Drill on Personal Evangelism
Foreword
I.
Evangelism—the Greatest Mission of Christians
A.
Before the ascension of Jesus, He commanded the
disciples to “go into all the world and preach the gospel
to every creature” (Mk 16:15, 16).
B.
The Lord chose the believers by His grace, and
they should give freely what they have received freely (Mt 10:8; 1 Pet 2:9; cf.
Mk 5:18, 19).
C.
The disciples received the fullness of the Holy
Spirit on the day of Pentecost, and preached the gospel to the end of the
earth. The True Church of the last days should preach the gospel even more to all the world (Lk 4:18, 19; Acts
1:8; Rom 10:15; Jn 20: 21, 22; Mal 4: 5, 6).
D.
The gospel possesses God’s mighty power, having
the ability to save all who believe. It is the way of life in which souls are
saved, and is the word of eternal life and heavenly kingdom (Rom 1:16; Acts
5:20; Jas 1:21; Eph 1:13; Mt 24:14). It has the blessing of double promises for
this life and the life to come.
II.
The Urgency for Evangelism—Calls of Distress
from Every Corner of the World
A.
God said, “Whom shall I send, And
who will go for Us?” (Isa 6:8)
B.
The Lord Jesus saw that the crowds were harassed
and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. And He said, “The harvest truly is
plentiful, but the laborers are few” (Mt 9:36, 37).
C.
A man of Macedonia
stood beseeching Paul and saying, “Come over to Macedonia and help us” (Acts 16:9).
D.
The rich man cried out in Hades, “I am tormented
in this flame.” He also said: “...I beg you… that you would send [Lazarus] to
my father’s house, for I have five brothers, that he
may testify to them, lest they also come to this place of torment” (Lk 16:23-24, 27-28).
III.
Methods of Evangelism—Casting the Net or Fishing
with a Rod
A.
Mass evangelism: using chapels,
meeting/conference rooms, factories, prisons, retirement homes, hospitals, and
other locations (Acts 5:19, 20; Lk 12:1; 5:5-7).
B.
Personal evangelism: having no fixed time or
location, appropriate for anyone (Jn 1:40-46). Some
advantages are as follows:
1.
May be performed at any time or location
2.
Inexpensive; anyone is suitable for the work
3.
Ease of catering to personal needs, more
realistic results
IV.
Examples from Jesus and the Apostles
A.
Jesus preached to the Samaritan woman (Jn 4:7-42).
B.
The Lord’s discussion with Nicodemus (Jn 3:1-15; 7:45-52; 19:39).
C.
The Lord called Zacchaeus
(Lk 19:1-10; Mt 9:9).
D.
Andrew brought Simon to Jesus (Jn 1:35-42; Gal 2:7-9).
E.
Philip brought Nathanael to Jesus (Jn 1:43-51).
F.
Philip preached to the Ethiopian eunuch (Acts
8:26-40).
G.
Paul’s work (Acts 20:20).
V.
Criteria for Personal Evangelism
A.
Having personal (spiritual) experience of
receiving salvation.
B.
Having wonderful testimonies in daily life (1
Pet 3:1, 2; Lk 3:10-14).
C.
Having a love for the souls of men (Rom 9:2, 3;
Acts 18:24, 25).
D.
Must equip yourself with:
1.
Basic Bible knowledge (Eph 6:17; Heb 4:12)
2.
The abidance of the Holy Spirit (2 Cor 10:4, 5)
3.
Familiarity of gospel tracts and pamphlets
E.
Willing to put forth efforts in prayer (Acts
16:25, 26; Eph 6:19, 20; Col
4: 3, 4)
F.
Capable of sacrifice and endurance (Lk 8:15; Jas 5:7, 8; Eccl 11:4, 6)