The essentials of the Gospel message are clearly laid in the Bible for our salvation. The message is a plan for redemption and forgiveness for sins that follow love for God and atoning work (Earley and Dempsey, 2013). Christ did not sin, but He died on the cross, paying for the sins of all men. In doing so, He resurrected, giving humankind the greatest gift of eternal life through atonement and sacrifice.
Thus, in receiving and following Christ and His message, one acquires an unknown path to everlasting life. However, it requires proper understanding and acceptance of the main facets: surrender and repentance. Surrender means acknowledgment of Jesus as Lord, the controller of all (Wheeler and Whaley, 2011). As such, without surrendering to His will, one cannot claim to follow Jesus; it is an essential part of receiving Christ. Repentance and acceptance of a person’s sinful condition are necessary for forgiveness of sin. Since it involves a changing of mind, it results in changing of life to turn in the direction of God. These facets are crucial in accepting God and gaining faith in Jesus Christ. In surrender and repentance, one is born again and builds a personal and direct relationship with God.
Tolerance and religious acceptance of modern society make some people view Evangelism as unacceptable or even harmful behavior; however, how can the act of spreading love and salvation be intolerable? I believe that this is how it should be viewed by everyone. Similar to displaying affection for your family or wanting others to see the beauty of them and love the ones dear to you, Evangelism shares the fondness for Jesus Christ. It is an involuntary and natural act of compassion and care since spreading the gospel message can provide salvation and eternal life to the unsaved (Wheeler and Whaley, 2011). Since Jesus commanded us to love one another, what is Evangelism, if not love for our neighbors in desire of saving their souls, that every true Christian should exercise?
Learning what Evangelism is “not” was an eye-opening experience for me. The observation of Evangelism not being a Prayer by itself (Wheeler and Whaley, 2011) surprised me. I have to admit that I have been excusing myself from spreading the message to the ones I care for by praying for their souls. Having understood that Prayer by itself is not Evangelism, I will change and start openly and sincerely sharing Christ with those in need. I have also realized that Evangelism is not only sharing essential biblical information. Evangelism must include the knowledge validated to the world through a consistent testimony of changed life (McRaney, 2003). As such, I will share my own life alongside the gospel of God.
References
Acts. Nottingham, England: Inter-Varsity Press, 2012.
Earley, Dave, and Rod Dempsey. 2013. Disciple Making Is…: How to Live the Great Commission with Passion and Confidence. Nashville: B&H Publishing Group.
Ephesians. Nottingham, England: Inter-Varsity Press, 2012.
McRaney, Will. 2003. The art of personal evangelism. Nashville: B&H Publishing Group.
Schrimpf, Andrew. “The Goal of Evangelism: An Opportunity to Share the Gospel.” Thesis, Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary, 2017.
Wheeler, David, and Vernon M. Whaley. 2011. The Great Commission to Worship: Biblical Principles for Worship-Based Evangelism. Nashville: B&H Publishing Group.