After becoming a Christian, it is natural to share Christ with others, and it is also the most appropriate response to God’s love on the cross.
Thanks be to God, in the past 40 years of believing in Christ, I have had the opportunity of spreading the gospel through the pulpit or personal evangelism. I have always persisted in evangelism, from the earliest days of faith in an American university, then enrolling in Dallas Theological Seminary, through 17 years as a pastor and district superintendent in the US and in Malaysia, and another 17 years in Methodist Theological School, Sibu as a lecturer and principal. As president now, I still actively evangelize. I have preached for many a gospel Sunday, and also intentionally call for people to trust in Christ in every single sermon. Besides preaching, I also join the SCAC evangelism team and the Sibu Wesley Methodist Church evangelism team. Why do I persist in this? Because I am following in Christ’s footsteps:
Jesus replied, “Let us go somewhere else! to the nearby villages! so I can preach there also. That is why I have come.” (Mark 1:38)
Evangelism is Jesus’ main priority, and is also our priority.
Besides following Jesus, I also obey the Apostle Paul’s exhortation towards Timothy, who was a pastor:
Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage with great patience and careful instruction…But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry. (1 Tim 4:2, 5)
Pastors, in pastoring, must “do the work of an evangelist”. That means to evangelize or share the gospel is part of all our duties in ministry.
In actuality, I have nothing to boast about. I learn from Apostle Paul:
“For when I preach the gospel, I cannot boast, since I am compelled to preach. Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel! If I preach voluntarily, I have a reward; if not voluntarily, I am simply discharging the trust committed to me.” (1 Cor 9: 16-17)
I will admit that I am not always willing and eager every time I go out to evangelize. I could spend my Saturday afternoon taking a nap at home to catch up on sleep. And I am not always willing to preach the gospel message in every sermon. Sometimes I would rather preach on other spiritual matters, because there is less pressure. But whether I am willing or not, I must go, I must preach, to turn reluctance into willingness and from willingness receive blessings.
Why is it then that in the past, there has not been much result from our conference in promoting Evangelism Explosion III (EE)? Investigation shows that the top reason is: pastors do not lead in evangelism. The second reason, I guess, is that church members view EE as only an activity, not life. We need to be more diligent in evangelism, among all pastors, church leaders, to all church members – we all need to work hard in spreading the gospel, so that evangelism becomes a lifestyle and habit. Please do not use other ministries or excuses as a replacement for personal evangelism!
Fellow pastors, let us not forget that we are called to be pastors, to do the work of an evangelist, to equip and lead our brothers and sisters in one heart and mind to spread the gospel. If we pastor without evangelism, we might as well pastor in heaven, because there the sheep are already believers in Jesus Christ. Remember that now there are still many lost sheep outside the sheep pen, needing you to find and shepherd them.
Fellow brothers and sisters, each day that we are alive is a day to witness for Christ. Once we leave this earth, we are not able to evangelize anymore. Please follow Christ, and follow your pastors to evangelize, to see evangelism as a way of life and not simply a training program or activity. Graduation from EE or some other evangelism training is not the end of evangelism; rather it is the beginning of a life of evangelism, until our deaths.
Dear friends, if you have not believed in Christ, please trust in Jesus Christ as your Saviour now. He died for your sins, rose on the third day, and He gives you a new life now, so that you are also able to share the good news with others for them to receive eternal life. To be able to receive eternal life is not only the greatest blessing in this life but all the more in eternity.
In life, evangelism is the most meaningful thing. Besides prayer, evangelism must be the top priority in a pastor’s life. It is also the top priority in all Christians’ lives.