One of the foundational qualifications of a missionary is that they know how to share the Gospel. They are directly and incessantly thinking about and doing evangelism. Are you like that? Are you sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ? Are you showing, proclaiming, teaching, oozing the Gospel. If you want to be a missionary to unreached people, you MUST, MUST, MUST have passion, experience, and some skill in evangelizing the lost.
When I teach church planting, I establish that the bedrock of church planting is proclamational evangelism using the Word as the primary tool, source, and resource. It is Phase 1 of church planting which then never ends! Evangelism, a saturating sharing of the Gospel of Christ, must be a core culture of the burgeoning church, if it is ever to grow and multiply as Jesus intended. And it is modeled by the missionary.
Evangelism is not (only) a gift, reserved for those gifted with that particular gift. It is a command. It is a state of being "you will be My witnesses." You are; I am; believers ARE witnesses - whether effective or ineffective, "on" or "off," good or bad. Which are you?
Mostly it is a mind and heart-set, a decision to share the most important message you could share to people around who who need nothing more than they need the Gospel. It is the most loving thing you can do: -
You won't regret it!
Here are a few resource to inform & inspire you on the way:
Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God, J.I. Packer
Evangelism: How the Whole Church Speaks of Jesus, Mack Stiles
The Gospel and Personal Evangelism, Mark Dever
Bringing the Gospel Home: Witnessing to Family Members, Close Friends, and Others Who Know You Well, Randy Newman
Honest Evangelism, Rico Tice
When I teach church planting, I establish that the bedrock of church planting is proclamational evangelism using the Word as the primary tool, source, and resource. It is Phase 1 of church planting which then never ends! Evangelism, a saturating sharing of the Gospel of Christ, must be a core culture of the burgeoning church, if it is ever to grow and multiply as Jesus intended. And it is modeled by the missionary.
Evangelism is not (only) a gift, reserved for those gifted with that particular gift. It is a command. It is a state of being "you will be My witnesses." You are; I am; believers ARE witnesses - whether effective or ineffective, "on" or "off," good or bad. Which are you?
Mostly it is a mind and heart-set, a decision to share the most important message you could share to people around who who need nothing more than they need the Gospel. It is the most loving thing you can do: -
- Share the Gospel
- Use the Word in doing it
- Proclaim the truth of Jesus Christ: His life, death, and resurrection.
- Grow by experience in this fundamental skill needed on the mission field.
You won't regret it!
Here are a few resource to inform & inspire you on the way:
Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God, J.I. Packer
Evangelism: How the Whole Church Speaks of Jesus, Mack Stiles
The Gospel and Personal Evangelism, Mark Dever
Bringing the Gospel Home: Witnessing to Family Members, Close Friends, and Others Who Know You Well, Randy Newman
Honest Evangelism, Rico Tice