The Abundant Life

What sort of life do you want to live? Many people would respond to this question by saying something in the fashion of: “I want to live a good, fulfilling life that has meaning and purpose!” This would be a life that offered its share of challenges, no doubt, but would reward the person with a maximum of self-satisfaction, peace, love, and joy and a minimum of self-doubt, guilt, and despair. But where can you find this kind of life? Some in the world say that it can be found through the acquisition of much secular learning and study of philosophy. Others claim that it is reserved for the wealthy and the famous. Some will even maintain that it can be discovered only after completing some great deed or self-sacrificing work. Solomon, the wise king of Israel and son of David, searched for the meaning of life. Like many in the world, he thought it could be found in secular knowledge, wealth, pleasure, or work. He pursued the things in life that supposedly provided “meaning,” “peace of mind,” and “happiness” and discovered, to his great frustration and disappointment, that they all came up empty. They were all found wanting! Solomon could find neither meaning nor satisfaction in the pursuit of knowledge. Rather, he learned that: “For in much wisdom is much grief, And he who increases knowledge increases sorrow” (Ecclesiastes 1:18) [NKJV]. Neither could he find what he was looking for in wealth, possessions, pleasures, or great accomplishments. In Ecclesiastes 2:11, he reports: “Then I looked on all the works that my hands had done and on the labor in which I had toiled; And indeed all was vanity and grasping for the wind. There was no profit under the sun.”

Don’t we see this in the world today? People hope to find happiness and satisfaction in their quest for material wealth, fame, and notoriety and yet end up miserable and frustrated. They then turn to various things to ease their pain and disappointment. Sadly, their problems only get worse. They turn to drugs and become addicted. They turn to alcohol and become alcoholics. They may even bury themselves in their secular work and become “workaholics.” None of these things provide the answer.

Eventually, Solomon came to the correct and wise conclusion concerning the true meaning of life. He concluded that one’s true purpose was to: “Fear God and keep His commandments, For this is man’s all” (Ecclesiastes 12:13). God, our Creator, knows what is best for us and how we can have a life of happiness and fulfillment. We just need to recognize our Maker and obey His will. We need to follow His paths! Solomon’s earthly father, the psalmist David, stated it very well in Psalm 16:11, “You will show me the path of life; In your presence is fullness of joy; At your right hand are pleasures forevermore.”

In His great love, God gave us His Son Jesus Christ who came to this world to offer us salvation. Through Christ, and only through Him, can we have a proper relationship with God the Father and a life filled with true meaning and purpose (John 14:6). Christ offers us an “abundant” life. He states in John 10:10, “…I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.” This word “abundantly” is translated from the Greek term PERISSOS which means: “superabundant or …superior.” (1) In Christ, we do not just merely exist or survive. We live a better life, a happier life! We live a “superior” life of a quality that is so far above and so far exceeds anything that this sinful world can offer. And unlike many in this world, we know why we are here and how we are to properly live this life. Let us praise God for the wonderful blessing of His Son Jesus and the abundant life that we can have in Him!

References
(1) James Strong, A Concise Dictionary Of The Words In The Greek Testament, in Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance Of The Bible (Peabody, Massachusetts: Hendrickson Publishers, 1990), 57.  Used by permission.  All rights reserved.

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King Jesus

Scripturally speaking, the “church” and the “Kingdom” are synonyms for the same institution. Those today who refuse to accept, acknowledge, and respect the church of Christ (Romans 16:16), which is Christ’s Kingdom (Matthew 16:18-19), precisely as King Jesus established it through His handpicked apostles (John 14:15-23; Acts 2:1-4, 37-47; 2nd Peter 1:20-21; John 17:6-17) as recorded from Acts 2 through Revelation 22, are rebelling against what King Jesus Himself decreed, and thus against His Lordship and complete authority (Matthew 28:18-20; Colossians 1:11-23), and therefore, against the King Himself. (It is simply absurd to believe that it is possible to rebel outright against what any king has decreed, and still be considered as loyal to that king – see Daniel 3 & 6!) Their rejection of Christ’s divine decrees and all-out authority is extremely similar to what God’s Old Testament people desired and eventually did as recorded in 1st Samuel 8:4-19, and the end result for today’s rebellious children will be no less severe.

While Israel’s leadership (1st Samuel 8:4) wanted to be like “…all the other nations…” (vs. 5) around them, instead of following God’s established pattern (and thus honoring Him as God), any of today’s more liberal church of Christ leadership that wants to be like all the other denominations around them with instrumental music, expanded “in the assembly” female leadership roles, salvation supposedly occurring before and/or even without baptism, and fellowshipping the Biblically unimmersed and unsaved instead of lovingly and scripturally leading them to the Truth, have rejected Jesus Christ as their King just as surely as the Jews rejected God as their King (vs. 7). And all of them will suffer at the hands of the God they’ve rejected, in ways that we cannot even begin to imagine (vs. 18, also see 2nd Peter 2, Hebrews 10:26-31).

One of the key phrases utilized continually by today’s rebelling children, is how they “…just want to be followers of Jesus;” a statement which they seemingly have absolutely no clue about how to implement in their lives. They want the head (which is Christ), without the body, which is His church (Ephesians 1:22-23); and a headless body is dead no matter how you look at it! But what would you expect from a group of self-titled  “change agents,” when the Bible clearly and specifically says that neither God, His Son, nor His word are open to or subject to change of any kind (Malachi 3:6; Hebrews 13:8; Psalm 119:89)? That is probably why, for those who wish to stay faithful to almighty God, His only begotten Son, and His divinely-inspired Word, God goes so far as to even directly and divinely warn them to, “fear the Lord,” and to “not associate with those given to change; for their calamity will rise suddenly, and who knows the ruin [that] can bring” (Proverbs 24:21-22)? (For a very frightening, parallel, side by side comparison of the apostate leaders of Jeremiah’s day who were blatantly leading God’s people then astray, with our simply updated version of their modern-day counterparts and cousins today known as the “change-agents,” please see http://www.clevelandcoc.com/?page_id=148.

Scripturally, to truly follow Christ, one must walk as He did: 1st John 2:3-6. So, how did He walk?

-In obedience to God’s Commands (1 John 2:3).

-In obedience to God’s Truth (1 John 2:4; see also John 17:17).

-With God’s will as the one true sustenance and most important consideration in His life (John 4:31-34).

-Pleasing God instead of Himself (John 5:30).

-Doing God’s will (John 6:38) no matter the cost or consequences (Matthew 26:36-44).

-Teaching only what God decreed (John 7:16-18, 8:28-29; 2nd Peter 1:20-22; 2nd Timothy 3:16-4:4), exactly as God wanted (John 14:30-31).

Scripturally, that is precisely, exactly, and exclusively what those who are truly following Jesus are to do: Matthew 7:21-23, 12:50; Luke 12:47; John 14:15-23. For anyone to claim to follow Jesus, and yet teach anything other than what God decreed in His Word, or worse still, to teach those things which counteract and/or contradict any part of it, are, according to God Himself, “hypocrites,” “liars,” and “hypocritical liars”- God’s words, not mine: Matthew 15:7-9; John 8:42-47; 1st John 2:3-6; 1st Timothy 4:1-3. And God says that their worship is in vain; Matthew 15:3-14.

The questions we must answer are: Who is truly our King? Who are we really following? Who will be King in the congregation we currently serve in years to come? Who will our children be following when we’re gone?  We need to decide individually not only where we are, but where we’re going to be down the road. Will Jesus still be King in our congregations when we’re no longer around? Each one of us must personally accept the God-given responsibility to see that He is.

We also need to decide whether or not we truly have the Christian love, strength, and concern for any and all of our oft times zealous but sometimes still biblically ignorant and/or uninformed brethren (Romans 10:1-3), who are being unwittingly led astray by their own immediate religious leadership (Jeremiah, chapters 5 and 6, which are a must-see), to seek to help them back onto the straight and narrow (Matthew 7:13-23) if possible; because if we don’t have it, then we’d better question our own convictions and obedience, and repent (See Jude 12-19, which has to do with them; and then verses 20-23 which has to do with us).

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Islam, Pirates, and the Bhagwan

A Christian and a Muslim sit down and talk together. Both state that the other’s religion is a religion of violence. They both challenge one another to “prove it”. The Christian spends about 30 minutes citing news report after news report over the last month chronicling Muslim violence. He then spends another 30 minutes citing verses from the Quran, Muslim clerics, and Sharia law which encourage violence. He then offers to provide videos and books from former Muslim’s and historians about the atrocities formerly and currently committed by the authority of Islam. The Christian then turns the discussion over to the Muslim. The Muslim visibly agitated says something about “immoral, arrogant infidels”. Then going all out in his defense of Islam, he reaches back to the Middle Ages to say the Crusades are proof that Christianity is a religion of violence.

Matthew 10:16 – Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.

The words from the Biblical Book of Mathew are those from Jesus Christ as he sent his disciples out to share the truths of God. Jesus knew there were many entities which would desire to cause harm to his disciples. Therefore, the disciples were to be wise about the dangers present and simultaneously offer up no harm to any. This encouragement is characteristic of the teaching of the gospel for all Christians. Christians are certainly in a “battle” for the minds and souls of mankind, however, the conflict is engaged on the field of reasoning with words (I Corinthians 1:21), not of war by weapons (John 18:36). The result allows all men the choice to refuse the Christian banner without physical consequence from the followers of Christ. Any individuals past, present, or future who would employ teachings encouraging Christians to engage in physical harm to others to increase the kingdom of Christ are false teachers indeed (Galatians 1:6-10). A clear example of such false teaching would be the Roman Catholic Papal encouragement resulting in the Crusades which had no authorization in scripture at all. Of course, when a discussion of Christian violence comes up, this is the prime example given. Consider the time of the Crusades was when the scriptures were not widely available to the common man. If teachings were distorted, a man had little ammunition for which to refute the falseness. They were easily deceived. Today, it is hard for anyone to point a finger at Christianity and say it is violent. People know better. Every once in a while a cult will pop up with outlandish actions saying it has some sort of tie to Christianity, but when this happens Christians denounce the actions wholeheartedly. Trying to establish Christianity as a religion of violence laughably falls on its face with a lack of evidence.

The objectives of Islam are, on the other hand, quite related to physical conquest. With Islam, religion and government are not separate, but one. Thus, as Islam spreads in a country, its ultimate goal is to take power of the country in complete. This type of mentality was present in Islam from the beginning. The man Mohammed was a pedophile bandit who spread his religion through fear and violence attempting to gain power in any manner possible. The same techniques are employed by his followers today as they work to bring all “infidels” under Sharia law. These attempts around the world have resulted in violence and war. There are many apologists for Islam attempting to call it a religion of peace, yet the facts speak for themselves. A quick view at national/international news confirms the dangers of Islam. Nearly every day violence and deaths are reported around the world with regard to Muslim attacks on non-muslims. The link to terrorist attacks and Islam is 100% at the time of this writing. The internet has made it impossible for Islam to hide its violent face under a veil. Video posted across the net catalogues women who have escaped the horrors of Islam and lived to tell the story. They tell of beatings, abuse, and murder. Live videos of multi-thousand man Muslim rallies and marches from around the world demonstrate violence and chants for the deaths of non-Muslims. Informational videos such as The Third Jihad and Obsession: Radical Islam’s War Against the West have chronicled the devastation being brought by Islam.

Despite readily available information, Americans are not proving to be as wise as serpents in regard to Islam. Sadly, this has been the case from the early days of America. America was established as a Christian nation; meaning it was founded upon Christian principles of freedom as given by God, not that it mandated Christianity upon its citizenry. It left Christianity and any other religion as a choice for man to make, just as God has done. America did not try to prohibit religion. However, early in its history, America was attacked by Islam. The Barbary Powers (pirates) attacked American boats and killed and enslaved American citizens over the timeframe of America’s first two presidents. They did so stating it was mandated by their religion, Islam (they weren’t on a public relations mission to declare they were peaceful at the time). Their attacks were despite the paying of tribute and a plea for peace by America to stop such activity. Appeasement did not work. When Thomas Jefferson became president, he returned force against the Islamic aggressors. He did so until the aggression stopped. It took awhile, but America learned an early lesson about Islam. Islam is destructive and operates in the name of conquest. It is violent and deceptive. From that point on, America should have been wise in regard to violent religion and kept it away in order to protect its citizenry.

1 Timothy 4:16 – Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee.

Faithful Christians should have listened to Paul’s words to Timothy as stated above. If they would have done so, they would have been hollering from the rooftops during the 20th century when thousands of Muslim immigrants poured into the borders of the United States. They would have been warning the government and public about the history of America and Islam. However, the government and the Christians were not and have not been wise. Due to inaction, a massive unarmed invasion occurred and has been occurring for decades. These Muslims were following the same religious guide as the Barbary pirates and yet, they poured into the country without hindrance. Today, they have made significant progress in establishing themselves in America. They are a Trojan horse. Muslims number some 8 million people in the United States. Michigan alone has approximately 490,000 Muslim residents. Of these, there are some 350,000 living in the Detroit area. Strongly embedded are the terrorist cells of Hezbollah, al-Qaeda, Hamas, and others. Reaching all levels of society, Islam has even become the dominant religion in America’s prison system. In doing so, a violent religion has enlisted a violent force to its cause. America is in danger and it’s not just on a spiritual front from where that danger is coming.

Why did America let its guard down? (I Corinthians 10:12). Was it arrogance via a sense that America was invincible? Perhaps it was naivety/ignorance thinking that the Muslims had changed? These factors certainly played a roll, but even more so is the role Islamic deception has played (2 Corinthians 11:14). This brings to mind the title of this article and the history shared in the next paragraph. Do you remember the Bhagwan? All was supposed to be peace and love. A foreign hippy group from India dressed in red/orange robes with wooden beads.

In 1981, the Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh and some of his followers traveled to America from India. Originally a philosophy professor, the Bhagwan had become a cult leader in his home country. After arriving in America, he made the town of Antelope, Oregon, his home. He purchased a 64,000 acre ranch and set up a commune. Antelope Oregon was a very small town of about 43 registered voters. The Bhagwan and his followers swiftly outnumbered the residents, took control of the city offices via election and renamed Antelope, Rajneeshpuram. Next, they bussed in thousands of homeless people from around the country. They plied them with booze and drugs to keep them under control. Their plan was to seize control of county authority next. They were thwarted by election officials, causing the Bhagwan to ditch the homeless into nearby Madras, Oregon. The Bhagwan and his followers still wanted control. How could they do it? The county residents outnumbered their group of about 7000 individuals. To accomplish such a feat, they would need to find a way to keep voters home on Election Day. In preparation to do so, they orchestrated the first biological weapons attack against America. It was a test run for a larger plan and involved spritzing restaurant salad bars with salmonella. 750 Americans fell ill from the poisoning. By 1985, the government had woken up, the Bhagwan was deported and criminal charges were filed against some of his fleeing disciples. Found upon his compound were chemical labs, stashes of automatic weapons, plans to poison the county water system, a plan to run a plane full of dynamite into a county building (sound familiar?), and more. A violent religion had been stopped.

Like Islam, the Bhagwan was deceptive and dangerous, but America did the right thing. In dealing with both the Barbary Pirates and the Bhagwan, America learned about its enemy and ridded itself of their aggression. The answer to eliminating such threats is alert, persistent, and consistent responses. This is what should have occurred to the modern influx of Muslims to America. Unfortunately, this has not occurred in regard to Islam. Islam was stopped the first time. America was made aware. Then, when the Islamic threat appeared again, America was not alert. It did not engage a persistent removal of Islam from its borders. It did not act in a manner consistent with its knowledge and prior response. Now the problem is going to require dramatic solutions. If not, violence on a much greater scale than the Bhagwan, than even 9/11, is going to result. Americans will be the victims.

If Christianity were a violent religion, this would be a call for Christians to take up arms and repel the invader. However, Christianity is not a violent religion. Christians are not to take up the sword of death. They are to be as harmless as doves. Their job is to work with the sword of life, the Bible, and convert and teach and preach. That is the call to Christians. However, Christians should also call upon their government. A government’s job is different from that of a Christian (Romans 13:1-4). A government is to punish evil. It is a tool of God against those that would harm those seeking good. A government that stands by and puts its citizens in danger from Islam or any other foreign invader is a shame to itself. Do not be deceived by Islam. Look at their history. Look at their present. Read their Quran. Listen to those who have escaped and tell of the terror of beatings, beheadings, and other tortures from Islam. See the fear in their eyes. Be wise as serpents! Do not close your eyes to the threat of Islam. The mistake will do more than just come back to bite you, it will come back to kill you.

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Evangelism

What is Evangelism?

What exactly is evangelism? What involvement must we as individual Christians have, if any, with regards to evangelism? It is the purpose of this brief lecture to define what evangelism is and how it applies to our individual Christ lives. Also we will examine God’s plan, purpose and power for evangelism and the personal response toward evangelism.

Evangelism Defined

The English word “evangelism” is simply a transliteration of the Koine Greek word euangelo. It is the conjunction of the prefix eu (yoo) which means: “to be well off, fare well, prosper”; or in some instances; “acting well” and the word angelo means to deliver a message. (Vine’s Expository Dictionary) Therefore, euangelo (i.e. evangelism) is related to the delivery of a good message.

To what good message is evangelism related? The gospel. The word “gospel” comes from the Greek word euangelion which literally means “good news” or “glad tidings.” In its spiritual sense, evangelism is closely related to and intimately connected with the gospel of Jesus Christ. In fact evangelism is the preaching or spreading of the gospel. This would include things such as mission work, preaching, gospel meeting work, door knocking campaigns and internet evangelistic efforts. In reality, anything we do to further the spread of the gospel falls under evangelism.

There are two Greek words that are predominantly used with regards to the preaching of the gospel, kerusso and euangelizo. The word kerusso defined simply, means “to proclaim.” It is defined by Thayer in this manner: “to be a herald, to officiate as a herald. to proclaim after the manner of a herald. to publish, proclaim openly: something which has been done.  used of the public proclamation of the gospel and matters pertaining to it, made by John the Baptist, by Jesus, by the apostles and other Christian teachers.”

The word euangelizo literally means, “I preach the gospel.” Thayer’s defines it as, “to bring good news, to announce glad tidings. “Euangelizo” is found fifty-five times in the New Testament, in one form or another. It is first used by Jesus to describe the results of His work to the followers of John the Baptizer. “The blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them.” (Matthew 11:5) We find it used to describe the work of the apostles in Acts 5:42 “And daily in the temple, and in every house, they ceased not to teach and preach Jesus Christ.” And in Acts 8:4 “euangelizo” is used to describe the work of the Christians who were scattered out of Jerusalem, “Therefore they that were scattered abroad went every where preaching the word.” In these three examples we see: Jesus preaching the gospel; the apostles preaching the gospel; and ordinary Christians preaching the gospel.

One form or another of “kerusso” is found sixty-one times in the New Testament. It is used in connection with the Great Commission in Mark 16:16 and Luke 24:47. For all practical purposes the two words are interchangeable in their meaning as they pertain to the gospel.

The English word “preacher”, as used in the Bible originates from either Greek word. Specifically though, an evangelist is one who preaches or spreads the gospel. This comes from the Greek word euangelistes or “bringer of good tidings.” Philip, one of the seven chosen in Acts chapter 6, is called “Philip, the evangelist…” (Acts 21:8) and Paul exhorted Timothy to “do the work of an evangelist…” (2 Timothy 4:5). Simply put, an evangelist is one who does the work of spreading the gospel. Any Christian, male or female, young or old, who is involved in evangelism can be called an evangelist.

Personal Evangelism Defined

Thus far we have discussed evangelism in its general sense. As we have noted that anything that we do in connection with spreading the gospel is evangelism. Supporting missionaries, promoting gospel meetings, handing out tracts, gospel preaching, etc. are all included under what we will refer to as general evangelism. There is a difference, however, between general evangelism and personal evangelism. Personal evangelism is an evangelistic effort that involves direct gospel teaching on an individual basis. In a sermon preached to a general audience, an evangelist will strive to make a broader application of the gospel – to appeal to a wider range of individual needs. With personal evangelism, the evangelist strives to make a direct application of the gospel – based upon the individual spiritual needs of the person involved in the study. That is why in the New Testament we have instances where individual people received diverse instructions regarding salvation.

We will observe two instances when people were given slightly different answers to the question of salvation.

“Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do? Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.” (Acts 2:37-38)

“And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.” (Acts 16:30-31)

In Acts 2, Peter had been preaching to a multitude of Jews, many of whom had witnessed and had even been involved in the crucifixion of Jesus. They had been witnesses to many of the miracles and teachings of Christ. Peter had previously said to them in Acts 2:22, “Ye men of Israel, hear these words; Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know.” From this we see that those Jews present had knowledge of Jesus – they at least knew who He was and what He had done. Peter then went on to tell them in verse 36, “Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ.” When they heard these words, they were “pricked in their heart.” In other words, each individual conscience was convicted of sin in rejecting the Messiah. Based upon that conviction and their evident belief that Jesus was the Son of God they needed to know what to do to be saved.

In Acts 16, Paul and Silas were speaking with the Philippian jailor. He asked them what he needed in order to be saved and they told him what he most needed to hear, “believe on the Lord Jesus.” He was not told to repent or be baptized initially. Unlike the Jews on Pentecost, this man had not witnessed for himself the works of Jesus; he had not heard Jesus’ sermons; likely he had not even heard of Jesus before this instance. Therefore, Paul had to start at the beginning – believe in Jesus. What did they tell him after that? Acts 16:32 says, “And they spake unto him the word of the Lord, and to all that were in his house.” They taught him the gospel, beginning with faith in Jesus and from there they taught him the entire plan of salvation. That they taught him about repentance and baptism is evident from what happened in the next verse, “And he took them the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes; and was baptized, he and all his, straightway” (Acts 16:33). He demonstrated his penitent attitude in the cleaning of their wounds and he was immediately baptized. He was eventually taught the same thing that the Jews on Pentecost were taught, but with him, Paul and Silas had to begin that teaching based upon his special circumstance. What he needed foremost was knowledge of who Jesus so that he could develop faith in Him and learn how to be saved based upon that knowledge.

Plan For Evangelism

God has a plan for reaching the lost and bringing them to Christ. This plan calls for preaching and teaching the gospel. “No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day. It is written in the prophets, And they shall be all taught of God. Every man therefore that hath heard, and hath learned of the Father, cometh unto me.” (John 6:44-45)

In this passage Jesus tells us that those who are taught the gospel and make a personal application of it to their lives come to Him. Similarly Paul said, “faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” (Romans 10:17). God’s plan to save mankind involves His children going out and teaching the gospel to the lost. God has given each of us a Great Commission to do that very thing.

The command to spread the gospel applies to all Christians – not just “paid” ministers. Notice the context of Matthew 28:19-20 “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world.” The apostles were given the command to teach the gospel and thereby convert people to Christ. They were also to continue teaching those converts to “observe all things” (verse 20) that He had commanded them. One of those commands was to “teach all nations”, (verse 19). It should be plain to see from this passage that if those converted were to “observe [Defined by Thayer: “to attend to carefully, take care of”] all things” which Christ had commanded them – then they were to carry on the work of the apostles in teaching / preaching the Gospel. The Bible teaches that we must “Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.” (Mark 16:15). It has been well said, “Go ye means go me!” Every Christian needs to realize that they must take part in the Great Commission.

Purpose In Evangelism

The primary purpose in evangelism is to persuade men. Persuade them of what? First, they need to be persuaded of truth of God’s Word. Jesus said, “And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:32) He also said, “Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth” (John 17:17). Once a person believes in the truth of God’s Word, they are ready to begin making a personal application of it. Second, they need to be persuaded of the fact that they are in need of salvation. “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). Along with this, they need to understand the consequences of their sins. “For the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23) and the remedy for that sin.

How do we persuade them? Teach them about heaven and the promise of Jesus, “Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know.” (John 14:1-4)

Teach them about the terror of the Lord, “Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men…” (2 Corinthians 5:11) Lovingly warn them of coming judgment when God,  “in flaming fire” will  take “vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ”  (2 Thess.1:8) Teach them about the love of Christ, “For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead: And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again.” (2 Cor. 5:14-15)

The purpose in preaching or evangelism is to prepare souls (including our own) for the coming Day of Judgment. “I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom; Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine.” (2 Tim. 4:1-2)

What must we teach the lost? The Word. “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” (Hebrews 4:12)

When do we teach the lost? When do we evangelize? Paul told Timothy to “be instant”, to be always ready to seize an opportunity to lead others to Christ. Peter adds, “But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear.” (1 Peter 3:15)

Under what circumstances should we practice evangelism? Paul said, “In season, out of season.” In other words, no matter what the circumstance we may find ourselves in we can use that opportunity for evangelism.

In what manner should we conduct ourselves with regard to evangelism? 1 Tim. 4:2 reads, “with all longsuffering…” Longsuffering implies that we have to have patience, endurance, and perseverance when we study the God’s Word with an individual. Along with teaching “with all longsuffering”, we must remember that we are to be, “speaking the truth in love” (Eph. 4:15). Love for the lost has to be our motivation for evangelism and we must help them in a loving manner.

Also we must teach them “with all longsuffering and doctrine.” This does not mean that we must teach a person everything there is to know about the Bible before they can be converted. However, it does imply that we must teach them God’s entire plan of salvation. We cannot leave out any part of God’s plan.

Power In Evangelism

The Power for evangelism is found in the Word. “For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.” (1 Corinthians1:18) In this verse, the word translated “preaching” is the Greek word logos, which is a noun meaning speech or word. In other words, the “word of the cross”, the gospel message of salvation “is the power of God.” Romans 1:16 reads, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.” The Gospel is God’s power in saving men. The word “power” comes from the Greek word dunamis, from which we get words such as: dynamo, dynamic and dynamite. In other words, the gospel, or so it can be said, is dynamite! Jesus said of the church and by implication, the gospel, that “the gates of hell shall not prevail against it!” (Matthew 16:18). Why can’t the gates of hell prevail against the power of the gospel? Because it is dynamite! It blows away death and hell! The power of the devil is no match for God’s dynamite!

Paul described the gospel’s message as “treasure in earthen vessels.” (2 Corinthians 4:7) What he meant by this, according to the context of 2 Corinthians Chapter 4, is that the ministry of the gospel belongs to each Christian and that as ministers of the gospel (evangelists) we each have the power of God within us through that gospel to reach a lost and dying world. The reason that we have been instructed to teach God’s message to the world is so the “excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.”  (2 Corinthians 4:7) As Christians we each have the responsibility to “sow” the Word of God like gardener plants a seed. Paul wrote, “I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase. So then neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth; but God that giveth the increase.” (1 Corinthians 3:6-7)Truly the power to save is God’s gospel, but God’s gardeners – individual Christians – must plant the seed.

Personal Response Toward Evangelism

There will always be a response when the Word is taught or preached. One of three reactions occurs with the hearer of the Word. One such response is rejection of the word. Why do some react in this manner? Perhaps it is because they simply do not believe the Word. It may be they do not believe in God, or that Jesus is the Son of God, or that the Bible is God’s Word. Sometimes it is the case that they just do not like or agree with what it has been said. For example, when Stephen was before the Sanhedrin council in Acts chapter 7, he recited to them a brief history of how Israel had always rejected the will of God and had always rejected His prophets,“Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye. Which of the prophets have not your fathers persecuted? and they have slain them which shewed before of the coming of the Just One; of whom ye have been now the betrayers and murderers: Who have received the law by the disposition of angels, and have not kept it.” (Acts 7:51-53)

What was their reaction to this particular message? “When they heard these things, they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed on him with their teeth.” (Acts 7:54) “Then they cried out with a loud voice, and stopped their ears, and ran upon him with one accord, And cast him out of the city, and stoned him: and the witnesses laid down their clothes at a young man’s feet, whose name was Saul.” (Acts 7:57-58)

Another possible response to the message of the gospel is all too often the case in our society today – indifference or apathy? Why are so many apathetic with regards to the gospel? Two primary reasons are: One, perhaps they think the message does not apply to them. They may listen to the sermon or to the evangelistic teaching, showing all the outward signs that they are paying attention, yet fail to make the application to their lives. Two, they may be concerned, yet not moved to action. A good New Testament example of this is the Roman governor Felix. “And after certain days, when Felix came with his wife Drusilla, which was a Jewess, he sent for Paul, and heard him concerning the faith in Christ. And as he reasoned of righteousness, temperance, and judgment to come, Felix trembled, and answered, Go thy way for this time; when I have a convenient season, I will call for thee.” (Acts 24:24-25) Felix’s initial reaction was to tremble. He was a little concerned, but not enough concerned to comply with the gospel’s message.

The desired response to evangelism is conviction and obedience on the part of the hearer. Why this response? The hearer believes the Gospel and makes a personal application of the Word. Once a person believes the message and understands how it applies to them, they are convicted. Conviction leads to godly sorrow. Godly sorrow leads to repentance. “For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death.” (2 Corinthians 7:10). Repentance leads to obedience. Obedience leads to confession, baptism and pure Christian living. This is the only response that will lead one into the promised land of Heaven. This is the ultimate goal of evangelism – to help others get to heaven. The Devil knows he is bound for an eternity in hell and out of his hatred and spite for God and man he desires to take as many with him as he can. On the other hand, faithful Christians are those who are bound for an eternity in heaven and out of their great love for God and their fellow men desire to take as many of them to heaven with them as they can.

Conclusion

Evangelism is God’s plan for drawing a lost and dying world to Christ so that through Him, they can have the hope of eternal life. It is by teaching the gospel that each individual Christian can and must be involved in God’s great plan for saving man.  We involve ourselves in evangelism first and foremost because we love God and appreciate all that He has done for us and because we love our fellow man and want for each of them to share God’s eternity with us. We reach out to the lost because someone reached out to us when we were lost. We strive to evangelize with the understanding that the purpose for evangelism is to save our fellow men from sin. With God’s help and His all sufficient and powerful Gospel we know that His Word, which we spread, will not return to Him void (Isaiah 55:11). It is my hope that each of us will become more and more involved in personal evangelism; that through our efforts many people will be drawn to Christ. Let us each be more diligent in searching for and “sowing” to those who have an “honest and good heart”  (Luke 8:15) who will hear and receive the gospel. Let us learn not to be afraid of how some will receive our attempts at evangelism and find comfort in the knowledge that it is not the messenger, but the message which saves. We each must trust in God to give the increase after we have planted and after we or another has watered.

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Unintended Consequences

Unintended Consequences

“Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given orders to the churches of Galatia, so you must do also: On the first day of the week let each one of you lay something aside, storing up as he may prosper, that there be no collections when I come…” (1 Corinthians 16:1-2)

“But this I say: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver…” (2 Corinthians 9:6-7)

When we do not give as we have been prospered or when we purposely withhold our contribution for some reason there are unintended consequences…

Imagine a boy in poverty-stricken rural India, who more than anything else, would like to have his very own copy of the Bible. For weeks, he has been told by a local missionary that he was expecting a shipment of Bibles from his sponsoring congregation in the USA and that when they arrived he would give each child a copy. Finally, the shipment arrives (fewer boxes than expected) – the children all line up and the missionary passes out the Bibles. Each child that receives a Bible goes away beaming with happiness. The boy patiently waits his turn, excited at the prospect of being able to read from his very own Bible. When the boy reaches the front of the line, imagine how crestfallen he would be to learn that there were no more Bibles – that there had not been enough money to purchase all that were needed.

What a tragedy. How easily it could have been avoided…

How do stories like this happen? Those among us who live on a fixed income understand just how difficult it is to live on that amount. The cost of living climbs at a higher rate each year than does the amount drawn from retirement accounts, disability or from Social Security. Every year the cost of food, utilities, health care, insurance, gasoline and other essentials goes up. A fixed income stays virtually the same every year while the expenses and expenditures increase. The result – people living on a fixed income have to go without some things. They have to “make do” with less. They have to find ways to “cut” costs.

The same is true with congregations. Most churches operate on a fixed budget. The have certain amounts allotted for various essential expenditures. In the United States, where most congregations own the building in which they meet, there are many essential expenses that must be made – that are simply the “cost of doing business” – the Lord’s business. Church buildings must be insured – the level of insurance must be adequate to rebuild or replace the building in case of fire, flood or some other natural disaster. Not just property insurance is needed, but also liability insurance is necessary. If a visitor slips on the floor, breaks their leg, and then sues the congregation (this has happened) liability insurance will help cover that expense. In addition, the cost of utilities go up every year, oftentimes every month. Older buildings are also in need of constant repair and upkeep. Sometimes things just break – A/C compressors, toilets, etc. All of this costs money. Other church building expenses include grounds maintenance and janitorial work. All of this just to maintain a place to meet for worship and Bible study.

Most congregations also have located preachers. Preachers are hired and supported by the congregation so that they can preach and teach the gospel and to do the work of an evangelist. Preachers often have families and they need adequate financial support so that they can live in the community and do their job and support their family. Often congregations will also compensate preachers by providing a house and utilities and by helping pay the cost of private health care insurance (which usually costs about twice what most employees pay in their company subsidized health insurance plans). Again, all of these things all cost the congregation money.

Congregations do not just have buildings and hire preachers – they also are involved with many other ministries. Edification, Bible classes – material must be bought and paid for. This includes the class books and materials, copiers, laminators, staples, crayons, etc. Evangelism – tracts must be ordered, tract racks bought, advertising purchased, travel and motel expense for visiting preachers. Benevolence – church members need financial help from time to time, food pantries need to be supplied, etc. Worship – song books must be purchased and sometimes replaced, pew Bibles, PowerPoint projectors, sound system and CD recording / copying expenses, grape juice and unleavened bread must the provided and so forth.

Thus far, we have listed only essential expenses just the basic “cost of doing business.” However, congregations are not just interested in supporting the local work, but they are also involved in supporting the work of the church worldwide. Foreign missionaries are supported by local congregations. Domestic missions are supported as well. College programs are supported – student ministries, Bible chairs and other important evangelistic work on college campuses. Students in the various preacher-training schools are also supported by various local congregations.

The “cost of doing business” increases annually. It costs more money each year to keep up with the essential expenditures. When these costs go up and the amount of financial contribution given by the members does not increase at the same rate or if it decreases, then congregations have to make cost savings somewhere. Operating budgets end up needing to be cut. What is usually the first thing to go? Generally speaking, since the local congregation’s primary mission is to their local community, the first area they cut back in is on foreign or domestic mission work.

Missionaries depend upon contributions sent by various congregations from around the world. Usually they are only able to raise money with great difficulty and are very dependant upon the supporters they do have. What happens when they lose even one supporter? They go without. They have to perform their mission with less. Perhaps they cannot afford to buy all the Bibles that they need. Perhaps they run short of funds for Bible class material. Perhaps they cannot afford to travel to as many villages as they would. The result – perhaps some who would have obeyed the gospel had they been able to hear it preached remain in a lost condition.

What happens when a congregation has a financial shortfall on a monthly basis? This can happen when a congregation has budgeted for certain things but other unforeseen expenses appear that exceed the available budget. When this happens, if there is a savings or escrow account, then these contingency funds need to be accessed. If it happens too frequently, that contingency fund will soon be exhausted. What happens then? Imagine family in the congregation in which the father suffers some serious disability leaving him unable to work. He is now unable to support his wife and children. His medical bills far surpass what he would be able to pay even if he was able to work. Financial ruin and bankruptcy soon follow. His wife, at wit’s end, goes to one of the elders and asks for the congregation to help them out. Imagine the elder who has to explain to this heartbroken and desperate woman that there is no money – that they cannot help her.

What a tragedy. How easily it could have been avoided…

When we do not give as we have been prospered or when we purposely withhold our contribution for some reason there are unintended consequences…

“Now Jesus sat opposite the treasury and saw how the people put money into the treasury. And many who were rich put in much. Then one poor widow came and threw in two mites, which make a quadrans. So He called His disciples to Himself and said to them, “Assuredly, I say to you that this poor widow has put in more than all those who have given to the treasury; for they all put in out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty put in all that she had, her whole livelihood…”(Mark 12:41-44 NKJV)

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