What would it look like if your church stopped sharing the gospel?
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A church without evangelism becomes a church that does not make disciples,
Because there are no new Christians to disciple.
A church without evangelism becomes a church where members fight over their preferences,
Because the members do not focus on reaching those who are not followers of Christ.
A church without evangelism becomes a church without true fellowship.
Because true fellowship not only cares for its own, but it looks beyond its own.
A church without evangelism gets mad at the pastor,
Because the members think they pay the pastor to do evangelism for them.
A church without evangelism becomes a church that does not do ministry.
Because there are fewer and fewer members to do ministry.
A church without evangelism becomes a church that strays from the Bible,
Because the Bible clearly teaches to evangelize people with the gospel.
A church without evangelism becomes a church giving less to missions,
Because there are fewer people to give to missions.
A church without evangelism becomes a church without prayer,
Because churches that truly pray are concerned for the lost in their communities.
A church without evangelism becomes a church that cannot worship together,
Because there are fewer people to attend worship services.
A church without evangelism will soon close its doors.
And that's probably best.
Because that church stopped being a church long ago when it decided to no longer be obedient to the Great Commission of Jesus Christ.
 | Thom S. Rainer is the founder and CEO of Church Answers, and online community and resource for church leaders. Prior to founding Church Answers, Rainer served as president and CEO of LifeWay Christian Resources. Before coming to LifeWay, he served at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary for twelve years where he was the founding dean of the Billy Graham School of Missions and Evangelism. He is a 1977 graduate of the University of Alabama and earned his Master of Divinity and Ph.D. degrees from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. Learn More » |
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