Evangelism Part 1: Embrace Your Calling as a Minister of Reconciliation

Think back to the day that God convicted you of your sin that you knew would deservedly send you to hell. In turn God drew you to Himself with the realization that by His grace you could find forgiveness of your sin. How? The plan of salvation became clear to you. God loved you so much that He sent his only Son Jesus to suffer and die in your place, taking the punishment that you deserved so that you could live and spend eternity in heaven. Then Jesus proved He had victory over sin when He rose from the dead. Your response to this outpouring of love was to repent and turn from your sin as you put your trust in Jesus Christ alone as your Savior and Lord.

Since that day, what has been your spiritual journey in making Jesus Lord of your life as His minister of reconciliation? 2 Corinthians 5:20 states, “Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God!” This verse has always amazed me. God is literally stating that He chose us sinful people as His chosen tool to share the good news of the gospel with others. He even implores us here to beg people to be reconciled to God! When’s the last time you begged someone to get saved?  We must get to the point where we wholeheartedly embrace the privilege God has given us to be His minister of reconciliation.

This is the first of a series of blogs discussing biblical evangelism. Topics will include the use of God’s law to reach the conscience of unbelievers to bring about conviction of sin. Not until our lost friends see that they are sinners under the wrath of a just and holy God will the gospel make sense, and if God is drawing them they will desire to make peace with Him. We will talk about good questions to ask that will help stir up gospel conversations, and walk through sharing the gospel in detail. I plan on giving some helpful bible verses to use when witnessing, and some answers to common questions people may have. At the end we will discuss how to craft your own testimony as a powerful bridge to confront the unsaved God puts in your path.

But for the remainder of this first blog, it’s important that we first get our hearts right with God to be ready to evangelize effectively.

Let Internal heart cardioversion take place

When I counsel my cardiovascular patients on the need to get their heart in a good rhythm, many will eventually undergo cardioversion to reset their heart to a path of better health. In turn, we need a heart reset to get our hearts right to be used mightily by God in sharing the gospel.

The first heart reset we need is to sit at the foot of the cross and develop a deep gratitude to God for what He did for us. Back to my favorite chapter of the Bible, in 2 Corinthians 5:14 it states, “Let the love of Christ control us, having concluded this, that one died for all, therefore all died, and He died for all, so that they who live might no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died and rose again on their behalf.” When we meditate on what Jesus did to save us by redeeming us from our sin, how He in turn gave us His righteousness instead of the wrath of God we deserve, then it is a natural response for us to live for Him and not for ourselves. This practically will compel us to go out on a limb to preach the gospel to our unsaved friends and beg them to reconcile to God.

Another verse that compels me to share the gospel is mediating on Proverbs 24:11. It states, “Deliver those who are being taken away to death, and those who are staggering to slaughter, O hold them back.” In middle eastern lore there is a description of a Judas goat. This refers to a goat who leads the sheep to the slaughtering gate, but as the goat takes a sharp turn to avoid going down the slaughter chute, the rest of the sheep following him keep on going straight to their deaths. This is a word picture of what is happening every day as thousands of people go to their death, many staggering to slaughter to hell if they were counting on their good deeds to save them, and not the blood of the spotless lamb of God Jesus whose blood takes away our sin and leads to eternal life in heaven. This verse in Proverbs encourages us to hold them back! How do we do this? We share the simple truths of the gospel clearly and often to whoever will listen.

Let's get honest. Have you ever been fearful to share the gospel with your family and friends? I know I have. But when we take a moment and look deeper, we will find that the root of our fear is our own pride. I know at times I don’t want anyone to think badly of me. We need to keep in mind, though, that it is only our pride that is injured if people laugh or scoff at the gospel, and that can be a good thing! 1 Peter 4:14-16 states, “If you are reviled for the name of Christ you are blessed.”  How are we being blessed by sharing the gospel you may ask? Personally, I have been incredibly blessed by God when i show my love for Him by sharing the gospel with a lost soul. My appreciation of my own salvation deepens as I see Jesus's love for me intimately in saving me. Jesus promises to do this for you too, in John 14:21 where it states, "he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will disclose Myself to him."

Embrace your calling as a minister of reconciliation sharing the good news of the gospel with all those around you. You can be certain this is God's will as He is always glorified in the gospel, and God will use you in the kingdom building He intends for His church.