Week 2 2 Timothy 4:5, 17-18
5 But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardships,
do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.
17 But the Lord stood at my side and gave me strength, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it. And I was delivered from the lion's mouth. 18 The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and will bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom. To him be glory for ever and ever. Amen. —2 Timothy 4:5, 17-18 ESV
The following article, “Evangephobia,” is excerpted and adapted from an unpublished manuscript written by Ken Priddy, Director of Church Renewal for Outreach North America, the home missions agency of our denomination.
Evangephobia
But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardships, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry. —2 Timothy 4:5
A phobia is a fear and we all have fears; fear of heights, fear of public speaking, fear of failure, to name a few. In observing the American church, I have discovered a fear that is running at epidemic proportions, the fear of evangelizing, or as I have come to call it, evangephobia. This fear has paralyzed the American church, making it one of the least effective at evangelizing of all the national churches in the world.
I find this both tragic and embarrassing. Every second of every day God is building His invisible, eternal church as He brings the world’s lost men, women and children to Himself. The Christian church in many countries of the world is exploding with growth, and yet the American church, with the world’s best-educated clergy, the world’s most resources, and the world’s most political freedom, declines. Why? The American church seems afraid to share its faith, caught in a sweeping outbreak of evangephobia.
When questioned about their evangephobia, American Christians list many causes, but several are cited with great frequency:
• They lack the spiritual gift of evangelism.
• They don’t want to offend people.
• They fear rejection.
• They don’t know what to say.
It seems odd that so many Christians can easily communicate their personal experiences at having read a great book, seen a great movie, dined at a great restaurant, or received great service from an auto mechanic. Recommendations and testimonies flow freely in regard to these everyday occurrences, yet when it comes to sharing our personal experiences with our great Savior, we suddenly lose all ability to communicate.
Sharing the faith, or witnessing, is born in personal testimony. Recommending a book, movie, restaurant or auto mechanic begins with our giving testimony to our personal experiences. We say that we found the book to be entertaining, educational or full of meaning. We report that the movie was hilarious or dramatic and know that others would love it as well. The food was delicious and well presented and so we rave about the dining experience. The mechanic did a great job in a timely manner at a reasonable price. We have benefited through these personal experiences so we urge others to benefit as well.
Why is it that we give such effective testimony about so many things in our lives but go mute when it comes to giving testimony to the most important thing? Perhaps another reason is that our faith is more intellectual than experiential, so that we really don’t have much of a testimony to share. What if we never read the book, never saw the movie, never ate the meal or never took the car in for service? What kind of testimony could we give? Regardless of the causes, evangephobia continues to spread through the American church, and we continue to keep the Good News to ourselves.
• In what ways have I succumbed to the widespread spiritual disease of evangephobia?
• What is my testimony, my personal eyewitness account of who Jesus is and what He means to me?
Redeemer men, think about the charge Paul gives in 2 Timothy 4:5. Timothy seems to have been somewhat timid, and Paul urges him to work hard at the task of evangelism. Meditate also on the verses at the end of the same chapter (vv. 17-18), where Paul reflects on his own experience. Evangelism did not come easily to Timothy, or even to Paul. Be encouraged! The same strength they received for their task is available to you also. You have the same God!
2 comments:
We are not alone when evangelizing. The Holy Spirit is with us. He will give us courage. As we study God's word and pray, we are also better equipped to Evangelize. Among the causes of Evangephobia was offending people or fear of rejection.
When one evangelizes, we may offend people, but we are glorifying and pleasing God.
When people reject our efforts, it does not mean we have failed. We have failed if we think we alone are the ones being rejected and it is our individual efforts in presenting the Gospel. We never fail if we are presenting the Gospel according to God's word and through the Holy Spirit. Remember when we represent Christ, people who reject our evangelism are rejecting Christ!
Getting to know the person, when evangelizing with a sincere attitude and a compassionate manner as Christ did, is more effective. This approach has helped me in being more comfortable in presenting the gospel and the one being evangelized more receptive.
In addition to getting more familiar with others, one can find out if they are "true" Christians. Some people have labeled themselves as a Christians who are really not at all.
There are people who attend church regularly and some who rarely, if at all, attend a church who call themselves Christians and do not know they are lost.
There is a possibility that those we approach may be saved, but are not growing spiritually as they should. This too is an opportunity to provide encouragement for Christian growth.
Evangelism may lead to discovering of a need for further counseling. We need to prepare ourselves for this as well. It can be formal or informal counseling.
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