Foundations for Evangelism (Part 2)
Evangelism: The Why & How of Sharing the Gospel • Sermon • Submitted
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· 12 viewsA sermon discussing salvation and humanity's involvement in evangelism
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Foundations for Evangelism (Part 2)
Foundations for Evangelism (Part 2)
We will dive right into our discussion this morning with a brief recap of what we talked about last week.
Can anyone tell me what four words can be used to summarize the Gospel? God, man, Christ, and response
Gospel in a Nutshell
“God is holy, we are sinful, separated by our sin, Jesus died to bear God’s wrath on our behalf and gives us life as we repent and place our lifelong faith in Him.”—Kyle Cheatham
We talked about the essential components of the Gospel, and we noted that as we interact with people our expressions and presentations will vary depending upon the person, the time, and the place. We also referenced Romans chapters 1-4 as a helpful exposition of the key components of the Gospel (i.e., God, man, Christ, response).
In the second half of our time together we discussed God’s role in evangelism. We noted, with Paul in 1 Cor. 3:1-9, as well as a host of references from the book of Acts, that God is the one who saves people. While not diminishing our roles and responsibilities, it frees us from an unnecessary burden of results.
This morning we are looking at two considerations: What is salvation? and What is our role in evangelism?
I. What is salvation?
I. What is salvation?
While it is essential to understand the key components of the Gospel, it is also necessary that we understand what salvation is and what it is not.
Look at it like this. We have the Gospel, the message of how to be saved from one’s sins and to be made right in the eyes of God. It is axiomatically essential that we understand that message.
But what does it result in? Or, to put it another way, what happens when we present this glorious message?
If the Lord provides grace, then salvation is the result. What we will discuss in these moments will be what salvation is. Or, to borrow another word frequently used in church history, we will discuss conversion.
Conversion is the result of the Gospel message, under the power and regenerative power of the Holy Spirit in the life of an individual. Michael Lawrence wrote a book on the topic of Conversion, and his definition is presented in his chapter titles that I believer are quite helpful.
“New, Not Nice: The Necessity of Regeneration”
“Saved, Not Sincere: God’s Work, Not Ours”
“Disciples, Not Decisions: The Character of Our Response”
“Holy, Not Healed: Implications for the Christian Life”
“Distinct, Not Designed: Implications for the Corporate Life of the Church”
“Summon, Don’t Sell: Implications for Our Evangelism”
“Assess Before You Assure: Implications for Ministry”
One can readily see the difference between conversion according to the Scripture and the rather popular idea of “getting saved.” It is imperative, then, that we grasp what biblical salvation looks like in order to better fulfil the Great Commission our Lord Jesus has given.
Will Metzger describes the problem with a failure at this juncture, writing,
“Complacency in doctrinally orthodox churches regarding both the content of evangelism training and confusion on how to evaluate professions of faith lead to ‘Christians’ who are self-deceived and to a God who is dishonored.”—Will Metzger, Tell the Truth
One positive side to COVID19 is the fact that many “nominal” Christians have since left the church. In a way, it has been a healing blessing to the Church, because one of the harmful aspects of a “mixed multitude,” to borrow the term used in Exodus 12:38, is that the people of the world have a skewed vision of what the Church is.
But back to our examination of salvation. We must understand what salvation is. We need to remember that salvation means that we are new creations (2 Cor. 5:17). We are dead in trespasses in sins and we need to be brought back to life (John 3). Salvation, then, is a new birth.
But we delve into this question further by discussing from what, or from Whom, we are saved. We are saved from sin (Rom. 6-7). We are also saved from the wrath of God (Rev. 20). Michael Lawrence helps us again,
“The wrath of God, in short, is not the marginal concern of a few verses. It’s central to Christian worldview formation.”—Michael Lawrence
We are also saved by grace. One of the most frequently quoted passage in connection with salvation, and rightly so, is Ephesians 2:8-9,
For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God,
not a result of works, so that no one may boast.
We are not saved by works, by baptism, by good looks (amen!), by accomplishments, by any amount of wealth (much or none), or political party. We are saved completely by the grace of God.
We are also saved because God loves us. Consider that incredible thought: God loves me. Romans 5:8 is a remarkable verse demonstrating this truth:
but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Salvation, then, is a wonderful display of the love and grace of the Triune God. I would recommend reading through the London Baptist Confession of Faith chapters 6-18, which covers in biblical detail the fall, God’s work, and salvation as a whole.
That is salvation, briefly put. We often have confusion or misunderstandings when it comes to salvation and our work as a church and the topic of evangelism in particular.
What does this mean for us, in relation to evangelism? This takes us back to the four words: God, man, Christ, and response. It is essential to understand that, as without the gospel we cannot have salvation.
And we cannot have salvation without being saved from something. This is one of the detrimental aspects of modern evangelicalism. Consider these words, “It is my deep conviction that anybody can be won to Christ if you discover the key to his or her heart…it is sometimes difficult to discover. But the most likely place to start is with the person’s felt needs.”
Anyone want to take a guess who said that? Rick Warren from Saddleback Church in his book Purpose Driven Church.
When we think about our own engagements with evangelism, it is vital that we keep this understanding of salvation in our minds. We must not treat salvation as “making a decision.” It is a new creation, a life-changing, both present and eternal, act of God as the result of the sharing of the gospel.
This also factor into our practical discussions in sessions 4-6, too.
II. What is humanity’s role in evangelism?
II. What is humanity’s role in evangelism?
What is our role in evangelism? If God is responsible for regeneration, for the salvation of the individual, then what is our role?
Our role becomes clear in 1 Corinthians 3:1-9. Again, we noticed that the church at Corinth was fighting because of team identification (team Paul and team Apollos).
Paul focuses on the role of God, reminding the Corinthians that they were saved by God, not by Paul or by Apollos. However, while focusing on that, we cannot miss the truth that we are involved in that process.
Paul planted and Apollos watered. They did their part. They were “God’s fellow workers.” Our role, then, is to proclaim the Gospel with our lips and live the Gospel with our lives.
We will begin with our lives first. We must live the Gospel. Now, that is church lingo that often flies over our heads. What does it mean to live the Gospel?
First, it means living a life that is faithful to the Word of God. This is exactly what Jesus commanded His disciples in Matthew 28:20, “teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.” To live a gospel life is to live the way Jesus lived.
One of the remarkable aspects of that is that when we do so, as we learned last week from our passage in Philippians, we shine as lights in a dark world. Jesus tells us the same thing in Matt. 5:13-16
“You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet.
“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.
Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house.
In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.
That is what it means to live the gospel. Briefly, when we go about shopping and working and to appointments, we must keep this in mind. When we are driving through town or on 85, we must live the gospel. When we interact with people on social media we must live the gospel. When we engage in marriage, parenting, grand-parenting, singleness, etc. There is not one area in our lives in which we are not commanded and expected to live in accordance with the gospel.
Our other role, and as important as the first, is to faithfully present the gospel with our lips, as Will Metzger reminds us.
How do we do this? We will answer this question generally this morning.
We begin to share the gospel with our lips by communicating the Gospel. This seems axiomatic, but it needs to be said. We need to share the Gospel.
Since this is the introductory session that presents the main ideas, we will highlight the aspects of this as presented in 2 Cor. 5:20-21,
Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.
For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
Ambassadors are sent to do the will of their sending nation, representing their Leader. Our Leader, the Lord Jesus Christ, has sent us to proclaim His gospel. This reminds us of our calling, our purpose.
We are not here to serve ourselves. We are not here to build our kingdoms. We are called to live in a foreign nation (or, nations), representing the KING of kings.
Mack Stiles, in his book Evangelism, helps us understand this,
“We are Christ’s ambassadors. We are called to see people differently—to give up the human and worldly vision of others and to know and love them, understanding that they are lost sinners who need to be reconciled to God.”—Mack Stiles
As ambassadors we have the message from the King himself, “We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.”
We have the reason, “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”
So, as ambassadors, we should follow Paul’s advice to Timothy in 2 Timothy 2:22-26,
So flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart.
Have nothing to do with foolish, ignorant controversies; you know that they breed quarrels.
And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil,
correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth,
and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will.
We see what our role is through our lives (fleeing youthful passions, pursuing righteousness, faith, love, and peace, with the church). We are to avoid “foolish, ignorant controversies” and “be kind to everyone.” We correct them with gentleness, praying the entire time that God would grant them repentance.
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