The ABC’s of Evangelism

Big Idea: We must take personal responsibility for evangelism by fostering the right attitude, acting boldly, connecting, and genuinely desiring to reach our neighbors for Christ.

It's been great to hear of what God accomplished at SEMP this summer. It's humbling to realize that we all have a responsibility to reach out to our neighbor. I'm not going to give you a full-blown sermon tonight. I want to challenge you in four areas, because I think we all need to replicate what happened at SEMP in our lives. Evangelism isn't just for others; it's your responsibility to reach your own neighbor.

I want to ask if you have four things tonight:

Attitude

Consider the contagious enthusiasm of the early church in the book of Acts. When the believers emerged from the Upper Room into the streets of Jerusalem, everyone heard them speaking about God's great deeds in their own language. However, their testimony extended beyond mere words.

They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved. (Acts 2:11, 42-47)

Let me ask you a question. What would the outcome have been if early believers had been disharmonious, self-centered, and critical of their leaders? "Who do these apostles think they are?" "These apostles preach for too long!" "Are they serving fish again?" Do you think that people would have jumped at the chance to participate in a group like that? Not likely!

Once upon a time, there was a woman named Ethel who went to church every week. And every week she was frustrated because her pastor refused to give an invitation at the end of the service. Ethel felt it was important to invite people to walk forward and accept Christ, but the pastor wouldn't do it.

Every Monday at work, her longtime friend Harriet asked about her weekend. Every Monday, Ethel complained about her stubborn pastor. "He wouldn't know a good idea if it socked him in the face," she muttered. One week, Ethel suggested for the zillionth time that the pastor give an invitation. "Hmmm," he said, "that might be a good idea." Ethel was shocked. "If you get someone who needs the Lord to church, then I will offer the invitation."

Ethel looked forward to Monday with excitement. She asked her friend Harriet, "Would you come to church with me this week?" "No," said Harriet, with a quizzical look. "But you're my oldest and closest friend," Ethel said. "Why not?" "Well, I'd do just about anything for you, Ethel," replied Harriet. "But for two years I've been hearing what an imbecile your pastor is – I'll never, ever go there." What sort of attitude do your friends pick up from you?

We need the right attitude. We also need:

Boldness

The second ingredient necessary to capture the heart of the community is boldness. Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness. (Acts 4:29)

They arrested the apostles and put them in the public jail. But during the night an angel of the Lord opened the doors of the jail and brought them out. “Go, stand in the temple courts,” he said, “and tell the people the full message of this new life.” At daybreak they entered the temple courts, as they had been told, and began to teach the people. When the high priest and his associates arrived, they called together the Sanhedrin–the full assembly of the elders of Israel–and sent to the jail for the apostles. (Acts 5:18-21)

The apostles showed God's power in the streets of Jerusalem, significantly impacting people's lives, even at the risk of arrest or worse. And the church began to grow beyond Jerusalem. The early believers were fearless. They couldn’t help but tell you about the Lord!

I made a new firefighter friend last month. One thing about firemen – they spend a lot of time together. They practically live together for 24 hours at a time. What a place to be a Christian! You couldn’t help but share your faith with others. My friend Winton shared that when he talked about his relationship with God at work, he found many secret Christians among his co-workers. They were too bashful about Christ.

If we’re going to capture the heart of the community, we need boldness! "Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness" (Acts 4:29). We must become people and churches that take our light out from under our bowls and put them on a stand, where we can draw men and women home safely into the Master’s arms. The church must become that true lighthouse for people in the storms of life.

If the church is not following the mandate of Jesus to go make disciples, then why should we believe that God will bless the church? Or, if we as individuals are not willing to be molded and used by our Lord, then why do we hope God will bless us? When a church loses its vision to reach the lost, God’s blessings are withheld. When most people submit to his guidance and accept him as the true Lord of their lives, amazing things start to happen.

We need the right attitude, and we need boldness. We also need:

Contact

The third ingredient we need if we’re going to capture the heart of the community as a church is contact. I believe the early church had two advantages over us. They didn't have church buildings. That might not sound like much of an advantage, but they couldn’t be contained and trapped by the four walls of a physical plant. It’s my contention that North American churches have unintentionally succumbed to a fortress mentality. The building we created for worship can sometimes limit our impact in our neighborhoods. We’re the salt of the earth, but the salt is still in the salt-shaker. We have to somehow prevent the walls of the church from holding us in.

I believe we should purposely endeavor to establish ministries within the community. Another conviction I have is that we should continue to allow our facilities to be used by the community. At present, our church is “home” to two girls’ groups, English as a second language classes, and other groups. These may not be profound, but they demonstrate that our attitude demonstrates that we have a heart from our community.

Another advantage the early church had is that they were scattered. We read in Acts 8 that the believers were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria because of persecution. In other words, they were literally forced into contact with unbelievers. Sometimes in church the opposite happens. The longer we’re Christians, the fewer friends we have who are not Christians. We need to be in contact with people in the world. To his Father, Jesus prayed, “My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one…As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world” (John 17:15,18). Jesus repeatedly addressed the importance of sending, or scattering, of his people into the world. Ministry is incarnational; we need to be among people. Paul even tells us not to separate from sinners in the world.

How much contact do you have with the community if you want to truly connect with them? How well do you know your neighbors? What community groups are you involved with? What steps are you taking to keep involved with the community?

We need the right attitude. We need boldness. We need contact. We also need one more thing:

Desire

Perhaps the ingredient we lack the most is desire. When Jonah went to Nineveh to preach, the entire city repented and turned to God. The Ninevites were known far and wide for their savage cruelty. What happened? Jonah was so upset that the Ninevites repented that he wanted to die. Jonah wished that they would be destroyed rather than saved. How much do we care about capturing the heart of the community?

A pastor came to church in jeans and a tee-shirt one Sunday morning, and his hair was in a ponytail. He spoke about how Christians often focus on trivial matters instead of addressing important issues. He preached the whole sermon without a word about his appearance. He talked about compassion for people in the community who are marginalized, disadvantaged – about breaking our circles of security. He concluded by saying, "Some of you seem more upset about my ponytail than about people not receiving Christ’s gospel and love. The truth is, ponytails don’t matter – but people do. I’m going to cut my ponytail. What are you going to do about your neighbors?"

The real question this morning is, how much do you care? Will you choose one of these ingredients and take action? These ABC’s are not enough for a week of SEMP. They should challenge each of us to be a disciple wherever we are, to win others to Christ and to bring glory to God.