A SAMPLE OF ENDORESMENTS The following are some of the endorsements for Julian’s 900+ page book called Evangelism: Strategies from Heaven In the War for Souls. Some people are daunted by such a big book so Julian made a small book out of each chapter of the 900+ page book. What you are about to read is just one of the chapters of the larger work.
David Cole, YWAM Campaigns Asia/Pacific Board of Regents Chairman University of the Nations.
“This book is one of the most in depth looks at what Evangelism really is (and what it isn’t) that I believe has been written in the last century. I have been so inspired in my own calling through its content and often use it as a text book for teaching and imparting to young leaders in YWAM training courses as well as throughout other parts of the Body of Christ. Thank you Julian not only for such a valuable resource as well as for modeling the outworking of its content in your own life over the past few decades.”
Pastor Mike Smith, Melbourne, Australia
“An incredible book that all pastors should read. I have been a Christian for 28 years and a pastor for many years, and when I picked up this book, I thought, I doubt this will teach me anything new about evangelism. I was so wrong. It has revolutionised my thinking. This is an incredible book that all pastors should read.”
Grant Buchanan LLB, B.Com, Auckland
“The best book I have ever read. I am a solicitor (54) and a partner in a law practice. I unhesitatingly give my endorsement for Julian s book. Indeed, I would rate it as the best book that I have ever read!” Grant Buchanan LLB, B.Com, Auckland
Michael Angulo, Pastor and Church Leader
“Truly a work of Ministerial art. I really like this book and every true evangelist will love it also. YOU ARE NOT GOING TO PUT IT DOWN, BUT WILL BE THINKING WHEN YOU ARE GOING TO READ IT AGAIN! A truly very well written book with good retrospective learning ideas. No true evangelist should be without this book. It is worth what it is worth and it will catapult you into great, deliberate PROVEN, ministry approach. Great book and I highly recommend it. Get this one, you won’t be disappointed!”
Julian Batchelor, M.ed (Hons), B.Th, Dip.T’Ching
EVANGELISM REDEFINED? SIX SUBTLE YET DEVASTATING REDEFINITIONS OF ‘EVANGELISM
Copyright Julian Batchelor, 2017 Evangelism Strategies International Press Auckland New Zealand
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Acknowledgements I owe a lot of thanks to a lot of people for the production of this Mini Series: Sheryl Kampenhout, who transferred a mountain of material from Power Point shows into Word documents and who served and encouraged me in such a loving and kind way; to Matthew Old, a faithful friend and fellow evangelist, who has been a Barnabas. He reached out his hands when the hills seemed steepest, loved me in spite of my failures, stimulated me with his sharp mind, and made me laugh when I wanted to cry; to Janice Teo, and her intercessory prayer team who are as vital to the ministry I direct as the heart is to the body; to the team of editors, including Ken Francis and Julie Belding; to all the financial supporters who have given so generously to me over the years. I especially want to thank Paul and Tina Richards, of Club Physical, owners of a gymnasium chain in Auckland, New Zealand, and Derek van Beynen, who have faithfully sponsored my ministry for over a decade. Few people have the privilege of being able to leave secular work to write and produce resources to further the cause of the evangelisation of the world, and to motivate and equip the Church to do the same. You, and all my other financial supporters, have made this possible; to those I live with who have not seen me for years because I have been locked away in my office writing, I give my sincere thanks. Special thanks to Neil Pollock. To Jenny Windeyer, the graphic artist, who designed the cover of the original 800 page book (which we’ve turned into this Mini Series), and to Jenny’s husband Drew for going beyond the call of duty so that Jenny could focus on this project; to faithful Bernie Anderson who has sacrificed and given way beyond what a leader would expect of a dedicated co-worker; to Eleanor Goodall and Sue and George Jeffrey who epitomise love and true friendship; to the team at ESI for keeping all the various aspects of the evangelism ministry moving forwards whilst I directed most of my time to write this Mini Book Series; for Dr Martyn Bowis who did all the programming for the electronic version of the gospel called “Proclaim it!”; for Henoch Kloosterboeror for producing all the brilliant
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drawings; Dr David Stewart, retired Principal of the Bible College of New Zealand for nearly two decades of encouragement and mentoring; Denise James and Anne Bartley, staff at the Bible College of New Zealand for helping with research; all those who have helped proof read the manuscript and given comment, particularly Dr Marie Sewell, Gill Donald, Gill Lukey, Donna Hansen, Ainslie Vines, Ann Hunter, and Miriam and Ted Martin; to the academic staff of the Bible College of New Zealand for giving me a grounding in theology; for all those who have given financially and sacrificially to pay for specific aspects of the publishing of this Mini Book Series; for my friend Ray Comfort, for his inspiration and encouragement. There are few evangelists today who have journeyed on the road of trial and tribulation to achieve breakthrough as Ray Comfort. For John Stott, the academic evangelist for his coaching and input via his many books. For all the people who we have trained in evangelism around the world who are out there doing it – you are the heroes in the battle for souls; for the many hundreds of pastors, leaders, and lay Christians around the globe who have contributed to my life as a Christian, and to this Mini Book Series; and finally, I thank Jesus Christ, whose amazing grace and love has inspired and kept me. All the revelations in this Mini Book Library about evangelism and the gospel were given by Him – to Him be all the glory.
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How To Read The Mini Books In This Library This Mini Book is one of a Library of 27 Mini Books. The Library is a detailed critique of the battle between light and darkness which is relentlessly raging all over the earth for the souls of men and women. The insights and revelations in each Mini Book are hierarchical i.e. Mini Book Two builds upon Mini Book One, Mini Book Three upon Mini Books One and Two, and so on. Hence, the ideal is to try and read all the Mini Books in the library in sequence. If you skip Mini Books, or even parts of Mini Books, you might miss something vital, and open yourself to misunderstanding or even defeat. Having said this, after you have read Mini Books One to Seven, which are the foundational books in the Library, each Mini Book is designed to stand alone. So, read Books One to Seven first. This is essential. With respect to evangelism, if you follow the advice I am giving here in the pages of each Mini Book, you’ll position yourself perfectly to be used by the Holy Spirit to glorify Jesus in ways you’d not imagined possible. How so? Read the 27 Mini Books in the library and find out. Along with Mini Books 1-7, I suggest you also purchase Mini Book 27, which is the “Evangelism Fitness Test.” This is a diagnostic survey which will tell you the extent to which you have been unwittingly influenced by the devil with respect to evangelism. Sit this test before you read anything. Then do the same test again after you have read all the Mini Books to check to see if all his devices have been thoroughly purged from your mind!
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Evangelism Redefined? Six Subtle Yet Devastating Redefinitions of ‘Evangelism’
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EVICE # 6 To blur the distinction in the minds of Christians between normal and non-normal evangelism…
This one is a subtle device. Let me explain. Sometimes God has revealed Himself to people outside of any human contact, supernaturally and mystically infusing them with the gospel message, and they have been genuinely saved. All Christian scholars would agree God can use many different means to draw people to Himself: a dream, a vision, a sunset, a number plate, a flower, a crisis, a testimony, a certain word written with chalk on the footpath. Recently I heard a Christian talking about a woman in a Muslim country who was saved by Jesus when He appeared at the end of her bed one night and gave her the gospel.1 “She was saved!” said the speaker. “God can save people when and how He likes. After all, doesn’t the Bible say ‘He is the Lord of the harvest?’” The inference given is that we don’t have to do evangelism personally. God will do it for us. The hallmark of the devil is that he mixes truth with error so that we will not detect the error. It’s true that Jesus is the Lord of the harvest and it’s true that He 1 Steve Beard. Visions Of The Living Christ. Good News Magazine, 1996, http://www.christianword.org/ revival/visions.htm
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save people when and how He likes. All true. But it’s not true that these facts relieve us of our personal responsibility to evangelise. The salvation of the Muslim woman is an example of “nonnormal” evangelism and we ought to rejoice in such works of grace. But the Christian who described it has, by subtle inference, unwittingly undermined God’s will to evangelise the world. We are commanded to be busy about the normal: “Go into all the world and preach the gospel” (Mark 16:15). The realm of the exception belongs to God alone. We would be foolish to base our evangelism strategies for reaching the lost on unusual experiences and stories rather than on the clear teaching of the New Testament. For example, Jesus did not say “Go into the world and pray for non-Christians to watch a sunset,” or “Go into the world and encourage non-Christians to lie on their beds and wait for a vision from Me” or “Go into the world pray for the lost that they might be saved. Don’t worry about going to them with the gospel.” Christians who confuse normal, routine evangelism with non-normal, exceptional evangelism, are unwittingly aligning themselves with an enemy who wants to hinder our efforts to evangelise the world.
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EVICE # 7 To manipulate Christians into viewing the task of evangelising the world as a team event where only one or two members in the team actually evangelise…
This is another subtle attack on our forces in the war for souls. Working as a team is a Biblical concept and no right thinking person would deny that to win the world we are going to have to work as a team. However, if we communicate to the people in our church that “evangelism is a team event and everyone in the church is playing their part,” this can subtly undermine 8
evangelism. How? Since everyone in the church is part of “the team,” and the team is winning souls, some who are not doing evangelism have been subtly led to believe they are playing their part in the evangelisation of the world by supporting someone else in the team who is actually doing evangelism i.e. with this device, they come in error to believe that as long as they are supporting someone who is doing evangelism, they are off the hook, relieved of their duty to do it personally. It is more accurate to say the process of drawing non-Christians to Christ is a team event2 rather than the evangelisation of the world is a team event. Let me explain the difference. A church elder once said: “I accept that evangelism is not a process. The Great Commission is the process and within that process we must proclaim the gospel. In my church, however, there are a lot of people who would struggle to verbalise the gospel, through lack of confidence, being inarticulate, fearful or whatever. But they really want to see people won to Christ. So we operate as a unit. People bring their friends to church and I preach a loving and complete gospel. Others take out food parcels or run outreach events and I (or one of our leaders) visit the people and give them the gospel. So in our church we work ‘the process.’ Everyone does what they are able, and everyone celebrates when someone comes to Christ. For us, the mandate to go into the world and proclaim the gospel is fulfilled by working together. Where in the Bible does it say the mandate was given to every individual separately? I believe it was given to the Church as a whole and can be worked that way.”3 This argument sounds reasonable but it’s not Biblical. As is usually the case with the enemy’s devices, truth and error are mixed. The truth is that people within churches do and should 2
I discuss this in detail in Mini Book Eleven.
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The elder was from a Baptist church in New Zealand.
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work as a team to draw people to Christ (the process), with each person’s gifting, talents and resources contributing. The concept of working as a team to evangelise the world is thoroughly Biblical and no right thinking person would argue otherwise. But defining “the evangelisation of the world as a team event where only one or two members of the team do evangelism” is not Biblical. For example, Jesus did not say “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel (p.s) I am only meaning those with the gift.” When Jesus sent out the 72 in Luke Chapter 10, He did not say “Right, you 10 stay here in Jerusalem and prepare food. You 15 go and get jobs to finance the mission. You 20 stay back and do maintenance work on the buildings at the base and make the gardens look nice. You 20 stay here at the base and pray. You 7 go out to the villages around here and evangelise.” No. When Jesus sent out the 72 He sent all of them out to evangelise. And since we are all His disciples today, He sends all of us as well. I discuss the universality of the command in Mini Book Eight of the series.4 Don’t be satisfied with seeing only one or two members of your church mobilised for evangelism. Heaven’s Plan A is to relentlessly attempt to mobilise 100% of the people in every church to be personally active. This is how it was in the Early Church and to this level of obedience we must return. Any plan or strategy which attempts anything less than the 4 In Mini Book Eight, I point out that the extent and level of proclamation will vary considerably between church members in a typical church. Some will be avid, natural proclaimers because of supernatural gifting. The avid proclaimers are usually people with the Ephesians 4:11-12 gift of evangelism. Some members of church don’t have ‘the gift’ of evangelism, but they love Jesus and are being obedient to His command to evangelise. Others in the Church, because of physical or mental disabilities, or age, may never get beyond spreading the gospel through tracts or www.Biblein11.cards. Some may be bed ridden and unable to either proclaim or spread the gospel. Their valuable contribution to the evangelisation of the world may be to pray for those who are evangelising or finance the work. The key point is that we should all take evangelism seriously and that those who can evangelise should.
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mobilisation of everyone will always be something other than God’s Plan A. To be blunt, it is outright compromise. But defining “the evangelisation of the world as a team event where only one or two members of the team do evangelism” is not only unBiblical, it can also lead to deception. For example, those in the team who are not spreading or proclaiming the gospel may think they are evangelising because they are playing a small part in the Church’s overall scheme to evangelise the world. Take the Alpha course for example. Through an Alpha course, the gospel is proclaimed “bit by bit” over ten weeks so evangelism is taking place. However, those in a local church administering the course could not say they are personally evangelising because it is Nicky Gumbel via a DVD who is proclaiming the gospel. et’s be clear about this.... Having people believe that they are in some way evangelising by making cups of tea at Alpha for someone who is doing the evangelism (i.e. Nicky Gumbel) is a terrific result for the enemy. Why? Because with the idea that “the evangelisation of the world is a team event where only one or two members actually evangelise” not only will fewer non-Christians get to hear or read the gospel but fewer Christians will reap the benefits of maturing and growing in their walk with Jesus which comes through being personally active in evangelism. This is not to say the contribution of anyone supporting evangelism has no merit. God forbid. We desperately need people to support the evangelisation of the world through finance, prayer, good works and a host of other behaviours. The Biblical mandate is to both support the evangelisation of the world and do evangelism personally.
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How should we summarise our discussion about this device? The idea that “the evangelisation of the world is a team event where only one or two members actually evangelise” is not a Biblical one. It’s heresy. Each of us needs to honestly ask the Lord how He would like us to be involved, whether by giving out gospel booklets or www. Biblein11.com cards, or by verbalising the gospel with friends, family, neighbours, work-mates, fellow students or strangers.5 With the revolutionary tools God has given us, and the power of the internet and technology, there is absolutely no reason now why virtually anyone could not make evangelising a habit for life.6
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EVICE # 8 To blur the distinction between “sharing your faith” and proclaiming the gospel…
There are many ways we can “share our faith.” We can testify to God’s work in our lives, answer questions about the faith, point people towards God by serving them, invite people to events at church, live lives of integrity and love, and so on. The enemy has deceived many Christians into believing that if they share their faith in any of these ways they are evangelising. Granted, the behaviours I have just mentioned might include sharing the gospel (that is, if the gospel is interweaved as we go about doing these things). But Biblically, no evangelism has taken place unless the gospel has been proclaimed or spread. One major denomination recently defined evangelism for its members. One of its resolutions read as follows: “[We resolve]… that every lay person, bishop, priest and deacon of our church exercises personal evangelism by talking intentionally about 5 Eventually all of us need to go to strangers if we want to evangelise the whole earth, because there are just too few Christians and too many non-Christians. If we all restrict our evangelism to people we know, the Great Commission will falter. 6
To know what these tools and strategies are, please write to me: julian@esisite.com
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what God is doing in our lives and what our church is doing, and by inviting neighbours, family and friends to worship with us.” Intentionally testifying about what God is doing in our lives and about what our church is doing does not constitute evangelism. The only way ‘sharing one’s faith’ is evangelism, is when we are doing evangelism!
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EVICE # 9 Have us misinterpret Matthew 24:14…
“And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come” (Matthew 24:14). In this verse of Scripture the word ‘nations’ comes from the Greek word ethnos. This word means ‘people groups.’ The enemy has caused some Christians to interpret this Scripture to mean that all we have to do before Jesus returns is preach the gospel to every people group on earth and when an indigenous church is established in each group, our mission is complete. i.e. we don’t have to go on to proclaim the gospel to every person in every people group. hat are we to make of this interpretation? To unravel this misunderstanding, I need to define three important terms: the reach task, the evangelism task, and the discipleship task.
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1. The Reach task: We are to make contact with every people group7 on earth and communicate the gospel to them. When some people are saved in the group, sufficient numbers to start an indigenous church, we can say that people group has been reached. Our first priority is to ‘reach’ every people group in the world like this i.e. to reach every people group with the gospel and start a church in each group.
7 No matter how we define “people group,” www.joshuaproject.net shows how many people groups we have yet to reach and how far we are from fulfilling the Great Commission.
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2. The Evangelism task: When every person in every people group has heard and understood the gospel, our world will have been evangelised. The evangelisation of the world is our second priority. Pivotal to (1) and (2) is evangelism. 3. The Discipleship task: Matthew 28:19 says “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations.” Those who are saved in each people group must be discipled. And why are we commanded to make disciples? So we have more disciples burning with passion and zeal to help complete the Reach and Evangelism tasks.
But what is the curriculum of most discipleship programs in most churches today? Is it not to teach people a little bit of everything, with nothing dominating? i.e a Spiritual smorgasbord? Sadly, this is true. Often the centre piece of Jesus’ discipleship curriculum that of teaching disciples how to evangelise the world - is missing. Sadly, this is true too. Please listen to me here - any discipleship program which does not major on teaching disciples how to evangelise the world, and maintain the momentum, is not a truly New Testament discipleship program. Why? Because it’s missing the whole point of why we are making disciples. And, dare I ask the question again, what’s the point? So that we have more disciples to evangelise the world8. That is to say, disciples who are are willing, able, and zealous to complete the Reach and Evangelism tasks. This is the point! If you are a church leader reading this, I urge you to do a serious audit of your discipleship program to see if it’s truly Biblical. If it’s not, please, make the changes immediately and permanently. Please notice that the epicentre of (1), (2), and (3) is proclaiming or spreading the gospel. At the risk of repeating myself, this is why mobilising 100% of the people in our churches for evangelism ought to be the priority of every church, the centre-piece of every true and Biblical discipleship program. Sadly, I can’t name a church in the West where the evangelisation 8
How we know this is discussed in Mini Book Seven of the series.
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of the earth is the central feature. The vast majority have not even started to attempt 100% mobilisation. This is because their discipleship programs are horribly deficient. That is to say, those writing the discipleship curriculum have lost sight of the Mission of the Church. They have forgotten why they are making disciples, or maybe they have never known the Biblical reason. Take New Zealand as an example of a country made up of many people groups. We have been ‘reached’ because at least one church has been established within all the people groups who make up this country. Therefore, in a Biblical sense the Reach task is complete, but the Evangelism task has all but stopped. We have failed to go and evangelise everyone in every people group in our nation. ho says every individual in every people group must hear and understand the gospel? Internationally renowned Bible teacher and pastor Dr John Piper writes: “Most mission leaders define a people group as ‘reached’ when there is an indigenous church able to evangelise the group. This is because the New Testament clearly teaches that a people group must continue to be evangelised once the Reach task is complete.”9 The 229 signatories to The Gospel of Jesus Christ: An Evangelical Celebration, concur: “We affirm that the Church is commanded by God and is therefore under divine obligation to preach the gospel to every living person (Luke 24:47; Matthew 28:18-19).”10 Former Vice President of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association Dr Leighton Ford writes: “Our goal is nothing less than the penetration of the whole world [with the gospel]… [but] we are not promised that the whole world will believe. The
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Dr John Piper. Let The Nations Be Glad. The Supremacy of God in Missions. Baker books, 2003, p.194
10 R avi Zacharias et al. This We Believe. The Good News Of Jesus Christ For The World. Zondervan Publishing House, 2000, p.245
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evangelisation of the world does not mean all men will respond, but that all men will be given the opportunity to respond as they are confronted with [the gospel of] Christ.”11
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EVICE # 10 Mess up our definition of the word “witnessing”...
Acts 1:8 says “You shall be my witnesses.” Many Christians have come to think that “witnessing” simply means letting others know they are believers. They have come to believe in error that letting people know they are believers is to engage in evangelism. They might, for example: • Not mow their lawns on Sunday. • Not drink alcohol. • Not smoke. • Dress up on Sunday with a Bible under their arm. • Not dance. • Display a fish on their letterbox. • Ride a fish shaped bicycle. • Have a bumper sticker saying “Jesus loves you.” • Read a big Bible in a public place. • Use expressions like “Praise the Lord” or “God bless you” in conversation. • Smile permanently. Some of these behaviours could easily be exhibited by nonChristians. If so, would they then be ‘witnessing’ for Jesus? You know the answer. It is not difficult to see how this thinking would undermine our mission to evangelise the world. Christians who think they are evangelising by doing these things will not likely go on to proclaim or spread the gospel. Others think that when they show a Christ-like unifying love 11 C ited in: Dr Leighton Ford. The Christian Persuader. A New Look At Evangelism Today. Harper and Row, 1976, p.44
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for one another, it will be proof of their authenticity as followers of Jesus and that somehow this ‘proof’ constitutes engaging in evangelism. The trouble with this thought is that non-Christian sports clubs and hobby groups can demonstrate unifying love for one another. What makes their demonstration of love any different from ours? How would anyone looking on as we love one another know why they must be saved? How Jesus can save them? What they must do to be saved? The cost of being a disciple? The answer is they will never know. Not a show. These are the four crucial questions the gospel asks and answers. When Jesus said in John 13:35 “By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another” He was not meaning that this is all He wanted the non-Christian world to know about us! i.e. that we love each other and because we love each other, we are His disciples. God forbid! Loving one another is only step one in a series of steps. Step two is evangelising everyone who is watching us love one another. Many Christians have in error thought that all we need to do is focus on loving one another and that when we do this, somehow (miraculously) non-Christians will pour into our churches. What folly! When Jesus announced what He said in John 13:35, He was taking it for granted that His disciples would also be out and about in the world proclaiming the gospel, doing the priority. So what is ‘witnessing.’ The English word ‘witness’ comes from the Greek word martueo. Dr Michael Green explains its meaning: “It is primarily a legal term, and was frequently used in Greek to denote a witness to facts and events on one hand, and truths vouched for on the other.”12 What does this mean? If we are ‘witnessing for Christ’ we’ll be like a witness in a courtroom, telling the judge about the facts of 12 Dr Michael Green. Evangelism In The Early Church. Highland Books, 1970, p.83
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Jesus’ life e.g. His coming was prophesied; He was born of a virgin; He was fully man and fully God; He worked many miracles; He was crucified; He rose again etc. After we have given the facts, we’ll explain the meaning behind the facts e.g. He rose from the dead to prove He was God and to show that through Him we can be forgiven and beat death. After explaining the meaning of the facts, we’ll then vouch for Him i.e. we’ll give our testimony to explain the difference He has made in our life. There are many places where the root word ‘witness’ occurs in the New Testament. (e.g. Luke 24:48 “You are witnesses of these things”). We see this Biblical understanding of the concept of ‘witnessing’ lived out in the book of Acts. After Jesus announced in Acts 1:8 “you shall be my witnesses” the rest of the book literally overflows with accounts of believers proclaiming the gospel. Nowhere in this book is ‘witnessing’ equated with anything other than ‘proclaiming the gospel.’ So where did the idea come from that ‘witnessing’ means all these other things that I listed earlier? You know the answer - the enemy has sown this device into the Church. From this discussion I want you to see that ‘witnessing is much more than letting people know we are church-goers and exhibiting proofs. These activities are better categorised as ‘ploughing’ and ‘watering’ (see Mini Book Eleven) but they are not to be equated with ‘witnessing. What I want us to grasp here is that ‘witnessing’ and ‘evangelising’ are the same thing. If we let people know we are believers in some way, as I have described in this Mini Book, but do not proclaim the gospel or spread the gospel as we do so, we have not engaged in any evangelism.
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• N on-normal evangelism is seeing people come to Christ through things like visions and dreams. Normal evangelism is going into the world to either proclaim or spread the gospel. Jesus commanded us to be about the normal. • We need to work as a team to evangelise the world. • It has always been the plan of Jesus to have 100% of the team members engage personally in evangelism. No one on the team is exempt. • Attempting to mobilise anything less than 100% of the people in our church for evangelism is a compromise. • A person can share their faith and yet not be evangelising. If faith sharing is to be called evangelism, the gospel must be proclaimed or spread as part of the sharing of faith. • Jesus’ plan is to have us go to every people group in the world with the gospel and to establish an indiginous church in each people group. This is the Reach task of the Church. • When the Reach task is accomplished for a people group, that group can be said to have been ‘reached.’ • After a people group has been reached we are to ensure every other person in that people group hears and understands the gospel. This is the ‘Evangelism’ task of the Church. • The focus of all true Biblical discipleship programmes ought to be to equip people to complete the Reach and Evangelism tasks. This is why Jesus places such a great emphasis on ‘making disciples.’ He wants more disciples to complete the Reach and Evangelism tasks. The more disciples we have, the faster the job will be completed. • When the job is done, one of the major conditions for the return of Christ will have been completed. • The Mission of the Church is a combination of The Reach 19
• •
•
•
• •
• •
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task and The Evangelism Task. When all people groups have been reached and evangelised, the Great Commission can be said to have been completed. Most people groups in most Western countries have been reached, but the evangelism task has all but stopped. Thus the Great Commission has stalled in the West. This is because the discipleship programs in most churches in the West are deficient. They don’t major on personal evangelism. The reason they are deficient is that the leaders in these churches are not stopping to ask a crucial question: “Why are we discipling people?” The Biblical answer is “To evangelise the world for the glory of God.” To “witness” is to tell someone about the facts of the life of Jesus: his birth, life, death, and resurrection and then to relay the salvation significance of those facts e.g. When Jesus died on the cross He was taking the punishment we deserve for our sin and opening the way for forgiveness etc. Therefore ‘Witnessing’ and ‘evangelism’ are essentially the same thing. CTION POINT: You maybe asking “How can I help others come to an awareness of the serious issues raised in this book?” Email this Mini Book to everyone on your address book and encourage them to do the same. Send them a PDF file. If you are reading a hard copy, you can obtain a PDF copy by sending an email to julian@esisite.com. CTION POINT: Go to the leaders of your church. Ask them to make changes to their mission statement so that evangelism becomes central. Ask them to bring evangelism back to centre stage in the life of your church. Pray for them. Encourage them.
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In this Mini Book we have discussed some more of the devices of the enemy the aim of which is to confuse our understanding of ‘evangelism.’ Ultimately, all of these devices aim to put us off personally engaging in the task of evangelising the world. If to evangelise is to proclaim or spread the gospel, then what’s ‘the gospel’ ? In the next Mini Book I answer this crucial question. Who can forget the sobering warning of Paul in Galatians 1:8? “But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to that which we preached to you, let him be accursed.” To define ‘the gospel’ I undertook extensive research and visited Bible colleges and university libraries over a period of many years. I took what I was studying to prayer. Many scholars helped me in my work, and, in the next Mini Book in the series, I will share with you a summary of the precious truths I found.
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Real Life Story Out From Deception And Into Obedience
Hi, I am is a 41-year-old, middle-class, professional Australian woman who has been a Christian for most of my life. During my adult years I had no problem talking to people about God, but giving the gospel was another matter. I want to share my journey with you – discovering what evangelism is and realising I could actually do it. In December I attended an Evangelism Strategies International evangelism course purely out of courtesy. I felt obligated to go because a pastor had invited me, and I had reluctantly said I would try. It was certainly not by choice, nor was it my initial intention to attend as I had three other engagements scheduled for the day of the course. But, as it happened, all three things were subsequently cancelled. Looking back I can see God wanted me there. The speaker was from Evangelism Strategies International and it was a remarkable day. My eyes were opened to what 22
evangelism really is – and I discovered just how blind I had been to the truth. I would like to share a little of my journey in life prior to attending the course, because I think you may identify with me. I moved house numerous times in my early childhood, and one of the few advantages of doing so, was that I learned very quickly how to make conversation with strangers. So I have had no problem talking to people and telling them about the “God things” in my life. The majority of my nonChristian friends and people I worked with all knew I was a Christian. However – and here’s the catch – I would never intentionally share the gospel with anyone. Just the thought of doing so made me feel uncomfortable and awkward. On numerous occasions Luke 9:26 would come to mind: “For whoever is ashamed of me and my words…” However, out of uncertainty and fear, it was more convenient to ignore it. I also turned a blind eye to the command to “preach the gospel,” choosing instead to stick with what I was more comfortable and confident doing – having “God conversations.” For example, I would explain to my non-Christian colleagues how God had helped me with such and such, or intervened in impossible situations. I would report how God had healed an injury through prayer, where the medical profession had had no success, and so on. From talking to other Christians, I knew there were many people who 23
struggled to have these kinds of conversations with non-Christians. Quite frankly, I naively thought I was actually doing a pretty good job for God. Why wasn’t I sharing the gospel? How had I arrived at a place where I had justified to myself that I didn’t need to share the gospel? Well, first I didn’t feel confident about what I should say. I sincerely didn’t want to “let God down,” so I rationalised it was best to leave such things to the experts, people who “knew what they were doing.” In other words, I left it to pastors and evangelists. Secondly, I believed God would use my sharing “God things” to draw people closer to Him, and that, in due course, someone else (definitely not me) would share the gospel with them. I also had many preconceived ideas as to what non-Christians would think of me. I’m sure I am not the only person who has cringed seeing well intentioned Christians shoving the Bible down someone’s throat. I definitely did not want to be labelled as one of those! Besides, I believed non-Christians would be disinterested in hearing me share the gospel. I was sure people would say, “Everyone is entitled to their own views, and so who do you think you are trying to push your views on someone else?” The enemy certainly had me where he wanted me – silent. The evangelism seminar opened my eyes as to how deceived I was. 24
I realised, for the first time, that all these thoughts which prevented me from sharing the gospel had been planted in my mind over many years by the enemy. There must be thousands if not millions of Christians out there deceived into thinking, like I was, that they are doing a pretty good job for Jesus sharing the “God things” in their life with non-Christians, but not actually sharing the gospel. Listening to Julian’s teaching, I quickly realised what had been going on and who was behind the deception. This was a shock and a real eyeopener for me. I had been lulled into a false sense of security. I truly believe the resources developed by Evangelism Strategies International have been created for “such a time as this.” The teaching is revolutionary, and brings such freedom and the peace of God For example, when I found out that I was only responsible for sharing the gospel message with people and that it was not my responsibility to convert them, I felt as though a huge burden had been lifted from my shoulders. I didn’t realise the weight of it until it was gone. I am now passionate about helping other people to be released from this deception about evangelism. I believe awareness is the key to change. At the moment my aim is to try to share the gospel once a week with someone. To help me do this, I schedule sharing the gospel into my diary and have set up an accountability arrangement with a friend.
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She and I meet together once a week, then we go out individually and share the gospel. That sounds fine and dandy, doesn’t it? You need to know that at the start of the week, when I think about going out and sharing the gospel, I am encouraged because I know I’m being obedient and that it is the right thing to do. But on the morning of the day I’m scheduled to go out, certain thoughts – the ones which used to stop me – try to rear their ugly heads. “Why am I doing this?” “Can I even remember how to start?” Most often, I feel like I don’t want to go. But God is faithful and He helps me to recognise and demolish the thoughts which come from the enemy trying to put me off (2 Corinthians 10:3-5). I feel He gives me the courage and strength to go ahead and do it. After sharing the gospel I feel elated – the joy which comes from the knowledge that God has been made known to someone and that a seed has been planted which can change their eternal destiny. The Holy Spirit often gives me a powerful sense of His presence. I never cease to be amazed at the closeness that I can feel towards a person with whom I have spent only fifteen minutes sharing the gospel. It is hard to explain, but there is a kind of bond which seems to happen – one which does not happen with small talk. Someone said to me recently that the uneasy feeling I have before I 26
share the gospel will go away with practice and confidence. But I honestly believe I will always have that uneasiness, ensuring I have to rely on God to get me through. This is a good thing, as it means I am not doing it out of my own strength. Since the conference, I am actually regularly sharing the gospel with total strangers of my own volition, and this has become a vital, lifegiving habit. If I can do it, anyone can.
Julian’s comments.
Dianne is so honest about all the devices of the enemy she was carrying which caused her not to do evangelism. Once again, she is proof of the debilitating effects of the devil’s devices. She is also proof of the freeing effects of Biblical truth. But I am not surprised since Jesus said “The Truth shall set you free” (John 8:32). One of the keys to Dianne’s success is being accountable to someone else, and going out with someone else. But even this, the devil can manipulate and twist, turning it into a device. He can cause people to say to themselves “I can’t go today, because I don’t have anyone to go with.” Being accountable to others is crucial. Being dependent upon them is not. Jesus did a lot of evangelism on his own e.g. The Samaritan woman (John 4:1-42) and Nicodemus (John 3:1-21). In actual fact, I have found it best to do evangelism on my own. There are many reasons, not least of which is the fact that when there are two of you, and you were talking to one person, it’s a two on one situation, which can cause the non-Christian to feel threatened and over powered. You want to avoid this kind of situation at all costs.
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The Full List Of Books In ‘The Truth About Evangelism’ Mini Series Book One
Evangelism Lost! Exposing The True State Of Evangelism In Today’s Church
Book Two Seven Deadly Motives Exposing How The Enemy Is Shutting Down Evangelism.
Book Three
The Sorrowful Collapse Of The Great Commission- A Dangerous Redefining Of Evangelism
Book Four Evangelism Redefined? Six Subtle Yet Devastating Redefinitions Of Evangelism
Book Five Confusion Busters 7 Things You Should Know About The Gospel Message
Book Six
Six Ways To Move From Gospel Confusion To Gospel Clarity
Book Seven
The Evangelisation Of The World Is The Ulimate Purpose Of The Church. 7 Irrefutable Reasons It Is Time To Prioritise
Book Eight
A Gift, A Call, Or A Commission. Are All Christians Commanded To Evangelise
Book Nine
12 Keys To Fearless Evangelism In The 21St Century
Book Ten Take Them Down. 12 Road Blocks And How To Get Through Them
Book Eleven
The Key To Victory. Start Viewing Evangelism As An Event, Not A Process
Book Twelve
Confidence In The Gospel, Come Back! Four Essential Steps To Reclaiming Lost Ground!
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Book Thirteen Prepare To Be Amazed! What Jesus Really Taught About Evangelism!
Book Fourteen
What Leaders Must Do To Cause A Resurgence In World Evangelism
Book Fifteen
A Plan Of Action To Cause A Resurgence In World Evangelism
Book Sixteen
Church Leaders! This Is Your Time To Step Up! (Part 1)
Book Seventeen
Church Leaders! This Is Your Time To Step Up! (Part 2)
Book Eighteen
Church Leaders! This Is Your Time To Step Up! (Part 3)
Book Nineteen
Church Leaders! This Is Your Time To Step Up! (Part 4)
Book Twenty Church Leaders! This Is Your Time To Step Up! (Part 5)
Book Twenty One
Climb On Board! 4 Reasons Why Doing Evangelism Will Help Create A Better World!
Book Twenty Two
Devastation! How Pseudo-Conversions Hinder Evangelism And What You Can Do To Stop The Rot!
Book Twenty Three
“Friendship evangelism.” What’s good about it, and what’s heretical?
Book Twenty Four
Unholy Grief! Five Ways Evangelists With The Gift Can Grieve The Holy Spirit
Book Twenty Five
The Highest Motive For Doing Evangelism? You’ll Be Amazed What The Bible Teaches! Conclusion
Book Twenty Six Appendix One : If We Fail To Evangelise, We Fail. Period. By Dr K.P. Yohannan
Appendix Two : The Pastor Evangelist. By Dr. Roger S. Greenway
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Appendix Three : True Gospel Must Be Heard, By Kevyn Harris
Appendix Four : This We Believe Signatories
Appendix Five : Device 84. “I don’t like being told to do evangelism!”
Book Twenty Seven The Evangelism Fitness Test
To order, please visit Www.evangelismtruthbooks.com
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