Well we're coming down the home straight of missions month now and this week we are focussing on Jesus as the centre of God's mission. This brings up the dreaded subject of evangelism!
As soon as you even mention the "E" word (evangelism) most Christians go running for cover. It has such negative connotations these days, such as street-corner preachers and tele-evangelists; and for many Christians evangelism conjures up feelings of guilt because of our general reluctance to share our faith.
But what about a relational approach to evangelism that simply seeks to maximise our relationships and interactions with others for the benefit of the kingdom? It's not about moving people from A-Z, but just from A-B, through shared interests, lending practical support, extending an invitation to a Christian event, giving a book or CD away, or having a good old chat over coffee. These are the means by which we can move people closer to Christ in our everyday lives.
Why are Christians so scared of evangelism? How can we change the stereotypes of what it has become? Have you seen relational evangelism at work?
1 comment:
Well personally I've done the beach mission thing, I've handed out tracts on the street, I've done the "lets do something for the community" type evangelism as well, and all with mixed results.
But nothing works as well as meeting someone where they are at. Most of the time just talking to people will open up ways share the gospel to people.
I guess we need to stop thinking of just getting people to cross a line of unsaved to saved. We should start thinking of evangelism in terms of bringing God's children home. Once they're home theres work to be done. They are now part of the household.
I liked the sermon on sunday. Its not about taking people from A to Z but from A to B.
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