The Commitment Of The Evangelist

SESSION IN A SENTENCE

The task of evangelism is a commitment to proclaiming the full message of the gospel, which includes an invitation to the listener to change direction and experience true life through faith in Jesus Christ.

SESSION BACKGROUND

Imagine a bridegroom at the front of the church on his wedding day. He looks around the beautifully decorated building, full of his excited friends and family in anticipation of the entrance of the bride. The woman of his dreams is due to arrive at any moment. Ten minutes go by and the bride hasn’t arrived. ‘It’s customary for the bride to be late,’ he thinks to himself. Twenty minutes go by and there’s still no sign of her. He laughs nervously. Thirty minutes go by and there is still no bride and no word as to why she is late. Now he begins to panic a little as the murmurs of the gathered crowd begin to rise. Forty-five minutes go by, then an hour, and still no bride. The murmuring amongst the guests has reached fever pitch. What on earth is going on? Is she just running ridiculously late or has she done the unthinkable and decided not to come at all?

The groom’s mind begins to race through all the potential reasons for why she hasn’t arrived, and then, suddenly, his stomach sinks as the realisation hits him. He never actually asked his bride to marry him.

An invitation is essential if the opportunity you have for someone requires a response. The shortest version of Jesus’ gospel message is recorded by Mark as follows: ‘“The time has come,” he said. “The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!”’ (Mark 1:15).

The word ‘repent’ can cause a few problems – mainly because many people don’t know what it really means. Repent has often been associated with a ‘turn or burn’ approach to gospel preaching, meaning that many hear in it only a pronouncement of judgement. For many people today, the word repent doesn’t sound like a ‘good news’ word.

But when we properly understand it, the word ‘repent’ holds an amazing revelation of the truth of the gospel. It literally means to have a change of mind, to change the course of your life. ‘You are going the wrong way,’ Jesus is saying, ‘but because of me you can go the right way – the way of truth that leads to the Father.’ Repentance is good news because it offers anyone who hears it an opportunity to know life instead of death. We have brought judgement on ourselves by our rebellion against God: repentance is both the fire alarm to alert us to this reality and the invitation to discover Jesus as the truth that can set us free.

Walter A. Elwell and Barry J. Beitzel explain that repentance (conversion) has three elements:

The first preachers of the gospel were careful to include an opportunity for their listeners to respond to their message, just as Jesus did. An appeal for repentance was made as the climax of the preaching of the Jesus story (Acts 2:37–39; 3:25–26; 4:12; 5:31; 10:43).

The gospel extends an invitation for humanity to stop running away from God. Through faith in Jesus Christ we can turn around and face God – and as we do so, allow our minds to be changed by the truth of who he is, seeing our lives transformed by the power of his Spirit.

CATCH UP (10–20 MINS)

Take time to catch up with one another, sharing stories, encouragements, feedback on opportunities and anything else that would encourage the group. Share about extra opportunities you encountered in light of the last session (Session Nine – Application).

PRAYER

Commit the time to the Lord and give thanks for the opportunities you’ve had in the last few weeks to share the gospel. Pray for those who have put their trust in Jesus through those opportunities.

TEACHING (30–40 MINS)

Work through the following teaching material in your own way, either by reading it word for word, or by reworking it into your own presentation.

Invitation is as much a part of the gospel message as the cross itself. Having experienced the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, Peter began to preach to the gathered crowd. Through the power of the Spirit at work in his preaching the audience was ‘cut to the heart’ as they heard the message of the gospel.

Can you imagine here the story taking a different turn? Just as the crowd are ready to put their trust in Jesus, Peter says, ‘Thank you and goodnight!’ and walks off for a well-deserved post-preaching meal with his friends. The crowd, left moved by his message but confused about how to apply it to their lives, wander away back to their lives with more questions than answers, having had no opportunity to put their faith in the Jesus Peter told them about.

Thankfully that’s not what happened! Peter invited a response and called the crowd to repent – giving them a concrete way to act upon the message they have understood and to respond to the call of the Spirit they have experienced in their hearts. The full gospel includes an invitation to repentance, and an explanation of how to act upon what has been heard. The disciples were thoroughly committed to preaching the full gospel. So should we.

For those of you who regularly prepare sermons or talks, you’ll know how important it is to include some ways to apply your message to everyday life. Jesus’ preaching, and that of the apostles, was full of application. Jesus’ first gospel presentation in Mark – a call to ‘repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand’ – is pretty much all application: he is saying, ‘You are going the wrong way, you need to turn around and experience a transformation!’

Throughout the gospels Jesus repeatedly extends an invitation: ‘Come to me all who are weary’ (Matthew 11:28), ‘Come and see’ (John 1:39), ‘Come and follow me’ (Matthew 4:19), ‘Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink’ (John 7:37), ‘Come and eat’ (John 21:12). These invitations are not arbitrary or trivial. They reveal Jesus’ identity to the world and have real consequences when taken up or rejected. The defining aspect of an invitation is that it demands a response. Even to sit on the fence is to reject the invitation, for only a ‘Yes’ brings acceptance of the invitation and the blessings that follow.

The opportunity to respond to the gospel is the most important aspect of our preaching. To proclaim the gospel authentically, we must always make room for an invitation to accept Jesus as Lord and Saviour.

This can be tricky – and some gospel opportunities seemingly lend themselves better than others to inviting a response. So how can we faithfully ‘invite’ a response in our evangelism, whatever context and situation we find ourselves in? Whether from a platform or in a one-to-one setting, we should be committed to not simply asking people if they want to come to a Sunday church service (although do this by all means), but committed to inviting people into the kingdom of God. We don’t find a step-by-step guide for this in scripture, but these principles offer a good place to start:

ASK DIRECT QUESTIONS

Keep your questions direct and simple. Having explained who Jesus is and what it means to follow him, you could simply ask: ‘Would you like to put your trust in Jesus Christ today and begin new life in relationship with him?’, or: ‘Is there anything stopping you from putting your trust in Jesus today?’

If you used an illustration or parable that connected with your audience, use this as a focal point. For example, if sharing from the story of the prodigal son: ‘God is calling you home today. Do you want to come home into the Father’s embrace, just as the prodigal son did?’ This question helps you to see if the listener is open to saying yes to Jesus. Next, you can bring more clarity about their response, but your initial question should be direct, simple and connected to the message you have already shared.

TAKE THE TIME NEEDED

When speaking to a crowd, wait for as long as you feel led to let the Spirit touch people’s hearts. How long it takes (or how awkward it feels!) is largely irrelevant. What matters is that people have time to consider what has been shared, and that you allow the space for God to do what he wants to do. In one-to-one situations, it may be that the person needs time and space to think and therefore you can arrange to meet up again at another time to explore this again. Remember, we are not trying to force or coerce a response, we are looking for God to move in his timing. Be open to letting the response play out in the time that is needed.

MAKE THE EXPECTATION CLEAR

Explain what will happen if the person says ‘yes’ and what they are being invited into. For example, explain that you will pray together, perhaps that you will give them a Bible and a reading plan, and that you will connect them with your/a church. Make it clear that their life may not instantly change for the better, but that through daily devotion to Jesus the fullness of the life that he offers will come into sharper focus. Explain something of the practical next steps, and the spiritual reality of the life of discipleship that follows our first response to Jesus.

CELEBRATE ACCEPTANCE, BE GRACIOUS OF REFUSAL

As a person indicates they want to accept the invitation, be affirming and joyful. Don’t let it be manufactured – if you are not genuinely joyful at this response you may be getting ahead of yourself to be sharing the gospel in the first place! Equally, if the person says a qualified or outright flat no, be gracious and humble. Try to leave the person who refuses the invitation with an open-ended invitation that they can accept on their own should God reveal himself to them at another time, and if possible give them some contact details for yourself or a local church that they could connect with should this happen.

One of the most common reasons people don’t respond to the gospel message is that no-one asks them to. One of the most common reasons evangelists don’t call out a response is a fear that no-one will respond and then they (or the gospel) will look foolish. But the power of salvation is not yours, and even Jesus had people walk away from him and reject his invitation. We are simply called to be faithful to the gospel message, invitation and all, whatever follows next. In fact, the invitation of Christ is for us to come and die to ourselves, to take up our cross and follow him (Matthew 16:24). That means dying to ourselves in our evangelism too, whatever the cost and however foolish we may look.

Jesus and his apostles offered invitation as they proclaimed the gospel, and so must we. Whatever the response, we can be assured that we have been faithful to the gospel message and its central call to repentance and trust in Jesus Christ. God will take care of the rest.

DISCUSSION (15 MINS)

1. Is it possible to authentically preach the gospel without offering a response to faith in Jesus?
2. What do you find easy/difficult about the response aspect of evangelism?
3. What have you learned about how to help people to respond to the gospel as you have shared the gospel?

APPLICATION (5 MINS)

Be intentional about extending an invitation to respond to the gospel every time you share it. Perhaps you are a platform preacher who has been struggling in this area. Experiment with different ways of calling out a response and don’t be afraid of looking foolish if no one responds. Equally, you may be someone who is great at initiating and having conversations with people about Jesus, but are struggling to make a connection to the next steps. Step out in boldness this month and ask at least one person off the back of a gospel-centred conversation if they want to put their trust in Jesus.

PRAYER

Give thanks to God for the invitation he offers us each to be reconciled to him. Ask him for boldness as we share the gospel, and that we would be clear and confident in calling people to repentance – helping them see not condemnation but hope. Pray that hearts might be receptive to this invitation.

ACCOUNTABILITY (15 MINS)

In pairs, discuss which area(s) of your life you think might need a bit of work in terms of ‘dying to yourself’. We can all struggle with areas of idolatry, or character deficiencies that need work. When thinking of extending the gospel invitation to others, let’s also consider the same invitation afresh that God offers us – to die to ourselves and follow him. Encourage and pray for one another as you share in this area.

Complete accountability forms, share in pairs or smaller groups and pray for one another.