Evangelism, simply stated, is sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ. The Bible is explicit about how we receive the gospel: “So faith comes from what is heard, and what is heard comes through the message about Christ” (John 10:17).
Ligonier Ministries tells us the root of the word evangelism “comes from the same Greek word for gospel (euangelion) and means, literally, ‘gospeling.’ When we evangelize we are ‘gospeling’ — we are spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ.”
Before we dispel evangelism myths, we should revisit what the gospel is. The gospel is Jesus Christ, His Person and work, and it is the good news of Jesus Christ — who He is, what He has done, is doing, and will do. These first two sections are long because the information in them is paramount to our understanding of evangelism.
Jesus came down from heaven, put on flesh (John 1:14; 1 Timothy 3:16), was born to a virgin (Isaiah 7:14) and was named Immanuel, God with us (Matthew 1:23). He came to bear the consequences of Adam’s sin that fell on all humanity (Romans 3:23; 1 Corinthians 15:22), and to atone for our sins on the cross. We need to know our sinful state and how hopeless we are without Jesus.
Jesus suffered under Pontius Pilate and was crucified, died, and was buried (John 19:17-42). On the third day, Jesus resurrected from death, therefore defeating it. He imputed His righteousness to all who believe in Him (John 11:25; John 20:1-18; 2 Corinthians 5:21).
Jesus ascended to heaven and is building His church (we who have been called by God through the power of the Spirit to believe in Him are the church). He is also preparing a place for us and He will return for us (John 14:3).
When we read John 20:30-31, we see the reason for John’s Gospel, “Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of His disciples that are not written in this book. But these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His name.” And that life is eternal life! It’s no wonder the Lord wants us to share the gospel.
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