Untitled Sermon

BF&M Article 11; Evangelism and Missions

It is the duty and privilege of every follower of Christ and of every church of the Lord Jesus Christ to endeavor to make disciples of all nations. The new birth of man's spirit by God's Holy Spirit means the birth of love for others. Missionary effort on the part of all rests thus upon a spiritual necessity of the regenerate life, and is expressly and repeatedly commanded in the teachings of Christ. The Lord Jesus Christ has commanded the preaching of the gospel to all nations. It is the duty of every child of God to seek constantly to win the lost to Christ by verbal witness undergirded by a Christian lifestyle, and by other methods in harmony with the gospel of Christ.

Definitions and Methods

Evangelism: the spreading of the Christian gospel by public preaching or personal witness

Missions: evangelism that crosses distance, language, and/or cultural boundaries

Note the difference between the two definitions.

Missions involves crossing some sort of boundary that would impede the spread of the gospel.

Evangelism is any time we share the gospel through public preaching or one-on-one witnessing.

All missions must include evangelism but not all evangelism is missions.

Both require a verbal witness. We do not believe in evangelism and missions by sword, coercion, baptism, or any other forceful means.

This type of mentality has lead to many conflicts in the past. Avoiding coercion has far reaching implications

They are not social liberation or social activism. These, in some cases, can be tools that lead to a verbal witness but they are not an end unto themselves.

The gospel must be verbally shared in order for evangelism to have occured.

No one in the NT came to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ by simply observing Christians and their lifestyle

Romans 10:13–14 ESV

For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching?

Preaching, or proclaiming, must be done verbally! There are various methods that can be utilized to do this: G.O.S.P.E.L., P.R.A.Y., personal testimony, Roman’s Road, etc.

Duty and Privilege

The new birth necessitates a love for others. We desire to see the lost saved because we desire to see God praised

Evangelism and Missions are born from and lead to God’s glory. When we have been made a new creation by the grace of God, our desire is to see Him glorified. One way that God glorifies himself is by reconciling the lost to himself. Therefore, our new birth creates in us a desire to see others come to saving faith!

John Piper says of missions in his book Let the Nations be Glad “Missions exists because worship does not.”

“Missionary effort on the part of all rests thus upon a spiritual necessity of the regenerate life.” BF&M 200 Article 11. In other words, if we are not convinced of the gospel ourselves then we will have no desire to share the gospel with others.

The inverse could then be asked: if we never have a desire to see the lost come to saving faith, what would that mean for our own salvation?

Evangelism and Missions are a command given to every beliver:

Matthew 28:18–20 ESV

And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 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, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Acts 1:8 ESV

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

Acts 8:1 ESV

And Saul approved of his execution. And there arose on that day a great persecution against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles.

Acts 8:4 ESV

Now those who were scattered went about preaching the word.

God’s plan from the Beginning

God’s plan from the Beginning

Evangelism and Missions are not something new and they are not something that man has come up with on his own. The great missionary plan of God was promised in the Garden:

Genesis 3:15 ESV

I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.”

It was the purpose of Abraham’s calling:

Genesis 12:1–3 ESV

Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”

The plan came in its fulness in the person and work of Christ.

The plan is currently being worked out through the body of Christ: the church.

The Result

The lost will be saved:

Romans 1:16 ESV

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.

Romans 10:13 ESV

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

God will be praised:

Revelation 5:11–14 ESV

Then I looked, and I heard around the throne and the living creatures and the elders the voice of many angels, numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice, “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!” And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying, “To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!” And the four living creatures said, “Amen!” and the elders fell down and worshiped.

Revelation 19:6–10 ESV

Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the roar of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, crying out, “Hallelujah! For the Lord our God the Almighty reigns. Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready; it was granted her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure”— for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints. And the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.” And he said to me, “These are the true words of God.” Then I fell down at his feet to worship him, but he said to me, “You must not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers who hold to the testimony of Jesus. Worship God.” For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.

It will culminate in the ultimate end of God’s glory and praise:

Revelation 21:1–8 ESV

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.” And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.” And he said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give from the spring of the water of life without payment. The one who conquers will have this heritage, and I will be his God and he will be my son. But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.”

Opportunities

Opportunities

Look for opportunities to be involved with evangelism and missions. Look for opportunities to share the gospel one-on-one at work, school, the grocery store, restaurants, etc.

Get involved with His Hands and the prayer team.

Stay up to date on associational opportunities.

Get involved with NAMB or the IMB.