Tuesday: Reaching Souls
Church discussions sometimes seem to get stuck on the apparent need to choose between a focus on social work or gospel work, either charity or witnessing, either justice or evangelism. But when we better understand each of these concepts and observe the ministry of Jesus, the difference breaks down, and we realize that preaching the gospel and working to help others are closely linked.
The Bread of Live
In one of Ellen White’s best-known statements, she explained it like this: “Christ’s method alone will give true success in reaching the people. The Saviour mingled with men as one who desired their good. He showed His sympathy for them, ministered to their needs, and won their confidence. Then He bade them, ‘Follow Me’. …
The poor are to be relieved, the sick cared for, the sorrowing and the bereaved comforted, the ignorant instructed, the inexperienced counseled. We are to weep with those that weep, and rejoice with those that rejoice”. – Ellen G. White, The Ministry of Healing, p. 143.
As we have seen, these two kingdom actions—justice and evangelism—were closely entwined, not only in Jesus’ ministry but in Jesus’ first commission to His disciples: “As you go, proclaim this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near’. Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give” (Matt. 10:7-8, NIV). In short, one of the best ways to reach others with our message is to minister to their needs.
Read 1 Peter 2:12 and Philippians 2:15. What do Peter and Paul say about the witnessing power of good works done by God’s people?
With a broader understanding of God’s good news, evangelism does not make sense in the absence of a passion for people. Verses like 1 John 3:16-18 and James 2:16 emphasize the contradiction in preaching the gospel without living it out. At its best, evangelism—bringing the good news of hope, rescue, repentance, transformation, and God’s all-embracing love—is an expression of justice.
Both evangelism and the desire for justice spring from recognizing God’s love for lost, broken, and hurt people—a love that also grows in our hearts under the influence of God in our lives. We don’t choose one action or another; instead, we work with God in working with people, meeting their real needs, and using whatever resources God has entrusted us with.
| How can we make sure, though, that as we do good works for others, we don’t neglect preaching the good news of salvation, as well? |
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Jesus loves sinners and gave His life so that we all might come to Him and be saved. After His resurrection and before His ascension back to heaven, Jesus gave His followers instructions for His plan to reach the world with the message of His saving grace. These instructions are found in all four Gospels and in chapter one of the Book of Acts. Although not all spoken at the same time, they give us a rich composite of the Lord’s Great Commission to His church to reach the ends of the earth with the Gospel
BEST WAYS TO REACH OTHERS.
1. GOSPEL CAMPAIGN + PROPHERCY.
This kind of campaign depends mostly on the speaker who presents prophercy. If he is attacking other denominations directly then do not expect much.
Satan makes it so expensive and delays this kind of campaign.
2. GOSPEL CAMPAIGN + FAMILY LIFE.
FAMILY LIFE entertains and so many people attend this kind of campaign but without prophercy our identity is gone. GOSPEL,HEALTH and FAMILY LIFE are programmes well offered in other denominations. So why should they join you and what you offer they can get it in their church?
3.GOSPEL CAMPAIGN + MEDICAL CAMP.
Here people just come for free check up and treatment. The gospel is left for church members.
4. GIVING DONATIONS WITHOUT SHOWING OUR IDENTITY.
If you do not preach to them but just give your donations and leave then you won't win any for Christ.
5.THE MUSLIM STYLE.
They promise you to get everything you want if you become a Muslim. Most people who want to get jobs in Adventist institutions become Adventists not for Christ but to get the jobs . They end up being lukewarm members.
6. CHRIST'S METHOD
This is one of the best ways to reach the others. You preach the gospel and work to help others. This method gives true success in reaching the people.
One of the best ways to reach others with our message is to minister to their needs.
.....do you think it is easy to convince a church that is planning a gospel campaign to use ' The Christ's method?'
Many times the church is stuck between preaching and helping. Should we be preaching, or should we he helping? This may sounds trivial but many churches have battle this for years. Some think too much preaching and not enough helping, while others see it the opposite.
Jesus did both, help first then preach. He knew many were following him for the wrong reason but he still did what he had to do. Many times we try to reach our to our community but if we don’t have something tangible then they turn away from the gospel/preaching. E.g. if we have a crusade the church must bring along gifts, no gifts, many will not turn up. Despite that, we are not to be weary in well doing. Still have to reach out to souls.
People will say evil about our good works but in return our actions and words should be honest in this perverted generation. Does this means we must allow people to slander us or the church?
The reason Jesus did good to all of those whom He contacted was because He truly loved people. Actually, He truly loves His creatures. Doing good without loving does fade rapidly, its effects will not last, and it might look sort of fake. Love makes all the difference!
I know of an organization in India in order to open closed churches and to establish a new church they would establish a tuition center in that area.
Kids would eagerly attend the tuition center and the parents will be willing to send their children to the tuition center.
At the tuition center, children will be taught the bible, bible song and prayer.
The children will also learn various activities from the bible.
The parents are invited to watch the performance learned by these children in the Saturday worship hour.
Thus the need of the child education is met which would lift the family out of poverty.
Also at times the entire family is saved into the faith.
Matthew 10:16 16 Look, I am sending you out like sheep among wolves; therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.
We live in enemy territory therefore, we must be shrewd and innocent of injustice.
May God bless you as you share your experience of reaching the world.
Could someone please address the question at the end of today's lesson?
I think it is important for us to know this.
Hello Sandra. To make sure that we don't neglect preaching the good news of salvation as we do good works, we need to understand first whose work we are doing or better still, who gave us the command: "freely ye have received, freely give" - Christ right? So, as we work to fulfil His commands of helping people and doing good deeds, we should also present Christ who is the great commissioner of the good works that we carry out. So, in ministering to the sick or needy, always remind them that Christ is the great healer and the great provider. Doing that is total evangelism.
Today's lesson states:
And then the lesson includes an excellent summary statement by Ellen White:
I would propose that preaching the gospel and working to help others are more than closely linked - they are in fact one in the same thing when properly understood.
I would propose that we have misapplied the Great Commission by making it something that is primarily 'preached'. All Jesus was doing was instructing/inviting His disciples to now go and do to others what Jesus had done to them. So what did Jesus do to them? The Ellen White statement above answers that question very well.
Reaching 'souls' is about reaching out to others as one who desires their good, sympathises with them (ie has authentic compassion for them) and authentically ministers to their needs in a way that genuinely wins confidence.
We live in a world that gives the appearance of reaching out to others when the real underlying motive is to 'sign you up' and 'close the deal'. This was not Christ's motive or method - and it must not be that of His followers either.
There is often an inbalance that sets off when we as adventists are charged for evangelism. This stems from the questions that arise before the evangelism. Questions of what to do, either health ministration or just strictly " giving people the word". This has really placed a strain on our evangelism outreaches and even made it more tedious for us. However, here is a better understanding that is needed and important: what is evangelism? Simply "spreading the gospel of salvation" in plain words. Whose gospel? Gospel of salvation that Christ has brought. Who is Christ? Our God who came in human form to redeem us to Himself, and gave us a foretaste of the kingdom of 'never flowing tears' and 'absence of pains and sorrows' that He wants to redeem us to.
How did He achieve this? By healing the sick, attending to the needy, meeting people at their exact points of need and then He charged us to do same with the words: "freely ye have received, freely give". So, to practice what he has charged us to do, we have to be intentional in our actions. Christ was able to meet their needs because He went close to them to understand their needs. We should do same. Before going for evangelism, let there be a survey of the area we want to work on. A survey of their needs, what they lack there, and then, we can profer solutions and go with those solutions to them and as we are attending to their needs,we can tell them how Jesus is the sole and grand commissioner of our good deeds. So, lets target 'completely inclusive evangelism' that targets both physical and spiritual hunger, sickness amongst other needs. In so doing, we will completely and effectively reach out and project Christ to people around us. Question: How ready or prepared are we to practice completely inclusive evangelism or do we just choose what is easy and convenient for us?