We cared so much for you that we were pleased to share with you not only the gospel of God but also our own lives, because you had become dear to us.”
3. Evangelism is not a Spiritual Gift. Contrary to what many people believe in the church, evangelism is not listed as a spiritual gift in Scripture. While some people may have talents that aid in becoming more natural at evangelism, the call to evangelize is meant for the entire church. It is not reserved for a selected few soldiers. The word for evangelism literally means “good news” or the “message.” The problem is that most people define evangelism as merely sharing the good news (a verb), when actually evangelism is the good news (a noun). Our problem with evangelism is that we define it by the action, not the nature or essence of the action. At the core, evangelism is the “good news” of Christ and therefore must be embraced as a lifestyle by every Christ follower as a replicating disciple-maker.
At this point, you are probably thinking, “what about the spiritual gift of evangelist?” Is Paul wrong in Ephesians 4? The answer is no, Paul is not wrong. The issue is that nowhere in scripture is the word evangelism used in terms of a spiritual gift. As for the role of the evangelist, look at the context of the passage in Ephesians 4. You will notice that all five offices/gifts listed have the same purpose . . . to “equip” the saints for the work of ministry. Thus, contrary to what many people have been taught, the role of the evangelist is not to solely do the work of evangelism for the church. The passage clearly states that the purpose of all five offices/gifts is to “equip” the saints. Clearly, if the expectation is to equip the saints, then does it not make sense to assume that God expects all Christians to be equipped and actively involved in each of these areas of ministry, including evangelism? In fact, if you look closer to the passage, Paul further states that the ultimate goal for equipping all Christians is to grow into the “fullness” of Christ! This can only be achieved when Christians are obedient and fully embrace each of the responsibilities outlined in Ephesians 4, and this definitely includes evangelism.
4. Evangelism is not Just Something You Do. Evangelism must never be minimized to something you perform as a duty to God. Rather, like breathing it should be an involuntary response to naturally share Christ whenever possible. In short, evangelism is the essence of who you are as you walk through daily life. It is the consistent and natural overflow of a deep and abiding relationship with Christ. We should want to share the gospel because that is what Jesus did!
5. Evangelism is not in Competition with Discipleship. I often hear people espousing the tenets of discipleship over the call to evangelize. They often minimize evangelism and use phrases such as “I am a disciple maker, not an evangelist.” This may sound good, but it is biblically incorrect. The truth is that evangelism and discipleship are connected and dependent on each other. While intentional evangelism that leads to a spiritual conversion always precedes the process of discipleship, neither process is complete until the one who is being discipled learns to multiply their witness through sharing Christ with unsaved people. Possessing a genuine passion for biblical multiplication through evangelism is a key indicator when evaluating spiritual maturity and discipleship.
6. Evangelism is not Based on Your Personality. Some people believe that evangelism is only reserved for type “A” personalities. Nothing could be further from the truth. Evangelism is a biblical mandate to be fulfilled through all types of people. Whether you are shy or outgoing, remember that every Christian is responsible to the call of evangelism. Ultimately, God created you as you are to be on mission with Him!
7. Evangelism is not the Same as “Missions.” The word evangelism has lost its distinctiveness and importance to the church over the past 25 years as many people have replaced it with the concept of “missions.” The essential nature and expression of evangelism is the passionate proclamation of the message of the gospel to the end that people will be redeemed as they trust Christ and his saving work at the cross to receive forgiveness and eternal life. On the other hand, missions is a transcultural enterprise in which the gospel message is taken into another culture at home or overseas (Acts 1:8). It always has evangelism at its heart. If the pursuit of missions drives evangelism to the point that sharing the gospel message is secondary, then both expressions lose their biblical focus. Evangelism must be the purpose and driving force of all missions. It is impossible to do authentic missions without intentionally doing evangelism.
8. Evangelism is not Acting Arrogant or Superior. First Peter 5:6 says, “Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time” (NIV). The key to effective evangelism is a well-prepared, obedient, loving, and humble heart for God. A “know it all” and “cocky” attitude will always hinder the effectiveness of evangelism.
9. Evangelism is not meant to be Silenced by Fear. In 2 Tim 1:7–8, the apostle Paul states, “For God did not give us a spirit of timidity [fear], but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline. So do not be ashamed to testify about our Lord” (NIV). According to Scripture appropriate fear is rational in certain situations, but this should not apply to the task of evangelism. As Acts 1: 8 implies, it is the Holy Spirit that speaks through us – it is not based on our strengths or talents – it is the Holy Spirit! Trust Him!
10. Evangelism is not a Theological Dilemma. Some people try to use theological constructs to ignore the Great Commission. Because of unbiblical/hyper inferences related to the doctrine of election, more contemporary ministers are ignoring their responsibility to be active in evangelism. The same is true when liberal theologians compromise the authority of Scripture. In many cases humility and obedience are replaced by theological superiority and a critical spirit that is detrimental to evangelism. In short, theology without evangelism is not Christian theology at all. At the same time, evangelism without proper theology is equally as dangerous to the Great Commission.
11. Evangelism is not Prayer by Itself. It is a misconception to equate prayer alone as an act of evangelism. Does this mean that prayer is not essential to the process of evangelism? Absolutely not! There is no way that a person could ever be effective in evangelism without possessing a deep and abiding relationship to God in prayer. However, to assume that prayer by itself equals evangelism stops short of the desired target. Actually, it has been my experience that when people begin to earnestly pray for their unsaved friends and family their burden is increased and the usual result is to be propelled into the field to boldly share Christ with those in need. 1
12. Evangelism is not Church Planting Alone. While church planting is essential and important, it needs to be stated that church planting alone is not necessarily an act of evangelism. In fact, after years of working with church planters, I am sometimes alarmed by the overemphasis on attractional models that focus on worship and community to the exclusion of evangelism that leads to biblical multiplication and true disciple-making among the church body. Biblical church planting is always born out of intentional evangelism. That was the model of the Apostle Paul and the Early Church. According to scripture, they first evangelized communities and then created congregations with the intention of training the new disciples to become reproducing disciples/evangelists. Intentional personal evangelism that results in multiplying disciples must always be the engine that drives biblical church planting!2
1 Introduction and points 1–10 of “What Evangelism Is Not,” taken from the book Evangelism Is . . . How to Share Christ with Passion and Confidence, by Dave Earley & David Wheeler (Nashville: B & H Publishing Group, 2010), vii–ix.
