Evangelism is a supernatural activity, an act of faith. We believers in Jesus Christ, indwelt by God’s Spirit, have a fundamental urge to share our faith. Love for Jesus our Savior and His love now in us gives a desire to proclaim the Gospel message. Compassion for those yet without Christ, combined with Christ’s clear command to His followers to make disciples of all people and nations, give the impetus needed for evangelism.
In our experience, however, we find that our sinful flesh wages war against this godly desire in our hearts to evangelize. It seems as though our sinful hearts continually look for reasons to excuse disobedience.
We have already considered some theological and missiological traps that hinder our evangelism. Now I would like for us to ponder some practical traps that occur in the routine of our daily lives. These traps involve unbiblical thinking about our life circumstances and how we handle them emotionally.
Feelings About Godliness
One reason some of us don’t feel we can speak to others about Christ has to do with feeling unworthy. We don’t feel godly enough. We have the idea in our minds that evangelism is for Christians who have reached a certain “higher ground” of godliness. Since we haven’t met this self-imposed expectation of felt godliness, we hesitate in speaking to others about Jesus.
Most believers know doctrinally that none of us will achieve unstained godliness until we go to be with Christ (spirit) and experience the promised resurrection (body) according to 1 Corinthians 15, but a nagging feeling of unworthiness can be a hindrance. If we are dealing with the need to find confidence for evangelism in Jesus and His Gospel, we need to remind ourselves that our worthiness isn’t important. Jesus is worthy, and God speaks through us (2 Corinthians 5:18-21). God’s eternal plan is to use saved sinners to preach the Gospel to yet unsaved sinners. Evangelism is not about us, but Jesus. We rest in this reality.
Personal Sin Issues
On the other hand, if we have unconfessed sin in our lives or are grieving God’s Spirit with sinful habits (Ephesians 4:30), we will have no desire to share Christ with unbelievers. If we do share, we should feel the hypocrisy acutely. Why? Because we are attempting to declare to others forgiveness and deliverance from sin while we ourselves are not living in the power of that message. The fact that we are incapacitated from obeying the Great Commission because of our hardness of heart should shake us up. It should lead us to repentance and the path to victory by God’s grace (Revelation 2:5).
Physical Challenges
People who are dealing with physical weakness and pain, especially chronically, may experience a strong temptation to allow limitations to handicap evangelism. We might not feel ready or capable of evangelism. Maybe we don’t feel mentally sharp. We think we don’t have enough energy for a conversation right now. There may also be fear about how we appear to others when we are in pain and uncomfortable or we don’t feel joyful enough to witness because of our afflictions. These are powerful persuasions in the mind of the one who is suffering and battling with the decision to speak for Christ.
We know better, though. God uses weak things on purpose to display His grace and glory (1 Corinthians 1:18-31; 2 Corinthians 4:7). To be in a position of weakness in evangelism is not a disadvantage in God’s sight.
How does this apply to our witness day to day? How we feel, how much pain we endure, how mentally sharp we are, how joyful we feel—none of these cancel the obligation to evangelize. God desires to use our very weaknesses as platforms to speak for Him. As we overcome ungodly thoughts and speak for Christ, He will reward our act of faith with opportunities to make disciples for Him.
Waiting for Ideal Circumstances
We know we are in a bad place when our thoughts about evangelism run like this: “We will get more serious about evangelism when our children are all finally healthy, when circumstances calm down and aren’t so crazy, when we’ve had time to pray and plan more, etc.” If we tolerate disobedience to the Great Commission in our present set of circumstances, we will continue to be disobedient in the next set of circumstances. If we hide behind current events, we will find that the supposed right circumstances for evangelism never come. Life is rarely ideal for evangelism. God’s plan is for us to evangelize in the circumstances He gives.
Distraction
Many of us have succumbed to the social manipulation of the digital age. We allow our devices to keep us perpetually distracted from living where we are. Instead of engaging people around us, looking people in the eye, acknowledging the presence of those near us, we immerse ourselves in endless information and entertainment on a screen. Or we might continually message people far away while ignoring the people right in front of us. How many opportunities to share Christ have been lost due to habitual distraction?
One solution to limit evangelism-deadening distraction would be to commit to avoid using our devices in public places where conversations might be had. This would include intentional disconnection while at places such as rest areas, restaurants, stores, or while doing yard work or out walking/jogging, or while traveling on taxis, subways, buses, etc. Jesus said, “Look, I tell you, lift up your eyes, and see that the fields are white for harvest” (John 4:35). If we perpetually stare at a screen, we aren’t looking.
Unclear Priorities
Most of us simply don’t prioritize evangelism. We may witness when an occasion happens naturally, but it is not a priority of life. Evangelism is not something we are continually burdened about, planning for, or anticipating. How can we change this focus?
I find that it is extremely helpful and motivating to record my evangelistic activity or lack thereof. When I look back on a week and see multiple opportunities to share Christ with people, I am encouraged in my soul and my anticipation of more opportunities grows. If I look back on the week and see no real attempts and evangelism, I am under conviction, and that stirs my heart to ask God for help to renew obedience to Christ Jesus.
Fear
Fear of persecution is not limited to fear of bodily harm. Persecution can be economic. It can take on the form of oppression, unfair treatment, disapproval, and even shunning. Friends gained over time with much effort can be lost in a moment. Visas might be discontinued. We might be cursed or rudely treated. These are real risks in evangelism, but they are risks Jesus expects us to take for Him. As we turn to the Scriptures for help about fear in evangelism, we find innumerable encouragements, exhortations, and commands. All of them fundamentally mean the same thing: “Do not fear, because God is with us. Be strong and courageous, trusting the Lord, and do it.”
Trap Prevention: Humble Faith
Evangelism is an act of faith. Humility before the Lord allows us to believe His Word. Humility allows God’s Spirit to strip away our many sinful and ignorant excuses for failing to speak for Christ. Humble faith leads to the death of self as we choose to overcome many circumstantial emotional traps by God’s grace. This is the spirit behind Paul’s words in 2 Corinthians 4:12: “So death is at work in us, but life in you.”
All Scripture references are taken from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), Copyright © 2008 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.