What is the Gospel?

“[Be] ready at any time to give a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you.” (1 Peter 3:15)

Gospel is translated “Good News.” It is what God has done in Christ to save us from our sins. Many Christians don’t know how to share the gospel. They know it but haven’t shared it enough in a simple, clear, organized way. If we are people defined by the gospel, it would be ridiculous for us to not know how to explain it to a nonbeliever. Peter says, “Always be ready to explain to someone about the hope that you have.” (1 Peter 3:15 paraphrased)

What is the Good News?
It can be divided into four parts: 1. Creation  2. Fall  3. Redemption  4. New Creation

1.     Creation: God is the Creator of the universe; He created us with a special, unique identity and makeup. Unlike the animals, we were created in God’s image, to have a special relationship with Him. He gave us His Spirit to commune with Him.

2.     Fall: But man sinned against God and rather wanted to become our own gods. This destroyed our relationship with God, one another, and the rest of creation. As a result, all humanity was born under the power of sin. This brought death and decay into our world.  

3.     Redemption: But God had a plan to save His creation. He sent Jesus who lived a perfect sinless life and died to receive the penalty for our sins. He rose again, defeating sin and death. Those who put their trust in Him will be forgiven and restored in their relationship with God.

4.     New Creation: At the end of all things, God will restore all creation to Himself. Jesus will come back as a ruler and a judge. He will destroy the evil, worldly system, and the work of Satan once and for all. He will create a new heaven and a new earth. All creation will be renewed. God will live on earth with humanity. No more sin, pain, tears. We will enter a new chapter of this world into eternity.

This is one way to explain the gospel to someone. Review it, understand it, and share it as often as you can, so it becomes yours and you can share from your heart.

Action Step
Who is someone you can share this gospel message with this week?

Why Do We Evangelize? (03)

“Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Messiah?” (John 4:29)

Have you ever felt so enlightened, elated, and exuberant at the message of the gospel that you just wanted to go and tell everyone? More than just obligation that Jesus commanded us to “Go and preach the gospel,” or that people are going to hell without Christ, this is the greatest motivator for evangelism. When you’re so full of the love of God that you want to go tell everyone, you’re unstoppable. People will see your contagious joy and want that for themselves. You’ll have conviction when you share because they’ll see the transformation and joy in you.

This is what happened with the Samaritan woman (John 4). She was so powerfully impacted by Jesus (and finding out that He was the Messiah), that she wanted to go tell the entire townspeople. They must have noticed the change that took place in her. A little background knowledge: for one, she was coming to draw water at noon, the hottest time when no one came to draw water, possibly because she wanted to avoid running into the villagers who knew her as a woman of loose morals and treated her that way. So for her to suddenly overcome her defenses, not care about what the people think, but beaming with excitement and joy to tell them all, was a powerful testament of her encounter with Jesus. She knew that if the man she had met was the Messiah, then she had hope that not only her life would change, but all of her townspeople’s as well. And this Good News she could not keep for herself. She could not contain this joy, this excitement, this elation. She had to tell someone… everyone. And the people saw that change in her. It was real. Convincing.

Many people wonder, “How should we evangelize?” We don’t need a formula. We just need to be filled with gratitude and joy of encountering Jesus and share that joy with others, pointing people to the source of that joy. This is the most effective way of evangelism!

Prayer and Action Step
Fill us with gratitude and joy for the gospel. Let us emanate that joy and let it overflow and leak out to others wherever we go, pointing people to Jesus.

Why Do We Evangelize? (02)

“Just as people are destined to die once, and after that to face judgment.” (Hebrews 9:27)

When we are young we don’t think about death much. But as we grow older, it is inevitable that we have a brush with death whether in our own lives or that of others. Naturally we think death is a negative thing. But in fact, it can be the most sobering experience that catalyzes positive change in our lives. A few years after college, I had my encounter with death. I had never been to a funeral before then, but that year I went to four funerals, and two of them happened back-to-back in two weeks time. One week I went to a funeral and a wedding Saturday and Sunday, and the second week the same thing happened— I went to a wedding and then a funeral.

The person who died was the sister of one of the leaders of my young adult group at church. She was 33 years old, attractive and had a promising career ahead of her. But one summer she fell, had a brain hemorrhage and never woke up. The funerals were somber, sobering experiences as if someone hit me on the head with a hammer, to wake me up to realize how short and transient our lives are. Death is the inevitable end of every human being.

The day after the funeral, I went to the wedding of a close friend. Everyone was having a great time, drinking wine, dancing. The mood was jovial. But I couldn’t help thinking about the funeral the day before. The wedding, the celebration, it didn’t seem real. I felt like I was watching a Hollywood movie. It felt as if all these partying people missed the point.

This experience forced me to ask, “What is the quintessential thing for us to figure out before we die?” It was to get in a right relationship with God. I came to the conclusion that during our short time on earth, we should be helping people come to grips with this reality. Nothing can motivate us with greater urgency to evangelize than an encounter with death.

Prayer
Give us the wisdom to understand how transient and fleeting our lives are. Let there be an urgency in our hearts to preach the gospel to those who do not know You.

Why Do We Evangelize? (01)

“Perfect love drives out fear.” (1 John 4:18)

Do you struggle with being motivated to evangelize? We all know we should evangelize. But mere obligation itself is not enough to move people to share their faith. How do we receive the passion to reach the lost, not just a spark that burns brightly for a while then soon goes out, but an enduring flame?

As I grew in my faith, I knew immediately one of the quintessences of our walk with Christ is to help others see and follow God. I desperately wanted to learn how to do this but there was no one who showed me how. Then my best friend in college went on a mission trip to Japan and came back a totally different person, full of peace and joy. It seemed like he finally found living for what truly matters.

After college I told myself, I’m going on a mission trip to experience God in this way. It was the most exhausting two weeks of my life. Spending eight hours a day with Chinese students. Even though we couldn’t do anything openly evangelistic, we tried to love each student with the love of Jesus. Near the end of our time there I had a conversation with God. I was concerned about my student, her spiritual wellbeing. The LORD spoke to me like He spoke to the Prophet Jonah, “Do you have any right to be concerned about your student? You’ve only been with her for one week. You are not her parent. You did not raise her. How much more should I be concerned about the billion people in China and beyond that, the countless people in the world who do not know Me?”

This encounter wrecked me. I came back with a natural desire to want to share about God with everyone. The experience was so real and palpable that it removed the fear of sharing with people about God.

Once you know the heart of God, you cannot help but share Him with the world. It will transform your view of the world and people. From time to time, you may get tired and weary, but you will never stop sharing Christ’s love with others.

Prayer
Ask God to reveal His heart for the lost through an encounter with Him and His word.

What is Evangelism?

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes.” (Rom 1:16)

When you hear the word “evangelism,” perhaps you think of a group of Christians with picket signs and a megaphone preaching a “turn or burn” message. Or perhaps serving the homeless at a soup kitchen. Perhaps you think of mission trips to Tijuana to do skits and sing songs about Jesus with children. 

In the New Testament to “evangelize” literally means “to tell Good News.” It is an act of proclaiming the gospel to someone with the hope of leading them to faith. Years ago, when I was evangelizing on the streets daily, I understood evangelism as mainly the “telling" of the gospel message. I still see how it is effective defining evangelism in this way, because without encountering the message of salvation, a person does not have a chance to be saved. Another reason why this definition is good is because most Christians do not live a life of proactively sharing the gospel with the lost. Yet, the Early Church expanded explosively because of their fervent and diligent proclaiming of the Good News. There is clearly a need for believers to be motivated and equipped to share the gospel.

However, during the years when I rested from ministry, I began to befriend non-Christians without the burden of trying to convert them. Then I realized evangelism is much more than preaching and proclamation. It sounds grandiose, but it is your whole life on display for the world to see who Christ is through you.

So, I would redefine evangelism as living your life before nonbelievers in such a way as to attract and point them to Jesus and the gospel. Therefore, working to soften someone’s heart towards Christ through years of faithful friendship and service is in itself still evangelism. Yet it cannot remain just that. At some point the person has to encounter the message of salvation. That is where proclamation comes in; without it our evangelism is incomplete. We should not shy away from sharing the gospel with our non-Christian friends whenever God gives us the chance.

Prayer
May we realize that our lives as a whole is a witness to our friends of who Christ is. Yet may we not shy away from sharing the gospel with our friends.

Becoming Like Them

“I have become all things to all people, so that I may by every possible means save some.” (1 Cor 9:22)

One thing I loved about living in Memphis was the opportunity to check out live music. My favorite place to wind down on a Sunday evening was Ghost River Brewery where my friend hosted a singer-songwriter event. It was a great opportunity to meet all the local musicians.

One night I had an epiphany. As I felt burdened to share the gospel with these musicians during their cigarette breaks, another, possibly wiser thought came to me. What if I could be accepted as one of their own, instead of some stranger trying to talk to them about religious things? What if I could earn my way into their inner circle of friends? I could have a greater influence on them than trying to evangelize to them as an outsider. This would take more than just a one-off, courageous witnessing opportunity during cigarette breaks. To build such trust, it would take much more effort and the grace of God. Then instead of being distant, they would gladly invite me to whatever they were up to, perhaps to an after party at one of their pads.

Paul talked about this mindset in his letter to the Corinthians. Even though he came from the strictest religious background and was one of the most spiritual persons, in order to win those he preached to, he became like them. To the Jews, he became like a Jew. To the Gentiles, like a Gentile. To the weak, he became weak. All in order to win people to the gospel. Unless we become like those we preach to and are accepted as their own, we remain outsiders. And people usually don’t listen to outsiders. Isn’t that the whole reason for the Incarnation?
 
Apart from sinning or becoming ingenuine, we as Christians need to be more adaptable to the people around us. To be able to mingle and relate to them. All in order to win their trust and acceptance, so that we may by all means win them to the gospel.

Prayer
Give us the mind of Christ and of Paul, to become like those we are reaching out to. Help us to do this without compromising our integrity or walk with Christ but with wisdom and tact.
 

Going Where the People Are

“Go, therefore, and make disciples…” (Matt 28:19)

If you’re like me and have been Christian for a long time, chances are most of your friends are Christian; you may not know anyone in your social circle who is non-Christian. If so, you must find creative ways to meet non-Christians in your life.

First, look at the activities you’re already doing and see if there are any non-Christians around you. Maybe you go to your child’s soccer game. Instead of leaving directly after, you would like to connect with other parents. Or think of activities you love to do like golfing, arts and crafts, or hiking. See if there is a community that does the same and connect with them. For instance, I love drawing. I can go to a weekly life drawing session. I will naturally have the opportunity to connect with other artists around the love of art. It is much easier to build connections with people with whom you have a common interest.

Another solution is to find a way to meet the people in your neighborhood. Instead of working from home, try the local coffee shop. My friend Barry and I did this. And over a course of six months, we got to know all the baristas as well as the regulars. We had many gospel conversations, built friendships and even started a Bible study to reach the people we met there.

The first command in the Great Commission is “Go.” As Jesus has entrusted us with the “Good News,” the best news ever told in history, this by itself should fill us with elation to tell the whole world. Jesus didn’t expect us to stay passive with this news, but rather that his love move us towards others, to go out of our way, beyond our comfort zones to reach those in need. If there are no non-Christians around us, we must “Go” where they are. Jesus went to Levi the tax collector’s house and hung out with other tax collectors and sinners. He was not afraid to mingle with the people of the world, because he knew they were the ones who needed him most.

Likewise, where should we go? Who should we reach in order to be faithful witnesses of the gospel?

Action Steps
How can I find ways to connect with more non-Christians?

Key to Supernatural Boldness

In the healing of the lame man in Acts 3, I was gripped by the supernatural boldness by which Peter heals this man. There seems to be no hesitation at all, not even the slightest, on Peter’s part to proclaim the man’s healing in Jesus name. Peter had such assurance and confidence in Christ. Even though he had no money to give him, he didn’t shrink back in shame nor was he apologetic. Instead with such confidence and boldness, he gives this lame man what he needed most. Peter and John had something worth far more than money, and that was the love of Jesus and the healing in His name. Do we truly believe all the material wealth and everything else the world has to offer us do not compare to the priceless treasure we have in Christ? If so, why should we hesitate? Why should we contain this Good News? Why should we keep silent? More than anything that could have been given by man, Peter gave Jesus to this man. Peter was a tunnel through which God gave this man what he needed the most, total restoration. Through the physical healing, God not only healed this man’s legs, but his entire life. He restored his identity from one rejected and shunned by the religious community to now one belonging to the community of God. Now he could go into the temple and not feel like he was cursed. For the first time in his life, he felt loved, accepted and seen by God. God also restored him socially. Now he was accepted by others. He was no longer an invalid, an outcast, less than human. He could be accepted as a normal member of society. He was also restored financially. Now he could earn a proper living for himself by working and doing something productive. This healing totally transformed this man’s life holistically.

We have something worth far more than all the riches of this universe. Do we truly see this? Then we should be so confident to give it out to people. There should not be a hesitation in giving people Jesus who saves us and brings total restoration. Do we really believe that we have the authority to give this greatest treasure to people?