Evangelism in The Presbyterian Church (USA) Confessions
I spent a little time reviewing the Presbyterian Church (USA) Book of Order and found these little gems. Church’s Role in Evangelism G-3.0300a The Church is called to tell the good news of salvation by the grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ as the only Savior and Lord, proclaiming in Word and Sacrament …
3 Keys to Church Growth — Case Study
Recently, in late July, I was in Volcán Panama, teaching evangelism training workshops at the mission base of Operation Mobilization Panama. Missionaries from 6 different countries had come to Volcán Panama for two months of working with the local church. To double up the use of the time, I also had the opportunity to do …
Thinking about 3 Different Forms of Evangelism
Coming up in a few weeks, I’ll be teaching at a missions base in the Far west of Panama. I’ll be training missionaries in their concentrated lecture phase before they begin a 6 week outreach working in partnership with local churches among some of the unreached groups in Panama. This has led me to reflect …
Sharing Life Together: How to Start Reaching Men
Below is an article I wrote for a men’s publication, coming out later in May. Mac and Susan (*) were new neighbors that moved into our cul-de-sac. A few days after the trucks left and friends stopped dropping by, my wife and I prepared some welcome cookies (fresh baked oatmeal raisin, still warm from the …
Personal Evangelism Mentoring
Do you need an Evangelism Mentor? After nearly every conference I teach, I am asked if I can provide some one to one mentoring in personal evangelism or personalized coaching for evangelism. How can pastors find time to do evangelism? What can pastors do to improve their own evangelism skills? How can one grow in …
God’s Heart for the Nations — Part III
In part I of God’s Heart for the Nations, we saw God’s heart for the nations, and how reaching the nations is part of God’s ultimate plan. In part II of God’s Heart for the Nations, we saw how the Father initiates in the choice of Israel to begin the process of redemption. Today, we’ll …
Definition of Evangelism: What is the Gospel?
Our definition of evangelism (from the PCUSA) has both: A message to share (“joyfully sharing the good news of the sovereign love of God) A destination (“calling people to . . . . . “) The good news is the gospel. This is what gospel means in its most basic form: “good news.” However, we …
Ten Reasons To Use Your Local Coffee Shop for Your Evangelism Small Groups
I’ve had many a conversation with church planters who want to start a coffee house church members who want to start a coffee house ministry church members who want to run a coffee shop churches who want to deal Fair Trade Coffee (such as Beyond Beans) for their gatherings. building committees that dream a coffee …
Ashamed of the Gospel?
In Romans 1:16, Paul emphatically declares “I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for those who believe.” A question that I occasionally ask myself: Am I ashamed? What does being “ashamed” look like? Does the gospel embarrass me? Fear of assertion Our culture loves ambiguity and relativity: To …
A new location, new prayer
We have moved our family and now live in a city of 1.8 million people. We reside in an 14 story condo building, living in one of 26 condos. We don’t have a car, so we rely on taxis, buses, and our feet to get around. When Nehemiah left Susa for another city in another …
John Stott on Evangelism and Social Action
In one my list of evangelism definitions, we looked a little at the distinction between actions and words in evangelism. John Stott speaks a little on social action and evangelism in this now classic book: Christian Mission in the Modern World (IVP Classics). The 1975 Chavasse Lectures were given by John Stott to a packed …