Articles
Evangelism is the Answer
Evangelism Is the Answer!
Evangelism requires preaching the Gospel, converting souls from sin, and spreading salvation. This is how Christ lived, what He taught, and what His followers practiced. The full message of the Gospel was preached for the first time in approximately A.D. 33, and within less than 30 years it had been taken to all the world. What a story!
Jesus was always on the move during His personal ministry. He went to the villages and to the cities. He spoke to the multitudes and to individuals. He used physical acts to teach spiritual lessons. No man ever spoke with greater authority or showed the power of God more clearly in His mighty works. Truly, He was the Son of God.
Calling twelve men, known as apostles, Jesus taught them and trained them to carry on His work after His death, burial, and resurrection. Some of His final words were, "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 10 observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, to, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen (Matthew 28: 19,20).
Just before returning to the Father, He said to the apostles, "But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth" (Acts 1:8).
Turning to Acts 2, we read of Jews coming from all over the world to celebrate Pentecost, a Jewish feast day. This was not by accident. The Lord planned it this way. With the apostles receiving the power of the Holy Spirit to guide them into all the Truth, from this very first day the good news began to be taken to peoples of many nations of the world. Some 3,000 who heard the message, believed it, repented of their sins, were gladly baptized, and the Lord added those that should be saved to His church.
However, this was just the beginning. The Gospel was preached again and again in Jerusalem and throughout Judaea. then in Samaria, and on to other surrounding nations. As a result., within less than 30 years the Gospel had been taken into all the world (Colossians 1:23).
There were fewer people back then, but there were many obstacles. They had the Gospel, but they did not have the written Word. They did not have the methods of transportation and communication we take for granted in our age. Travel was slow and dangerous, over land or by sea, yet they went. Communication was primarily by word of mouth, yet Paul commended the church in Rome with the words, ", .. your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world" (Romans I :8). In spite of every limitation, early Christians did the work God gave them to do, and the world was forever changed,
Morals and values came to be set by a higher standard because of the influence of God's Word. A study of what was acceptable among "civilized" people in the first century compared to the early twentieth century would reveal just how much impact Christianity has had in reshaping the world. Sadly, in the last fifty years tremendous ground has been lost because we have allowed atheistic humanism to forge ahead in its acceptance. Abortion, rampant divorce, homosexual acceptance, immorality, indecency, violence, disrespect of parents and authority, foul language and other types of shameless behavior have mushroomed as the influence of Christianity has diminished, humanism has filled the void.
Yet, today we have the same Gospel to take to the world. We have the same command of Christ. What does that commission mean to you and me? Do we take it personally? Do we intend to obey it? So far, most individual Christians and most congregations have done very little about our Lord's command. The direct result is that we are faced with many problems, both outside and inside the church. How can we expect to please God when we fail to do what He has asked us to do? Will we never learn? Do we feel comfortable with the world today with all of its evil, ungodliness, materialism, and outright unbelief? As conditions grow worse through the influence of sin, will Christians not also suffer grave consequences? Even many of the problems in our personal lives and in the church itself are the result ofour failure to give ourselves to the Lord and to do the work He has asked us to do.
How can we tum this tragedy around? By simply repenting and becoming serious about world evangelism. Evangelism is the answer. Today! Right now!
AUTHOR UNKNOWN
