THE EVANGELISTS
Messengers of The Good News
Ask yourself a question. Where would
you spend your eternity if you were to die today? Where would your loved ones
spend their eternity if they were to die today? I vividly remember that night
in October 1984 when an Evangelist asked this question at our Church’s youth
retreat. Where would I spend my eternity
if I were to die that night? I thought I would go to Heaven because I was a
good Christian and attended Church regularly. But the Holy Spirit convicted me
of my sins, and indeed, I was heading in the wrong direction to Hell if I had
not repented and accepted Jesus, the one who said, “I am the Way, the Truth,
and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (Jn 14:6).
That night, with tears in my eyes, I
went forward at that meeting, confessed my sins, and accepted Jesus as my
savior and Lord. Infact, Jesus accepted me as his son, forgiving all my sins.
That night changed my life completely, gave me a new purpose and focus to live,
and altered my eternal destiny. Since then, and even now, I can say with
certainty if I were to die today, I would be with Jesus in Heaven forever. I
don’t have the same confidence about the destiny of some of my loved ones and
friends. That saddens my heart and concerns me a lot.
As I speak, millions are heading in
the wrong direction, which the Bible calls the Broad Way, which leads to Hell.
They choose to be merry and enjoy life by satisfying their fleshly desires.
They think all there is to life is here and now and nothing beyond. Who would
tell them they are heading toward eternal destruction if they don’t change
direction?
Who would show them the way to
eternal life and a fulfilled life with joy and purpose here on Earth? If you
lived long in the USA, you may have heard the words Evangelical or Evangelical
Christians. There is so much baggage surrounding these words. Let’s break down
the two words. The Word Christian essentially means “follower of Christ.”
That was how the early followers of
Christ were identified (Acts 11:26). In the Greek Word, Evangelical means “good news.” An evangelical Christian is
a person dedicated to promoting the good news about Jesus Christ. He holds to
the inspiration, inerrancy, and authority of Scripture, the Trinity, the deity
of Christ, and salvation by grace through faith alone.
However, In Western culture today,
there is a misunderstanding of Evangelical Christians. For some, the term
evangelical Christian is equivalent to “right-wing, fundamentalist, and
hate-filled.” G. Campbell Morgan noted, “To call a
man evangelical who is not evangelistic is an utter contradiction.” This begs
us a question: Who are we? Are we Evangelicals or Evangelistic?
In reality, according
to the scriptures, all Christians are Evangelists. Our loyalty is not to a
leader or political party but to Christ our Lord. Our Ministry Gifts of Grace
series will examine how Jesus gifted the Evangelists to the Church today. Who
is an Evangelist? Is everyone an Evangelist? What is the work of an Evangelist,
and how can it be done effectively? Acts 8:1-8.
I.
The Evangelists: (Messengers of the Good News).
In Phil 4:10-1 “Now these are the
gifts Christ gave to the Church: The apostles, the prophets, the evangelists,
and the pastors and teachers.” Jesus gave these five ministry gifts of grace to
equip God’s people to do his work and build up the Church, the body of Christ.”
The Church of Christ is built on the
foundations of the teachings of the Apostles and Prophets. Let us see how it
multiplied and spread around the globe. The early Church comfortably assembled
in the Temple in Jerusalem. They were devoted to the apostles’ teachings,
worship, and prayer. They shared meals in each other homes with gladness. They
enjoyed the favor of all the people. In one sense, they were having a good
time.
They became complacent and had
forgotten their primary mission of taking the Good News to the ends of the
Earth until a wave of persecution swept over the Church in Jerusalem. When a
wave of persecution broke out except the apostles, all the believers (both men
and women) were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. Acts 8:4-5 reads,
“Those who had been scattered preached the Word wherever they went. Philip went
down to a city in Samaria and proclaimed the Messiah there. The Gospel began to
spread beyond Jerusalem.
The early Church grew and multiplied
through the apostles, prophets, and ordinary believers who proclaimed the
Messiah wherever they went. One such ordinary believer was Phi. There were two
Philips in the Bible; one was an apostle chosen by Christ himself (Mk 3:18),
and another was appointed by the Apostles (Acts 6:6). For our study, we are
talking about Philip, whom the Apostles appointed. What was the purpose of
Philip’s appointment?
The Apostles selected and set apart
Philip and seven others to distribute food to the widows. They were the first
Deacons to look after the felt needs of the early Church. They all had one
thing in common: they were known to be full of the Spirit and Wisdom. Philip
went out and preached the Word, and God confirmed the Word through signs and
wonders. As a result, they all paid close attention to what Philip said.
One beautiful characteristic of
Philip was “obedience.” He was obedient to the leading of the Holy Spirit. We
read from Acts 8:26-40 about Philip’s meeting and leading the Ethiopian eunuch
to believe in Jesus, which was traditionally the start of the Ethiopian Church.
Vs. 40, “Philip traveled about preaching the gospel in all the towns until he
reached Caesarea.” In later years, Philip lived in Caesarea with his four
daughters, who prophesied, where he was visited by Paul the Apostle (Acts
21:8–9). An Evangelist is the Messenger of the Good News.
We are given the good news in a
world with so much sad and bad news. The Good News is that God gave His only
son because of His love for the world. Anyone who believes in Jesus will live
forever in Heaven. Jesus offers eternal hope and restores peace and joy to all
people.
II.
Becoming Effective Messengers of the Good News.
When we think of Evangelists and
Evangelism, we envision people like Billy Graham, large events in Stadiums,
flashing lights, music bands, etc. We shrink back from sharing God’s love with
people all together. A few principles might help us become effective
Evangelists.
1. Continue to pray for the lost
souls. Jesus prayed for the unsaved people John 17:20. Timothy encourages us to
pray for all people because God wants all people to be saved. I Tim 2. Write
down the names of seven unsaved family and friends and pray for them regularly.
2. Invite unsaved family and friends
to church celebrations. Who knows, God might touch their hearts during such
events. Matthew, the tax collector, hosted a dinner for Jesus, for which he
invited many tax collectors and sinners (Matthew 9:9-11).
3. Be kind and loving to people who
are hurting. Jesus was kind and loving to people who were on the fringes of
society and were rejected by people (Samaritans, prostitutes, lepers, tax
collectors). He had a reputation for being a friend of sinners (Matthew 11:19).
4. Be caring to people. Four friends
brought their paralytic friend to Jesus, who healed and saved him from his
sins. (Mk 2:2-12). The early Christians shared their possessions with others in
need and took up collections during a famine in Jerusalem. (Acts 11:28-29)
5. Be sensitive to the promptings of
the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit will prove the world wrong about sin,
righteousness, and judgment. (John 16:8). Our convincing arguments will not
save people, but the conviction of the Holy Spirit will save them.
6.
Be obedient to your calling to preach. You may lead an entire city to
repentance as Jonah did through your obedience. (Jonah 4:11). 7. Put on the
Gospel shoes and be ready to be a messenger of the Good News of the Gospel. “How beautiful are the feet of those who
bring good news! (Romans 10:15). We sow the gospel seeds, and the Lord
will give the growth.
