Take a look at this list. As you think through your 2009 goals as a church, use this checklist to help you plan your evangelism strategy.
- What can increase your focus on attention on evangelism/missions?
- What evangelism tools can cause you to think outside the box?
- What does your heart desires for reaching your community?
- What might helps you transition from attractional thinking (“come & see”) to thinking more incarnationally (“go and tell”)?
- What preaching and teaching can remind you and the church to get lost in the wonder ofthe grace and mercy of the cross?
- What strategies and ideas moves our focus off of yourselves onto others?
- What might lead to a a “crisis of belief” for many of your members that move to action?
- What programs and studies might push you way out of our comfort zone?
- What series or course might encourage your church to face of the reality of missions?
- How can you rock the boat and make the complacent people very nervous and engage?
- How can you grow the various levels of Christian maturity in your church?
- How can you challenge those who are serious about their faith in your congregation?
- What goals can turn the inward church outward?
- Ultimately, what about your programming and planning glorifies Christ this year?
- What are you doing to help new believers become followers of Christ?
Where is Christ in Christmas
Evangelism Strategy for 2009
What’s your Evangelism Strategy for 2009? Perhaps the coming collapse of evangelism isn’t so far off. Whenever something collapses it stems from a long-term neglect to fix something. We need to do things God’s Way, and not the Wall-Street way. Today, largely well-heard is a man-pleasing gospel that causes no offence, itches ears and damns souls. God help us to take up our cross joyfully and to keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, this world is passing away, it is not our home, it is a graveyard where lost souls are either awakend to Life or stay dead and will descend to Hell. Sin is the problem, God hates it, and Jesus Christ had to be crushed for a sinner to have peace with God, he who does not take up his cross and folllow after Him is not worthy of Him, let’s not trade that in for something more politically correct and less offensive. We are unprofittable servants, for we labour, but not ourselves, but the Grace of God in us. Let’s strive to be Good and Faithful to the Word of God. It is sad when evangelicals lose Faith in the Power of the Word of God to save souls, and instead put their trust in man.
“For no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.” http://www.msplinks.com/http://biblecommenter.com/1_corinthians/3-11.htm
We are not wiser than God,
Here some biblical instruction that will never get outdated:
1) God’s Word will never pass away [Mark 13:31]
2) He has magnified His Word above all His Name. [Psalm 138:2] Jesus is the Word that became flesh. [John 1:14]
3) Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God [Romans 10:17], and God is Sovereign in everything [Psalm 115:3, Acts 4:24]. One may read the Word of God, but unless by the Word of God he hears, he will remain still blind. [John 6:44]
4) Preach Christ, not ourselves [II Corinthians 4:5]
5) Preach the offence of the Cross, preach Christ Crucified [I Corinthians 1:23], “whom we preach warning every man..” [Colossians 1:28] “solemnly testifying to both Jews and Greeks of repentance toward God and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.” [Acts 20:21]
6) The gospel is foolishness to the world but the power of God unto salvation for all that believe…so we are fools for Christ. [I Corinthians 1:18, I Corinthins 4:10]
7) Salvation is for the praise of God’s Glory and Grace [Ephesians 1:6]. If something does not honor God it will be lowly esteemed {I Samuel 2:30]. What is highly esteemed in the sight of men is detestable in the sight of the Lord. Beware of evangelism turning into a numbers game for the praise of one’s own ego, and built on man’s franchised business schemes. There is an earthly widom which is not from above, but is natural and demonic. God will not share His glory with any man, and His praise He will not give to another. God please give us hearts after your heart, in Jesus’ Name.
Preach the gospel as a testimony [Matthew 24:14]. Be faithful to the Word of God for God’s Glory, in love to God first, then, seconly, out of love to your fellow man. Do not forget Who you serve and Who you must please and Who your praise is from and who it is not from [Romans 2:29]. In the day of judgement, the gospel will be a testimony against one man and will condemn him (the Word by Which Jesus Spoke will judge Him [John 12:48]), and to another man, will be a testimony to the means of his salvation; [Ephesians 1:13] salvation from the Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord our Righteousness, on His merits, through His Redeeming blood, the atoniong work finished on the Cross, His High Priestly intersessory work in Heaven, pleading for us before the Throne on our behalf.
9) We are in a Spiritual War [II Corinthians 10:3-5], there are soldiers and there are captives [I Timothy 6:12, Luke 4:18]. We fight in the Spiritual Realm. Make sure your armour is on [Ephesians 6:10-20], flaming arrows hurt. God’s Word is Truth [John 17:17]. The Light exposes the darkness [Ephesians 5:11, II Corinthians 4:6], the Truth sets men free [John 8:32]. Jesus is the Light of the World [John 8:12, John 14:6], He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.
10) Long to hear the Words Good and Faithful Servant [Matthew 25:21]. Strive to be, by God’s Grace [I Corinthians 15:10], (wholly dependant on Him for everything [John 15:5]), Good and Faithful, not having a righteousness of our own [Philippians 3:9] , but that which is through faith in Christ. And when Christ has persevered you, and you will have been proven faithful (it is by His doing that you are in Christ Jesus [I Corinthians 1:30], and He prays so that your faith may will not fail [Luke 22:32]) remember these Words in Matthew 5:11-12:
“Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. “Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
and take heed to these…
“Woe to you when all men speak well of you, for their fathers used to treat the false prophets in the same way.”
Today there are too many who would present not the gospel to deceitfully draw in many after themselves to eventually continue to tell them not the gospel, but will have instead preached a false gospel. Let them be accursed.
Let us take the Word of God seriously, and tremble at His Words. We deal with souls that must oneday spend an eternity is either heaven or hell. Let us watch our lives and our doctrine closely, and preach the Gospel faithfully, if the world rejects it and persecutes us for it, we are doing well, and are being spit out as salt. “Gentlemen, we will not conform our Bibles to the age, but the age to the Bible!” – C. H. Spurgeon
“I am not ashamed of the Gospel” Rom 1:16a
“For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will also be ashamed of him when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.” Mark 8:38
“For you first, God raised up His Servant and sent Him to bless you by turning every one of you from your wicked ways.” Acts 3:26
“There will be tribulation and distress for every soul of man who does evil, of the Jew first and also of the Greek,” Romans 2:9
“For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” I Corinthians 1:18
“but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.” 1 Corinthians 1:24
“Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord or of me His prisoner, but join with me in suffering for the gospel according to the power of God,” Timothy 1:8
“For this reason I also suffer these things, but I am not ashamed; for I know whom I have believed and I am convinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him until that day.” 2 Timothy 1:12
“For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.” Ephesians 2:10
God bless beloved in Christ, may the Lord give us grace to boldly proclaim Christ to a lost world, may we be used more and more for His glory as vessels of honor, may we serve the Great, Wise King, more and more with oure hearts, in Jesus’ Mighty Name i pray.