Week 4: Creating a Culture of Evangelism
Evangelism: How the Church Speaks of Jesus • Sermon • Submitted • Presented • 1:01:44
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In his letter to the Philippians, the apostle Paul wrote:
7 It is right for me to feel this way about you all, because I hold you in my heart, for you are all partakers with me of grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel. 8 For God is my witness, how I yearn for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus.
Paul’s words carry a warmth that feels familiar to anyone who’s done ministry in community.
You can almost hear the affection in his voice as he thinks about those who shared in his work and his suffering.
And that’s the thing about evangelism.
It’s not meant to be done in isolation.
But, somewhere along the way,
we started acting like sharing the gospel was a solo performance:
just you, your courage, and the person you’re talking to.
But the New Testament paints a very different picture.
God never called us to do His work alone.
Even the boldest believers feel fear.
Most of us hesitate to speak up because we worry about rejection, awkwardness, or being misunderstood.
And yet, when we stand together, something changes.
When believers link arms, courage grows.
We remind each other what’s true.
We pull one another along.
That’s what Paul experienced with the Philippians:
he experienced a partnership in grace and in the gospel.
And that’s what we’re called to build:
a culture where evangelism isn’t a burden each person carries alone…
but a joy we share together.
Personal evangelism matters.
And because it matters:
every believer should be ready to share the gospel clearly and confidently.
But if we truly believe the local church is God’s engine for evangelism,
then we can’t stop at individual efforts.
Instead, we need to build a culture of evangelism within the church itself.
What’s that?
It’s a community where speaking about Jesus is normal, communal, and common.
The truth is, evangelism is meant to happen in community:
We hold one another accountable.
We strengthen our resolve.
We learn from each other’s experiences.
We rejoice together when the gospel bears fruit, and we grieve together when conversations fall flat.
And through it all,
we grow closer because we’re sharing something that matters eternally.
It’s not hard to convince most believers that evangelizing together is better than going it alone.
But we need to be careful.
Evangelism in community is not the same thing as an evangelistic program.
A program is often a one-time event: maybe a guest speaker, a concert, or a neighborhood service project,
where the gospel is shared and people are invited to respond.
God certainly uses those moments, and I’ve seen Him do it.
But those programs alone don’t create a lasting culture of evangelism.
Instead, a culture of evangelism runs deeper.
It’s when conversations about Jesus become part of the church’s rhythm.
It’s something that happens naturally in our homes,
in our friendships,
and even in how we talk after Sunday worship.
It’s less about events and more about everyday life shaped by the gospel together.
You could say,
a culture of evangelism is a culture that centers on the gospel of Jesus Christ.
In his book “Evangelism: How the Whole Church Speaks of Jesus”
J. Mack Stiles tells of a church in his hometown that decided to put on an Easter pageant.
The idea was simple enough:
take the story of Easter and tell it in a way that would call people to Christ.
The church worked hard to make it engaging.
The elders wanted the gospel to be clear,
but they also wanted it to hold people’s attention.
So there were songs,
lights,
and elaborate sets.
The whole church pitched in.
People built stages,
trained animals,
learned lines,
and practiced music.
They brought in camels
and sheep
and even a white horse that reared up on stage to the roar of the crowd.
Over time, the Easter pageant grew.
It became a citywide event.
Tickets sold out,
and professional producers were hired to make it bigger and better.
Even the actor who played Jesus was a Hollywood performer who didn’t know Christ.
And when the curtain went up, it was a sight to see.
The acting was polished,
the sound and lighting were top notch,
and the audience loved every minute of it.
But when the church looked back after years of doing the production, they realized something sobering.
Despite all the excitement,
very few people had actually come to faith.
For all the hours,
money,
and manpower that went into it,
the gospel fruit just wasn’t there.
So the elders made a hard decision: they shut the event down.
That couldn’t have been easy.
People loved the event.
But the church recognized that if the same time and energy had been spent in real conversations with neighbors, coworkers, and friends,
the gospel might have spread further than any stage ever could.
The truth is, most people don’t come to faith through big events anyway.
They come through the steady witness of ordinary believers.
A friend.
A parent.
A small group Bible study.
A simple talk after church.
That’s where God so often works.
When you look closely, programs don’t deliver what we hope they will.
The more money poured into them, the less fruit they tend to produce.
And the research shows this:
only a tiny percentage of people come to faith through media or events,
while the vast majority trace their conversion to a friend or family member who shared Christ with them.
Just think of the cost comparison between a cup of coffee and TV programming.
Or think of the effect: moms lead more people to Jesus than do programs.
That’s not to say programs have no value.
They can build community,
encourage boldness,
and sometimes open new doors for ministry.
But they can also create an illusion of fruitfulness.
They make us feel as though we’ve done evangelism, even when we haven’t.
Ministry programs are like sugar:
they give a quick burst of energy,
but they can’t sustain real health.
And so a steady diet of them leaves a church spiritually weak.
This means we should have a healthy unease with ministry programs.
We should use them strategically but in moderation,
while remembering that God did not send an event, he sent his Son.
And that’s who we are all called to point people to.
So what’s the alternative?
We still want to share Christ together.
We want to see our friends and neighbors reached.
The answer isn’t another program: it’s a culture.
It’s a culture of evangelism where the whole church speaks naturally about Jesus in everyday life.
What exactly do we mean by a culture of evangelism?
If you’ve ever lived in another country or even just visited one for a while,
you know that culture can’t really be grasped by reading about it.
You have to live in it.
The same is true here.
A “culture of evangelism” can’t be reduced to a definition or a list of steps.
It’s something that grows out of real people and real gospel life together.
Culture is what happens when people share ideas, language, and habits.
It’s not always clearly visible to those inside it:
it just feels normal.
Family culture, for example, forms around unspoken expectations and repeated rhythms,
and church culture works the same way.
So when we talk about a culture of evangelism,
we’re describing a community where gospel conversations are part of the church’s everyday rhythm.
Where people speak naturally about Christ,
pray for the lost together,
and see evangelism not as a program but as a part of who they are.
Most pastor’s intuitively understand what “a culture of evangelism” means.
They want it and they long for their church to become a place where evangelism flows naturally out of love for Christ and one another,
not through occasional campaigns or events.
And I think that’s because Pastors, by nature of their job,
are always viewing life through the lens of the gospel and the local church.
And that’s the lens we need each person at church to view life through too if we are going to create a culture of evangelism.
The truth is, there is no simple recipe to follow to create that kind of culture within a church.
However, we can name the longings and affections that shape it.
But the foundation of a culture of evangelism,
is a church where the gospel isn’t just proclaimed from the pulpit,
but shared through the lives of God’s people together.
Alright, so what are the marks of a church that has a culture of evangelism?
The marks of a church that has a culture of evangelism:
1. A Culture Motivated by Love for Jesus and His Gospel
in 2 Corinthians 5:14-15 Paul wrote,
14 For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; 15 and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.
That’s where real evangelism begins: with love for Christ.
When our hearts are captured by what He’s done,
sharing the gospel stops feeling like a duty we have to force.
It becomes a joy that overflows from the heart.
We all know what it’s like to feel as if evangelism is pushing a boulder uphill.
But when believers are moved by love for Jesus,
the atmosphere changes.
We stop asking, “How do I make myself do this?”
and start saying, “How could I keep this to myself?”
When that love is shared among believers, it spreads even faster.
It becomes part of how we think,
speak,
and encourage one another.
We start celebrating stories of grace instead of guilting each other into outreach.
When love for Christ shapes a community, that encouragement multiplies.
It reminds everyone why the gospel matters and why it’s worth the effort.
As we know, the world, the flesh, and the Devil will always push back against gospel witness.
But in a church where love for Jesus is the driving force,
the slope doesn’t feel like an uphill struggle,
it feels like a downward stride…
It feels as if gravity is on our side and we can’t help but move forward together.
And that’s a truly wonderful experience!
2. A Culture That Is Confident in the Gospel
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.
A Christian leader once asked, “When did they lose confidence in the gospel?”
He was describing a ministry that had traded the message for methods.
And because that’s so easy to do, that warning still matters.
The world keeps telling believers that the gospel needs updating, softening, or something flashier to make it work.
But the power has never been in our creativity: it’s in the message itself.
A culture of evangelism keeps its confidence right there.
Not in gimmicks.
Not in personalities.
But in the simple, saving truth of Christ crucified and risen.
3. A Culture That Understands the Danger of Entertainment
30 “As for you, son of man, your people who talk together about you by the walls and at the doors of the houses, say to one another, each to his brother, ‘Come, and hear what the word is that comes from the Lord.’ 31 And they come to you as people come, and they sit before you as my people, and they hear what you say but they will not do it; for with lustful talk in their mouths they act; their heart is set on their gain. 32 And behold, you are to them like one who sings lustful songs with a beautiful voice and plays well on an instrument, for they hear what you say, but they will not do it.
In Ezekiel’s day, people crowded around the prophet like fans at a concert.
They loved the show but ignored the message.
It’s not much different today.
Churches can fill seats with polished music,
clever topics,
and magnetic personalities.
But as God warned the people of Ezekiel’s day,
He warns us now… you can draw a crowd without reaching a heart.
Only the Spirit can reach the heart.
A culture of evangelism resists the pull to entertain.
It feeds people the gospel, not a performance.
Our goal isn’t applause, but changed hearts through the power of God’s Word.
4. A Culture That Sees People Clearly
16 From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer. 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.
It’s easy to see people the way the world does: by appearance, status, or background,
and forget they’re image-bearers with real stories and struggles.
But when Christ changes our hearts, He changes how we see others.
We no longer view them as categories or problems,
but as people made in God’s image and broken by sin, yet redeemable through the gospel.
And so a culture of evangelism remembers both truths:
every person carries God’s mark, and every person needs His mercy.
Most of all, it remembers what people can become
And what they can become is a new creations in Christ.
5. A Culture That Pulls Together as One
3 I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, 4 always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, 5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now.
When Paul thanked the Philippians for partnering with him in the gospel,
he pictured a church where everyone worked together for the same mission.
That’s what a culture of evangelism looks like.
A coach of a five-year-olds soccer team would always ask the team before each game:
“Who plays defense?”
and they’d shout, “Everyone!”
Then he’d ask, “Who plays offense?”
and again they’d shout, “Everyone!”
Of course, once the whistle blew, that idea was harder to pull off.
Evangelism can be like that: we agree in theory, but few join the play.
Sharing Christ isn’t a special gift for a few.
It’s the calling of every believer.
In a healthy church culture, we move in the same direction,
encouraging one another and welcoming unbelievers with grace and curiosity.
This is why a culture of evangelism isn’t built by programs,
but by people who see themselves as teammates in the same mission, which is to make Christ known together.
6. A Culture in Which People Teach One Another
15 but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect,
13 Follow the pattern of the sound words that you have heard from me, in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.
Peter calls us to be ready to give an answer for the hope within us.
That kind of readiness doesn’t happen by accident,
it comes through training and practice.
This is why as a pastor I would trade every flashy event for a church where believers know how to open the Bible with a friend,
where they know how walk through a gospel passage,
and invite them to trust Christ.
In a culture of evangelism, we keep teaching and reteaching what the gospel is and how to share it clearly.
We help one another grow in both courage and skill,
so that speaking of Christ becomes second nature.
7. A Culture That Models Evangelism
3 Older women likewise are to be reverent in behavior, not slanderers or slaves to much wine. They are to teach what is good, 4 and so train the young women to love their husbands and children, 5 to be self-controlled, pure, working at home, kind, and submissive to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be reviled.
In a healthy culture of evangelism, Christians from all generations help and strengthen one another.
New Christians bring energy and connections that older believers may no longer have,
while mature believers offer wisdom and clarity that younger ones need.
For example, when a new believer is sharing the gospel with their friend,
they might invite an older Christian in the church to join them for coffee to help fill in the gaps.
Not only does this ensure the gospel message will be spoken with clarity,
but it also serves to disciple that new Christian in how to do evangelism properly.
That’s how the church grows:
side by side, learning by example.
One believer explains the gospel,
another watches and learns,
and together they reach people who need Christ.
Evangelism isn’t only taught from a pulpit; it’s modeled in everyday life.
In a gospel-shaped culture,
people learn to share their faith by watching others do it faithfully.
8. A Culture in Which People Who Are Sharing Their Faith Are Celebrated
19 I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, so that I too may be cheered by news of you. 20 For I have no one like him, who will be genuinely concerned for your welfare. 21 For they all seek their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. 22 But you know Timothy’s proven worth, how as a son with a father he has served with me in the gospel.
Paul honored Timothy for his work in the gospel and we should do the same for one another.
This is why one pastor I read of begins his church gatherings by asking:
who had a chance to speak about Jesus that week,
then prays for those moments.
It’s simple but powerful.
But remember, a culture of evangelism celebrates faithfulness, not just results.
Even an awkward or unfinished conversation matters.
Trying and failing to share Christ is far better than never trying at all.
9. A Culture That Knows How to Affirm and Celebrate New Life
3 We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, 4 since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints,
7 just as you learned it from Epaphras our beloved fellow servant. He is a faithful minister of Christ on your behalf
Paul knew how to celebrate new believers without putting them on a pedestal.
He affirmed genuine faith
while keeping the focus on Christ and the evidence of a changed life.
When someone professes faith, we should rejoice,
but also remember, as Mark Dever once said, “We’ll see.”
True conversion proves itself over time through growth, endurance, and obedience (Kanye West).
A culture of evangelism knows how to hold both truths together:
joy over new life
and patience for lasting fruit.
We celebrate God’s work
while helping new believers take their first faithful steps with Christ.
10. A Culture Doing Ministry That Feels Risky and Is Dangerous
12 I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel, 13 so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard and to all the rest that my imprisonment is for Christ.
Paul’s ministry was risky enough to land him in jail.
He saw evangelism as a kind of battle,
taking every thought captive to obey Christ.
The world doesn’t like to have its beliefs challenged,
and faithful witness will always bring resistance.
But a culture of evangelism embraces that risk.
It’s not about recklessness; it’s about courage.
It’s choosing obedience over comfort
and faithfulness over reputation.
Whether it’s sharing Christ before a mob of hecklers
or inviting unbelieving friends into a Bible study,
gospel work will always cost something.
But when believers take those risks together,
the gospel advances and hearts change.
Not just the unbeliever’s hearts,
but ours too!
In Philippians, Paul wasn’t chained to the Roman guard,
The Roman guard was chained to Paul…
Because Paul’s chains didn’t silence him;
they spread the message to Caesar’s own household.
That’s the kind of culture we need,
one where bold faith becomes contagious, and even skeptics start turning to Christ.
11. A Culture That Understands That the Church Is the Chosen and Best Method of Evangelism
46 And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, 47 praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.
If there’s one truth that ties all the others together, it’s this:
the local church is God’s chosen means of evangelism.
I don’t know about you,
but I long for a church so devoted to Jesus that His gospel shapes everything we do
even how we worship together.
When we sing, pray, and serve,
people should see the reality of Christ’s love on display.
And to do that, we must develop a culture of evangelism.
Not just for the lost’s sake,
but for our sake!
But to be that,
we must be a people who share the gospel through genuine love, not spectacle.
One where confidence rests in Christ’s power, not our polish.
In that kind of culture, heroes aren’t the most talented
they’re the ones who risk their comfort and reputation to share their faith.
To do biblical evangelism then, we must stand shoulder to shoulder in the battle,
learning and leading, teaching and being taught.
That’s where true outreach happens
not through programs,
but through a healthy church alive with gospel conviction.
A church where people can say, “When I came here, I didn’t know God. But these people do and now I do too!”
That’s the culture of evangelism our church long and strive for.
