Evangelism - Sharing the Truly Good News

Why is Evangelism important? Growing up it felt like Evangelism was a dirty word. Maybe you still feel that way. What immediately comes to mind when you think about Evangelism? Maybe one of the stereotypes: someone yelling, “turn or burn” or blurting out “do you know Jesus?” Maybe you think of the great preacher evangelists like Billy Graham. Or you may be thinking about how awkward you can feel talking about or bringing up faith. When we make these examples our primary understanding of evangelism, I feel like we have lost something. I feel like we have lost the simple joy of sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ. 

Do you know who the four great Evangelists are? You all know there names. Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. That’s right the four gospel writers are considered evangelists. I feel like this is an important idea to help us reframe our thinking. Here are four disciples telling the story of Jesus - and what that has meant for them and the world around them. Each gospel writer has a different way to tell the story and they have different things they focus on or highlight, but each one is sharing the good news of Jesus Christ. 

This shows us two important realities of Evangelism. Evangelism is telling the story of Jesus, but also telling the story of how Jesus has been truly good news for us and our world. Our life, whether we realize it or not, is one great story of God interacting and guiding you toward’s Him and His Kingdom. This is Good News to all of us and so we all have a story to share. We also know that stories are powerful. They can shape and change hearts and cultures. A big step is that we need to know and understand at least part of our own story with God, including all of it’s ups and downs - so that we too can share it.

That brings us to our readings. We hear that if we confess with our lips that Jesus is Lord and if we believe in our hearts that He was raised from the dead we are saved. What are we saved from though? Some people would say we are being saved from hell, true, but the gospels show us there is lived out reality right now that we need saving from. So a question follows, do we really believe we need saving? I think too often in our lives we don’t think we need saving. We like having control, and though things fall short sometimes, we can complain about any number of things in our lives or the world, even though we can fall short of actually loving like we should, we can too easily live, as if, this is good enough. The simple truth is that we need saving from so much. I can look at my life and see too many times where I needed God’s salvation and how so many times he stepped in, not in the ways I wanted, but in the ways I needed. I can see how God saved my intellect after numerous impediments. I can see how God saved friendships, even through bullying. I can see how God provided for me, even when there wasn’t enough. I can see how God saved my identity and purpose even when I didn’t know who I was or why? I am here today, speaking to you, excited about the Good News of Jesus Christ, because I know I have been saved countless times in my life and I am still being saved. This is something we should all see in our lives, want for ourselves and it is something we should want for others too. I do.

But we are not just being saved from something, we are being saved into something. That is why our faith is not just a nice idea, or a moral compass. There is something specific, particular and truly good that we are being brought into. It is centred around Jesus Christ, because He is not just the source of all goodness, but He is the goodness itself. Everything else is just fickle substitutes. That is why in our passage from Isaiah, he can say, “come and drink and eat and be satisfied” - “why do you eat and drink that which does not fill you or satisfy you?” We know if we eat we will get hungry and if we get anything in this world we will just want more. Yet it is only Jesus Christ who is always more and can satisfy our hunger into eternity.

That is why the letter to the Romans say we must believe that Jesus was raised from the dead and confess that Jesus is Lord to be saved. By believing that Jesus was raised from the dead, we are being saved from pain, death, fear of loss, and we are being saved into Jesus’ eternal bounteous and peaceful life. By confessing that Jesus is Lord, we are being saved from all other masters that would enslave us. We are saved from our work, our social life, our rest, or even our broken selves becoming our masters that then take away from our life. Through this confession that Jesus is Lord, we are also being saved into Jesus care, into His leadership, into His household and there we will find life and bounty in all things, whether it be work or play or rest or family. 

This believing is essential because it shapes our heart for a better life in all things. If we can truly believe that Jesus was raised from the dead, what else do we have to worry about or be afraid of? Jesus was loving enough to die for us and yet He was powerful enough to overcome that death. With such a love and such a power, what is left? Perfect love casts out all fear and so we can live a life wholly different and wholly better than what we see in the world. If we confess that Jesus is Lord (and not just here on a Sunday), we are literally speaking into the world who we follow, who is our master - and no other master can take us away (at least while we hold onto that). That means that nothing really has power over us, sure they can hurt us but only for a moment, but our master is greater than that moment, then a little pain, He is greater than death. I hope you are beginning to see why this is such good news and can be good news for all people. 

I have been talking about two general but essential ways of knowing and experiencing the good news of Jesus Christ, but each of these becomes specific and world changing. Romans mentions two examples. First, “We will never be put to shame”. Shame is the resulting feelings and experience that comes from acting wrongly. We can experience this both personally and publicly. This belief and confession removes shame, because just as we believe Jesus overcame death, the consequence of sin, so will he overcome everything else, because just as we confess that Jesus is Lord, we will follow Him to change our ways and help to redeem what we have done wrong. The Good News of Jesus Christ is that He removes all our shame, whether now or in the future. 

Second, “There is no more Gentile or Jew”. We are all one in Jesus Christ. You can barely imagine a more different, oppositional group than jews and gentiles in Jesus and the apostles time. They both believed they were superior, they had both killed each other, they both had rules and practices that separated them from each other and so much more. Yet, Jesus’ good news is that he overcomes all of that. If Jesus was raised from the dead, that means that he can overcome everything that was done to us or our people in the past and we can live as new. If we confess that Jesus is Lord, then it doesn’t matter what has lead us before, we are now following one singular good that is greater than us all. So we are united. This is a reality of God’s good news that is painfully clear we need today not just in the middleeast or eastern Europe, but in Canada, everywhere. 

This is all just to equip you and to show you that what we have been given through faith is truly good news. It is good news for you, for your neighbor, for every single person. It doesn’t mean sharing it is easy or that life is suddenly easy, but it does make life far better and a shared faith in Jesus Christ makes every relationship richer. People need the good news of Jesus Christ, desperately, even if it isn’t obvious. And when we speak it into a need someone knows, beautiful are the feet of the one who brings good news. Sharing Jesus is like someone running to tell us that our war is over and we don’t need to fight anymore. We need to hear and know this.

Jesus sends us out to share this good news - in fact, it is one of the last things he says to us and it is the message of every gospel writer. We are all meant to go out and share this good news, to share Jesus’ story, what it has meant for us, and how it changes everything. It doesn’t have to be complicated, you don’t need a dissertation or degree on it, you just need the gospel, your story, and a courageous heart. The rest is finding or creating opportunities to speak it. Maybe by simply asking someone, “can I tell you about my faith?” Maybe when something wrong comes up, you can talk about your hope. Maybe it is through bringing up what you heard on a Sunday, what you experienced at church, in prayer, a miracle or a favorite reading and so much more.

We are being sent, but we do not go alone. Believe that God is empowering His word in you. In Roman’s we hear that His Word has already gone out in front of us, preparing hearts and minds. In Matthew we hear that all authority has been given to Jesus, so He sends us out with His authority. In Isaiah we hear that God’s Word is potent and always accomplishes it’s task: like water to wheat. What is left for us, but to courageously speak His and let it do the work He promises it will. We hear that not all will believe or even be able to hear it, but for all those that do, know that you are welcoming them into truly good news that will transform their lives, their relationships and even their relationship with you. What we have here in Jesus Christ is truly good news for everyone, let us know it and share it, so that all might experience the peace and joy that comes through Jesus Christ. AMEN

Children’s Talk

What makes you excited to see someone?

You have fun, they are kind, they love you, they bring food, when you are afraid, when you need help, when you are sad, when they smile at you - We get excited to see people because in one way or another - they are bringing us good news. 

We hear in our passage from Romans today that Beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news 

Now the good news that the Bible is talking about is a relationship with God - we should be just as excited to see, hear and know Jesus, because he is bringing us all of these good things and more - We should also be excited to tell people about Jesus because we want to give them all of these good things through him. In fact, we know that Jesus gives far better things than what this world gives, so we should be especially excited to share him - what we will find is that when people see this good news, they will be excited to receive it too. 

I remember someone telling me that there are three things you don’t bring up in polite conversations: religion, politics or money. Though I don’t agree with this, I feel like we are now living out the consequences of people not talking about all three. Money is a consistent issue whether we have it or not. Politics is shaping our society for better or worse, often worse. And faith is no longer guiding our society or relationships. 

Evangelism is just as important if not even more important than it has ever been. What we have met in Jesus Christ is truly good news for everyone and good news that can shape everything for better - actually the best. The more and more we invite people into this faith the more and more we will see it in the world around us. We have too often overcomplicated and shied away from the simple act of telling others about our story with Jesus and how it has truly been good news. God will do the rest and we can trust him to. Join us this Sunday when we explore this simple and yet profound act of sharing our faith. 

NOTES

Saved - From What? Do we believe we need saving? That everyone does?

• Confession (with our mouths) and belief (in our hearts)

• Never put to shame (saved from shame - everything that comes from our wrong action public and personal)

• Breaking down of what separates us at our confession - What connects us as a church?

Send (the role of the community - not just one at a time) - proclaim (How) - hear - believe - call

• Sharing it is believing and obeying?

• Faith through hearing the word of Jesus - 

• but not all believe or obey or hear vs. beautiful are the feet of the one bearing good news.

God is speaking and reaching out his hands, working ahead of you

Isaiah

What do we seek in this life? What do we really need and should be seeking?

God’s faithfulness and covenant

Our Witness - We become the witness to gather the nations

Repentance is a part of this - because that leads to his mercy, transformation, abundant pardon, 

God’s height above us

The proficiency of God’s word

Go out in joy and come back in peace

Transforming the world

Matthew 28

Came to him

Some doubted (even out of the eleven)

All Authority has been given to Jesus, so he sends us out

Make Disciples - His call - Baptising (Father, Son and Holy Spirit)- Teach to obey

With us