George's Journey: Motivations for Evangelism (1)

A friend commented to me in response to the original paper I wrote on evangelism that all the evangelism methods in the world are practically useless unless we are motivated to proclaim the good news of Jesus. I am paraphrasing him. He is right. A correct understanding of methodology matters little if you and I aren’t motivated to use such methodology.

He also went into detail as to why he doesn’t do much evangelizing. More on that in another post, but it did make me think that we really do need to talk about the motivation God’s wants us to have in evangelism. What should move us to share the good news of Jesus?

As with previous questions I am looking for biblical answers to this question.

Christ’s Love for us compels us to share that love with others

2 Corinthians 5:14-21 “For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died.

When we learned that God has always loved us and that Jesus died FOR us we were awe struck and overwhelmed and we loved it.

We then became convinced (by the message of Jesus) that Jesus died for everyone.

This has far reaching implications in how we regard people and how we should treat them.

Let the scripture speak

2 Corinthians 5:15 “And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.”

Through Jesus death we have been brought to life. See also Romans 6:1-18.

This spiritual resurrection has resulted in a new life with a new dynamic that precludes living for ourselves. No longer are we to motivated by selfishness. I love the way the Holy Spirit, through Paul’s mouth, puts it in Philippians 2:3-5 “3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. 4 Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. 5 Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:”

The scripture wants to speak some more.

2 Corinthians 5:16 “So from now on we regard no-one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! 18 All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation:

We now look at people differently. They are no longer just objects for our amusement or gratification. They are no longer a means to OUR ends. They are no longer just a mass of beings. They are children of God who have strayed from the family and God desperately wants them back.

As a result we have been given a ministry, a task of service, a work to do. We have received the ministry of reconciliation.

Isn’t this just amazing? God does the miraculous, sacrificial and all-powerful thing of providing for the reconciliation of all humans and then what does He do? He turns it over to you and me. Really?

The scripture still is speaking.

19 that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. 20 We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. 21 God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”.

What is this ministry of reconciliation? Another item in the church budget? Another programme for the church calendar? No. It is much more than that. It is also a ministry that is given to individual Christians, not a mass of them. More on that later.

God has committed to us the task of spreading the message of reconciliation, the good news of Jesus :19.

He has enlisted us as ambassadors who speak for him. And what do we speak? He has given us the message. We can’t mess with it. It is simpy, “Be reconciled to God”!

It all started in a moment of confrontation between you and love and God. The loved of God prevailed in that conflict and your motivation started to change at that very minute and has resulted in a compulsion deep within your soul to share this message of liberation.