Everyday Evangelism
Using everyday opportunities to share, teach, and defend the gospel of Christ.
Do you know Jesus? What would happen if you died today and stood before God’s throne of judgment? Are you saved?
Questions like these may seem familiar to many Christians who have been shaped by an assumed expectation that evangelism ought to be part of the everyday Christian life. Maybe you’ve asked questions like these to someone beside you on an airplane. Maybe you’ve begun a conversation like this with someone standing next to you at the grocery store. Or maybe you’ve felt guilty for years because you believe you should be asking strangers questions like these, but you haven’t worked up the courage to do it.
I’d like to remove that sense of guilt, and I’d also like to invite you to live a normal Christian life as an evangelist (or better yet, as a faithful witness for Christ). You might actively start conversations with perfect strangers for the purpose of evangelism, but that is not the only way to do it. In fact, the more effective and common approach is to simply be intentional with the relationships we already have.
Let me offer three ways you can do everyday evangelism that won’t make you feel like a tupperware salesman (all due respect to salesmen and tupperware).
First, summarize the gospel regularly, especially when you sin against others and when they sin against you. “God, man, Christ, response” is my favorite way to summarize the gospel. God is creator and sovereign over all. Man (or humanity) has sinned against God, and that includes you and me. God sent Jesus Christ into the world to live and die in the place of guilty sinners, and His substitutionary death is the sacrifice we need in order to receive forgiveness. The only right response to this good news (that God has sent Christ as the Savior) is to turn away from sin and trust in Christ as our only hope in life and death.
Second, teach the gospel systematically and intentionally. This is especially useful in our homes. We can read the Bible as part of our daily family routine. We can make use of a good Christian catechism, discussing one question and answer each day or week with our spouse, children, and grandchildren. I like Keach’s Catechism (also known as the Baptist Catechism), but there are many good ones. We can read good stories that point to the gospel and talk about them together afterward. Consider the Pilgrim’s Progress, Dangerous Journey, or The Prince’s Poison Cup. We can invite our coworkers and friends to read a bit of the Bible and discuss it with us. A great resource to help you learn how to do this is One-to-One Bible Reading. The point is to be intentional, make a plan, invite participation, and put the plan into practice.
Third, defend the gospel when necessary. It’s important that we don’t make every subject or conversation an argument. Not every teaching of the Bible is as critical to our souls as the rest. Those teachings or doctrines that are fundamental to the gospel (i.e., the person of Christ, the work of the Savior, the necessity of repentance and faith, the judgment of God against sin, the grace of God for sinners), these deserve our greatest attention and care. When someone you know is confused about or ignorant of one of those fundamental truths of the gospel, then take some time to lovingly expose the error and thoughtfully clarify what the Bible teaches.
Not everyone will give themselves to a life of public evangelism (like street preaching, vocational evangelism, or cold-call witnessing), but every Christian can and should live as a faithful witness for Christ among the people they know best. Think about some ways that you can improve your ability to summarize, teach, and defend the gospel. And then ask God to help you to live as a faithful witness with the opportunities you have.
Marc is husband to Cassie and father to Micah and Malachi. He is also the Senior Pastor of First Baptist Church of Diana, TX.
Website: fbcdiana.org.
Email: marc@fbcdiana.org.