“I am not an Evangelist”

Author: Travis Kleppen

Written by Travis Kleppen

I am not an evangelist. I’m not one to start up a conversation with a stranger, even if it’s small talk, let alone attempt to tell them about Jesus and risk rejection from the outset. I would much rather spend my time doing what is easy with people I know will receive and love me. Evangelism is uncomfortable, it can feel forced, and sometimes it just seems plain awkward and out of place, but for years I lived with a conviction deep in my spirit that this wasn’t something I could escape doing. It wasn’t something I could just say I’m not passionate about and move on to do something different.

I became a believer the summer after my freshman year of college while working as a counselor at a Bible camp. Once I finished that summer, I was in college for three more years and worked for a year after university. Outside of a couple evangelistic conferences I went to, I could probably count on two hands every time I went out and intentionally shared my faith. And the truth is, I knew something was wrong with this picture all along! And I don’t think I’m alone in this. I genuinely believe this is a conviction most believers have, and I’m writing to tell you, you’re not alone. I am writing to you to encourage you not to quench the Spirit’s work in your life.

God’s Mouthpiece

We have so many reasons we choose not to do evangelism. We will say things like, “I don’t enjoy talking to strangers.” “I am an introvert.” “My gifts are better served in teaching the Bible than in evangelism.” We will reason, because we lack the Biblical gift of evangelism, therefore, we are exempt from intentionally going out and sharing our faith. Or we simply just wait for God to bring people to us and flat out ask us about Jesus, instead of going out ourselves.

Do you want me to let you in on a little secret? It may come as a surprise, but I am not an evangelist. Now when I say this, what I mean is this: I don’t have the gifts most evangelists have. I’m an introvert. I don’t think God has put a specific call on my life or given me the office of an evangelist. And starting a conversation with an absolute stranger is one of the most terrifying things you could ask me to do. I’m not always good at making conversation with people and sometimes I will freeze up and not know what to say, especially when trying to share the gospel. I may have none of the qualities that would make me an evangelist, but I have no reason not to evangelize. And you don’t have a reason either.

We can think of every excuse in the book not to tell a ravaged world about the God who brings restoration and redemption, but the reality is, every believer is God’s mouthpiece and therefore called to tell people who he is. When Jesus gives the great commission at the end of the Gospel of Matthew, he tells his followers to make disciples of all nations. How are we to make disciples if we don’t begin by simply telling people who Jesus is and seeing people come to salvation. Peter challenges us in the book of 1 Peter to always be prepared to give an answer to any who would ask us about the hope we have in Christ. Paul charges Timothy to preach the word and be ready both in and out of season. And we see several people, apostles and even servants in the church preaching the gospel in the book of Acts. This isn’t just something for the so called evangelists. Sharing the gospel with those who don’t know the Lord is for every believer.

Do Not Fear

A few months ago, we had some evangelists come to Taiwan and offer to go out and do evangelism with us.  They went out three times a day with anyone who wanted to go out and learn how to better share the gospel. This type of thing shouldn’t be strange to us. People going out and telling others about Jesus should be the norm for believers. And guess what happened when we were obedient and went out? People were coming to faith in Christ and one person received healing at the hands of one of our staff. It was incredible to see what God did over the course of those weeks.

Brothers and sisters, I’m not just preaching to you, I’m preaching to us. We need to be people who are ready and willing to be sent, to go out and share the reality of our Redeemer, but most of us are held back by fear. We fear the unknown, we fear rejection, and we fear what other people will think of us. Or we fear we won’t have the right words to say. We need the Lord’s help, and there is good news for us. He is more than willing to help us overcome. An illustration from the life of Joshua could be of some use to us to teach us how to overcome these fears and walk in obedience to God’s command for us to share the gospel with the perishing world around us.

In the very beginning of the book, God speaks to Joshua. He didn’t give him a thought or a Bible verse or a picture, God audibly spoke to Joshua. Let’s focus in on Joshua 1:9, “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” God charges Joshua to be strong and courageous. He charges him not to be afraid. And why? Because the Lord and God of all creation is going to go with him. What is really incredible about this passage, is it wasn’t a promise to the people of God as a whole, it was a promise God spoke directly to Joshua. And as we continue reading the book of Joshua, we see God repeat this phrase to him. Do not fear. Be strong and courageous. I am with you. Why does he repeat this multiple times? Simply put, because Joshua is afraid. He saw the other nations, the size of their armies and the enormity of the task and he was afraid of what could happen. Joshua was just a man like you and I, and he needed to be reminded of who God was when challenges abounded in front of him.

This wasn’t just a Joshua problem, this is a human problem. Like Joshua, we forget the goodness, the greatness, and the faithfulness of our God. We need to be reminded of the God who not only loves us, but is strong enough to fight for us and with us. God wants to see people come to a knowledge of him so much more than we do.

God is With You

I’m not charging every believer to go out and do evangelism several times a week. What I am challenging not just you, but myself to0, is to listen to God’s prompting when he does tell us to share with people and to be willing to do the work of an evangelist. Talk to a friend or a family member who doesn’t know Jesus, start a conversation with your co-worker, have a game night with your church and use it as a platform for the gospel, or go out with a few friends into a park and find some people to share the gospel with. It may feel strange, but it’s a calling on all of our lives as believers, and many of us miss out on the great things God wants to do through us for his kingdom because we are enslaved to fear. But let us heed the words of Paul to his child in the faith, Timothy: “for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.”

Wherever you are in your journey in evangelism, whether you’ve gone once or a thousand times, I want to challenge you all to remember these two things. First, just like Joshua, know you have been given a noble task. God has called you to bring the gospel to those who don’t know it. Whether you have the gift of a evangelism or not, whether you are a pastor, an engineer, a missionary, an oil field worker, or a stay at home mom, every believer has been entrusted to be a steward of the gospel. But in this stewardship, also remember the words of God spoken to Joshua over and over. Do not fear. Be strong and courageous. I will be with you wherever you go. Continually be reminded that your God is going to go with you as you walk in obedience to him. He will equip you for every good work.