evangelism

The Four Evangelists, by Jakob Jordaens

See also: Evangelical

Evangelism is the Christian practice of preaching the Gospel of Jesus to non-Christians. The intention of most evangelism is to effect conversion to Christianity. Throughout most of its history, Christianity has been spread evangelistically, though the extent of evangelism has varied significantly between Christian communities and denominations.

The word evangelist comes from the Koine Greek word εὐαγγέλιον (transcribed as "euangelion") via Latin "Evangelium", as used in the canonical titles of the four Gospels, authored by Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John (also known as the Four Evangelists). The Greek word εὐαγγέλιον originally meant a reward for good news given to the messenger (εὔ = "good", ἀγγέλλω = "I bring a message"; the word angel is of the same root) and later "good news". The latter term gives rise to the word "Gospel".

Reasons for Evangelism

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Commanded by God

According to the Bible, during his last days on earth Jesus commanded his disciples the following:

Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, [even] unto the end of the world. Amen.

– Matthew 28:19,20 KJV

Other translations render the phrase "teach all nations in the above quotations as "make disciples of all nations."

Jesus is also depicted in the Gospel of Mark as saying "go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature" (Mark 16:15). These are two main passages of Scripture often interpreted by evangelical Christians as commands to them to preach the Gospel.

The writer(s) of the First Epistle of John represent a reason for evangelism: "...that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ." (1 John 1:3 New King James Version).

Therefore, the question for every Christian and the question of evangelism is: 'Where is fellowship, and how is it found?' Christ sums up fellowship in the statement, "For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them." (Matthew 18:20 New King James Version) Fellowship simply means being found in a relational dialogue with those who are doing the will of God, that is actually amazingly a dialogue of God Himself, where others can speak the word of God into the lives of others and actually call these ones unto the book of who we are that was written before time. The common question of a wandering pilgrim who is lost in the crossroads of life is 'Who am I?' Even, 'what is the meaning of life?' It's only as sons of God, called from 'out there' into the fellowship of God, does one begin to answer these questions and understand who we are.

The apostle Paul describes the dynamic of fellowship in 1 Corinthians 1:9 - "God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord." God calls each one to walk in the name, or just who we are to be that was written before time in the 'book', to be lived in the realm of time. It is amazing to think that each and every human being has a destiny, but has a choice. God gave mankind a choice - to fellowship or not. This is why Adam and Eve ate of the fruit. However, God calls us accountable to our actions. Galatians says, "Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap." (Galatians 6:7 New King James Version) Each man and woman have a call as a son of God. To evangelize is to express this call, or destiny. However, if a son of God doesn't enter the fellowship of God, he or she will die (not talking about physical so much). This is the dynamic that evangelism should be - the realization to those who have not been saved that they are a son of God. But also the call into the fellowship where the name of each individual, their destination of identity, of who they are, is slowly revealed. God has given each person a choice - be a son of God in the way God formed us and destined us and found in fellowship, or die. The heart of evangelism is to get sons of God all the way to the signpost of fellowship - here, a pilgrim's walk of life is directed in a dialogue with those who do the will of God.

Evangelists

Sometimes, the regular minister of a church is called a preacher in a way that other groups would typically use the term pastor. The evangelist in some churches is one that travels from town to town and from church to church, spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ. Though many Christians of various theological perspectives would call themselves 'evangelists' because they are spreaders of the good news. Many churches believe one of their major functions is to function as evangelists to spread the good news about Jesus being our savior.

The evangelical movement in Protestant Christianity encompasses denominations and parachurch organizations such as the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association which, among other characteristics, focus on evangelism and the drawing-in of new converts. In common parlance, the title of evangelist is most easily associated with those who lead large meetings like those of Billy Graham, possibly in tents or existing church buildings, or those who address the public in street corner preaching, which targets listeners who happen to pass nearby on the street. It can also be done in small groups or even on a one-to-one basis. Increasingly, the Web enables anyone to become an Internet evangelist. Though it is a misnomer to believe that to be evangelical one has to accept a certain sort of Biblical fundamentalism. Many radicals and liberals would call themselves 'evangelical'.

The term is also used in a non-religious sense to describe an individual who takes up a cause and convinces others to it (see technology evangelist). Guy Kawasaki, an author and venture capitalist, describes evangelists as individuals who promote a particular product. At Apple Computer, he was part of a team of Apple evangelists that convinced programmers to develop software on the Macintosh Platform. In The Human Fabric (Aviri, 2004), Bijoy Goswami describes the "Evangelist" as one of three core energies in people and society.

Perspectives on evangelism

See also: Approaches to evangelism

Though there is some controversy concerning missionary activity and possible implications of "cultural imperialism", Christian D. T. Niles characterised evangelism as ". . . one beggar telling another beggar where to find bread."

Evangelism and missions

Evangelism and apostolic ministry often go hand in hand. As mentioned earlier, evangelism comes from the Greek "evangelion" meaning "good news," often translated "gospel"; thus an evangelist is one who shares the good news. An "apostolos" is literally "one who goes" and refers to the missionary calling. Since missionaries often travel to areas or unreached people groups or cultures where Christ is not yet known, the frequently take on an evangelistic role and many have the spiritual gift of evangelism. But the apostolic or missionary callings is not necessarily the same (and it is a misnomer and misinterpretation to equate them), as there are many who serve in missionary, church planting, and ministry development roles who have an apostolic calling or serve in an apostolic role but do not have an evangeslistic gifting.

See also

• Biblical Evangelism
• Evangelicalism
• Great Commission
• Internet evangelist
• Missionary
• Televangelism
• Christian televangelist scandals
• Romans Road
• Altar call
• Ultreya
• Evangelists encyclopedia category

References

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