Austin Bible Church
God the Holy Spirit is the sovereign executive of personal evangelism. Before His ascension, Jesus Christ spoke of the coming of the Holy Spirit in John 16:7-8.
““But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you. “And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment;” (John 16:7-8, NASB)
It is the work of God the Holy Spirit to convince or convict the unbeliever of sin, righteousness, and judgment. The sin of unbelief or rejection of Christ is the only unpardonable sin. John 16:9.
“concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me;” (John 16:9, NASB)
This is the righteousness belonging to the person of Jesus Christ. God the Father accepted God the Son at His ascension because He had a perfect righteousness in His humanity. Believers have this righteousness imputed to them at salvation. Satan has been judged and will spend eternity in the Lake of Fire. Those who reject Jesus Christ share the judgment and destiny of Satan. John 16:10-11; Matt. 25:41; Rev. 20:10-15.
“and concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father and you no longer see Me; and concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged.” (John 16:10-11, NASB)
““Then He will also say to those on His left, ‘Depart from Me, accursed ones, into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels;” (Matthew 25:41, NASB)
“And the devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are also; and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever. Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat upon it, from whose presence earth and heaven fled away, and no place was found for them. And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life; and the dead were judged from the things which were written in the books, according to their deeds. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead which were in them; and they were judged, every one of them according to their deeds. Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.” (Revelation 20:10-15, NASB)
The Bible is the weapon of personal work. Don’t argue about whether the Bible is the Word of God, just use it. It is the Word of God that the Holy Spirit uses to convince the unbeliever. Heb. 4:12.
“For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” (Hebrews 4:12, NASB)
The believer is the agent of personal evangelism. Every Church Age believer is an ambassador for Jesus Christ and is responsible for the dissemination of the Gospel. Mass evangelism is no substitute for personal evangelism Acts 1:8; 2 Cor. 5:17-20; Prov. 11:30.
“but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.”“ (Acts 1:8, NASB)
“Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.” (2 Corinthians 5:17-20, NASB)
“The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, And he who is wise wins souls.” (Proverbs 11:30, NASB)
Paul did not need a letter of commendation to lead the Corinthian believers to the Lord. The Corinthian believers were the subject of his epistles or letters of commendation and they were in his heart. They were also known and read by all men. Believers are observed by unbelievers. 2 Cor. 3:1-2.
“Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, as some, letters of commendation to you or from you? You are our letter, written in our hearts, known and read by all men;” (2 Corinthians 3:1-2, NASB)
The believer is an epistle or letter of Christ written with the Holy Spirit, not ministered by the Mosaic Law. They are empowered by the Holy Spirit who indwells them. 2 Cor. 3:3.
“being manifested that you are a letter of Christ, cared for by us, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.” (2 Corinthians 3:3, NASB)
The believer is equipped to witness for Christ by the Holy Spirit. We have the light of Christ in our body (earthen vessel). We are to give out information concerning Christ. It may be given out under pressure, but unbelievers will sit up and take notice. Knowing the future judgment awaiting the unbeliever, we are to constantly persuade men. 2 Cor. 4:7; 2 Cor. 3:8-9; 2 Cor. 5:11.
“But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves;” (2 Corinthians 4:7, NASB)
“how will the ministry of the Spirit fail to be even more with glory? For if the ministry of condemnation has glory, much more does the ministry of righteousness abound in glory.” (2 Corinthians 3:8-9, NASB)
“Therefore, knowing the fear of the Lord, we persuade men, but we are made manifest to God; and I hope that we are made manifest also in your consciences.” (2 Corinthians 5:11, NASB)
We thus conclude that if One (Christ) died for all, then all died. The believer is not to live selfishly. 2 Cor. 5:14-15.
“For the love of Christ controls us, having concluded this, that one died for all, therefore all died; and He died for all, so that they who live might no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died and rose again on their behalf.” (2 Corinthians 5:14-15, NASB)
As a new creature in Christ, the believer has a new responsibility. They have been given a ministry of reconciliation. Sin is no longer an issue. Jesus Christ who bore the sins of all mankind on the Cross is the issue. We are to present the fact that Christ died for the sins for everyone in the human race. He took the penalty, the judgment for them all! This fact must be made very clear to the unbeliever. 2 Cor. 5:17-18.
“Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation,” (2 Corinthians 5:17-18, NASB)
We are ambassadors for Jesus Christ. God speaks to unbelievers through believers. Every believer is a witness. Paul reminded the Corinthians that they should be in the arena as gladiators, not in the stands as spectators. 2 Cor. 5:19-20; 1 Cor. 4:7-14.
“namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.” (2 Corinthians 5:19-20, NASB)
“For who regards you as superior? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as if you had not received it? You are already filled, you have already become rich, you have become kings without us; and indeed, I wish that you had become kings so that we also might reign with you. For, I think, God has exhibited us apostles last of all, as men condemned to death; because we have become a spectacle to the world, both to angels and to men. We are fools for Christ’s sake, but you are prudent in Christ; we are weak, but you are strong; you are distinguished, but we are without honor. To this present hour we are both hungry and thirsty, and are poorly clothed, and are roughly treated, and are homeless; and we toil, working with our own hands; when we are reviled, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure; when we are slandered, we try to conciliate; we have become as the scum of the world, the dregs of all things, even until now. I do not write these things to shame you, but to admonish you as my beloved children.” (1 Corinthians 4:7-14, NASB)
Make the issue of Jesus Christ clear. Give out Gospel information about Jesus Christ. Be interested in others. Listen to people and wait for the right opportunity to present Christ. Avoid useless arguments. You may win an argument and lose a soul. Don’t be side-tracked by false issues such as “What about the heathen?” or “Is the Bible the Word of God?” Deal with the person alone. Use prayer whenever possible. Don’t use technical, theological language.