Reaching All People Groups by Roberto Hodgson

Joining the Mission of Jesus: An Interview with Ed Stetzer

Recently Grace & Peace (G&P) talked with Ed Stetzer, a prolific author who serves as Billy Graham Distinguished Chair of Church, Mission, and Evangelism at Wheaton College and has spoken at events such as M19.

G&P: Can you tell us about your own journey regarding evangelism? STETZER: I didn’t grow up in a Christian home, and I never got over that fact, so part of what really consumes my passion is that men and women might hear and respond to the good news of the gospel. Early on, I expressed that passion through planting churches. I planted my first church in the inner city of Buffalo, New York. I was able to plant several churches that focused on evangelism and multiplication. A common thread throughout most of the books I’ve written has been becoming effective at reaching and engaging people for the gospel. I took the role at the Billy Graham Center so I could spend the next season of my ministry encouraging Christians to more effectively share the gospel.

G&P: What do you think about the state of evangelism in the USA/Canada? STETZER: I think that most Christians love evangelism as long as somebody else is doing it. There’s no mention of a “gift” of evangelism in the Bible. There’s the evangelist who’s gifted, but the evangelist’s job, according to Ephesians 4, is to equip God’s people. Many Christians have abdicated that role to pastors locally and to missionaries globally, when really, we are all called to share the gospel. G&P: How can pastors help churches recapture that zeal? STETZER: The writer of Hebrews says, “Provoke one another to love and good deeds.” I think it’s an equipping role. How do pastors equip people? You can’t lead what you won’t live. Pastors need to be evangelistic if they want evangelistic churches. Then, they can lead their congregations through seasons of evangelism training. There are various ways to do that, but basically pastors help people live out the mission of Christ.

Jesus said in John 20:21, “As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” If that’s the case, and He has sent us on mission, then our role is to say “yes” to Him and to go and tell the good news of the gospel.

G&P: How have approaches changed over the years? STETZER: The “how” of evangelism is in many ways determined by the who, when, and where of culture. A lot of Nazarenes had bus ministries in the ’70s. My guess is that few are using bus ministry today. The how has changed, but the call and the focus have not. We adapt our creativity so that we can continually join the mission of Christ.

G&P: How can we adapt our methods as culture changes? STETZER: One of the things you see in the New Testament is that Paul sets the model of evangelism. He built bridges of communication across cultures. He quotes Epicurean and Stoic philosophers and poets; at Lystra, he talks about nature and preaches the gospel from nature. At the Areopagus or Mars Hill, he talks about Jewish history. Paul looked for bridges across which the communication of the gospel could travel. So I think that’s the call we have. The bridges have changed, but the intent and the strategy have not.

G&P: What are some effective ways or outreach you have witnessed? STETZER: I love the idea that some people have really intentionally served others. I know some people put coins in all the laundry mats and have paid for everyone’s laundry. Or they paid people’s parking meters and left a little card to say why, or they invited people to special events and in doing so shared the gospel there. I know of some people who had a big game dinner and shared the gospel with a group of men that attended. There are many ways across ages and cultural groups.

G&P: Do we know how effective any of these creative approaches are? STETZER: Well, we don’t. We can do good deeds and not have evangelistic intent. But I think when you have good deeds and gospel proclamation, those things go beautifully together. There’s a quote floating around attributed to St. Francis of Assisi that says, “Preach the gospel at all times; if necessary use words.” But there are two problems with it. Number one, he never said it. And number two, it’s really bad theology. We need to preach the gospel using words. Our deeds often give us permission to say the words. Ultimately, I believe those two things together are a gospel opportunity.

G&P: What do you think successful evangelism looks like today? STETZER: I think successful evangelism today looks like it looked 2,000 years ago. Men and women respond to the gospel by grace and through faith. I think the tools to get there change. Justin Martyr’s

approach in the second century had very different approach than traveling preachers in the ’50s. And their approach was different than, say, missional incarnational church planters who are engaging arts communities in Indianapolis. This is normal and necessary.

G&P: How can a pastor or a church measure whether or not they’re effective? STETZER: We do want to count commitments to Christ and baptisms, but I think, ultimately, it’s more than just that. It’s not just nickels, noses, and numbers. How many people are living on mission in their context? How many people are intentionally building relational bridges with people who don’t know Jesus? I think all those things play into that. At the end of the day, I am still passionate to know how many people have responded to the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ. That’s still really important to me.