As I promised in the previous blog I posted, I will continue with the answers to the questions I myself raised! Most people approach evangelism as an event. Starting from tent meetings to big "evangelistic crusades" were all looking at evangelism as an event. This is because people do not understand the dynamics of the process of evangelism. I too did not understand it until I began my study with the LIOs. They consider evangelism as a process. I noticed that they would keep on visiting the same village even when there is apposition. Keep presenting the Gospel often and repeatedly. Most of the time they get a breakthrough. One case study I did was of Evangelist Fondacs. He started visiting a village in India named Retanai. The first time was a disaster. He barely managed to escape from getting beaten up. The said place was a high cast village. That did not stop him, he continued to visit and pray for any one who wanted prayer! One day the headman of the village fell deathly ill. Some one came from the village and asked Fondacs to pray. He prayed and the man got well. From that time the village people started responding. The village now has a church with 48 people worshipping. I asked him "how did you do it?" His answer was, "I kept visiting the village and kept distributing tracts at first they opposed then slowly they became friendly. The Lord healed the headman and that opened the door. The headman is still a Hindu but he has welcomed me to come to his village and pray and distribute tracts!" My learning with the LIOs helped me to formulate a plan for Evangelism. I began to understand the dynamics behind it. 1. They choose an unreached village mostly non-responsive. 2. They keep on sharing the gospel in a non confrontational way. Tools may differ! 3. They invariably start need-based prayer groups. To this they invite anyone in need. 4. This group is nurtured into worshipping group. 5. The worshipping group is evolved into a formative church. 6. The Formative church is eventually established into a Church plant.
The dynamics of Evangelism.
There are two inevitable points in a person's life. A) Birth B) Death. In between man lives his life. We as believers have another point. We call this Born again. This happens at different stages of life for each individual. This point is what I would call Acute point of need. No one comes to christ except through this point. Salvation takes place when a man realizes his own inadequacy and rests upon God's adequacy. He is confronted with his sinful state, he feels guilty, he repents, confesses and asks God to cleanse him from all sin and then in faith accepts Jesus Christ. This happens in a person's life at a particular point but there is life before and after. This does not happen in a vacuum. From the birth of an individual there seems to be circumstances that happens and escalates and the accumulation brings a person to the awareness of the reality that he or she is lost without God. Most often this point is painful and desperate. It is important to note that prior to the point of acute need there are several incidences and events that takes place that seem to propel a man to this point. Man on his own is content and does not realize his true state.
An important fact we need to realize is, more than us God cares for the lost. That is why He sent His son to die for us on the cross! He is at work all the time in individual and corporate life. Most people do not realize that "before me God is in action working towards His intent that none should perish". Before I go to proclaim the Gospel to a particular place or person, we must realize God has been there already.
Another important point to consider is before me someone else has been there. At least some kind of proclamation has been there. Paul in Romans 1st chapter is clear in expressing, before anybody in fact nature too has been proclaiming the existence of God! When I think I am the only person to proclaim my whole approach begins to be different. We join with God and His people in the task of proclamation. It is very clearly like Paul's statement "I planted and Appalos watered and the Lord was the en who let it or made it grow". If we do not realize this as reality we will do more harm than good in our proclamation of the Gospel.
All over India and the world God is raising a group of people whom I call LIOs! They can never be made but they are born! These children of God are the ones who are at the very cutting edge of the Gospel; proclaiming the Gospel through word and life. All others are reaping the benefit of their sowing. It is the ordinary men and women of God living in the trenches of normal life who proclaim the Gospel in unreached areas. This requires a special heart - the heart of a LIO. These people create responsive groups. They are the true pioneering missionaries. Most of them use tracts!!!!
I was told that there are no LIOs in the US! I was going to visit the leaders in the head quarters of a major missionary sending organization in the US. I got off the plane and looked around for a person from the organization to pick me up. There was an old man talking to a black gentleman. He saw me and approached me grinning. He gave me a hug and welcomed me. He said, "I too am a tract distributor. Just before you came, I was able to distribute 8 tracts and shared the Gospel to three people." As we drove towards the office he began to tell me that he was a retiree and was giving his time free to the organization. His Job was to mail letters and pick up guests from the airport. I found the LIO in the US!!! Since then I have been able to meet several in different towns and cities of US.
The LIOs believe in the intrinsic power of the word of God. The Gospel is all you need. Most people believe Gospel plus me, Gospel plus my program, Gospel plus money etc., But the LIOs believe they do not need any plus' - Gospel has all the power that is needed!!! Lifting up Jesus Christ is all they do, as promised He shall draw all men unto Himself.
There is another point to remember - The harvest is plenty this fact should not leave our thoughts. There is a lot of difference in the person, when he or she thinks the harvest is hard and little. He is desperate, driven beyond measure. When a person knows and believe that the harvest is plenty he assumes a very different stance. He is not surprised by the positive response - he expects a positive response.
Another important fact is that salvation comes to man in God's timing not in man's timing. All the other religious beliefs emphasize ways and means to reach God but for our faith God comes to man, man cannot reach God. This is most fundamental to the theology of incarnation.
to be continued.....
Your servant for His sake
Mano Daniel
No comments:
Post a Comment