Creating an Evangelistic Culture in the Church: Understanding the Nature of Evangelism

As we gather together for worship this morning, it is appropriate that we recognize that tomorrow our nation celebrates Memorial Day. Memorial Day is often confused with Veteran’s Day, so if you are confused as to why we are not taking time to recognize our veterans, here is the reason. Memorial Day is set aside as a time to honor those who died while in service in the United States Armed Forces. Therefore, we will not be asking our veterans to stand to be recognized, although we deeply appreciate their service to this nation.

Memorial Day is exclusively for those who have given their life while serving. It is unfortunate that in this day, so few Americans appreciate the sacrifice that was made by many others so that they could enjoy the freedoms they so richly embrace, even if they do not realize it. Many people will hold a cookout today or tomorrow in honor of Memorial Day, without giving a single thought to the lives it represents. What is worse, it is even common today to see people disrespect the very flag these men fought to see raised high above the land. or speak negatively about the men and women who still fight to keep it safe.

When we see people in today’s culture disrespect the flag, bad-mouth the soldiers, male and female, who make sacrifices every day so that they can be free and safe, it is heartbreaking. It turns most of our stomachs. Am I correct?

However, that being the case, how do you suppose it affects God to see so many Christians disregard the sacrifice that was made by the One who paid it all for everyone?

As Christians, it would be equally wrong for us to celebrate Memorial Day without recognizing Jesus Christ, the One who truly bought our freedom for good. It is important that we recall the sacrifice He made, and why He did it. And, at the same time, understand how we might best honor His sacrifice.

Many people feel they honor His sacrifice by coming to Church. However, worship is not enough to please God. The Bible says that God desires obedience, not sacrifice. Now, before you sit here and think you have that side covered, the Bible says that if a person breaks a single law, they are guilty of breaking all of it. There is one are that the majority of Christians are significantly deficient in their obedience, even if they are not aware of it: Evangelism.

For most people, their failure is in large part because they do not understand the nature of Evangelism. Evangelism is not a calling, it’s a command. It’s not optional. Each and every Christian is commanded to be a witness for Jesus Christ. Therefore, it is impossible to claim obedience to Christ, to truly honor Christ, unless you are sharing what Christ has done. So, this morning, we are going to look at a passage in the Old Testament so that we can better understand the Nature of Evangelism in hopes that as we celebrate Memorial Day, and every other day of the year, we will become more committed to Christ’s command to make Disciples.

2 Kings 7:3–9 HCSB

3 Four men with a skin disease were at the entrance to the gate. They said to each other, “Why just sit here until we die? 4 If we say, ‘Let’s go into the city,’ we will die there because the famine is in the city, but if we sit here, we will also die. So now, come on. Let’s go to the Arameans’ camp. If they let us live, we will live; if they kill us, we will die.” 5 So the diseased men got up at twilight to go to the Arameans’ camp. When they came to the camp’s edge, they discovered that there was not a single man there, 6 for the Lord had caused the Aramean camp to hear the sound of chariots, horses, and a great army. The Arameans had said to each other, “The king of Israel must have hired the kings of the Hittites and the kings of Egypt to attack us.” 7 So they had gotten up and fled at twilight, abandoning their tents, horses, and donkeys. The camp was intact, and they had fled for their lives. 8 When these men came to the edge of the camp, they went into a tent to eat and drink. Then they picked up the silver, gold, and clothing and went off and hid them. They came back and entered another tent, picked things up, and hid them. 9 Then they said to each other, “We’re not doing what is right. Today is a day of good news. If we are silent and wait until morning light, our sin will catch up with us. Let’s go tell the king’s household.”

Background

The city of Samaria was currently under seige by the Aramean army. King Joram was trapped in the city along with his people. No one could get in or out, and the city was on the verge of starving to death. People were so hungry that they were buying donkey heads and dove dung at astronomical prices for food, and women had even resorted to eating their own children. There was no way to get food into the city or for the people to get out of the city to find food elsewhere.

One evening, the central figures of this story, known only as four leapers, began discussing what they should do. As leapers, they lived in small huts just outside the city. Like everyone else, they were starving. They decided that whether they went into the city or stayed where they were, they would eventually starve to death. So, they decided to do the only thing they could. They took a chance. Rather than accepting certain death, they decided to go to the enemy camp, to see if they could get some food there, At the worst, they would be killed by the enemy, what many would argue would be more favorable to a slow death through starvation.

What these men didn’t know was that at the same time they left the city to head towards the enemy camp, God caused the enemy to hear the sound of a great army. Fearing the King of Israel had hired reinforcements, the Aram army fled in great haste, leaving behind many of their supplies and spoils of war. When the men got to the camp, they discovered the great provision God had provided for the relief His people. As the men begin to gather up food and treasure, they have a moment of clarity, where they realize the implications of what they are doing and recognize their responsibility in light of God’s blessing.

In studying this historical narrative, we see two distinct principles necessary to Understanding the Nature of Evangelism.

2 Kings 7:8–9 HCSB

8 When these men came to the edge of the camp, they went into a tent to eat and drink. Then they picked up the silver, gold, and clothing and went off and hid them. They came back and entered another tent, picked things up, and hid them. 9 Then they said to each other, “We’re not doing what is right. Today is a day of good news. If we are silent and wait until morning light, our sin will catch up with us. Let’s go tell the king’s household.”

The first principle we see illustrated here is that:

God’s Blessings are Intended to be Shared

1500 Illustrations for Biblical Preaching Evangelism, Commitment To

Once, when walking down a certain street in Chicago, D. L. Moody stepped up to a man, a perfect stranger to him, and said, “Sir, are you a Christian?”

“You mind your own business!” was the reply.

Moody replied, “This is my business.”414

Above and beyond everything else that the Church of Jesus Christ involves itself in, there is nothing more important than the work of Evangelism. It’s the only reason we are still here. Aside from the Great Commission, no Scripture better illustrates the role of the Christians than .

Psalm 96:3 HCSB

3 Declare His glory among the nations, His wonderful works among all peoples.

Psalm 93:

The conclusion these four leapers came to in light of God’s blessings illustrates the reasoning that should motivate even the most reluctant witnesses to share their testimony to those who are still trapped in their sins.

Two primary points demonstrated

First, Christians have a Moral Obligation to Share God’s Blessings.

Moral Obligation

The men recognized their moral obligation to the starving people in Samaria.

The people were trapped in the city.

The people were dying of starvation.

Separating the Sheep from the Goats

Matthew 25:34–36 HCSB

34 Then the King will say to those on His right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty and you gave Me something to drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; 36 I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you took care of Me; I was in prison and you visited Me.’

Matt 25:3

Matthew 25:31–46 HCSB

31 “When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. 32 All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, just as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will put the sheep on His right and the goats on the left. 34 Then the King will say to those on His right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty and you gave Me something to drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; 36 I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you took care of Me; I was in prison and you visited Me.’ 37 “Then the righteous will answer Him, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You something to drink? 38 When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or without clothes and clothe You? 39 When did we see You sick, or in prison, and visit You?’ 40 “And the King will answer them, ‘I assure you: Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of Mine, you did for Me.’ 41 Then He will also say to those on the left, ‘Depart from Me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the Devil and his angels! 42 For I was hungry and you gave Me nothing to eat; I was thirsty and you gave Me nothing to drink; 43 I was a stranger and you didn’t take Me in; I was naked and you didn’t clothe Me, sick and in prison and you didn’t take care of Me.’ 44 “Then they too will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or without clothes, or sick, or in prison, and not help You?’ 45 “Then He will answer them, ‘I assure you: Whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for Me either.’ 46 “And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

Matthew 25:41–43 HCSB

41 Then He will also say to those on the left, ‘Depart from Me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the Devil and his angels! 42 For I was hungry and you gave Me nothing to eat; I was thirsty and you gave Me nothing to drink; 43 I was a stranger and you didn’t take Me in; I was naked and you didn’t clothe Me, sick and in prison and you didn’t take care of Me.’

Matt 25:

(Separating the Sheep from the goats)

Jesus stresses the moral obligation Christians have to help those in need, implying that those who refuse, are not really Christians.

Jesus stresses the moral obligation Christians have to help those in need.

He addresses social, physical, and emotional needs.

No greater need exists other than the need for salvation (elaborate)

To the woman at the well in the Gospel of John, Jesus compared what He offered to living water.

The vast majority of people today, even in our own nation, are dying of spiritual thirst, and they do not even know it.

By logical implication, Christians have a moral obligation to bring the Gospel to those who are perishing.

Knowing the truth places a certain responsibility on every Christian. Knowing the fate that awaits people who do not know or understand the debt of sin they owe while possessing the knowledge of the only means of salvation obligates us to share that knowledge with others.

How many of you, if you woke up in the middle of the night and saw your neighbor’s house was on fire, would refuse to at least call the fire department, if not also go and bang on their door to alert them to their problem?

What would you think of a neighbor who did refuse?

Isn’t that exactly what we are doing when we are either too afraid, too uncaring, or too lazy to take the time to tell someone about the fire they are facing and the only way to avoid it?

If Jesus turned people away who did not have the compassion to tend to the material or emotional needs of others, how do you suppose He will respond to all those who know the truth, but bury it in their hearts rather than broadcast it for all to hear?

Second, Christians have a Legal Obligation to Share God’s Blessings.

Legal Obligation

The men recognized that they were not only morally obligated to do good in this case. They were legally obligated. In other words, if they did not tell the people about it, and it was discovered that they knew about it, they would face civil punishment.

instructs on the importance of providing true testimony. One of the implications in this passage is the guilt that is acquired by refusing to do what is right. For example, it says in :

Exodus 23:4–5 HCSB

4 “If you come across your enemy’s stray ox or donkey, you must return it to him. 5 “If you see the donkey of someone who hates you lying helpless under its load, and you want to refrain from helping it, you must help with it.

God is saying that refusing to do good is just as sinful as knowingly doing wrong. Both are a violation of the law, and both are regarded as sin in His eyes. James tells us that if we fail to keep even one point of the Law, we are guilty of braking all of it. Now, while Christ has died for our sins, if you are genuinely a Christian, saved by the grace of God, our goal should be to develop spiritually to a point that we are turning away from any known sins. There will still certainly be times when we sin without realizing it, but our goal should be to turn away from anything that we know goes against the will of God.

If that is the case, then the knowledge that Christ commands the Church to multiply by making more disciples of Christ, and the OT command to help even your enemy in his need should be motivation enough to stop holding our tongue and start sharing the Gospel with those who still need to hear it.

The Second Principle we see illustrated here is:

Sharing God’s Blessings Requires Active Participation

Sales departments have several different ways of trying to reach people. There are both active and passive approaches. An example of a passive approach would be when stores place the things they really want to move in their store at the ends of the aisles in an elaborate display. The hope is that as you go by, you will notice the things that are standing out, it will place a desire for these things in your heart, and you will pick them up as you go by. We know this practice as impulse shopping.

However, active sales involves someone calling you on the phone, approaching you in the store, knocking on your door, and so on. Regardless of which method is used, they all have one governing philosophy in common. Don’t wait for someone to notice your product and then recognize their need for your product on their own. Instead, make personal contact with a person to educate them about your product and make them aware of how bad they need it.

Now, while we might not be selling Jesus Christ, the principle is the same. When the four leapers decided they needed to share their discovery with the king and the people of Samaria, they decided to go and tell them what they found.

If these four men were like most Christians, they would have decided to wait there, or maybe walk around the city of Samaria, stuffing their faces with food, and waited for someone to ask where they got it.

Christians today practice what at best could be called passive evangelism. The hope is that by living a Christian life, following the commands of the Bible, that other people will be drawn to them and ask what makes them so different. Now, there is some truth to this, but it is not evangelism. This is what we call Pre-Evangelism. How we live determines how receptive people will be to the message of the Cross, but it cannot take the place of the message.

Evangelism is an action that requires active participation. At some point, we have to actually share the Gospel, which involves making personal contact and actively explaining the predicament them face, and the only solution to their problem.

Application

Honoring the sacrifice Christ made on the Cross means we need to recognize the reason He made it. Christ died for the sins of the whole World, and He left us the job of telling them about it. Each one of us needs to decide if we are going to receive God’s blessings that He provided for the benefit of everyone and hide it away for our benefit alone, or if we are going to honor His sacrifices by sharing what He has done with everyone He leads us to encounter.

The choice is up to you.

But, if you want to start honoring the sacrifice Christ made so that you could be free from the bondage of sin and the consequences of sin, here are three things you need to begin doing today.

Ask the Lord to give you compassion for those who are perishing.

Ask the Lord to regularly lead you to people who need to hear the Gospel.

Ask the Lord to give you the push you might need to get started.