TEXT: Mathew 10:31-35

THEME: Evangelism

INTRODUCTION:

The ministry of Evangelizing and Witnessing to the lost souls is a primary responsibility of the Church. Through evangelism and witnessing the church is able to expand numerically, taking more territory from the kingdom of darkness. This world is still under the partial rulership of Satan under various agencies (Luke 4:5-7;2 Corinthians 4:3-4), and therefore the church is a formidable force in an enemy territory because the church is above the authority of the Principalities and powers of darkness (Ephesians 1:19-23).

Staff, Sylvia and Rose leading worship

The six pillars of the world (Politics, Commerce, Family, Education, Media and Performing Arts) visibly portray the influence of Satan and his evil nature. The church has a single mission to expand its territory in spite of the constant resistance mounted by the evil one (Mathew 11:12). The essence of the famous Great Commission is the fundamental transformation of the world, from the leadership and influence of Satan to the power of God’s Grace through death and resurrection Jesus Christ, manifested in freedom, love and holiness; from the people governed by their sensual appetites to those ruled by the Holy Spirit and the Word of God by Grace (Mathew 28:19-20). This is tremendous blessing upon whoever is obedient to this Commission (Proverbs 11:30; James 5:20)

It is indeed a great pleasure to the Heavenly kingdom to see many souls come to the saving knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. Man, not the Angels have been commissioned to carry out this task. God has released, though the Holy Spirit all the necessary instruments for this mission. It is clear from Scripture that one of the major reasons why the Holy Spirit was sent upon the church was to help the church in her mission of being a witness for Jesus (Acts 1: 8)

Being a proclaimer of Good News about the salvation of man through Jesus Christ, is not exclusive to evangelists alone, but every one who is borne into the family of God through sanctification by death and resurrection of Christ Jesus Christ. There are three ways in which every one can be involved in evangelism and witnessing. There is no excuse whatsoever for none involvement.

83 year old evangelist praising God

(i) Through Intercession (1Timothy 2:1): A very important slogan in evangelism is, “Before talking to some one about Jesus Christ, talk to Christ about the person first.” It is very necessary to identify the territorial spirit that controls a given area, and deal with it in spiritual warfare, commanding them to loose control over the area of their influence, souls and the minds of their victims before actually proclaiming the truth. These Spirits are easily identifiable through their manifestations in the behavior, attitude and thinking of their victims. Prayer also helps to strengthen the witness or evangelist against fear and any forms of resistance mounted by the enemy. Intercession is the backbone of witnessing and evangelism.

Intercession is comparable to Air force in the earthly warfare.

(ii) Financial and Material Support Romans 10:14-15): Not every member in the Kingdom of God may be an intercessor, as there are various gifts (Romans 12:4-8). However, their involvement in material and financial contribution to support evangelism is a vital aspect of evangelism. Without financial resources, the act of witness and evangelism will be limited. One of the ways the devil has fought against the Kingdom of God is through blocking financial resources. Today it is easier to find money for construction and social need projects such as weddings, the poor, the sick etc, than for evangelism and discipleship. Supporting construction projects and all those other social concerns is excellent and Biblical, but supporting evangelism is a better investment and a higher priority because it concerns eternity.

(iii) Proclaiming the Gospel (Mathew 10:32-33): All believers are called to proclaim the gospel of salvation through Jesus Christ alone, and testify of their faith every where; making opportunity from every social and business interaction. Christ did not promise that this would be easy, but costly, in terms of relationships and even life itself. Many believers have failed to effectively make use of the opportunities they have because of fear and an accusation from the enemy.

Proclamation of the gospel is in itself, an offensive weapon. If one does not fight an offensive warfare, he or she must be fighting defensive warfare. Fighting defense warfare gives the enemy the prerogative to determine the battle field which may include your bedroom. Whereas, you decide to engage the enemy on the ground of your own. The enemy is ever active (James 4:7; 1Peter 5:8), and no wonder, many believers are engulfed in the sea of difficulties. Consistent bombardment from enemy has weakened many believers. It is a ploy of the enemy to cast doubt about the love of God and thus discourage a believer completely.

[photo:Pastor Isaac Peter Oyako (right) chatting with Rev. Silas Ogwadulai during the lunch break]

THE AIM OF EVANGELISM

The aim of evangelism is to make disciples of Jesus Christ. There is a big difference between a “Christian Convert” and a “Christian Disciple”. Without a discipleship program, evangelism is a mere waste of resources, time and effort. Disciples are raised up through training which involves instruction and practice. The word “Disciple” comes from the Greek word, “Methetes” which entails “learning” and “putting into practice what is learnt.”

Pastor Isaac Peter Oyako chatting with Rev. Silas Ogwadulai at lunch

The local church is a discipleship school from which an army of saints is raised up. They are raised through instruction, helped to practice the word in all aspects of their life and helped to discover and practice their placement in the body of Christ. This is never an instantaneous event, but life long and progressive transformation, orchestrated by the Holy Spirit through the Grace of God alone. Before evangelism or witnessing is carried out, the plan should be in place for:

(i) Follow up- to water baptize, ground and establish the new believer in the basic Christian doctrine. This is best done by a person, or the system in which the person whom God used belongs. Just like the mother’s breast milk is the best for the baby, similarly, the person who is led to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ depends on the person who led them to Christ.

(ii) Placement-to help a new Christian find a suitable local church in which he or she can be natured. A new Christian is as vulnerable and delicate as a newly born baby needing, protection and care. Evangelism and the local church are inseparable.

WHAT THE GOSPEL IS:

We only preach the gospel and let the Holy Spirit convict the sinner of his or her sin. (John 16:8-11). Many times the evangelist is attempted to convince people with sweet and appealing arguments, persuasion, promises etc. Real salvation is the work of the Holy Spirit through the Grace of God. (1 Corinthians 2:2). The Evangelist’s role is to preach the living word of God.

The outline of the gospel is:
(i) Every man is a sinner and without hope (Romans 3:9-12; Galatians2:17). It is only by the death and the resurrection of Jesus Christ that any man shall hope for Salvation (John 14:6).
(ii) Salvation is neither the work of man, (ie. keeping laws), but the Grace of God (Ephesians 2: 8-9)
(iii) One needs to believe and confess Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour Before salvation (Romans 10: 9-10)
(iv) There is a reward of eternal life for those who are obedient to the will of God through Christ Jesus, (Mathew 25:46), and eternal death in hell for every disobedient soul (Mathew 8:12; 13:42,50)

People have sometimes preached something else, but not the gospel. Such persuasions are quite appealing, sweeping masses. However, with time, when the promises of material blessings, healing or any other tangible benefits don’t come forth as expected, they turn back in disappointment.

CHALLENGES FACING EVANGELISM IN UGANDA AND DEVELOPING WORLD:

Many local churches are inappropriately structured, and evangelism or evangelists are never priority areas, and therefore marginalized during the allocation of resources. In most cases an evangelist is not considered one of the principal pillars of the church worth of support. The Pastoral ministry is the only office that is functional in a majority of local church settings. The church is constructed and must be supported by the five pillars as taught in scripture (Ephesians 4:11-12). I believe that all the five ministry offices are equal without any being more dominant than others.

Because of this misconceptions of church leadership, the four offices of evangelist, apostle, teacher and prophet have been rendered dormant and without the opportunity to develop. The notion that every servant leader must be a pastor is a serious modern error. This partly explains the disorder in many local churches. For example, a person called to be an evangelist, does not have the endowment to shepherd (pastor) the flock effectively: Certainly something will miss out.

So Evangelism has the following challenges:

(i) Absence of resources and consistent resource base is a key factor in slow or sluggish evangelism in local churches. People give liberally to social concerns such as marriages, construction projects; support to the less privileged etc.The reluctance to support evangelism is the strategy of the devil. The evangelists have to devise alternative means such as tent building (Acts 18:3; 1Thssolonians 3:7-10) . Tent building project must not be too demanding, so as to distract from evangelism. Some potentially good evangelists have been diverted to full time business people.

(ii) Lack of follow-up strategy. Evangelism must be carefully planned to prepare for the maturing of the new souls. Therefore a local church must be part and parcel in planning of an evangelistic outreach.

(iii) Lack of trained and endowed man power. That means that evangelists must be equipped with the gospel truth based on the correct theology, and must be able to correctly handle questions that arise. Mass evangelism (Open air campaigns) is good, but less effective than person-to-person. Above all, evangelists should be capable of demonstrating the gospel truth through the manifestation of divine authority through healing, casting out demons and miracles.

SUMMARY:

Evangelism and discipleship is a primary calling of the church of Jesus Christ. Because the enemy knows and is scared of it, attacks have been launched against this program. Ministry of intercession is almost non-existent in many local churches. Resource allocation to the department of evangelism is considered a non-priority area by churches and church-based organizations.

As the clock ticks toward the closure of the church dispensation, the church needs to strengthen evangelism and discipleship capacity.