Elemental Evangelism, Part 4

[Previous Posts: Part One, Two, and Three]

My last element to evangelism is the most important. From beginning to end, I make it my ambition for evangelism to be doxological.  A brief explanation:

7. Doxological

The question I must ask myself is, “Why do you evangelize?” I can remember a point in my life where I was determined to lead “x” number of people to Christ each year. I was passionate about evangelism, but the beginning and end was always about me. It was not long afterwards that I realized that an overwhelming number of those who had “accepted Christ” did not join the church, follow in believer’s baptism, or grow in grace. It was great to report back to the church on those who had prayed the sinner’s prayer, but those celebrations were short-lived as I realized I was making converts who had not really been converted as a follower of Christ. Many of them would at best look back at that time and find that their guilty conscience was appeased and their minds were assured that they would go to heaven when they die with little reference to Jesus Christ.

The way I evangelized began to quickly change as I came to understand that we were created to display God’s glory and worship him with our lives. Evangelism wasn’t simply to help people get to heaven when they die; rather, it was to help them understand that the one life they have to live is to be spent in treasuring the infinite worth of knowing Jesus Christ. We define sin in our evangelistic presentations as sinners “falling short of the glory of God.” That rolls off our lips and seldom do we consider the significance of that statement. Sinners in rebellion against God have made much of sin. They have glorified it with their lives. To fall short of the glory of God is to fail to make much of Christ and glorify him with our lives.  Romans 1-3 reveals that this falling short includes all men–Jews and Gentiles alike–who need their lives changed by life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.  After another eight chapters of explaining the gospel of justification and new life in Christ, Paul sums up Romans 1-11 by saying,

Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!

“For who has known the mind of the Lord,
or who has been his counselor?”
“Or who has given a gift to him
that he might be repaid?”

For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.

Evangelism that is doxological recognizes that salvation is all of God.  The plan of salvation (predestination) of sinners is “from Him.”  The accomplishment of salvation (atonement) is “through Him.”  And the goal of salvation is “to Him” – that is, to His glory.  Therefore, it is my motivation in evangelism that God would be glorified in the advance of the gospel in the lives of unbelievers.  It is my evangelistic ambition that sinners who have glorified sin and made much of this world would glorify Jesus and make Him their Treasure.  This evangelistic vision is to see that sinners embrace Jesus as better than what life can offer now and what death can take later.

So practically, how does this affect my evangelism?  It means that the goal of the gospel is not simply that one would go to heaven when they die while their entire life is devoid of worship and the glory due His name.  No.  This cannot be, because God is the gospel.  The good news is not a free ticket to heaven or walking streets of gold.  The good news is Jesus Christ.  Therefore, everything I do in presenting the gospel is presenting the supremacy of Jesus Christ in all of his excellencies, promises, offices, and work.  I tell sinners that becoming a Christian is a believing in Jesus that rivets our affections, transforms our thoughts, and reorients our lives so that we display the greatness of Jesus Christ in a world that tries to make him look so small and insignificant.  The gospel is inherently doxological because God has shown in our hearts “the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ” (2 Cor. 4:6).    Peter tells us that we have been saved so that we may proclaim the excellencies of him who called us out of darkness into his marvelous light (1 Pet. 2:9).   So evangelism is a proclamation of God grounded in praise to God.  If worship doesn’t fuel my passion to evangelize, then nothing will.  Yet, worship is not only the source of inspiration of evangelism, but it is also the goal of evangelism as John Piper so astutely puts it.

In summary, evangelism is a glorious privilege and task that is nothing short of bringing worshipers before the throne of Jesus who purchased them with his blood.  The gospel is radically God-centered, and so is evangelism.  It is not about us, as though we could make a name for ourselves by bringing people into the kingdom.  It is not about them, as though God was incomplete without them.  No.  Evangelism and the gospel with which we have been entrusted carries the weight of glory that burdens our hearts for the lost and for a thousand tongues to sing praises to our God and King.  I cannot speak and sing enough about Jesus.  But with this tongue, I can spread the gospel to others with a passion that they join me in exulting in our Savior with one voice comprised of many tongues that are preoccupied with the worship and fame of His name.