Three surprising suggestions for fruitful evangelism

You cannot spend much time in a church without hearing the term “evangelism” and the exhortation that you are supposed to be doing it. So what is evangelism? Simply put, evangelism is the sharing or proclaiming of the gospel, the good news of Jesus Christ to others that they may also believe.

The Gospel

OK, so what is the gospel?

The core meaning of the gospel is very concisely stated in two verses. In John 3:16 we are told that, “God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” Likewise, Romans 5:8 describes the good news by pointing out that “God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” We are sinners separated from God and destined to “perish” unless we put our faith in Jesus who died for us that we might have eternal life.

And so we are to share this good news to others.

In Matthew 28:19-20 Jesus instructs his disciples to “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.”

As a follower of Jesus, we have been saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ, and we want to go tell others so that they, too, can trust in him as we have. But we also want to be productive. We do not want to just shout into the wind. We want our efforts to actually bear fruit – which means we want them to be effective in producing the good effects of God’s Kingdom in the world. 

Fruitfulness

What does it look like to be “fruitful” in evangelism?

The fruit of evangelism is the salvation of souls. If the purpose of evangelism is to bring people to a saving faith in Jesus Christ, then we should see “fruitful” as anything that works towards that outcome. So what are some things which can help us to be fruitful as we endeavour to spread the good news of Jesus? In addition to prayer? When in doubt, ask someone with some experience. David Dover has been a pastor, a college campus minister, travelling evangelist, missionary, and a hospital chaplain… as well as a good friend and mentor of mine throughout the years. Here are three of his surprising suggestions to get you started in the right direction: 1) Learn about gardening; 2) Read Dr Seuss’ “Green Eggs & Ham;” & 3) Wear a tie.

Read more:

Help! My teenager doesn’t believe in God

What is the gospel? The message of victory over sin and death contained in the Christian message

How do I share the Gospel with a Muslim?

Learn about Gardening

Most people these days do not grow their own food. They simply go to the store, and there it is. However, if you try growing something for yourself, you quickly learn that this is a process that takes time, and there is much more to be done than just sticking a seed in some dirt and pouring water on it.

In the New Testament, illustrations from farming and agriculture are often used for evangelism, and there is a good reason for this. Rarely does someone receive the gospel easily or quickly. When we see the disciples in the New Testament Gospels or the book of Acts preaching and teaching, and large crowds trusting in Christ, the Bible says that other work had gone on before.

In John 4:37-38 Jesus tells his disciples, “[H]ere the saying holds true, ‘One sows and another reaps.’ I sent you to reap that for which you did not labour. Others have laboured, and you have entered into their labour.”

In 1 Corinthians 3:6-7 Paul was clear that his influence was one step among many when he said, “I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth.” He makes it clear that God is ultimately responsible for salvation. All that we do needs to also involve prayer.

In the Parable of the Sower (Matthew 13; Mark 4; Luke 8) Jesus describes various obstacles to people receiving the gospel: rocks that prevent deep roots, weeds that choke out the growth, and birds that steal the seed. As any gardener knows, good soil needs to be tended. Weeds need to be pulled. Rocks need to be removed. Birds need to be kept away. And so it is with the soil of the human heart.

When you see the seed of the gospel take root and someone trusts Jesus, it is because before you came along others who had pulled weeds, moved rocks and chased away the birds. Or perhaps you are not the harvester at all. Maybe you are the one pulling a weed or moving a stone, making way for others who will plant or water the seed. Fruitful gardening is any activity in the garden that assists in the growing of the plant which results in the harvest. Thinking that you are a failure because all you did was pull weeds or shoo away some birds would be foolish.

Not all evangelistic encounters are going to be a harvest. So as in a garden, there is important work to be done in tending the soil, planting the seed, and watering so it will grow. And, of course, praying over the whole process.

Read Dr. Seuss’s “Green Eggs & Ham”

Two things are glaringly obvious even within the first few pages of the book “Green Eggs & Ham.” There is a man who has absolutely zero interest in eating green eggs and ham, and Sam-I-Am is fully dedicated to getting him to try them. That brings up a couple of things which may not be quite so obvious. First, in order to continue to offer green eggs and ham to his friend, Sam-I-Am has to be in some form of close relationship with him, and second, Sam-I-Am has to be tenacious in his quest to get his friend to eat the green eggs and ham.

The fact is, as dramatic as it is to see people come to Christ from an encounter with a stranger, most people come to a saving faith in Christ in the context of relationships. There are family members and friends who have relationally earned the trust to speak truth into their lives. That kind of relationship tends to only form through repeated contact and personal interaction.

However, it is not enough to simply be in someone’s life. A quote that is often used as an excuse for not sharing the gospel with someone (often attributed to St. Francis of Assisi) is, “Preach the gospel at all times and if necessary, use words.” The gospel, however, is communicated by words. It is news to be shared. A message to be proclaimed. Yes, how we live and are perceived by those around us can be powerful, but at some point words must be used. It is not enough for Sam I Am to hang around his friend displaying his love for green eggs and hoping his friend decides to try them. Yes, we can communicate by what we do. However, we can also communicate by what we fail to do. The offer has to be made.

And it needs to be made more than once.

The gospel of Jesus Christ is the single most important message someone can ever receive. Lost in sin and separated from God, they are in desperate need of this message. Are we to just tell them once and say, “Oh, well. I tried?”

Granted, you do not want to badger someone and drive a wedge in the relationship, cutting off any chance they’ll hear you. Where that line is drawn will be different with every person and every relationship. However, we would be wise to be as tenacious in sharing the gospel as Sam-I-Am is about sharing breakfast. Likewise, we should also seek to be tenacious in our prayer for those with whom we are sharing the gospel.

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Wear a Tie

In 1 Corinthians 9:21-22 the Apostle Paul writes, “To those outside the law I became as one outside the law … that I might win those outside the law. To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all people, that by all means I might save some.” This statement shows that Paul is willing do whatever he needs to, short of sinning, to effectively communicate with his audience.

As a young man David Dover had an opportunity to go preach at a church, and he was offered one piece of advice from a mentor of his: You need to wear a tie. David Dover does not like ties, so David Dover did not wear a tie. He wore slacks and a jacket and a nice dress shirt, but he did not wear a tie. As it turns out, the congregation he was speaking to was traditional, rural, elderly people. Even though by societal standards, even back then, his dress would have been good enough, by the standards of that group of people, Dave fell short. His skill at storytelling and his knowledge of the Bible and presentation of Jesus fell on deaf ears. Their ears could not hear his message because it was stopped by their eyes at seeing the lack of a tie.

So a simple thing like dress or custom can open doors when observed, or it can be a distraction or cause offence when dismissed as irrelevant. Every nation, people, region, culture, or subculture has its own way of doing things. We should know our audience and be willing to set aside our own preferences in order to avoid unnecessary barriers and distractions to effective communication.

The Bible tells us that ultimately it is God that saves, not us. However, he has chosen us to be his instruments to share the good news of Christ with others. So as we do so, let’s remember a few points to help us be 

productive in our labour. Evangelism is a process. Not every encounter is a harvest. You may be tending the garden of someone’s heart so that they can receive the seed of truth. If you can, stay in relationship with unbelievers so that you can be a trusted voice in their lives, and be tenacious in speaking the truth of the gospel to them. Finally, understand who you are talking to and communicate in a way that will speak to them, free from needless distractions and barriers. And remember to continue in prayer for the lost, keeping in mind that regardless of any one person’s response to the gospel, the experience is always fruitful in your life as you walk in obedience to what Christ has called you to do.

Marc Lambert is a pastor whose approach to apologetics is not usually academic, but rather he aims to answer questions in a way that people can understand and apply. Some apologetics questions require a bit of unpacking, but it is Marc’s goal to focus on answers that cut to the point and maintain a conversational tone.