A HEART FOR THE WORLD: “EVANGELISM!”

One of the most important things to understand about salvation is that it’s a gift that must be shared. Jesus didn’t die for you and I alone, but for every person who would ever take the breath of life.  That’s why the Bible says in 2 Peter 3:9 that “He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.“ And because it’s the desire of Christ for all to be saved, it only makes since that his desire for every Christian is to share their faith. Therefore, upon that premise he gave us a Command, a Promise and a Guarantee:

1) He Gave the Command to Go!   Matthew 28:19-20 “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

2) He Gave the Promise of Power!     Ac 1:8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

3) He Gave the Guarantee of Results! Mk 16:15-18 He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation. 16 Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. 17 And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; 18 they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well.”

* Once you acknowlege your responsibility to be a witness for Christ you must begin to equip yourself to more effectively share your faith.  Knowlege alone will puff a person up but a lack of knowlege can cripple a person in fear.  For example, you may fear being asked something you don’t know or can’t explain, and while that is always going to be a possibility, the more understanding you have of the Bible the less chance you have of getting stumped. We need to know how to correctly handle and divide the Word of God so I would challenge you to familiarize yourself with the link:   * HOW TO BE SAVED?

* I also would encourage you to memorize the simple A B C Plan of Salvation.

A = ADMIT....We must Admit that we are all sinners in need of forgiveness. 

B = BELIEVE.... Then we must Believe in our heart that Jesus died on the cross as the sacrifice and payment for our sin and that three days later he arose in victory from the grave. 

C = CONFESS.... And finally we must Confess that we believe these things are true and be willing to confess our committment of Christ.

LIVING OUT YOUR WITNESS:

Also, you must realize that witnessing is more than sharing your faith verbally. Your most vital witness is in living out your faith. The Bible says, “Blessed are the feet of them that bring good news,” and we must be willing to speak about our faith, but the world doesn’t want to hear it from us if we aren’t willing to live it before them. Matthew 5:16 says to “Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.” Your witness is the way you walk and talk and live while you’re at work, or at school, or amongst your peers on the weekend. Let’s let our light shine and live out our faith before the world. Let’s give them something to go after. Let’s show them Jesus.

* Remember that your responsibility isn’t to make them accept Jesus. Your responsibility is only to show them and tell them about Jesus. Pray and be sensitive for the right timing and don’t be afraid of rejection. The best baseball players still strike out often, but if you never swing you’ll never get a homer.