Lifestyle Evangelism is Overrated

Francis of Assissi is alleged to have said, “Preach the gospel always; if necessary use words.” That may be a great medieval sound bite, but it falls short of what the Bible teaches about evangelism. Jesus began his public ministry by “proclaiming the good news of God” (Mark 1:14). When he gained a reputation as a miracle-worker, his response was to leave the area so he could give himself to the task of proclamation, for “that is why I have come” (Mark 1:38). And the risen Lord left his disciples with the specific commission to go to the nations, “teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you” (Matthew 28:20).

There is a tendency in some quarters today to promote a kind of evangelism without proclamation. Acts of service are done or people are invited to experience Christian worship. But without words of explanation these are like signposts pointing nowhere or, worse still, signposts pointing to our good works. The gospel is good news — a message to be proclaimed, a truth to be taught, a word to be spoken, and a story to be told.   -Tim Chester and Steve Timmis, Total Church

I figure that if I can point one person to Jesus I’ll settle for that, it’s better than pointing one hundred million to myself. 

Jared Wilson recently shared the above quote on his blog The Gospel-Driven Church.  Most everything I write or share can trace its origins to something I found elsewhere and have chewed on as if I were a cow chewing on his cud.  

Years ago while spending a weekend away in Pentwater, Michigan, I ran across and purchased an artist’s colorful display done in calligraphy of the thirteenth century friar’s famous prayer.  Francis of Assisi’s writings have been an inspiration to me.  That being said, I have noticed we (myself included) have a tendency to canonize little bite sized sayings by those we make out to be larger than life.  I’m as guilty as anyone.  This was a guy who is said to have preached to plants and trees after all.  I’m sure Francis was a wonderful man, but we must remember he struggled with formulating a biblical theology and following Jesus just as you and I do.  It all is a process.  And as an aside, I am always a little leary of anyone who has the prefix ’saint’ tacked on the front of their name, but I won’t lobby here for a new Protestant initiative in which we put ’sinner’ in front of our names (although Paul called himself the chief of such).  

But without words of explanation these are like signposts pointing nowhere or, worse still, signposts pointing to our good works — I do get the feeling  that many of us within evangelicalism have replaced a faithful proclamation of the unadulterated gospel with our own version of what we think constitutes sharing the gospel.  And while I won’t discount the need and role of our good works, I will say we put way too much precedence on them — as well as confidence in them.        

If my pitiful – and even my finest — good works are all the testimony I have, my efforts to share Jesus are toast.  The gospel isn’t what I have done since I have become a Jesus-follower, the gospel is only about what Jesus has done.  We can’t forget this holy must — it is his story and his goodness we are called to expound upon.