WHY OUR EVANGELISM SWEATS FREQUENTLY FALL SHORT

WHY OUR EVANGELISM SWEATS FREQUENTLY FALL SHORT

 

As a pastor and a Christian, my deepest desire is to see my church enkindled with a hot passion for evangelism and soul-winning. It frequently feels as though churches and their leaders come perfunctory, happy with simply switching aggrieved members from other 

congregations and labeling it" growth," rather than pursuing genuine expansion through outreach. Dr. Kermit Long's observation resonates profoundly:" Despite our education, our emotional structures, and our polished image of the church, we're negotiating lower in winning people to Christ than our uninstructed forerunners. We have desisted to be' fishermen of men' and have come' keepers of the terrarium,' largely preoccupied with coddling fish from each other's coliseums."

Consider these sobering statistics.

* Ninety-five percent of all Christians have never led anyone to Christ.

* Eighty percent of Christians don't constantly practice their faith.

* Less than two percent are laboriously involved in evangelistic ministry.

* Seventy-one percent don't financially support the Great Commission.

Let's explore crucial reasons why our evangelism sweats constantly fall suddenly.

1. A Lack of Soul- knowledge

Being ** soul-conscious ** means deeply understanding that every individual possesses an eternal soul. This spiritual substance, separate from the physical body, retains all senses and faces an eternal fortune in heaven or hell. Jesus' fable of the rich man and Lazarus in Luke 16 forcefully illustrates this verity; both had eternal souls, and their ultimate destinations were extensively different. Every hassle we've with another person should awaken us to the profound reality of their eternal state. This mindfulness should impel us to witness.

Jesus himself instanced this station, as in Luke 19:10," For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost." The famed evangelist D. L. Moody demonstrated this commitment by making a covenant with God to witness to at least one person daily. One night, around ten o'clock, realizing he had not yet fulfilled his oath, he ventured out and engaged a man by a lamppost, asking," Are you a Christian?" It's no surprise that God used him mightily to win innumerable souls.

2. Failing to Pursue God's Glory

The topmost provocation for evangelism is the ** glory of God **. Our substantiation to others brings Him honor. As Joseph Aldrich wisely put it," God’s evangelistic strategy in a nutshell, He desires to make into you and me the beauty of his  character, and also put us on display." Charles Spurgeon echoed this sentiment:" Our great object of glorifying God is to be substantially achieved by the winning of souls." Jesus himself declared in John 158," This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear important fruit, showing yourselves to be my votaries."

3. Mistaking the Value of a Soul

Book unequivocally asks in Matthew 1626," For what will it benefit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?" The story of Charlemagne, the famed sovereign of the Middle Ages, illustrates this point profoundly. Buried in royal blankets, sitting in a marble chair with a Bible open to Matthew 16, his cutlet reputedly refocused to verse 26. A person may amass all the world's wealth, fulfill every fleshly desire, and achieve all particular intentions, yet die spiritually void. It's pivotal for us to grasp that the ** value of a soul ** far surpasses anything this world offers. Its true worth is best understood by the horizonless price God was willing to pay to redeem it from eternal damnation.

Throughout church history, God has forcefully used individuals who deeply understood this value and passionately endured for souls to be saved. Consider John Knox, who, in hot prayer behind his house, cried out three times," Give me Scotland, or I die!" His hankering, broken heart, eventually saw Scotland converted. David Brainerd, one of our most famed missionaries, while serving among the Native Americans on the Delaware banks, formerly declared," I watch not where I live, or what rigors I go through, so that I can but gain souls to Christ. While I'm asleep, I dream of these effects; as soon as I awake, the first thing I suppose of is this great work. All my desire is the conversion of wrongdoers, and all my stopgap is in God."

4. Distrusting Eternal discipline

The doctrine of ** eternal discipline ** is frequently avoided or played down, a verity that people prefer to forget. The idea of a soul eternally in hell is unsettling. Some advocate for annihilationism, suggesting souls are simply destroyed in hell, therefore ending the possibility of living eternally. This recent trend to deny hell's actuality directly correlates with a significant loss of evangelistic vehemence. R. A. Torrey was right:" If you in any way abate the doctrine of hell, it'll abate your zeal."

5. A Deficiency of Compassion

Numerous religionists, unfortunately, image Jonah, who had no desire to advise the wicked people of Nineveh; in fact, he wanted them to be corrupted (Jonah 42)! We need to rue our callous and toughened hearts and earnestly ask God to immerse us in ** compassion for the lost **. As Alexander Maclaren stated," Tell me the depth of a Christian man’s compassion, and I'll tell you the measure of his utility. The wealth of Egypt’s crop is proportioned to the depth of the Nile’s overflow."

6. Reluctance to Bear the Gospel's Reproach

Some Christians warrant boldness, shrinking from the ** rejection the world frequently imposes for the sake of the philosophy **. Numerous ask the blessings of the Gospel but are unable to endure its associated despisement. Timothy, for example, displayed this timidness, taking Paul's repeated stimulus. Paul challenged him to" not be shamed of the evidence about our Lord, nor me his internee, but share in suffering for the philosophy by the power of God"(2 Timothy 18).

7. The interference of Fear of Failure

The misconception that if people we witness to are not immediately saved, we've failed, is a common interference. What makes us reluctant to share our faith? There are some constantly cited fears.

*" I am hysterical, I might do more harm than good."

*" I do not know what to say."

*" I might not have clever answers to delicate questions."

*" I may feel prejudiced."

*" I might foray someone's sequestration."

*" I am hysterical, I might fail."

*" I am hysterical, I might be seen as a fraud."

* Maybe the most current fear, still, is ** rejection **.

We must understand that ** we don't control the results **. We cannot force someone to come to Christ; that power isn't ours. It's God who brings the increase! Success in witnessing is simply taking the action to partake in Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit, also entrusting the issues to God. I formerly felt discouraged in soul-winning, believing I was failing if people did not express opinions. God freed me from this burden by tutoring me that" deliverance comes from the Lord!"(Jonah 29).

1 Corinthians 21:5 illustrates that Paul did not rely on mortal wisdom to achieve the desired results. It was not his conclusive personality or charm that produced transformations. Paul confessed he was with them" in weakness and  fear and great pulsing." He simply sermonized Christ and depended solely on the Holy Spirit's power to bring about the outgrowth. He declared in 1 Corinthians 34- 8 that" it is God who gives the increase." Paul did not want the Corinthian religionists to give undue credit to men (1 Corinthians 46:7). The psalmist was correct:" God has spoken formerly; doubly have I heard this that power belongs to God"(Psalm 6211).

8. Neglecting Our Responsibility in Witnessing

Did you know God holds us ** responsible ** if we fail to witness? In Ezekiel 3, God likens His menial to a watchman. Watchmen were stationed on megacity walls or halls to warn citizens of approaching adversaries, allowing them to seek protection and secure defenses. God told Ezekiel," You're a watchman for Israel. You're to advise the wicked"(Ezekiel 31:8-19).

Some might ask," Does this not apply only to Old Testament prophets advising Israel? Does it  apply to a New Testament religionist participating in the Gospel?" Consider Paul's words in Acts 20:26:" Thus I swear to you this day that I'm innocent of the blood of all, for I didn't shrink from declaring to you the whole counsel of God." Paul draws upon this Old Testament principle to declare his responsibility in sermonizing the Gospel. However, I'll give an account on the Day of Judgment, if God places someone in my path and I fail to partake in Christ and advise them of their sin.

9. Defective Theology

Any theology that teaches it's ** not our responsibility ** to sermonize and educate the philosophy to every critter is unnaturally defective. I oppose any theological system that denies the Gospel is for everyone and that every person needs to be saved. Someone might argue," Does not the Bible say God has an elect?" It does; God's people are called the elect. And if God has an elect, why worry?

Let me clarify who the elect are: they're **" whosoever will call upon the name of the Lord." ** The elect is anyone who chooses to trust Jesus Christ. And for them to hear, they must have a dominion. What part of the Great Commission is unclear? Some scholars of the Book, as they claw into the sovereignty of God, come so focused on it that they neglect the inverse true responsibility of humanity. Man is responsible to Man is responsible to rue, and man is responsible to believe! Anyone who desires deliverance can be saved (Romans 10:13-14). When one's theology becomes so elevated that it hinders the passionate pursuit of wrongdoers, the commodity is profoundly amiss. C. H. Spurgeon famously said," I had rather bring one soul to Jesus Christ than to uncover all the mystifications of the godly Word."

10. A Lack of Faith in the Gospel's Power

Some perceive the Gospel as inadequate, believing it needs" help." Sorely, churches often employ worldly styles to convey the communication, thereby cheapening the Gospel. The prevailing gospel of church growth has come to pragmatism:" whatever works, do it!" A composition in The Wall Street Journal formerly described a well-known church's attempt" to perk up attendance at Sunday evening services." The church" offered a wrestling match, featuring church workers. To train for the event, 10 game workers got assignments from Tugboat Taylor, a former professional wrestler, in pulling hair, remonstrating pins, and tossing bodies around without doing real damage." Similar specs are a disgrace to God and reveal a profound lack of faith in the essential power of the Gospel and the Holy Spirit. While these capers may draw a crowd, are they truly erecting the church? Using gimmicks rather than the Gospel demonstrates an abecedarian mistrust in the Gospel's transformative power. It’s only as we allow God's power to flow through us that the Lord's saving philosophy can be effectively transmitted. Paul asked," How shall they believe in Him of whom they've not heard?"(Romans 10:14). Still, regardless of the particular cost, the good news will be proclaimed encyclopedically, if we're willing to serve as conduits.

A Call to Action

May God forgive us for our failures in evangelism? May He enkindle within us a holy passion to see people come to Christ? I believe God is eagerly waiting to bless a church that won't be ashamed of the Gospel, but will strive to sermonize the pure verity and depend solely upon the power of the Holy Spirit to bring about conversion and blessing. May God, in His bottomless grace, grant us the honor of witnessing His power unleashed in our lives?