Methods of Evangelism

Evangelism

Evangelistic Method #1: The Four Spiritual Laws

The Four Spiritual Laws provide an intellectual approach to the relationship between God and the human being. The Four Spiritual Laws are relatively simple and straightforward, and are clearly rooted in scripture. The first of the Four Spiritual Laws is "God loves you and offers a wonderful plan for your life." The Bible abounds with messages of love; the most poignant of which is God's giving His only begotten Son: "God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life," (John 3:16, NIV). The second of the Four Spiritual Laws has to do with the nature of sin and separation from God: "Man is sinful and separated from God. Therefore, he cannot know and experience God's love and plan for his life." In Romans 3:23, we read, "All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God."

The third of the Four Spiritual Laws pertains to the supremacy of Christ as the only key to salvation: "Jesus Christ is God's only provision for man's sin. Through Him you can know and experience God's love and plan for your life." John 14:6 testifies to the truth of this spiritual law: "Jesus said to him, 'I am the way, and the truth, and the life, no one comes to the Father but through Me'" (John 14:6). Finally, the fourth Spiritual Law relates to the way in which we shall receive Christ: "We must individually receive Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord; then we can know and experience God's love and plan for our lives."

The advantages to using the Four Spiritual Laws include their being grounded firmly in scriptural truth, and their being simple enough to understand. It is impossible to refute any of the spiritual laws, because they pertain directly to the Gospel. The Four Spiritual Truths are succinct, and offer a sound method of bringing believers to Christ and showing the way. The disadvantages of the Four Spiritual Laws may be that they are too simple. One who is reborn in Christ must come to study the Bible, which is not mentioned as one of the Laws.

Part TWO Evangelistic Method #2 - Friendship Evangelism

Friendship evangelism is a powerful relational method of teaching the Gospel. The core essence of friendship evangelism is that one's life should be an example or bear witness to the love of Christ. There are two basic takes on friendship evangelism: the first is that one becomes friends with another person and shares the gospel from a friendship perspective. The second is that one does not overtly preach the gospel, and only relies on being an example to others.

Friendship evangelism is attractive in that it ignores the hard work that must sometimes be done to attract others to Christ. The method has certain advantages. For example, friendship evangelism may be most useful in new or potentially hostile social environments where the individual does not yet know the audience. To avoid fruitless conversations or even violence, the Christian could rely on the method of friendship evangelism. First becoming friends with the person is a process that engenders trust, after which evangelism can begin. Being a role model of Christian living without evangelizing at all is advantageous in that it prevents clashes with nonbelievers.

However, there are distinct disadvantages with friendship evangelism. The most glaring is that there is no scriptural support for either the view that one should be a friend with a nonbeliever first; or that one should simply be a role model. Quite the opposite: we read unequivocally in 2 Corinthians 6:14 that believers and nonbelievers cannot and should not be friends: "Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness?" Clearly, God did not put his only begotten Son on earth so believers would remain passive or quiet.

Part THREE Evangelistic Method #3 - Confrontational Methods: Way of the Master

The Way of the Master can be classified as a confrontational method of evangelism, because it is powerful and enthusiastic. Support for all confrontational methods is rooted in Mark 16:15: "He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation." Sharing the faith is one of the core methods of fulfilling God's will and plan. The Gospels teach the importance of spreading the Word of Christ. The Way of the Master is a multimedia approach to evangelism, in that the method uses television, radio, and new media to reach both sinners and the already saved and help spread the Word. The Way of the Master advocates dedicated Bible study, committed evangelism, and deep faith.

There are many advantages to the Way of the Master method. The Way of the Master is a "non-denominational" approach, making it accessible to many Christians and even non-believers (The Way of the Master). Because of the use of multimedia, the Way of the Master is also accessible around the world. There are no geographic or temporal barriers to Bible study, learning about God's will, and becoming committed to a life in Christ. Confrontational methods work: and there is evidence for their efficacy in the Bible. For example, a Samaritan woman preached to her village after an encounter with the Savior. Her testimony led to the effective conversion of the village: "Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman's testimony, "He told me everything I ever did," (John 4:39).

However, the Way of the Master also has disadvantages. Because the Way of the Master is a confrontational method, it can be difficult to use in certain situations. Hostile environments, for example, make the Way of the Master an inappropriate method to use. The Way of the Master is thorough, but it is also a proprietary method that might not be necessary to use given the wealth of alternative confrontational methods.

Part FOUR Application of These Methods to Your Own Life: From these three methods, choose the one that most suits you. Why is this the best method for you? Is this also the best method for approaching those in your life who are non-Christians? Why or why not?

Of these three methods, the one that best suits me is the Way of the Master. The Four Spiritual Laws appeal to the fact that I am an organized person who appreciates clarity in my approach to all things. I believe that the Four Spiritual Laws provide a straightforward method of introducing others to Biblical truths. However, the Way of the Master is more interesting and comprehensive in that it provides structure and guidance. Neither the Four Spiritual Laws nor the Friendship method are effective means of spreading the Gospel truth.