Heartbeat: Evangelism & Missions Part 3

In the English-speaking church world, since the middle of the 1800s, Jesus’ command to “make disciples” has been split into two different English words and concepts: Evangelism & Discipleship.

We use “Evangelism” to talk about sharing the Gospel with those are not Christians, and calling them to turn from their sin and trust in Jesus so they can be forgiven and declared right before God and experience the hope of eternal life.

We use “Discipleship” to talk about growing as a Christian, going deeper in your faith.

Those concepts in and of themselves are fine, but sometimes they’re unhelpful, because some Christians or churches pit one against the other.

Some people prioritize evangelism.

Others prioritize discipleship.

Each thinking they’re more spiritual or faithful than others.

But the problem is this a false dichotomy. We aren’t allowed to choose which one of these we care more about as Christians.

They’re both non-negotiable absolutes to what Jesus means by “making disciples.”

Illustration

When was the last time you got onto an airplane and turned to the person sitting next to you and said, “I like the LEFT wing way more than the RIGHT wing. We should just focus on the LEFT wing, right?”

Personally, I like airplanes that have 2 wings!

Evangelism and Discipleship are like the 2 wings on an airplane. The plane isn’t going to work without both wings.

So the problem is artificial. There’s no such division in Jesus’ command.

Making disciples includes both wings: Evangelism and Discipleship.

This week and next week are connected because it’s actually impossible to talk about Making Disciples without talking about Evangelism and Discipleship.

They are inextricably linked. You cannot separate them.

Let me show you why by walking through 4 stages of making disciples and being obedient to the Great Commission.

4 Stages of Making Disciples

I’m going to simplify and condense lots of Scripture passages into just two key texts for us to look at this morning. The first is Col. 1:13-14

Colossians 1:13–14 (ESV)

13 He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son,

14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

Paul is writing to the church at Colossae and he is reminding them of the gift of God’s salvation in Christ.

And he uses this powerful image that shows up other places in Bible of the Kingdom of Darkness and the Kingdom of Jesus, God’s Beloved Son.

When you and I are born, we are born in the Kingdom of Darkness. We are born in sin. We are by nature children of wrath like the rest of humanity.

And because of our nature, we stand condemned before God as an enemy of God.

But because of God’s mercy and grace, God sent Jesus to rescue us from the Kingdom of Darkness and bring us into His own family, by redeeming us from sin by living a perfect life and dying on the cross in our place, paying the penalty for our sin.

And because of that, we’re not citizens of the Kingdom of Darkness anymore. We have passed from darkness to light. From death to life. From slaves to sons and daughters. From the Kingdom of Darkness to the Kingdom of Jesus, God’s beloved Son.

That’s the first passage.

The second passage we’ll look at again is the Great Commission again. And from this text (and others), I want you to see the 4 stages of making disciples that God uses to bring salvation to us.

Those 4 stages are Engage, Evangelize, Establish, and Equip. (repeat)

Matthew 28:19–20 (ESV)

19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

(1) Engage

We see this with that first word: “Go!”

Go where the people are!

In the general sense, we need to go get involved in knowing and loving and serving unbelievers. How are you going to share the Gospel if you don’t know anyone who’s not a Christian? We need to create connections and build relationships so we can share Christ.

In the specific sense, we need to go cross some barriers so that the people groups of the world who don’t have access to the Gospel can hear.

Right now there’s almost 3 1/2 billion human beings who are unreached, which means they don’t have anyone in their life who can tell them about Jesus.

Unless something changes, they’ll likely be born, live their whole life, and die in their sins and go to Hell without being told the good news of Jesus.

That is unacceptable.

But the only way they’ll be able to hear the Gospel is if people go to them. And the unreached peoples of the world are unreached for a reason. It’s hard.

But before the Gospel can get to people, we need to get to people.

That’s the first stage: Engage.

(2) Evangelize

This stage is also non-negotiable.

No one can be saved if they don’t hear the Gospel and repent and believe. That requires verbal proclamation. We have to share the gospel and urge people to turn from their sin and trust in Jesus.

Romans 10:17 (ESV)

17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.

This is the message of the Gospel.

We’re all commanded to share the Gospel with unbelievers. This isn’t just for pastors or missionaries or those who have the gift of evangelism. This is for all of us.

And the Bible is clear:

Romans 10:13 (ESV)

13 For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

God is in the business of saving sinners.

And the means God uses to save sinners is by Christians sharing the Gospel in words.

The only way citizens of the Kingdom of Darkness can become citizens of the Kingdom of Jesus is by hearing the Gospel, turning from their sin, and trusting in Jesus.

That’s Evangelism. We have to share Christ with the people we engage.

(3) Establish

The next stage is Establish.

When we share the Gospel with unbelievers, we shouldn’t be surprised when people come to faith in Jesus.

God is merciful and mighty to save and He loves to save humble, contrite, and desperate sinners who cry out to Him for mercy.

And sinners who turn from their sin and trust in Jesus are transferred from the Kingdom of Darkness to the Kingdom of Jesus.

And when that happens, Jesus commands for them to take their individual faith public by being baptized. We’re doing that today, in direct obedience to the Great Commission. This is part of making disciples in obedience to Jesus.

Baptism is an ordinance given to the church as a public re-enactment and a picture of what God has done in Christ to save us and its a public affirmation and commitment to follow Jesus.

Baptism’s like a passport of the Kingdom of Jesus.

It doesn’t save you — it doesn’t make you a citizen.

It shows other people that you’re a citizen, that you belong to King Jesus.

And after you’re baptized with a community of faith, you become a part of that community! That’s your new family. Now you’ve got brothers and sisters who you can walk with and live life with as you learn to obey everything Jesus commanded.

That’s what being Established is all about. Learning to walk with Jesus individually and with others.

This isn’t an assembly line or a factory. This is very personal. God’s intends for us to flourish in redemptive, gracious relationships, and that means being Established is an ongoing step for the rest of your Christian life.

It means learning how to walk with God personally. How to love God and love others. How to read the Bible. How to pray. How to be eager to do good.

It means learning the be grounded in sound doctrine, so you’re not constantly blown about by every wave and wind of false teaching.

It’s about hope and healing for the hurting and the suffering, learning what it means that God is Your Comforter, and Your Healer, that He lifts your guilt and your shame by the blood of His Son. It’s learning to experience the healing power of His love so you can be an agent of healing to others.

It’s about learning to trust again. Learning to love again. Learning the hope that is ours in Jesus.

This is being Established in the faith: Hope, healing, growth, roots, stability, fruit.

Learning to obey Jesus. Which leads to the last stage, which overlaps with this stage.

(4) Equip

If we’re learning to obey everything Jesus has commanded, then this last command of Jesus, this Great Commission to go make more disciples is part of what we’re learning to obey.

Which means the goal and the aim of our being established is both for our own sakes as dearly loved sons and daughters of God, but is also for the sake of others. God intends for us to be established in the faith so that we can then be Equipped to go make more disciples.

We’re equipped to learn how we can engage unbelievers.

We’re equipped to learn how we can evangelize unbelievers.

We’re equipped to learn how we can help see more believers established in the faith.

This is what pastors are called to do. We’re to equip the saints -individually and collectively— for the work of ministry, for the work of making more disciples.

Those are the four stages of Making Disciples: Engage, Evangelize, Establish, and Equip.

We’re all commanded to be a part of every single stage. No one is exempt. This is the Great Commission. It’s for all of us.

The general command is to make disciples.

The specific command is to make disciples of all nations.

Evangelism & Missions

I’ll spend more time on the “Kingdom of Jesus” side of the equation here next week: Establish and Equip.

But for right now, I want to get to some application for us for the “Kingdom of Darkness” side of the equation: Engage and Evangelize.

Let’s start with Engage. Church, how can we be active in developing genuine friendships with unbelievers? What steps can you take as an individual, or as a couple, or as a family? And the goal isn’t just to be friends with unbelievers so you can treat them like some kind of project. Love your neighbor doesn’t mean, Love your neighbor only if they convert to Christianity. But are you building redemptive relationships with unbelievers?

How about Evangelize. When was the last time you shared the Gospel with someone? How will our friends hear the good news if we don’t tell them? Do you know how to share the Gospel?

Or lets think about those two categories collectively as a church.

Let’s think about Engage.

I would love for you to join me in praying about our church hosting a community connection event next year, where we can open our facilities and serve our neighbors

And I’d love for us to use that event as a way to let our neighbors know that we love them, that we’re eager to come alongside them, and that we really believe that only Jesus alone can provide the eternal hope that we all need.

And then, let’s think about Evangelism.

The Great Commission is not just a general command to make disciples, it’s also a specific command to make disciples of all nations — of all people groups.

And we know from the last book of the Bible that this is the very end of the history — this is the grand goal: that the Triune God will be worshipped and enjoyed and celebrated by people from every people group!

Revelation 5:9 (ESV)

9 And they sang a new song, saying, “Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation,

Revelation 7:9–10 (ESV)

9 After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands,

10 and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!”

God wins. God will save a people from every people.

That outcome is absolutely certain.

Psalm 67:3 (ESV)

3 Let the peoples praise you, O God; let all the peoples praise you!

This is why we’re still here: to proclaim Christ to our friends and neighbors here in Gilbert, Arizona AND to proclaim Christ to the peoples and places of the earth where Christ is not yet named.

We are ambassadors of King Jesus, making Him known near and far, because He alone is worthy of worship.

Quote

“Missions is not the ultimate goal of the church. Worship is. Missions exists because worship doesn’t. Worship is ultimate, not missions, because God is ultimate, not man. When this age is over, and the countless millions of the redeemed fall on their faces before the throne of God, missions will be no more. It is a temporary necessity. But worship abides forever. Worship, therefore, is the fuel and goal of missions.”

(John Piper)

Background, Context, and Looking Ahead

What I just gave you is the background that is necessary to understand that this week and next week go together.

This week we’re looking at Evangelism & Missions. Next week we’re looking at a Culture of Discipleship.

But I had to go through all that to help you see that this week and next week are all part of that story.

The Four Stages of Making Disciples

Let’s think about the stages that Jesus lays out in the Great Commission again, or really, how anyone ever becomes a Christian.

(4) Equip: Since this Great Commission is part of the things that Jesus has commanded, and since being established in the faith means you learn to obey all that Jesus has commanded, then what it means to be a learner of Jesus is to be someone who goes and Engages others. And Evangelizes others. And helps to Establish others. And then helps to Equip others to do the same.

When we Equip, we are intentionally helping other Christians grow in specific ways to help them help others follow Jesus.

Equipping in Engage areas means learning how to be better at building redemptive relationships, connecting with others who are not Christians. It might mean spending time with people who are really good at home hospitality to come up with ideas for how you can leverage your kitchen table for welcoming others in, even and especially those who don’t know Jesus.

Equipping in Evangelism means learning how to share your testimony with a friend or learning how to read the Bible 1:1 with your co-worker a couple times a month. It might mean sitting in on a Sunday School class specifically geared to help us learn how we can share the Gospel more clearly and confidently.

Equipping in Establish areas means learning how to read the Bible 1:1 with another Christian. Or going through a study or a class not primarily for what you can glean, but to be a help to another Christian.

But before I go there, a brief word on what’s ahead.

Recap the Heartbeat Series:

Week 3 of 6

My booklet is available. Contact me if you want my Doctrinal Statement. Reach out to get together.

So far, we’ve looked at: Gospel Centrality, Expositional Preaching, Congregational Singing, and Corporate Prayer.

This morning we are going to look at 5. Evangelism & Missions.

First, would you pray with me?

Conclusion

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