Model for Evangelism

What’s the best approach of doing evangelism?  You may get different answers from each person you ask.  I heard Keith Davy, a co-worker who did a study on the Biblical Model of Evangelism, speak on this topic and was surprised and encouraged by what he said.  He said that the New Testament talks about 3 main categories of evangelism:

1. Lifestyle, or relational evangelism - The Natural Witness (John 1:40-51; 4:28-42; Luke 8:38-39; Colossians 4:5,6; 1 Pet. 3:15)

2. Our witness as a Body of Christ - The Body Witness (Acts 2:42ff; John 13:34-35; 17:22-23; 1 Corinthians 11:26)

3. Intentional outreach - The Ministry Witness (Mark 1:38, 39; Luke 9:1-66; 10:1-17, Acts 5:41-42; 8:5ff, 26ff; 11:19-21; 11:22-24; 13 and on).

There are people who say that the only way to share the gospel is through building relationships with someone and ‘earning the right to be heard.’  Others focus mostly on ministry evangelistic activities.  And others believe that it’s through our actions, not so much through our words, that win people to Christ.

In the midst of talking about this, the speaker asked those of us in the room to raise our hands who came to faith in Christ through the witness of a close friend.  About 1/3 of the people in the auditorium raised their hands.  Then he asked to raise their hands those of us who came to Christ through the context of a community of believers and noticed the difference in their lives.  Again about 1/3 raised their hands.  And lastly he asked for those who received Christ as Savior and Lord to raise their hands if that happened in the context of a ministry event.  I joined the last 1/3 who raised our hands.  The speaker says that whenever he speaks on this subject it never fails that the room is generally evenly divided between the 3 categories or modes of evangelism.

It would be a good idea to think about including something from each of the 3 categories in your personal evangelism.  My personal preference is the ‘ministry witness’ and so that’s what I do most of the time.  I don’t mind approaching strangers to share the gospel and I like to put on evangelistic events.  The area that is least comfortable for me is the ‘lifestyle or natural witness’, but being less comfortable doesn’t give mean that I shouldn’t try to build relationships with my neighbors and friends and take a risk to ask them questions that will make them think about Jesus.  It also doesn’t mean that I should ignore how I ‘walk before others’.

Think about this as well as you plan your ministry’s strategy for evangelism.  What are ways that you can help and encourage one another share the gospel with your friends and classmates?  What sorts of evangelistic outreaches will you do this semester?  Don’t forget to think about how you relate to one another as a body of Christ – are your relationships and is your passion for Christ something that draws non-believers into the Body?

I will continue to send resources your way that fall into all three categories.  Please tell me about things you have done so that I can share those ideas with others, too.  Right now there are student believers in 45 cities in Russia who are receiving this рассылка – pray for one another as you are trusting God together to do something on your campus that will change the spiritual destinies of students for eternity!