Evangelizing is hard. Even the most devout Christians struggle with it from time to time. Especially in today’s society, trying to carry out The Great Commission is like pulling teeth. Just too many egg shells. However hard it may be though, it’s still a Christian’s duty to evangelize to the lost.
What does it mean to evangelize? How can we become better at it? Well, let’s study it out for a bit. The word “evangelist” is the Greek word euaggelistēs. It means “a bringer of good tidings”. So, an evangelist’s job is to bring the good news of Jesus Christ to the people of the word (cf. Matthew 28:19-20).
Often, the term is used in the New Testament in a restricted sense, equivalent to a gospel preacher or minister (cf. Acts 21:8; Eph. 4:11; 2 Tim. 4:5). In this sense, a woman cannot serve as an evangelist (1 Cor. 14:34; 1 Tim. 2:12). But, in a general use of the term, any person, male or female, who brings the gospel to others through various means, is an evangelist. And every Christian should be involved in spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ through evangelism.
There are many ways to evangelize, but before we open our mouths, we should always first pray about it. So many people forget about this simple step, but it truly is powerful. We should pray for the strength and courage to talk to others about our Lord.
Also worth noting, not everyone will respond positively and that’s OK. If they decline, all we are to do is move on to the next person. That’s it. It’s only our job to tell them about the Holy Spirit’s word that’s able to convict them of their sin and save their soul (Romans 1:16; James 1:21). God is the one to give the increase (cf. 1 Corinthians 3:7). We just have to plant the seed. They can either accept that conviction (cf. Acts 2:37) or deny it (cf. Acts 7:54). This goes for brethren who are erring as well as they could be lost, too (James 5:19-20). Remember, we shouldn’t hold anything back. After all, you wouldn’t refrain from telling others about a promotion you’ve acquired or a prize you’ve won. Why not tell others about the forgiveness you’d received when you became a Christian? Is that not better news?
This is how we can fulfill Jesus’ command of the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20; Mark 16:15-16). Sadly, today’s church is having trouble with it. According to a recent survey by the Barna group, a whopping 76% of churchgoers don’t even know what the Great Commission is. To me, this is extremely disheartening. How can we expect the church to grow if people don’t evangelize? And how can people evangelize if they aren’t even being taught to do so, let alone how to? When I heard this, I had to see how I could help our situation.
Just like everything else in life, the more we get out there and interact with people, the easier evangelizing becomes. Many are simply afraid to evangelize because it’s such a controversial topic, but I’ve found that the opposite is true. A lot more people are open to engage in a conversation once you get to know them. Sure, some people are radically outgoing, but for the most part, the best way to evangelize is with people you’ve already built relationships with. We just have to get the conversation started; but how? Sometimes you have to get creative so here are a few creative ways to start speaking to others about our Lord.
The first way is to simply write down things you would want to say to someone who is spiritually lost. These could be questions you would want to ask them or maybe some Christian evidences you would want to share with them. Once you’ve done that, turn those into what I would call “seed cards” (remember we’re only to plant seeds). For me, I just cut them into little pieces of paper about the size of a business card. Even tracts and pamphlets these days can get big and bulky. These seem to be the right size to hand out to people.
You could even leave them around town, too. Add the church’s information to it and it’s like you have your own business cards with the thought-provoking question or statement on one side and the contact info on the other. This also works for people who ask where you attend worship. Just pass them a seed card!
Another one I’ve been working on is somewhat of a holiday devotional. Here in America, we celebrate a ton of holidays. What I’ve found is that these are good opportunities to evangelize as well. Yes, this goes beyond Easter and Christmas, too. We could start with those, but what about one like Valentine’s Day? This holiday is all about love. Why not share with them the very source of love? God loved us so much that He gave us His Son to die for us. Jesus even said Himself, “Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.” (John 15:13). How much more love can you demonstrate than that?
Another holiday we could look at is, say, Halloween. For many, this is a frightening time. A lot of people dress up as ghosts, zombies, and demons. Well, the Bible talks about demons, too. The demons believe in Jesus, and tremble (James 2:19). While He was on this earth, they called Him things like “Son of the Most High God” (Luke 8:28), “Holy One of God” (Luke 4:34). They knew who Jesus was, and the ones we talk to can, too.
One last method we can look at is simply checking the time, or wherever numbers are being displayed. A game my family and I like to play is when the time displays the date of our birth, we’ll say happy birthday to each other. This can be done with Bible verses, too.
Let’s take a popular example. Say the time is ‘3:16’. You could tell someone about John 3:16. Or to try and make it a little harder, share with them 2 Timothy 3:16 and the Bible’s inspiration. Of course, these numbers are limited, but there are numerous options. If your favorite verse appears on a clock, share it aloud.
So, there you have it. Now, I want to make a point that these aren’t guaranteed to work but if we don’t do anything to share the gospel, they’re absolutely guaranteed not to work. These are just a few ideas that I’ve come across. What about you? If you have an idea, I’d love to hear it. Let us encourage one another to preach in every season (2 Timothy 4:2).
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