Evangelism and discipleship

Evangelism and Discipleship are the foundational works of any Christian Church. Check out why we need to do both, with whom, and what to do.

1. Evangelism and discipleship The only reason for church existence!

2. Evangelism & Discipleship 15 And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation .” -- Jesus Christ (Mark 16:15)

3. Evangelism & Discipleship 18 And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age .“ -- Jesus Christ (Matt. 28:18-20)

4. Evangelism & Discipleship THE purpose for the existence of the church What is a church anyway? From Gk.: Ekklesia – “a called out assembly” A place to live out the life He commanded us A place to share that message in word and deed A community of life and light in a community of death and darkness If the church is NOT doing this, can we really call it a “church?”

5. Evangelism & Discipleship So what are we to do? Our mission MUST be translated into the message we bring: To members of our congregation To our children and youth To our community at large To the world around us But what does that mean in practical terms?

6. Evangelism & Discipleship Implications of our Mission and Message We must share the Gospel (“good news”) of Jesus with every member of our congregation For encouragement For the forwarding of the Kingdom of God For new people that may be among us For those of us that may be struggling in faith

7. Evangelism & Discipleship Implications of our Mission and Message We must share the Gospel (“good news”) of Jesus with our children and youth To teach them that Jesus loves them and what that means to them To have our children begin their walks as early as possible (they will have a better attitude in struggle) Our aim is not to “raise good kids,” but rather to make young disciples so they become good kids (Hat tip: Pastor Mark Driscoll)

8. Evangelism & Discipleship Implications of our Mission and Message We must share the Gospel (“good news”) of Jesus with the surrounding community To be a good witness for Christ to those around us To attract potential new Christians to a community-based gathering To demonstrate our care for people (to show the message in deed as well as word) To maintain good relations with the community around us

9. Evangelism & Discipleship Implications of our Mission and Message We must share the Gospel (“good news”) of Jesus with the world at large To do the work of the Kingdom of God To be faithful to the Lord and do what He said To complete the “Great Commission” of Jesus Christ How do we do this?

10. Evangelism & Discipleship Mission-critical Elements of the Message The Gospel of Jesus Christ: God loves all of Humankind All humans have done wrong things Jesus paid the penalty on our behalf As we believe that He gives us eternal life

11. Evangelism & Discipleship Mission-critical Elements of the Message Making Disciples of those who believe (Acts 2): 41 So then, those who had received his word were baptized; and that day there were added about three thousand souls. 42 They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles' teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.

12. Evangelism & Discipleship Mission-critical Elements of the Message Making Disciples of those who believe: Apostles’ Teaching – Bible Study Fellowship – With God and With each other Breaking of Bread – Worship Prayer (several kinds of prayer with specifics) It is clear that these were BELIEVERS from v.41

13. Evangelism & Discipleship A Plan to Grow this Gathering Focus on the person and work of Jesus Christ within the congregation, with our youth, and outside the Church Provide resources to members that want to grow their faith personally (Small group studies and discipleship times, for example) Live the message deliberately, practically, and publicly in everything we do

14. Evangelism & Discipleship Implications of this Plan It has real costs – money, time, effort, possible rejection, etc. It has real benefits – growth in numbers, in spiritual gifts, in spiritual capacity, etc. We may lose people. (This is sad, and we want to minimize it, of course!) We will gain people that also WANT to be involved like this. Action leads to results.

15. Evangelism & Discipleship THE BIG QUESTION ARE WE READY? I am. I hope you will join me.