Evangelism On Purpose by F. Joe Ellis    fjewt@purposeinstitute.com “You shall receive power after the Holy Ghost is come upon you and you shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem , and in all Judea, and in Samaria , and unto the uttermost parts (farthest points) of the earth”. (Acts 1:8 KJV)

Power… Witness… Farthest Points of the Earth… These are the very last recorded words spoken by Jesus to HIS apostles just before HE ascends back into heaven. This is not just a passionate goodbye to friends. Jesus is clearly identifying to HIS apostles what is most important to HIM, and why. The purpose of all of creation is summed up in these words. Jesus wants HIS young team of leaders to clearly understand… evangelism is to be more than a function of the church; it is the very purpose the church exists!

Power… on Purpose

From a doctrinal position, Acts 1:8 helps confirm four key points…

1.      The need to be filled with the Holy Ghost.
2.      Miraculous power is given to those who receive it.
3.      The Holy Ghost isn’t to be given to all believers until the day of Pentecost in Acts chapter two.
4.      Speaking with tongues is the initial evidence that power has been given.  

As important as this verse is to understanding the doctrine of the new birth, I would like to suggest that it is the purpose that Jesus is emphasizing, more than the power. With HIS words freshly resonating in their ears, the initial outpouring of the Holy Ghost in Jerusalem signals to the Apostles that the church is now born! This is the beginning that HE speaks of when HE appears to them right after the resurrection.

And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem . (Luke 24:47; see also Acts 11:15)

This is the dawning of a new day that the Apostles have been preparing for the past three and one half years. They know it is now time for them to mobilize their young church and pay what ever cost is necessary to take the whole gospel to the whole world. This is a new paradigm for them, one that is very much outside the box of their traditional Jewish upbringing. It is not an easy transition. Bigotry and national pride is deep in the very chore of their belief system. After all, with the exception of one trip to Samaria , Jesus only permits them to minister to the Jews during HIS three and one half years of earthly ministry. These days are now past, however, and a new day is born.

They are no longer a people with a two thousand year promise yet to be fulfilled. (Genesis 12:1-3) Neither were they simply a new religious movement that has just been endowed with supernatural power. They are the living breathing body of Jesus Christ on earth, commissioned with a clear mandate and purpose from God! This mandate of evangelism that starts in Jerusalem is not to stop until HIS return and the entire world evangelized. Jesus said…

·        You shall receive power…
·        You shall be witnesses unto me…
·        Take your power and your witness to the farthest points of the earth!  

To most people world evangelism is a big term that has very little personal relevance. Phrases like every nation, all nations, every creature, to the uttermost parts of the earth all seem so impersonal. Most people can never see themselves being directly involved in world evangelism outside of financial giving.

Without being over simplistic, let me make a point to you that maybe you have not considered before. Jesus is not standing in Columbus , Seattle , Washington DC , New York City , Amsterdam , Berlin , Mexico City, Sidney , Singapore , Bangkok , Nairobi , or Moscow when HE speaks these words to HIS apostles. He is only one half mile outside of the city of Jerusalem . So, unless I am missing something, anyone not living within the borders of Jerusalem , Judea, or Samaria lives in the uttermost parts of the earth that Jesus is speaking about! Does that help bring relevance to what Jesus is saying? Let me say it again… Evangelism is more than a function of the church--it IS the very purpose that the church exists! If you are a born again member of the church, evangelism is your primary purpose for existence!

Hindrances… to Evangelism

As we work through this very important subject of evangelism over the next few articles, it is our desire to not just give theory or concepts, but to offer some very practical helps. To do that however, it is also necessary to point out some of the things that hinder evangelism relative to this post modern age. Let me explain…

As mentioned in the very first article in this series, some of the most recent church growth statistics reveal that the smaller the church the busier their calendar is. In comparison, larger churches actually do fewer things. One of the things that I found interesting, however, was that even though each local church has its own unique style of ministry, there are three things that statistics prove all growing churches do in common, allowing nothing to be scheduled in their place. They are Intercessory Prayer, Personal Evangelism and Leadership Development. Since our discussion is evangelism, then that is what we will continue to focus upon. Consider the following questions…

1.      Could it be that something as simple as our schedule could be one of the primary hindrances to evangelism in today’s world?

2.      Is it possible that making some minor adjustments to our church calendar could make a major difference in how effective we are in evangelizing our cities?

I know, it sounds ridiculous. But before you stop reading, could I encourage you too read just a little farther?

The Challenge of Time

Ministry in the twenty first century has some very unique challenges facing it. None are more critical to its future and its ability to be relevant to this generation, however, than the challenge of time that we all face. For example, people coming into the church today often times have a more difficult time adapting to church life than the generations before them. (Probably the only exception to this would be during the times of persecution.)

The real reason for the difference is not a lack of desire or commitment; neither is it usually sin or doctrinal issues. Those have always been there. But the issues that are unique to this post modern age are mostly time and activity related. It is the challenge of adjusting an already overbooked personal schedule into a very packed and sometimes overbooked church schedule. This does not surprise you does it? It should not. Those in the church deal with the same challenge because we live in the same post modern world. It is just most of our activities are usually different... or should be anyway.

Never in the history of the world has there been so much stuff (good and bad) pulling at people’s time! As a result, most (including the church) have over scheduled their lives in an attempt to fit in a society that is out of control with self indulgence. I think it would be good for us all to note very carefully the warning that the Apostle gave us to identify the unique characteristics of the last days. Paul called them dangerous times…

This know also, that in the last days perilous (dangerous) times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, Traitors, heady, high minded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God.  2 Tim 3:1-4 (KJV)

I am not suggesting that we close the doors of our church to simply appease the world and its lust for pleasure. Neither am I suggesting that there is a simple solution. However, to ignore this ever growing dilemma and pretend that it is not a problem will not make it go away. We desperately need understanding of our times. Along with the understanding, however, we need to be willing to make whatever changes needed necessary to facilitate effective evangelism in this generation. One thing is for certain, the world is not going to change what it is doing to accommodate the church.

I am firmly convinced that most people sincerely want to be involved in the life of the church and fulfill their God given purpose. The need to put God first is not the question. What to cut out of their already packed schedule is the question. How do you fit one more thing into a week that is already overbooked? The church must have an answer for this ever growing challenge if it is going to effectively compete for the souls of men and women.

Four points concerning the will of God and time…

1.      God has given every person on the face of the earth the same amount of time, the difference is what we choose to do with it!

2.      God is not an idiot! HE is not going to ask us or the church we serve to do what HE is not going give us the time to do.

3.      There are really only two reasons why our calendar is overbooked…

·        We are trying to do things God is not asking us to do…

·        We are very poor managers of the time God has given too us… You choose!

4.      If God said do it, there will be time on the calendar to do it. We may need to cancel out some other things that we have already scheduled. Tough to do, I know!

Jim Collins in his book, “Good to Great” said that the most important list in our life is not our daily to do list… it is our daily NOT to do list! He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.

What Really Matters Most to God?

All local churches struggle to find free days open in their calendar! For example… the youth leader races to lock in dates for their Youth Explosion before the ladies president gets it for her Mother/Daughter Banquet… The Sunday School Director insists that this is the only Saturday open to change class decorations before the quarter ends, but the young married who make up eighty percent of the teachers already had that date scheduled to go to a retreat… and the beat goes on.

Pastors spend far too much time being a mediator between department leaders disputing (in a Christian way of course) over dates on the calendar, and who gets the people needed for those dates. Without question, the pressure over time and activities is one of the greatest growth restricting obstacles the church faces today.

What really matters most to God? Do you ever set your schedule with that question in mind? Quite honestly, unless that is a personal priority and a chore belief that is strictly enforced, the need to clear our calendars for evangelism will be nothing more than a discussion that we talk about at staff meetings. How important is evangelism to YOU?

I have found, giving people a correct answer to a question is not nearly as difficult as living the answer by my example. As a leader, I must know what really matters most to God. But more importantly, I must also be willing to clear off everything from my personal calendar, as well as the calendar of the church, that is restricting our primary reason for existence! Evangelism… on Purpose!

Let me recommend one action item to help you begin the process? Purchase the DVD or Video of Pastor Matt Maddix from Because of the Times 2005, and play it to your entire church during a Sunday Evening Service. The title of the message is Addicted to Evangelism. It is a must see! 

To be continued…  

 Home Page         Order Books Here             Order DVDs and CDs here