THE PRIORITY OF EVANGELISM

God created man, placed him in a perfect environment, and enjoyed his fellowship. But man chose to rebel against God. In that rebellion, the sentence of death has passed upon all men. God could have carried out a just judgment and destroyed humankind at that time. Instead, God created a plan to save humankind.

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” John 3:16.
Jesus Christ—the Son of God came. At the age of thirty He started His public ministry. He healed the sick, cast out demons, and taught about the Kingdom of God. One time, He appointed 72 disciples to go to towns and preach about the Kingdom of God.

Before going back to heaven, He appointed the whole church to go and preach the Gospel. And that is what we call EVANGELISM.

Evangelism is tough work. It is much easier to take care of the righteous than go after the unrighteous.

A CASE STUDY: MATTHEW AND FRIENDS (Matthew 9:9-13)

“As Jesus was going down the road, he saw Matthew sitting at his tax—collection booth. ‘Come, be my disciple’, Jesus said to him. So Matthew got up and followed him. That night Matthew invited Jesus and his disciples to be his dinner guests, along with his fellow tax collectors and many notorious sinners. The Pharisees were indignant. ‘Why does your teacher eat with such scum?’ they asked his disciples. When he heard this, Jesus replied, ‘Healthy people don’t need a doctor—sick people do.’ Then he added, ‘Now go and learn the meaning of this Scripture: ‘I want you to be merciful; I don’t want your sacrifices.’ For I have come to call sinners, not those who think they are already good enough.”

The sinking of the “unsinkable ship”, the Titanic, caused the death of approximately 1500 people. The nearest ship was miles away, but it was off duty. It could have rescued all the passengers if it were on duty. It could have rescued all the passengers if it were on duty. Similarly, many Christians are “off duty.”

If all Christians were off duty, we wouldn’t be here today. We’re here today because somebody cared and shared to us the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, in honor of that person, we too must decide to make personal evangelism part of our lifestyle. The most important contribution that you can make to the Kingdom of God is to provide an opportunity for a person to meet the Lord.
The story of Matthew is a perfect example of how we can share the Gospel.

I. BARRIERS TO PERSONAL EVANGELISM THAT ARE XPOSED IN THE STORY OF MATTHEW
1. Some people are too sinful for God to forgive.
2. People are not interested in the Gospel of Jesus and may not respond.
3. I am not trained for personal evangelism; it’s difficult for me to do.
4. I will be criticized and embarrassed if people don’t respond.



II. THE STORY OF MATTHEW ANSWERS THESE BARRIERS

1. Some people are too sinful for God to forgive:
God forgave Matthew…..
 He had backslidden from the faith of his fathers.
 He had betrayed his people by becoming a tax collector.
 He cheated his neighbors by collecting too much.
 He also had a sinful lifestyle.
“He said to him, ‘follow me.’ And he rose and followed him” (v.9).

 Jesus cared about Matthew even though he made sinful choices and led a displeasing lifestyle.

 God loves sinners and does not want anyone to perish.
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” John 3:16.

 Jesus came to save sinners.
“She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins” Matthew 1:21.

“It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick…For I have not come to call the righteous but sinners” Matthew 9:12-13.

JESUS IS IN THE WASHING BUSINESS!
“For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more” Hebrews 8:12

2. People aren’t interested in the Gospel of Jesus Christ and may not respond:
“He said to him, ‘Follow me.’ And he rose and followed him” (v.9b).

a. Jesus meets every spiritual need. He ministered to the poor, the captive, the blind, and the sick.
Jesus knows how to reach the hurting soul. Once you share the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit does the rest of the work.

“Every Saturday evening for over forty years a servant of God stood on a certain street corner handling out gospel tracts to the passerby. And then he stopped. Discouraged because he saw so little fruit, he abandoned his post. Some years later he happened on the spot and a young man stood there and gave him a gospel tract. He stopped, and addressing the young man he said, “How is it that you are here tonight?” “Well, sir, it is like this. An old man occupied this corner for years; I was saved by the means of a tract he gave me. Evidently, the old man is in heaven now for I’ve missed him here, and so I am seeking to fill his place.”
Tears filled the eyes of the older Christian as the young man thus spoke.
“I am the man who gave you the tract,” he said, “and by the grace of God I mean to stand my place until Jesus comes.”

3. I’m not trained in personal evangelism; it’s too difficult.
“That night Matthew invited Jesus and his disciples to be his dinner guests, along with his fellow tax collectors and many other notorious sinners” (v.10).



a. Matthew used what he had to introduce others to Christ.
 His home
 His food
Many of the personal evangelism of Jesus Christ were done around the dining table. Eating relaxes people.

b. Matthew related to his old friends and relatives in a new way. A way that would save them.

c. Matthew’s new relationship with Jesus.
All that Matthew did was share what he had found in Jesus, nothing more. That was his witness for Christ.

4. I’ll be criticized or embarrassed if people don’t respond.
“And when the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, ‘Why does you teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?’” (v.11).

a. Doing God’s will is more important than other’s criticism or our embarrassment.
Remember Jesus lived a perfect life and performed many miracles yet they crucified him.

b. When people reject—don’t take it personal.


FIVE SIMPLE STEPS:

1. LOOK AROUND—who among your family, friends, neighbors, classmates, and acquaintances need Christ?

2. LOOK UP—pray for them. Ask God to open their hearts to Christ and give to you the opportunity to tell them about Christ.

3. LOOK OUT—find ways to build friendship with these people. Help them or ask them to help you. It is easier to talk about Christ when people are your friends.

4. LOOK FORWARD—plan to invite these people to your home, snacks outside, to church, to a cell meeting.

5. LOOK AFTER—some of these people will want to accept Christ. Help them grow as new Christian believers. Connect them to a cell group.