"Evangelism and the Believer"
Sermon • Submitted • Presented • 1:20:24
0 ratings
· 17 viewsFiles
Notes
Transcript
If you have your Bibles grab them and turn with me to 1 Peter 3.
15 but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect,
Though we would like to always be positive Christians there are times where we will be negative. Today there are many folks who think Christians must always be positive, however there will come times where we not only have to tell the world what we are for, but we also must share what we are against. Of course Peter says here that we must do so with gentleness and respect. As we face a sin-sick culture we our to remind our world of the Great Physician.
As we continue our series on the foundations of our faith one of the important foundations is sharing our faith. We call this evangelism. Being prepared to make a defense of the good news of Jesus is what every believer should be able to do not just pastors or missionaries. This word Evangelism can bring many thoughts to our mind today. You may be thinking of a T.V. Evangelists or revival tents or weekly visitation or you may even be thinking about how fearful you are to even share your faith. Today my goal as we look at God’s Word is to help us have a heart for the lost, to over come any barriers that may keep you from sharing your faith, to understand your responsibility, and finally to equip you for the task of sharing your faith.
So how can I overcome the fear of sharing my faith? Many people have a fear to step out and share their faith both because of rejection but also because of persecution that may come. We need to remember that the gospel itself is foolishness and offensive to non-Christians, so how can we as Christians get motivated to share our faith? It all starts by having a heart for those who are lost. Turn with me to Matthew chapter 7.
13 “Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. 14 For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.
-Matthew tells us about two different gates here. First of all, there is a small gate that leads to life. The road is narrow and there are few that find it.
-Matthew also tells us of another gate that is wide and this gate leads to destruction or hell. The way is broad and many have entered in through this gate. As you think today about those friends and family around you which path are they on? The fact remains that most people in our world today are dying without Jesus and they will spend an eternity in hell unless they come to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. We need to begin to develop a heart for the lost like that of Christ and even Paul. We know that Jesus himself wept for the lost and over the city that rejected Him. Turn to Luke 19.
10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”
41 And when he drew near and saw the city, he wept over it, 42 saying, “Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes.
As we take to heart this morning the importance of sharing our faith there are 4 things that we must know.
1. We Must Know that there is a Call to Evangelize.
1. We Must Know that there is a Call to Evangelize.
The call to share our faith with those who do not know the Lord is a command. Turn with me to Matthew 28 and let us look at the Great Commission.
19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
The call and command is to go make disciples, baptizing them and teaching them. This command to evangelize is repeated at the end of all four Gospels, and is also Jesus’ last words on earth in Acts chapter 1.
8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
First John chapter 4 tells us that we only love God because He first loved us. And John 3:16 tells us that “God so loved the world that He gave.” The greatest work in the heart of God, the greatest concern in the mind of God, is evangelism. Winning the lost is God’s great concern and it is also Christ’s. We see this clearly in the Gospel of Luke.
10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”
But, as we think about sharing our faith with those who are lost there may be some hindrances to witnessing. So, why do we hesitate to do so?
-Intimidation; or we are afraid of failing or not knowing what to say.
-Peer pressure; afraid of not being accepted or of being rejected.
-Ignorance of the gospel message.
As we think about these hindrances we need to be reminded that as we share the good news it is not man’s words that are the power of evangelism, but rather the Spirit who gives the gospel it’s power.
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.
The Gospel is powerful and we are not to be ashamed of it, so pray for boldness and speak with confidence as you share your faith. It is also important to know that we are only the means. What I mean by that statement is that we cannot save anyone. It is only God who can open ears and eyes and who ultimately converts men’s souls. Our job is to give the message, but only through the Holy Spirit can men and women be truly saved.
Charles Spurgeon once said, “The Power that is in the gospel does not lie in the eloquence of the preacher, otherwise men would be the converters of souls, nor does it lie in the preacher’s learning, otherwise it would consist in the wisdom of men. We might preach until our tongues rotted, till we exhaust our lungs and die, but never a soul would be converted unless the Holy Spirit be with the word of God to give it power to convert the soul.”
So this is why it is so important to know God’s Word. We must know the message. It is our responsibility to always be ready and to make a defense to anyone and everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you.
2. We must know how to Share the Good News of the Gospel.
2. We must know how to Share the Good News of the Gospel.
Every Believer needs to know what the essentials of the gospel message are. Does a person need to understand every little thing of the Christians faith in order to be saved? Of course not, but a person does need to understand several essential things. Turn with me to 1 Corinthians chapter 15.
3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures,
So, here are the essential things that we see from our text.
-First, we must see ourselves as sinful and fallen humans before a holy and righteous God.
-Second we need to understand that we are in need of a Savior to save us from our sin.
-We also need to understand that God, through the sacrifice of Christ is the only means of salvation. Jesus died, was buried, and rose again on the third day. When we trust in Christ we have faith because he died in our place. Jesus died for our sins. This is called Substitutionary Atonement. Because of what Christ has done for us, we are no longer dead. Remember the Lord’s friend Lazarus who died. Jesus called to him when he was in the grave and he came out. There was nothing that Lazarus could do because he was dead and Christ made him alive. So, Christ’s death took the place of ours and because of that we are no longer children of wrath, but children of the King.
This is the good news that Paul preached to those who were in Corinth. Paul was not ashamed of the gospel and neither must we be. We need to know how to share the basics of the gospel message.
3. We must know the essentials of Evangelism.
3. We must know the essentials of Evangelism.
As we think about essentials, these are things that we must believe about Jesus for salvation! So, let me begin here by helping us to know several musts about Christ.
-First of all Jesus is God. There were many religious leaders during the time of Christ who denied this and there are many folks today who do not believe that Jesus is God.
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
-The second thing that we must know about Jesus is that He is the way, the truth, and life, the only way to God.
6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
-And finally, Jesus is the only way of salvation. There are not many roads to heaven or many modes of salvation. There is only one, and that is through placing your faith in Christ alone for salvation.
12 And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”
So, every person needs to understand these things about Christ. As we begin to share these musts about Jesus with those who don’t know Him, there are also several verses that we must be familiar with as we share the gospel with those who are lost.
8 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
9 because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.
12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God,
4. We must know a strategy for Evangelism.
4. We must know a strategy for Evangelism.
1. Be a Witness by your life example.
Even though the outcome of sharing our faith with others is completely dependent on God, there is still a great sense in which our lives must line up with our message. God has called every believer to live in such a way as to make sure our lives our a light unto this dark world. As Christians we should be blameless and be above reproach as we carry ourselves in this world. You may be here today and wonder why is the witness of our lives so important? Here is why. Our lives will either earn others respect so that we can be heard, or we will look like hypocrites and no one will listen to what we have to say about Christ.
14 Do all things without grumbling or disputing, 15 that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world,
We are to shine as lights in this crooked and twisted generation. So let me ask you this morning, do you reflect godliness and bring glory to God? Do people at your work know that you are a believer? If so, does your talk, walk and actions reflect that you are a Christian?
2. Pray for opportunities to share your faith.
Church, I want to stress here the importance of praying for opportunities to share the gospel with those who are lost. Ask even now that God would begin to open hearts and minds to those whom you are witnessing to.
1 Brothers, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for them is that they may be saved.
What was on Paul’s heart? Paul desired that these unbelievers come to know Jesus. Paul also prayed that doors would be open up for him to share his faith.
3 At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison— 4 that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak.
3. Use the Word of God as you share your faith.
So why is it important to use the Word of God when presenting the gospel with those around you, rather than just explaining the main points of the gospel? The answer is that God’s Word is able to pierce the soul, to judge man’s thoughts. The Holy Spirit uses the Word of God to convict a person of his sin and help see his need for a Savior. So, we must begin with God’s Word and end with God’s Word.
12 For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
Over and over again we see that Paul and others used the Scriptures to help others know about the good news of Jesus.
2 And Paul went in, as was his custom, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures, 3 explaining and proving that it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead, and saying, “This Jesus, whom I proclaim to you, is the Christ.”
Conclusion: Who do you want to reach? Who do you feel that Christ has laid on your heart and mind to share the good news with? Will you even now begin to pray for those people? Take time to study God’s Word so that you can be prepared to share His Good word with them. And remember that it will ultimately be the Lord who will convict them of their sin, so trust Him.
30 The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life,
and whoever captures souls is wise.
The Legacy Standard Bible says, “And he who is wise wins souls.”