The Signs of an Evangelist: From the Theologian’s Corner

Introduction

 Evangelism is the primary call of a Christian. Believers have a duty to add to the body of Christ, and mimic the foundation the Disciples laid in the Four Gospels and the Book of Acts. These books have been taken out of context by the Protestant churches, and their basic concept has not been doctrinally pressed upon the church to make it evangelical as the Master intended. The basic concept is evangelism. I will not do a exegesis on every scripture dealing with this matter in order to prove my point, however I will provide just enough scriptural reference to examine my claim.

Quit Complaining

 There is a large number of un-churched people in this country, who have complained they don’t want Christians pressing their brand of religion off on them. Let me state for the record, there is a estimated 550 – 650 million un-churched Christians in this country. These demographics substantiate my claim that Christians are not fulfilling the Great commission,which was set fourth in the Book of Acts 28:19 NIV, “Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit”.  Make no mistake about it, Jesus made a lot of requests, but this is a command. In order to understand this commission, we must now realize that we are to do the work of a evangelist, and understand what one is. Evangelist comes from the Greek word euaggelistes yoo-ang-ghel-is-tace’;  meaning a preacher of the gospel:–evangelist. It is also clear from the definition, that the rank in file members of the church body are not preaching the gospel. They have a distorted view of the truth, as they believe it is the Pastors job to Preach and add to the body of Christ. However, this is far from the truth. The facts are, this is a sorry excuse for being lazy, and worried about what people might think of them if they are seen handing out Bible tracts.

The Foundation Was Layed

 The foundation was laid by Jesus Christ in the four Gospels. His ministry was never confined to the four walls of the church. Jesus took his ministry to the street, and preached in many areas of Judea. He did not wait for people to come to him, but in contrast went out to take the Gospel to the people. Let me refer you to Mathew 4:19 KJV, And he saith unto them, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men”. I would like to take this opportunity to ask every Christian this rhetorical question. If you are not fishing for men, then how could you be following Christ? The Bible teaches that Christians are like trees, and they should produce fruit. Let me refer you to Mathew 7:19 NIV, Yes, just as you can identify a tree by its fruit, so you can identify people by their actions. Make no mistake about it, the only examples of religious bodies diligently producing fruit would be the worlds two most popular heresies, the Mormons and The Jehovah’s Witness cults. They are the most visible in society, and their brand of religion is what is growing. In the 10 years from 1996 to 2005 there were 2,968,732 baptisms of Jehovah’s Witness, and this information is backed at  http://www.jwfacts.com/index_files/stati… Perhaps the Atheist writers and skeptics, who have made such statements, will do the honorable thing, and retract those unsubstantiated claims.

The Torch Carried

 The Apostle Paul carried the torch when it was handed to him by Jesus Christ. Paul had a religious zeal, but he was fighting against the Master. Christ realized this zeal Paul displayed, could be used to take the Gospel to Rome. Let me refer you to Acts 9:15 NIV, But the Lord said, “Go, for Saul is my chosen instrument to take my message to the Gentiles and to kings, as well as to the people of Israel. And I will show him how much he must suffer for my name’s sake.” From this point on, Paul never missed a chance to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ.  The short version is Paul made 2 missionary journeys and was sent to Rome by Festus to stand trial before Ceaser.

The Only One

 There is only one person named in scripture who is referred to as a Evangelist, and this happens to be Phillip. Let me refer you to Acts 21:8 NIV, The next day we went on to Caesarea and stayed at the home of Philip the Evangelist, one of the seven men who had been chosen to distribute food.  We know the story of how he explained the scriptures to the Ethiopian Eunuch and baptized him. We can conclude the Eunuch took the gospel back to Africa with him. This story can be found in Acts 8:29-39, for those who would like to read this example of evangelism for themselves.

Conclusion

 We can conclude that Christians are mandated by Christ’s command and examples to preach the gospel to all the un-churched people of the world. We must remember that Mathew 3:10 NIV makes it clear, ”Even now the ax of God’s judgment is poised, ready to sever the roots of the trees. Yes, every tree that does not produce good fruit will be chopped down and thrown into the fire”. If you don’t produce fruit, your Christian service has not reached its peak. We must remember that we have to come out of our comfort zones to grow as Disciples, and to grow as a body. The Bible makes it clear that every man will stand before Christ to give a account of himself which is backed up by Romans 14:12. I know that I would not care to make this appearance without any souls to lay at his feet. Let me offer the Christian skeptics a last scripture to set them on the right path. Psalms 126:6 KJV, They that sow in tears shall reap in joy. He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him. Don’t make no excuses or rebuttals, just make sure you have some sheaves when you stand in front of the Judgement seat of Christ.