The final words of Jesus Christ over 2000 years ago as the Great Commission given to us in all four gospel accounts and in the book of Acts, today remain the duty the church must continue to carry out until His return. (Matthew 28:18-20) “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Oftentimes, people come to church to enjoy the rich and intimate fellowship with other believers to the extent that they neglect equally important matters, like evangelism, discipleship and church planting. The church must not only have an inward nurturing thrust, but must also have an outward missionary focus. The church unfortunately, has developed a fortress mentality wanting to protect ourselves from the power and pollution of sin. Instead of finding ourselves on the defensive, we ought to be on the offensive! Jesus said that the gates of Hades would not overpower His church (Mt 16:18). We have the power and authority to invade the kingdom of darkness with the truth of the gospel, and hell can’t stop us. Let this truth from the lips of Christ encourage and embolden you to new evangelistic exploits!The implications of the Great Commission calls members of the congregation to pray and look for opportunities to speak a word for Christ to those they interact with, like classmates, neighbors, work mates, relatives, customers or other acquaintances. The Biblical model is to proclaim Christ to others as the Lord provides opportunity for our witness, and when someone comes to faith in Christ, to then invite him to begin meeting with other believers in our corporate gatherings. In addition to engaging in open air preaching, street evangelism, door to door witnessing, and tract distribution we need to regularly seek to put ourselves in places where we can interact with non-Christians. We can join a neighborhood watch program, civic group, or local groups to meet people. We can open our homes during the holidays and invite our neighbors in. We can invite unbelievers into our homes for dinner. We can start an investigative Bible study for any of our unsaved friends who are open to learning what the Bible has to say and ask our unbelieving friends what we can be praying for in their lives. Whenever God gives an opportunity for us to befriend an unbeliever, we need to just be ourselves, and let our light shine. The opportunities abound to love people and thus make an eternal difference in their lives.Out of all the people the church witnesses to, there will be some whom God has prepared to receive Christ and be saved. What then? Well, the person who led the individual to Christ, if possible, should begin to disciple him by spending time with him, encouraging him, answering questions he has about how to live for God, and providing an example for him in serving Christ. As God saves new believers we can either add them to the existing church, or begin a new church plant. The church planter can begin to teach these new believers how to function as a church, and how to reach their social circle with the gospel of Christ. Hopefully, over time, God will raise up from these new converts mature brothers who can serve as elders to shepherd the flock.

MINISTRY OF EVANGELISM ROLE:

1. Answer the call to the Great Commission of Jesus Christ to go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and Holy Spirit, teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you (Matt.28 :19-20)

2. Bring to the Lord all those who are in need of salvation. Do not hinder them in any form by being a good example and shine as the light of God and show them the way of salvation.

3. Work closely with the Sr. Pastor and church Elders to develop a plan.

4. Provide training and resources to adequately answer the call of God.