“It's not about the mega evangelist anymore, it's about the Holy Spirit moving through us all”
This quote a friend of mine posted on Facebook got me thinking…
It's always been about the Holy Sprit moving through us all - but that doesn't mean we should despise and diminish the gift and role of the Evangelist in and to the church.
The whole Church is called to be a ‘ witness’ to Jesus Christ and what he has done in their lives, the Bible makes that clear. The Bible also makes it clear that there are those whom God has particularly gifted to fulfil the role of Evangelist within the Church. (Ephesians 4:11)
That role is two fold:
Firstly to ‘equip the saints’ - to do what? Become better at sharing their faith, be more confident in sharing their story. To give the church tools and encouragement to tell people about Jesus. If we diminish the evangelists role, who will do that work?
Secondly, to win the lost to Christ. Whether that be many people through a one on one situation or thousands through a large crusade, it doesn't matter, the work of the evangelist is to preach and proclaim the gospel.
My prayer is that God would raise up many more ‘Billy Graham’s, Reinhard Bonnke's, and Luis Palau’s!
I believe that the Church has a role to play in allowing and helping the ministry of an evangelist to flourish and grow. Whether that be an evangelist working in a local Church, or one who has a more prominent ministry.
Hear are five ways in which I believe that the Church and individual Christians can help and engage with those called as an evangelist and involved in Evangelistic ministry:
1) Pray for an Evangelist - if you know an evangelist, do you pray for them? If you don't know one then maybe get to know one! In this age of digital media it's easy to find a ministry online where you can check them out and find out about their work. Maybe you could even sign up to receive their prayer news?
2) Encourage an Evangelist - we all like to be encouraged. Ministry can sometimes be a lonely path. It can make all the difference to receive a word of encouragement either face to face, on Facebook, on Twitter, or via email. Maybe take a moment a drop a word of encouragement to an evangelist you know to encourage them to keep going.
3) Support an Evangelist - Maybe you can help support their ministry by telling others about it? Invite your friends to check out their website and follow/like their social media feeds.
4) Bless an Evangelist - The gospel is free, but doing ministry isn't! If the Lord leads you could give a financial gift to support their ministry by giving either a one off or monthly financial gift.
5) Invite an Evangelist - if you are in Church leadership maybe consider inviting an evangelist to come and speak at your church or hold a series of meetings to encourage the Church in evangelism.
Yes we are all called to be a witness to Jesus, and we need to guard against putting people with bigger ministries on pedestals, but let's not neglect the ministries of those called to be evangelists!
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