Three questions on evangelism and the three wrong right answers!

When I train people in personal evangelism there are three questions I ask which always elicit the right wrong answers.

They are the right wrong answers because they are the ones I expect people to give. But they’re also the right wrong answers because, in their own way, they are correct. It’s just that you can be correct and wrong at the same time. Let me share the three questions and the answers they usually provoke:

Who needs the gospel?
The world does.

What should we do with the gospel?
Share it.

Does the world need more evangelists?
Of course!

All these answers have the virtue of being correct. But while these answers are right, they’re also wrong. They’re wrong if they are the first and most foundational responses we give. Instead, here are some more basic truths:

Who needs the gospel?
I do.

Paul writes his letter to the Romans in large part to drum up support for his mission to Spain (Rom.15:24,28). If we were in that position we might well fill the letter with appeals for funding and volunteers, but what does Paul do? He proclaims the gospel to them in written form – 16 glorious chapters – and he promises that, when he comes, he will preach the gospel to them in person (Rom. 1:15). He doesn’t think that Spain needs the gospel while the Christians in Rome need urgent pleas to get busy evangelising. The Romans need the gospel, and so do we. I am the first person who needs evangelising because there are many unevangelised nether-regions to my soul – places where the good news is yet to truly sink in. The message I preach to others I desperately need myself. Secondly:

What do I need to do with the gospel?
Believe it.

In 1 Timothy 1, Paul writes: ‘Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners – of whom I am the worst’ (1 Tim.1:15). The word ‘acceptance’ here is a word for welcoming a guest. Paul says we must fully welcome the word of the gospel into our lives, not just as a temporary guest, but as a permanent resident. We must make room in our hearts for the truth that Christ is a wonderful Saviour, even as we acknowledge that we are desperate sinners. But in accepting this truth, Paul is equipped for mission. The next verse speaks of how Paul – being gripped by this gospel truth – became ‘an example for those who would believe’. In other words, evangelism flows from a heart fully accepting the gospel – fully making space for the wonder of Christ our Saviour. We cannot short circuit this. If we do, our evangelism is worse than useless. That’s the point of the third question:

Does the world need more evangelists?
That depends.

In Matthew 23:15, Jesus speaks of phenomenally committed evangelism but, to put it mildly, He is not a fan: ‘Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when you have succeeded, you make them twice as much a child of hell as you are.’

Does the world need more evangelists? Not necessarily. These evangelists were incredibly dedicated, they were Biblical in one sense of the word – ‘teachers of the law’ – and they were multiplying Satan’s kingdom, not God’s. This is perhaps the Bible’s most shocking verse on evangelism. It tells us that evangelism is only good if you’re sharing the actual ‘evangel’ (the Greek word for ‘gospel’ from which we get ‘evangelism’). If you merely have ‘law’ – if you merely have a Biblically-themed message of some sort – you should think twice before sharing. The world does need more evangelists, but only if they are full of the joy-bringing, life-giving evangel of Jesus Christ.

That’s why the gospel should never be thought of as a message for someone else. Evangelism, like charity, begins at home. I cannot share what I haven’t got – and I need constantly to get the gospel. So let’s preach the good news to all the world, but let’s start with ourselves.

P.S. One more thing… we are launching a new Christmas film:

This year Speak Life are hugely excited about our 20th Christmas film: Christmouse. In it we tell the story of an elderly woman alone at Christmas – or is she? The surprise ending will delight and point many to the wonder of Immanuel, God With Us. Find out more about how you can show or share Christmouse at speaklife.org.uk/Christmouse