Sharing the gospel (the good news) is pretty intimidating as an introvert. Evangelism is not my gift. But the fact is that when Jesus left He commanded us to share the good news aka the great commission.
I’ve never quite grasped how to share the gospel very well and/or what exactly to say. Most of us, when we think of sharing the gospel, think of famous preachers yelling to big crowds. And that’s not exactly a reality or a desire for most of us.
GOSPEL OF PEACE SHOES?
Recently, I’ve been going through quite a bit of spiritual warfare so I have been trying to memorize the armor of God in Ephesians 6. But when I kept coming to Ephesians 6:15 – As shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace – I couldn’t grasp it’s meaning. How do the feet of a soldier bring peace? The shoes on a soldier have spikes so they can dig their feet into the ground in order to stand firm under battle. In the past I learned that the good news, which translates to euaggelion in Greek, was a term for proclamation of a new king taking over. It wasn’t necessarily peaceful.
So, wanting to be better equipped to share and understand the gospel, I started doing some research. It turns out that we are supposed to stand firm on the teachings of Jesus while still proclaiming His gift of salvation.
USING ACTS 2
I believe there’s a really great model from the apostles that we can still use today, as laid out in Acts, chapter 2. I recommend you read the whole thing but I will put bits of Acts 2 in this article.
When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance. Acts 2:1-4
In this chapter, after being filled with the Holy Spirit, Peter explains to all the people the miracle of being able to understand each others languages. He quotes a lot of scriptures from the Old Testament. He explains who Jesus was, that he died on the cross for all of us, while at the same time, he calls out the wrongdoing of the persecution of Jesus. He finally explains Jesus’ true identity and divinity.
“Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.” Acts 2:36
Because of Peter’s words, and the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, people were convicted in their hearts.
Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” Acts 2:37-38
SHARING IS EASY?
Using this powerful example, how can we share the word effectively? When talking to a friend about this recently, he mentioned that it should come from the heart, that the Holy Spirit should lead it. And while I completely believe this, I also feel led to know some helpful scriptures, or even have a cheat sheet in my pocket, knowing how I fumble over my words sometimes when I get nervous.
A few others I asked about the Great Commission said sharing the good news is easy because it’s just forgiveness and accepting Jesus into your heart. But when I first came to the Lord, I had a lot of questions about a lot of things. So on the off chance, you share the love of Jesus with a non-believer who has questions (like I did) or a lot of doubt, this article is for you.
USING A CHEAT SHEET
I have made a little cheat sheet on what I thought may be helpful scriptures and explanations, but I still highly encourage you to spend time in prayer every morning and ask for the Lords guidance. Because you never know who you’re going to run in to, or how the Lord may want you to share the Good News!
Right now, we live in a sinful fallen world because of the fall of man in the garden as described in the book of Genesis. Jesus came that we may be saved through His sacrifice on the cross. Here is a free printable breakdown of the great commission and helpful scriptures to use, in my opinion.
SHARE YOUR TESTIMONY
One thing I want to add separately about bringing people to Christ, is that the giving of your own personal testimony is very powerful. Giving testimony on how God changed your life, is one of the most effective ways to bring people to the Lord. Sharing your testimony can open the door to sharing the gospel. It can have a huge impact on others. Try sharing your testimony with a friend soon!
REPENTENCE & RENEWAL
I think it’s important to know that in the Book of Acts, the people repented first and then they were baptized. Repentance is a key part of submitting our lives to Jesus. But baptism is not where the story ends. The people, after their baptisms, devoted themselves to the teachings of the apostles (that they received from Jesus), and began to live in one accord. Those who were baptized had changed lives, and began to have a heart for others. They lived together in unity, caring for the community.
And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. And all who believed were together and had all things in common. Acts 2:42-44
We often see many of these pieces missing in many conversions today. I have a passion for this topic because after my baptism, I quickly fell back to, basically, my old ways. I didn’t know anything about the renewal of life piece. I also didn’t know anything about spiritual warfare, which I will discuss in a minute. One of the things I feel compelled to discuss is that much of what we see in evangelizing Christians today has to do with baptism only, but baptism is only the beginning. There are many church members today that are still lost (like I was) even though they have been baptized.
THERE WILL BE MOCKERS
Going back to the euaggelion, when we proclaim who Jesus is and the gift that He has offered us, it’s important to understand that there may be some push back. There will be mockers as described in Acts 2 after the Holy Spirit fell it says – But others mocking said, “They are filled with new wine.” Acts 2:13. It’s important that we are prepared for push back, that our feet are planted firm and we continue to do what God has called us to do, regardless of what mockers are saying.
COME ALONG SIDE
After baptism, I didn’t learn how to live a spirit-filled life or how follow Jesus. I tried to read the Bible and was quickly offended by it. But I also didn’t ask any questions. I didn’t seek help because of my pride. Ultimately, I was ignorant of the Word of God and of the Christian lifestyle. There is a danger of not knowing these things.
My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Hosea 4:6
As seasoned Christians, we have a responsibility to guide new Christians. I am preaching this to myself as I write this because I also want to be better at this. We are to encourage others to be studying the Word of God. A Christian, who knows the Word of God will not be easily deceived by the world. We also need to be there to answer questions about the Bible and encourage new believers when the enemy tries to knock them around. The enemy will do anything to pull a new believer away from Jesus.
Discipleship is important and brings strength to the body of Christ. When the church is strong, it is more effective and has power. When the foundation is strong the house will not fall. We must strengthen the church. When Peter proclaimed the true identity of Jesus, that He was the son of God, Jesus said:
And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. Matthew 16:18
ALL HANDS ON DECK
It’s God’s church, not ours. All believers need to be on deck to keep the church strong because the devil comes after the foundation. That is not to say we don’t need leaders. We should have leaders, which is a very noble task, just as described in 1 Timothy 3, and those leaders should be trustworthy. We, as believers, need leadership and guidance.
Not only should we be guiding new believers, we should also teach them about spiritual warfare. How the devil will try to knock you around and challenge your faith as soon as you commit your life to God. The enemy will discourage you and use others to question your decision. He will make you question the validity of the Bible, the validity of the Word of God and try to convince you that you’re not worthy to be saved. Or he’ll try to convince you that you can do no wrong and you are saved no matter what. That there is no reason to strive towards holiness.
STAY STRONG
All of these are lies from the devil. Our job as Christians is to seek the lost and strengthen the body.
For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us so that whether we are awake or asleep we might live with him. Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing. 1 Thessalonians 5:9-11
We must remain strong in the Word. Don’t be deceived by a watered-down version of the Word of God. We must be strong and dressed for battle. Strengthen those who are weary, stand on the Word and encourage one another. Don’t be deceived by the devil’s tactics to accept immorality, sexual perversion and all the other things we see happening in our society that are in contradiction to the Word of God. Keep your eyes focused on Jesus and stand firm with your shoes grounded in the gospel of peace.
Leave a Reply