Once, some years ago, our family drove to the mall. Do you remember malls? When we arrived at the parking lot, our kids piled out of the minivan. Except one didn’t. My wife gasped, “Where is Rachel?” Somehow, in the confusion and mayhem of loading the family of six into the vehicle, we left our daughter behind. She has reminded us of that event many times!
Have you ever forgotten something very important? Apparently, many churches and Christians have forgotten about evangelism. Evangelism can get crowded out of our spiritual consciousness by our busy schedules and demanding programs. We can overlook it in the mayhem of budgets and meetings. It can be forgotten as we prioritize the needs of those already evangelized. As our priorities pile out of our churches, might we suddenly gasp, “Where is evangelism?”
Let’s not let evangelism sit forgotten in the corner of our church buildings. Instead, let’s have a renewed commitment to sharing the good news of the gospel with others. Here are three reasons evangelism still matters.
1. Evangelism matters because people are lost without Jesus. Those without Jesus aren’t just misguided or unaware. They are separated from God and facing eternity apart from him. Only Jesus can forgive sins, and he alone can give us eternal life. People need the salvation that only Jesus can provide.
2. Evangelism matters because we need to share. We can define evangelism as “one beggar telling another beggar where the bread is.” It is selfish and spiritually unnatural for those who have found the bread of life to keep that to themselves. It is spiritual and Christlike for believers to want others to experience the gospel freedom and hope for eternity that they have discovered.
3. Evangelism matters because God tells us to. The Great Commission (Mt. 28:18-20) applies to our encounters locally as well as reaching the nations. In Acts 1:8, Jesus tells us be witnesses for him where we are (Jerusalem) as well as beyond (to the ends of the earth). The biblical mandate for evangelism applies to all believers in every church.
Evangelism is easily left behind. Don’t forget about reaching people. Don’t forget that God can use someone like you to share the gospel message with another. Don’t forget that your church can be used by God to tell people about the incredible good news that Jesus saves.
Evangelism matters!
─ Doug Munton is the Pastor of First Baptist O’Fallon and is serving as President of IBSA.