“EFFECTIVE EVANGELISM”?
“So, as much as in me is, I am ready to preach the gospel to you that are at Rome also.” Romans 1:15
We live in days where we seem to be showered with ‘How To’ books on how to be effective in evangelism, or how to see more growth in the church, or how to see more results from ‘outreach’. Christian bookshops seem to have their shelves filled with such titles as “Effective Evangelism” or “10 Steps to a Successful Church”, or “Dynamic Church Growth Methods”. Glossy books written by friendly ‘with it’ pastors, of full and vibrant congregations, aim to provide us with the all the advice we could need on how to get our message right, how to put it across effectively, how long sermons should be, how short sermons should be, whether we should have sermons at all, what language we should be using, what visual aids are needed, how to appeal to the young, the old, the short and the tall. With an ever-changing, constantly-updating, moving-with-the-times package of proposals and methods, such books, videos, courses and seminars attempt to ensure that Evangelicalism remains up to date, fresh, vibrant and ‘relevant’, and, most importantly of all it seems, that the congregations are filled, by whatever means it takes, with enthusiastic worshippers, keen to embrace such methods and through demonstration of their success encourage yet more sales.
What merit there may be in some of these books, it has to be said that more often than not, what is conspicuous by its absence is a strong emphasis on the centrality of the preaching of God’s word in all its truth. There is no doubt that the systems themselves can be very effective at filling congregations. Likewise the underlying wisdom behind them, and the methods employed, have a proven track record in many fields, especially in the arenas of business and marketing upon which so many of these ideas are modelled. If you wish to fill a meeting with enthusiastic people, keen to be in each other’s company, happy to gather to ‘worship’ a god who promises them much, especially in this life, then there are many effective ways and means of achieving that aim. I’ve seen it done several times.
However, to see sinners, “dead in trespasses and sins”, brought to conviction of their sin before a Holy God who holds their eternal destiny in His hands, to see them brought to the point of crying out for mercy and salvation from the only One who can save them, to see them born again by the mighty inworking of God the Holy Spirit in their souls, to see them delivered from death and the darkness of sin into everlasting life and light in Jesus Christ, to see them gathered in amongst God’s people as One Body united in Christ, as one people who worship “in spirit and in truth”, requires a very different method, a very different power and a very different message from that espoused by the sort of books I’ve just described. In Romans chapter 1 the Apostle Paul sets forth clearly his absolute and confident assurance in that which God has given as His one means of achieving “effective evangelism”. There Paul declares:-
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith” Romans 1:16-17.
Yes, Paul was not ashamed of the gospel of Christ. It is that gospel, that evangel, which he preached (evangelised) at Rome, at Corinth, at Ephesus, at Galatia. It is that which he preached to the Colossians, the Thessalonians, and the Philippians. It is that which he preached to both Jew and Greek. And it is that by which God saved His people, adding them to the church, building the church, and sustaining the church. Why? Because it is the power of God unto salvation. It is effective. It works! It saves! It is God’s means of saving His people and building His church… and nothing else is.
Hence Paul could write in 1 Corinthians 1:18-21 “For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God. For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent. Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.”
Whilst the ‘How To’ guides may effectively propose an evangelism without an evangel, whilst such guides may point us to any and every method of ‘evangelising’, other than the plain, simple preaching of the gospel, the evangel of Christ, whilst they may demonstrate that their authors are, in fact, ashamed of the gospel of Christ, Paul wasn’t. For Paul knew that the only thing which is effective in saving the souls of sinners is the preaching of the gospel of Christ. Why? Because it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth. And whilst professing churches may, in their wisdom, in their prudence, effectively shut their ears to both the message of the gospel and to those whom God sends to preach it, may God yet be pleased to give us grace to see that there is no power on earth as effective as the preaching of the gospel of Christ, that IT and IT alone is the power of God unto salvation, and to gladly receive and open our ears to both God’s message and His messengers and be fervent in prayer that God would continue to open doors for His glorious Gospel of salvation to be preached in power, in the Spirit, in this day and age, to the saving of souls, the building up of God’s church and to the praise and glory of His Name for evermore.
Amen.
“Withal praying also for us, that God would open unto us a door of utterance, to speak the mystery of Christ” Colossians 4:3.
“But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them. For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus’ sake. For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.” 2 Corinthians 4:3-7
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Very good!!! i believe that the NT in its entirty is about the gospel (of Gods grace)….that is the “thing” Paul continues to preach, his goal was that this would be what the church was built on, pure and simple…making it his life’s goal to keep this plain and simple message free from perversion, confusion and legalism….