As a teenager, I heard a quote often that went something like this: “Tell people about Jesus. And when necessary, use words.”
The sentiment behind the quote is understandable. Our lives ought to reflect the gospel that we believe. The book of James is all about how we are to have living faith, and hypocrisy, or proclaiming we believe one way while living differently from that declaration, causes great harm to our Christian witness.
However, my teenage self felt that the sentiment was a good excuse to not be sharing the gospel. After all, my spiritual gift was definitely not evangelism! My heart would race and my fingers turn ice cold whenever I tried to share the gospel, and my words would feel quite jumbled. But as I grew in my faith, the Lord convicted me that while I may not have the gift of evangelism, that didn’t mean I was not also called to tell unbelievers about Jesus.
Yes, my life is supposed to reflect the gospel. My words mean nothing if my life doesn’t reflect the gospel. But that does not get me off the hook from telling people about Jesus.
But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart”—that is, the word of faith which we are preaching, that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation. For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes in Him will not be disappointed.” For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, abounding in riches for all who call on Him; for “Whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved.” How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher? How will they preach unless they are sent? Just as it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news of good things!” Romans 10:8-15 (NASB95)
So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ. Romans 10:17
Our witness is both the life we live and the words we speak. We must not neglect telling people with our words the greatest news of all: that Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners, and through His death and resurrection, those who put their faith in Christ are set free from the slavery of sin and death to walk in right relationship with God and spend eternity with Him.
If evangelism is something new for you, here are a few tips to help you get started:
1: Remember that you’re called to obedience and the results belong to God.
I planted, Apollos watered, but God was causing the growth. So then neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but God who causes the growth. 1 Corinthians 3:6-7
Sometimes we’re just sowing gospel seeds or watering seeds that someone else has sown. Sometimes we get the privilege of being a part of seeing a harvest reaped. But in all of it, God is the one who causes the growth and the one who changes hearts of stone into hearts of flesh, as Ezekiel 36 tells us.
2: Rely on the Holy Spirit to guide you in evangelism.
Sometimes evangelism looks like giving someone a gospel tract. Sometimes it’s asking your barista how you can pray for her today. Sometimes it’s asking someone about their religious beliefs and then offering to share about yours. Sometimes we have the opportunity to give a full gospel presentation, and sometimes it’s a few words about the goodness of God in your own life. The Holy Spirit knows what the person in front of you needs, so pray and ask the Holy Spirit to guide your words to plant gospel seeds. And trust that, even when your presentation didn’t go how you hoped it would, the Lord can use your obedience to accomplish His will.
3: Practice!
Watch some videos from people who have experience in evangelism and learn from them. One great resource is Living Waters. Talk to people you know who are faithful to evangelize and learn from them. And grab a few friends or a mentor and ask them to help you practice sharing the gospel. When we spend time practicing, it helps us stay on track for what to say when our nerves show up during an evangelism opportunity.
4: Just do it!
Even if you’re scared or you feel like you fumbled your way through, trust that the Holy Spirit will work through your loaves and fishes. Start small; keep gospel tracts in your car and set a goal to hand one out each month or each week. Ask the store checker how you can be praying for him or her. Tell your coworker how God answered a prayer recently. Whatever you do, listen for the Holy Spirit’s guidance and then go for it, even if you’re nervous. Trust that He will provide the words. The call for us is obedience; the results belong to God.
With love,
Kelsey
P.S. Take this deeper by listening to my latest podcast episode, Are All Christians Called to Evangelism?
