10. Motivation for personal evangelism

Personal evangelism is a labor-intensive and time-consuming task. Why do some people enjoy it? It is because their heart is motivated by the love of the Lord (2 Corinthians 5:14). Those who live for the Lord should follow the main purpose and preach the gospel to save souls.

1. Possess spiritual love: eager to save people’s souls and gain eternal life together, deeply afraid that relatives and friends will go to hell and suffer eternal punishment (Matthew 16:26; 1 Corinthians 10:33; Mark 9:47-49).

2. Possess strong faith: Those who believe in God’s will, will be helped, and God will work with them when doing God’s holy work. Therefore, be strong and courageous and not afraid (Matt. 28:20; 2 Timothy 4:17-18; Joshua 1:1-3, 9).

3. Have the hope of the promise: Believe that God’s work will bear fruit sooner or later, sow with diligence, and those who sow with tears will reap with joy (Matthew 28:19; Ecclesiastes 11:1-6; Psalm 126:5- 6; Hebrews 10:36).

11. Training and Essentials of Personal Evangelism

    1. Pray for the Holy Spirit to guide you (John 6:44; Col. 4:2-4; Zech. 4:6-7). 

       1. Gospel work is the great work of saving souls, and it can only be accomplished when the Holy Spirit works in people's hearts.

       2. Only by praying persistently on weekdays, asking God to open the door of preaching, and co-working with the Holy Spirit, can people be attracted to the door of grace.

    2. Understand the basic beliefs of the church (John 16:13; Romans 10:17; 2 Timothy 3:15; Hebrews 4:12)

       1. The Holy Spirit of truth enables people to understand all truths, and only by understanding the basic beliefs can one develop the gift of preaching. 

       2. By listening to sermons and reading scriptures, meditating on God’s words, and enriching spiritual wisdom, you will be able to clarify the truth to seekers at that time, so that they can discern the thoughts and ideas in their hearts. 

    3. Understand the state of social beliefs (Proverbs 27:23; 1 Corinthians 9:22; Acts 17:16-17, 22-23). 

       1. Know yourself and your enemy, and you will win every battle; whoever you preach the gospel to, you should know their faith. 

       2. It was practical and wise for Paul to understand the beliefs of the Athenians before debating and preaching with the locals.

    4. Cultivate speaking skills and demeanor (1 Corinthians 9:22; Matt 10:16; Col 4:4-6).

       1. Learn how to establish a relationship with others, how to gain the trust of truthseekers. Develop communication skills, with simple and clear explanations that can be accepted by the other party.

       2. Learn to speak cautiously, understand that some words must never be spoken, and be appropriate in clothing, appearance, words and deeds.

    5. Clarify general discourse problems (Acts 17:11; Col. 3:16; cf. Acts 7:22, 18:24-26). 

       1. If you first understand what is the problem in the hearts of the seekers, then you can find the correct and reasonable answers, answer the doubts in their hearts in a timely manner, and convince them. 

       2. Through the "Practicum drills" meeting, we can train the gospel workers to be familiar with answering the doubts of the faith of the seekers, so that they will not be afraid of being embarrassed when they cannot answer the questions when they talk with others. Through personal evangelism lectures and sermon rehearsal meetings, we can learn again and again, so that the personal evangelism work will be better and more fruitful.

    6. Make good use of the church's published materials (cf. Matt. 13:25; Genesis 24:10, 22, 53, 61). 

       1. The church publishes various materials, including countless testimonial leaflets, and the Holy Spirit monthly magazine. There are abundant evangelical resources that can be used.

       2. When in contact with truth seekers, appropriate gospel leaflets and testimonial collections can be presented, so that they can read and meditate carefully to understand the truth, come to the church to listen to the sermon, and even believe and be baptized.

    7. Use the testimony of our grace (Luke 7:22; Acts 4:20, 22:3-21; Mark 5:19-20).

       1. The true church has the presence of God and the power of the Holy Spirit. Jesus is the omnipotent true God. He is the master of life and the almighty physician; all of these can be manifested through wonderful and true testimonies to convince people.

       2. After getting the testimony, read or listen carefully, then close your eyes and think quietly from the beginning to the end, and then compare it with the original testimony. If there are any important points, review it again, and then practice until the key points, content, and sequence are clear, it can be remembered and applied at any time.

    8. Lead the other person to learn to pray (John 4:24; Psalm 65:2; Philippians 4:6-7; 1 John 3:24, 4:13).

       1. To teach truth seekers to get close to God and experience God is to lead them to pray together, to worship God in spirit and in truth, to communicate with God, and to tell God all their needs; in the urgent prayer of love words, they may seek the Holy Spirit and know God is omnipresent.

       2. Encourage the other party to pray by themselves, and draw close to God in their hearts anytime, anywhere. They will surely gain wonderful experiences in their daily life and know the omnipotent true God.

    9. Clarify the motivation of correct belief (Mark 16:15-17, 20; John 3:1, 2; Matt 9:35)

       1. Those who believe and are baptized will be saved; those who do not believe will be condemned. This is the main content of the Gospel. Therefore, it is explained to the truth seekers that the purpose of believing in the Lord is to save their souls and enter the kingdom of heaven; This is a temporary grace, which is only the peace of mind and body in this life. The former is eternal blessing, while the latter is temporary peace.

       2. Miracles follow the gospel work to confirm the true way preached; it can be seen that the manifestation of miracles is not the main purpose of believing in the Lord, but that God uses divine miracles to lead people to know the Savior Jesus, and to allow people to know the Savior Jesus. People receive peace of mind and body, which shows God's love for people.

    10. Establish the friendships in the Lord (Colossians 1:28; cf. John 4:5-30; Acts 18:24-28)

        1. Missionary work is about presenting the truthseeker fully in Christ, not before man. Therefore, do not communicate with truthseekers with physical emotions, so as not to mislead them. 

        2. Care for the truthseekers with the love of saving souls, and do not develop a romantic relationship with them. So, the value of the gospel and the meaning of salvation will not be lost. It is about building a healthy, spiritual friendship.

    11. Find the right time to lead to the church (Acts 20:28; Ephesians 5:23, 2:19; Romans 12:10). 

        1. Jesus Christ is "the Savior of the whole church". If you want to be saved into the kingdom of heaven, you must join the church. The church is God's family, and if you want to be a member of God's family, you must come to God's family frequently. 

        2. Personal evangelism should lead truthseekers to approach the church, participate in gatherings, get to know preachers, elders, and believers, so that they can get used to life in God’s family, know people in God’s family, and become members of God’s family in the future.

    12. Unceasing intercession and patient guidance (1 Timothy 2:1-4; 2 Timothy 4:2-5; 1 Thessalonian 5:17-18; Psalm 126:5-6)

        1. Only the true God, who is in charge of the universe and mankind, can guide people to know salvation. Therefore, we can only pray for truthseekers unceasingly, so that they can stabilize their faith, understand the truth and believe in the Lord.

        2. The work of the gospel will inevitably be hindered by Satan. Only by enduring in every way and relying on the Lord to overcome everything can people be moved to obey Jesus Christ, believe in and be baptized, and have the hope of being saved.

Conclusion:

1. Evangelism is the work of saving souls, the most important thing is to pray and rely on the Holy Spirit to lead.

2. Personal evangelism is the most basic and most effective channel for the multiplication of believers. Everyone is responsible for personal evangelism. There is spiritual love, strong faith, and hope of promise. Only by doing a good job in training and understanding the essentials of evangelism can it be achieved target.

3. May all believers realize their responsibilities and spread the gospel of salvation.