Bringing the Gospel to Those Who Don't Know Jesus
At the recent women's ministry "Growing in the Gospel" event, Joanna, one of our members, taught a workshop on how we can bring the gospel to those around us. Here's an edited transcript of what she shared with the ladies.
Why do we share the gospel?
Why do we share the gospel? In everything we do, we want to stay faithful to God, so before we talk about evangelism or bringing the gospel to those who don’t know Jesus, let us spend some time in God’s Word and what it says about the subject.
God's Word speaks about how we are to bring the gospel to others. Matthew 28:16-20 teaches us a couple of points. The command is not just for the disciples but also for every believer added to the Church, for you and me. We also see how Jesus commands with authority, and the command is to baptise and teach Jesus’s commands—this starts with gospel-sharing first.
Thus, we evangelise with the assurance from the mouth of our Lord Jesus that He
is always with us. This is the Great Commission our Lord Jesus gave the apostles and every person who gets saved and added to the body of Christ. He said they, and now we, should make disciples. To understand what that means, we should understand what disciple means. Disciple simply put means “follower” or if in a longer description, it means “a learner who follows a master teacher". We hope to make people become followers of Jesus who put their faith in Him for their salvation and who live their lives for His glory by obeying His commands.
So, why do we share the gospel? The first reason is because Jesus commanded us to.
But, how do we do that? How do you think we can make people trust and obey
Jesus? Can we make people have faith in Jesus? No, we can’t make people have faith in Jesus. The following verses emphasise that this is the work of God through the Spirit:
Ephesians 2:8 teaches us that we have been saved by grace through faith, and it is the gift of God.
Titus 3:5 adds on, teaching that this is a work of regeneration and renewal by the Holy Spirit.
John 1:12-13 says that all who believed in the name of Jesus have been given the right to become children of God, born not of blood nor the will of man, but of God.
2 Timothy 2:24-25 speaks of God granting repentance.
Acts 16:14-15 records for us the conversion of Lydia, and how God opened her heart to pay attention to what was taught by Paul.
What is then our part in disciple-making if it is only God who wins people’s hearts? We are to share the good news of God’s grace. Romans 10:13-15 teaches us that we have a role to play to preach and share this good news. Whether the hearers truly hear or truly believe has nothing to do with us. But they won’t believe if they first didn’t hear, and they won’t hear if no one preached. This is our part to play. Romans 1:16 encourages us to not be ashamed of this gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes.
Of course, disciple-making involves many other things like teaching what Jesus
commanded of us such as to love one another and expressing that in so many ways
as we walk alongside one another. But we won’t go into that for now.
2 Corinthians 5:11-21 is also helpful as we also read of how Paul encouraged the church in Corinth to share the gospel, to make disciples. He teaches us that we are not boasting of ourselves but we present Christ and the goal of our sharing is to point to the goodness and grace of Christ which we have received first. Having been saved, we share the gospel with joy, not out of compulsion or grumbling. When we get saved, the desires of our heart change—we hope to bring the good news to others.
These verses are helpful because it also teaches us that ministry is just about a formal involvement in serving in the church. Our new life in Christ is also our ministry. The moment God granted us faith in Christ, automatically, we are in the ministry. Of what? Maybe not children-minding nor welcoming worshippers on Sunday morning. But even much better I would say, we are in the ministry of reconciling men to God. And how do we do that? Again, by sharing this good news that we have so undeservingly received. Jesus who knew no sin, was made to be sin so that in Him we might be reconciled to God. We implore on behalf of Christ unbelievers who have not heard this gospel to put their faith in Him for salvation.
Why do we share the gospel? Firstly, because Jesus commanded us to. Secondly, because it is the Good News that we needed and received and that other people need to hear, too.
What then, is the gospel?
Now, that we’ve seen very clearly in God’s Word the foundation of gospel-sharing, let’s talk about “the gospel”. What is the gospel? What would you include in a gospel presentation?
God's word in these verses give us helpful handles as to what we can include in a gospel presentation:
Romans 6:23 teaches us that "for the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Ephesians 2:1-10 shows us who we once were and the grace of God shown through Christ that saved us.
What are some elements in your gospel-sharing? For me, I try to include in some form, the following elements:
Creation: Where did everything come from? God created heavens and the earth, animals and human. He called them good. It was perfect.
Fall: Where did it all go wrong? Adam and Eve sinned and fellowship between man and God was broken. Sin also affects every aspect of our lives here -- our relationship with others, and creation itself.
Redemption: Where do we find hope? God sent His Son Jesus to live a sinless life, He died on the Cross in our place and rose back to life on the third day. For all who place their faith in Jesus, God continues His work in us through the Holy Spirit and brings it completion at the day of Christ. We still sin but we don’t feel comfortable in it. We don’t live in sin.
Restoration: Where is it all headed? Not only God will restore His creation to perfection, the new heavens and the new earth; but He will also resurrect our bodies and we will be spending eternity with Him.
We may all use different approaches, but some of these elements are key to our presentation of the gospel, as God's Word has shown us.
I would also like to share with you about my own journey in gospel-sharing and I hope it would somehow encourage you. When I got saved, I was a really broken person. The peace and joy that Christ has given me when He gave me my new life is something that was really amazing to me and I really enjoyed that new found peace. It did not occur to me that people around me who do not know Christ need to hear that good news too. I did share with my loved ones, but apart from occasional Facebook posts, I did not really have evangelistic conversations.
God has used sisters in GBC to convict and encourage me to share the gospel with people I interact with, whether they are longtime friends or a stranger yet to become an acquaintance. When these sisters talked about Christ and the gospel, their faces light up and that really encouraged me. I was nervous about how the listener would respond and I felt so inadequate and not equipped. But I've learnt that when we feel so good and confident in ourselves, we have already forgotten the gospel we want to share. The gospel is none of us and all of Christ. So if you feel like you can’t do it, you’re actually at a good place to start doing it, fully depending on the Lord to give you words to say and to strengthen your heart with His love for His lost sheep like you once were. As I kept on going out to share the gospel, I grew in reliance on the Lord and He grew my love for the lost.
In closing, I want to share some gospel-sharing reminders that have helped me over the years:
Pray beforehand and pray after the sharing, for your heart and for those you’re sharing with.
Start the conversation with genuine interest. Ask questions and listen attentively. It should be a two-way conversation and not a one-way preaching. This is how we can get to know the person better, to show genuine care and getting them to listen to you as well.
Reject prejudice. For example, do not presume that an old person can’t communicate well, or the person is not interested based on their facial expression.
Remember you’re not just making an intellectual case but more importantly, you are making an urgent appeal to their heart, too.
Do not expect to share the gospel in one presentation every time, sometimes elements of the gospel may be shared in different parts of the conversation and that is okay.
Keep the gospel the main thing. Do not engage in secondary arguments, steer the conversation back to the gospel or salvation matters.
Do not feel pressured to give an answer you’re not certain about. Humbly say you will need some time to look into it. You can use this to set another meeting or to offer reading the Bible together!
There are times I try to strike up a conversation with strangers to share the gospel with them. Usually, I'll begin with prayer for discernment and to be sensitive to the Spirit’s leading. I'll then try to strike up a conversation with the other person and hope to introduce myself. From the conversation, I usually hope to find a bridge to shift the conversation to spiritual topic using the current topic already in discussion either by asking a question or sharing an observation. For example, if we are talking about things we do on our off day or the weekend, I will try to mention the fact that I go to church on Sundays, and use this as a starting point. This approach may be helpful also when we are talking to our friends and acquaintances.
From there, I sincerely seek to ask questions about their beliefs and listen while trying to find the right time to share what Christians believe and what the gospel is. Where possible, asking for response or at least challenging them to respond in their own time is helpful. The conversation usually doesn't end there, and we can continue the friendly conversation on topics they’re interested in. If they are open to, I will offer to pray for them too.
Let us never ever think that if this method works, it is the only method we can use. The method worked because God allowed it to work according to His will. I can’t say it enough, we must rely solely on the power of God’s Spirit as we do what we ought to do to faithfully carry out the Great Commission.
In closing, I'd like to encourage us to be intentional and put what we've talked about today into practice. Find a friend who would walk alongside you and who can check in on you as you seek to share the gospel with a friend in the coming weeks. Pray for one another and seek to encourage each other in your respective ministry of reconciliation.