By Larry Rosenbaum
Hasn’t everyone in the U.S. already heard the gospel? How can the evangelist work with the local church? How can I reach my community for Jesus? How do you reach the “gospel-hardened”?
The entire world is becoming increasingly urbanized and cities around the world have many of the same problems.
Cities are strategic. Even though the world of Paul’s day was much more rural than urban, Paul concentrated his energy on reaching the cities. Why‑‑because once a gospel beachhead is established in the major cities, it will spread naturally to the rural areas, which are influenced by the cities. Cities are the centers of political power, education, trade, culture, etc.
1. Hasn’t everyone here already heard the gospel?
a. People from 1350 different unreached people groups have immigrated to the U.S., including 2.7 million Vietnamese Refugees.
1.4 million Americans belong to a huge unreached group‑‑the Native American Indians.
b. 344,000 international students are currently studying here. 1/4 to 1/2 of the world’s top positions in politics, business, education and the military will be filled in the next 25 years by these students. 40 prime ministers, kings and presidents once studied in Western universities, including 11 now in office.
c. Child evangelism. Many children grow up today with non‑ Christian parents and no real gospel exposure.
d. Distorted gospel. Many Americans have been exposed only to grossly distorted gospel messages. They see Christians as not caring for the poor, greedy for money. Others are confused into thinking salvation comes through good works and church attendance. Others think they are saved because they recited a “sinner’s prayer” years ago, even though there was no real faith or repentance. Others are caught up in cults and false religions. e. New missionaries. America is still the biggest sending nation for missionaries. New converts tend to be zealous for the Lord and are often willing to go to mission fields.
2. The Problem. Mobilizing the U.S. church. We already have an abundance of Christians to reach the people in our cities. The problem is to motivate, train and provide evangelism opportunities for the Christians.
3. The Solution.
The evangelist and local church need to work together. (Eph. 4;:11). The evangelist needs to equip the church. The church needs to receive and support the ministry of the evangelist. The independent evangelist may become hardened by continual rejection from unbelievers and Christians, or go to churches only to get financial support. Many pastors have been burned by evangelists who come to the church only for money and do nothing to help the church in evangelism. The evangelist needs to find ways to give practical training in evangelism to the people in the church and help the church get involved in evangelism ministry. Church members look to their pastor for direction. The pastor needs to encourage his people to get involved in evangelism. The church needs to recognize the financial needs of those in evangelism ministry. It is much easier to raise funds to go on the foreign mission field, but the cost of operating a ministry in the U.S. is usually much greater. Also, the evangelist needs to work with the local church to provide a means of follow‑up. Our goal must be to integrate new believers in a local church.
4. Needed: a variety of approaches.
a. Personal soulwinning‑‑reaching family, friends, neighbors, people at work.
- Organized outreaches. Some of these are best operated out of a local church. Others can be a joint effort of several churches. Others best function as specialized “para‑church” ministries.
1. Door‑to‑door, telephone evangelism in neighborhood. Internet evangelism.
2. Inviting people to special events at church‑‑such as an Easter play or community dinner.
3. Evangelistic Bible studies. (Invite neighbors into your home.)
4. Outreach at a local park or a busy street. Witnessing at movie theaters, sporting events, fairs or parades.
5. Christian Coffeehouse, restaurant, youth center.
6. Prison, juvenile hall, hospital, nursing home ministries. Rescue missions.
7. Outreaches to a particular social, ethnic, or religious group. Examples: ministry to Jews, Vietnamese refugees, international students, campus evangelism, Hispanic gangs, children, high school students, skinheads, homosexuals.
8. Mercy ministry. Combining evangelism with social action‑‑help with drug addiction, alcoholism, suicide, homelessness, etc. Examples: a rescue mission, food program, running errands for the elderly or AIDS patients, a hot‑line, or Overeaters Anonymous group with Christian emphasis.
9. Servant evangelism. “Adopt a Block” Going to neighbors and asking what can I do to help? Free carwash in church parking lot. Neighborhood barbecue.
10. Use of media. TV, radio, newspapers, movies, billboards.
11. Crusades and tent meetings.
12. Prayer and evangelism. Praying for neighbors first. Ask God for direction in witnessing to them. Offer to pray for neighbors—ask if any needs to pray for.
L.A. International Church (and Phoenix First Assembly of God) – examples of churches with central focus on evangelism—hundreds of different ministries in churches, whole church (including pastor) involved in “Adopt a Block” reaching neighborhoods of city.
5. How to get started right where you are.
a. Pray. Find out what God wants you to do. How has He gifted you? Prayer and evangelism are not mutually exclusive. As we pray, we get close to God and we love the things that He loves. God loves the world and wants them reached with the gospel. As we grow close to Him, we should develop that same love for the lost and desire to reach them.
b. Get involved in some form of evangelism. One of the problems is that there may be so many different kinds of evangelism to choose from that we end up doing nothing. Some Christians spend their whole life trying to decide what to do. It is better to start doing something, and let God move you to something else if He wishes.
What is happening in your church? What is happening in your community? Even if they aren’t doing exactly what you feel God is directing you to, you will get valuable experience. It is better to do something than do nothing. God may later move you in a different direction but will use the experience you gained and possibly some of the people you met to help you with this new ministry. It is good to try different kinds of evangelism so you can get a variety of experiences. Also, this can help you get a better idea of what God is calling you to do.
c. Make a commitment and stick to it. Set aside a certain amount of time for evangelism‑‑at least a few hours a month and, if possible, once a week. Give this area as high a priority as attending church, Bible reading and prayer. This commitment will help you through times of difficulty and discouragement. There may be a period where you try out different kinds of evangelism just as you try out different churches, but ultimately you need to make a commitment to a single ministry so you can become proficient in that type of ministry and be fruitful.
6. Reaching the “gospel‑hardened.”
Increasingly, the challenge of evangelizing in the U.S. is that of reaching people who have a distorted, cynical view of Christianity:
a. Christians are unconcerned about the poor. We need to be involved in helping the poor.
b. Christian ministers are greedy for money. We need to live simply and be honest with our finances. We need to avoid manipulating people to give money and to stop supporting those ministries that do.
c. “Christians are ignorant of scientific proof that God doesn’t exist.” We should learn how to present the gospel in an intelligent way that addresses the concerns of our day, avoiding religious jargon.
d. “Christians are narrow‑minded for thinking Jesus is the only way.” Part of the problem is intrinsic to our message but we should do our best to explain our position in an intelligent manner.
e. Christians are bigots‑‑anti‑black, gay, poor, women, etc. Christians do not care about the environment since they believe this world is ending. We can get involved in helping minority groups and working to help the environment. We need churches that break ethnic, racial and class barriers. The church today is the most segregated institution in our society.
f. Christianity is a politically dangerous social movement. We need to prayerfully consider our involvement in politics. Are our political stands serving to reinforce the stereotypes unbelievers have of us and alienate them from us and the gospel? Are we alienating the people we want to reach with the gospel? Some kinds of political action can help overcome stereotypes‑‑action to combat racial discrimination, destruction of the environment, help the homeless.
g. Finally‑‑we need to walk in personal purity. We need to live what we preach. We need to show people that we are real Christians, not phonies. Also, we need to be people of prayer. Only God can open the eyes of the spiritually blind. We need to ask God to confirm His word with signs following. While some people will not believe even when they witness miracles, God does use miracles and healings in the salvation of some people.
