Portable Bible School Evangelism Lesson Eleven

Evangelism Lesson Eleven Why Evangelize? “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek” (Romans 1:16). FOCUS: To explain why we should be involved in evangelism. WHAT I HAVE LEARNED We evangelize… 1. Because Jesus came to seek and to save the lost (Luke 19:10). 2. Because we truly believe that there is no other way to be saved (Acts 4:12). 3. Because how else shall they hear? (Romans 10:14-15). Vinson Synan once said concerning world evangelization, “If not us, who? If not now, when?” 4. Because Jesus commanded it (Acts 1:8; Matthew 28:19-20; John 20:22; Mark 16:15; Luke 24:47). 5. Because Jesus does not want anyone to perish (2 Peter 3:9; John 3:15-16). 6. Because it makes heaven happy (Luke 15:10). Evangelism creates joy in heaven. Heaven gets more excited about the lost being found than any other thing. 7. Because the gospel is good news. It is only good news when it is shared (Luke 4:18). 8. Because we are the body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12:27). Jesus Christ is in us (Colossians 1:27). 9. Because men are lost outside of Jesus Christ. The word lost comes from a root word meaning “ruined” or “destroyed” (Romans 3:10, 3:23, 6:23, 5:19; Psalm 51:5). 10. Because men are going to hell (2 Thessalonians 1:8-9). Hell is real. No one should go to hell without a witness (Psalm 9:17). 11. Because we are to be a light in a sin-darkened world (Matthew 5:14-16; Romans 2:19; 2 Corinthians 4:4). Light has a way of spreading. The truth is compared to light, and when it is shared, it will spread. Charles Spurgeon said, “We live in such a dark world that we must not waste the tiniest piece of candle.” 12. Because the gospel is hidden to them that are lost (2 Corinthians 4:3; Luke 11:33). The treasure must be revealed. 13. Because it is the will of God (2 Peter 3:9; Matthew 18:14). 14. Because we know the terror of the Lord (2 Corinthians 5:11). 15. Because there is a better place. Heaven is waiting to be populated (John 14:1-3; Revelation 21:4). 16. Because Jesus is coming soon (1 Thessalonians 4:15-18; John 14:3; Acts 1:11; Hebrews 10:37; Revelation 1:7; Matthew 26:64). 17. Because we are in a spiritual battle for the souls of men (Ephesians 6:12; 2 Corinthians 4:3-4, 10:3-5). 18. Because we cannot help but speak what we have seen and heard (Acts 4:20, 22:15). 19. Because we do not want the blood of sinners on our hands (Ezekiel 3:17-20; Acts 18:6, 20:26-27). 20. Because he who wins souls is wise (Proverbs 11:30). 21. Because we understand the value of a human soul (Matthew 16:26; Luke 9:25). 22. Because the love of God is in our hearts (Romans 5:5; Leviticus 19:18; Mark 12:31). His love overflows from our lives. Our love for Him cannot be self-contained (1 John 4:7-8; Romans 5:5). We should care enough to reach out. Jesus was moved with compassion (Matthew 9:36). What about you? The church’s main business is soul winning. 23. Because of Calvary (Luke 23:33). 24. Because witnesses must witness; otherwise they are not witnesses (1 Corinthians 9:16; Acts 1:8). 25. Because time is running out (John 4:35; John 9:4). 26. Because of people’s lack of knowledge (Isaiah 5:13; Hosea 4:6). People are ignorant and need to be informed. 27. Because God wants people to come to the knowledge of the truth (1 Timothy 2:1-4). 28. Because men in captivity need to be delivered from bondage (Isaiah 61:1-3; Luke 4:18-19). 29. Because if we do not evangelize the lost, cults and false religions will. 30. Because we love the unsaved. The most loving thing you can do is present the gospel to someone else (2 Corinthians 5:14-15). Evangelism shows the love of God to the world (John 3:16; 1 John 3:16). 31. Because we want to please God and bring glory to His name. Pleasing God is the chief aim of man (Ecclesiastes 12:13). 32. Because it is the primary purpose of the church (Matthew 18:11, 20:28; Luke 19:10; John 10:10; 1 Timothy 1:15). 33. Because harvest is necessary for us to exist. 34. Because evangelism produces the church (Matthew 9:37-38; John 4:35). 35. Because the gospel is the power of God unto salvation (Romans 1:16). 36. Because we know that what God says He means. All will stand before the judgment seat of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:10; Hebrews 9:27). 37. Because Jesus has done so much for us. It must be shared (Acts 4:20). 38. Because I cannot help but evangelize. He has done so much for me I have got to tell somebody. “I couldn't keep from preaching it if I wanted to. I would be utterly miserable” (1 Corinthians 9:16, TLB). “Then I said, I will not make mention of him, nor speak any more in his name. But his word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary with forbearing, and I could not stay” (Jeremiah 20:9). 39. Because we are debtors (Romans 1:15-16). 40. Because evangelism is an expression of a healthy church (Acts 1:8, 8:4). 41. Because it is an honor to be His agent (ambassador). We have a heavenly invitation to share the life-changing gospel with others. We represent the King of kings and speak on His behalf (2 Corinthians 5:20; Ephesians 6:20). 42. Because evangelism could hasten the coming of our King (Matthew 24:14). 43. Because Jesus said, “I will build my church” (Matthew 16:18). Through evangelism, we help build the church. 44. Because we want to hear the Lord of the harvest say, “Well done thou good and faithful servant” (Matthew 25:21). 45. Because great rewards are promised, both now and in eternity, to those that witness (Daniel 12:3; 1 Thessalonians 2:19-20). 46. Because the fear of the Lord compels us to evangelize (2 Corinthians 5:11; Luke 12:47). 47. Because we do not want the Lord to be ashamed of us (Mark 8:34-38). 48. Because there is no greater joy than bringing someone to Christ. Our joy is made full when we evangelize (1 John 1:3-4; John 15:11). Watchman Nee claimed that the two happiest days in every believer’s life are the day he is saved and the day he leads some one to Christ. 49. Because involvement in evangelism produces a sense of direction, purpose and destiny for our lives (Acts 18:19-20). It gives us something worth living and dying for. “We are debtors to every man to give him the gospel in the same measure in which we have received it.” P. F. Bresee, founder of the Church of the Nazarene First and Last Commands of Jesus Christ  The first commandment of Jesus: “And Jesus said unto them, Come ye after me, and I will make you to become fishers of men” (Mark 1:17).  The last commandment of Jesus: “But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth” (Acts 1:8). The church exists for three main reasons:  To minister to God (relationship with God). This is expressed through prayer, fasting, worship and Bible study.  To minister to one another (relationship with other Christians.) This is expressed through love, fellowship and serving.  To minister to the world (relationship with those who do not know the Lord Jesus). This is expressed through evangelism, outreach, church planting and missions. (Mark Conner, Transforming Your Church) The only one that cannot be done in heaven is number three. The only reason for the church to remain on the earth is for the purpose of evangelism. There will not be any evangelism in heaven. We populate heaven or hell by our obedience or disobedience to the command of Christ. Obedience Populate Heaven Disobedience Populate Hell “Today…people will go to heaven, and people will go to hell. The percentage of people going to heaven and the percentage of people going to hell today is determined by how well you did your job yesterday. If you remember heaven today, it will help someone avoid hell tomorrow.” (Primary Purpose) D. L. Moody made up his mind that he would witness to at least one person per day. One night as he crawled into bed, he remembered that he had not preached to anyone that day. He got dressed and went out looking for someone he could talk to. It was already midnight, and the streets were deserted. He finally found a policeman still on duty and witnessed to him. The man was annoyed and scolded, “Do you not have anything better to do than disturb me in the middle of the night, trying to persuade me into being a Christian.” A few days later that man got saved. He never forgot his midnight encounter with a personal evangelist bent on populating heaven. John Wesley once told a group of preachers, “You have nothing to do but win souls.” WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNED? 1. What was the first commandment of Jesus Christ? ___________________________________________________________________________________________________ 2. What was the last commandment of Jesus Christ? __________________________________________________________________ 3. Why does the church exist? ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 4. How do we populate heaven? _________________________________ 5. Provide twenty reasons why we should be involved in evangelism. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 6. What are the two happiest days in a believer’s life? __________________________________________________________________