What Evangelism IS

So I beat one of my parishioners with a Bible in worship yesterday. OK, yes, he knew it was coming and he agreed to it.

In my sermon I was talking about what evangelism is, and what evangelism is not. Yeah—the Bible thumping, Bible beating was a demonstration of what evangelism is NOT.

As mainline Protestants we’ve let too many fundamentalists and so-called “evangelicals” run away with this word and its true Greek meaning: good news. They’ve stolen our good news and tried to beat people up—maybe not physically—but certainly verbally and theologically with the Bible. Especially our GBLT brothers and sisters.

The Gospel of John, chapter 4:7-30 tells the story of Jesus encountering the Samaritan woman at the well. Sharing the good news with her wasn’t an attack by Jesus-- beating her up with the latest papyrus copy of the Hebrew Scriptures. Instead of a one-time verbal attack or domination of dialogue, Jesus takes a five-step approach to sharing the good news he has for her life. He INITIATES contact with the woman by meeting her at the well (a place where he was crossing cultural, linguistic, and sexual boundaries by talking with her). He engages in CONVERSATION with her (the text is great here—this is one of the handful of times that the gospels are really drawn-out in their dialogue). They both share in REFLECTION of the thoughts and opinions of the other (what a refreshing way for us to consider talking to someone about our faith lives?!). The Samaritan woman is RE-DIRECTED, physically (heads back to the city) and spiritually, after her encounter with Jesus. The woman is REJUVENATED—she’s given new energy and new life by learning about the “living water” and she runs back to tell others. Those who listen to her are so excited about what they’ve heard, they then leave the city and turn to find Jesus for themselves.

Conclusion?

What evangelism IS according to Jesus:

Purposeful initiation of contact, engagement in conversation, dialogue that encourages thoughtful reflection, redirection of life after a mystical encounter, and living and sharing a rejuvenated life because of the experience.