Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age. Matthew 28:19-20
The first thing we must do to fulfill the great commission is to evangelize. You can't make a disciple of Christ without telling others the good news of Christ. Of course not everyone is meant for this work. We are all meant for some kind of kingdom building work, but not everyone for evangelism. However, it is not hard to do, especially now with the internet. So here are a few of my ideas for effective evangelism and beyond.
Know your target audience
I don't mean that you have to know each person you evangelize personally, but it is good to know general stuff about the demographic you are trying to reach. In different cultures, certain words and actions are considered offensive. There's no reason to be more offensive than need be. Or if you're talking to a young person, making a Brady Bunch reference might not work too well. Paul, when he was talking to the Athenians, made reference to an inscription of theirs, because he knew that would connect with them. So it is always important to have a general knowledge of the people you're talking to, to be able to effectively convey the truth.
Be efficient
Sometimes people think its a good idea to focus on one or just a few people, befriend them and then share the gospel with them. They call it "relationship evangelism". I call it inefficient. Consider the parable of the sower and the seeds. He threw the seeds out indiscriminately and liberally. Some of the seed fell on good soil, but most of it fell on bad soil. Our tactic should be the same. We should throw out the gospel wherever, whenever and however works best. This is also why I like the use of internet. Social networking sites make it easy to evangelize efficiently. Try posting key verses on page walls. Or tag you friends in a note or picture that contains the gospel. Make friends with as many people as possible, or set up your own page to work from. Use Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and whatever else you can find. Reach people however you can and you are sure to get some, just like the good soil, that will want to hear more.
Be prepared
When you share the truth of Jesus Christ with people you are going to get objections. Learn as much apologetics as your time and head will allow. Know of resources that you can refer people to. Keep a list of good books. Put a list of urls to good websites on a document. Or maybe have sections of argumentation on documents that you can copy and paste. But the key is to use every advantage and be prepared for every bit of opposition. If an evangelist is an apologist also, and knows his stuff, he can breeze through the opposition, because then its not hard.
Have ambition and passion
Those who keep their eyes on the big picture - the finish line - will accomplish their mission. Always remember that your goal is a big one. There is no such thing as doing too much. There is no such thing as being too passionate about evangelism. Jesus says in Mark 8:38 that He will be ashamed of anyone who is ashamed of Him and His words. So just let go of any shame you have and go for it! Your destiny is heaven and the work you do is God's work, so what does it matter what people think? Just keep focused and commit yourself to God's kingdom.
And beyond
Always always make sure to connect people as much as possible. If the person or persons you're evangelizing take an interest, get them connected to as many Christian people/sources as possible. Follow up. Our goal is not simply to tell others about Jesus but to make disciples of Jesus. We must remember to follow the second part of the great commission, which is to teach them everything that Jesus commanded. Scripture posting, Bible studies, helpful resources and so on. Get them to like your page or become friends with other Christians. Get them connected to the Christian community as much as possible. Evangelism is only the beginning.
The first thing we must do to fulfill the great commission is to evangelize. You can't make a disciple of Christ without telling others the good news of Christ. Of course not everyone is meant for this work. We are all meant for some kind of kingdom building work, but not everyone for evangelism. However, it is not hard to do, especially now with the internet. So here are a few of my ideas for effective evangelism and beyond.
Know your target audience
I don't mean that you have to know each person you evangelize personally, but it is good to know general stuff about the demographic you are trying to reach. In different cultures, certain words and actions are considered offensive. There's no reason to be more offensive than need be. Or if you're talking to a young person, making a Brady Bunch reference might not work too well. Paul, when he was talking to the Athenians, made reference to an inscription of theirs, because he knew that would connect with them. So it is always important to have a general knowledge of the people you're talking to, to be able to effectively convey the truth.
Be efficient
Sometimes people think its a good idea to focus on one or just a few people, befriend them and then share the gospel with them. They call it "relationship evangelism". I call it inefficient. Consider the parable of the sower and the seeds. He threw the seeds out indiscriminately and liberally. Some of the seed fell on good soil, but most of it fell on bad soil. Our tactic should be the same. We should throw out the gospel wherever, whenever and however works best. This is also why I like the use of internet. Social networking sites make it easy to evangelize efficiently. Try posting key verses on page walls. Or tag you friends in a note or picture that contains the gospel. Make friends with as many people as possible, or set up your own page to work from. Use Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and whatever else you can find. Reach people however you can and you are sure to get some, just like the good soil, that will want to hear more.
Be prepared
When you share the truth of Jesus Christ with people you are going to get objections. Learn as much apologetics as your time and head will allow. Know of resources that you can refer people to. Keep a list of good books. Put a list of urls to good websites on a document. Or maybe have sections of argumentation on documents that you can copy and paste. But the key is to use every advantage and be prepared for every bit of opposition. If an evangelist is an apologist also, and knows his stuff, he can breeze through the opposition, because then its not hard.
Have ambition and passion
Those who keep their eyes on the big picture - the finish line - will accomplish their mission. Always remember that your goal is a big one. There is no such thing as doing too much. There is no such thing as being too passionate about evangelism. Jesus says in Mark 8:38 that He will be ashamed of anyone who is ashamed of Him and His words. So just let go of any shame you have and go for it! Your destiny is heaven and the work you do is God's work, so what does it matter what people think? Just keep focused and commit yourself to God's kingdom.
And beyond
Always always make sure to connect people as much as possible. If the person or persons you're evangelizing take an interest, get them connected to as many Christian people/sources as possible. Follow up. Our goal is not simply to tell others about Jesus but to make disciples of Jesus. We must remember to follow the second part of the great commission, which is to teach them everything that Jesus commanded. Scripture posting, Bible studies, helpful resources and so on. Get them to like your page or become friends with other Christians. Get them connected to the Christian community as much as possible. Evangelism is only the beginning.
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