These are exciting days for any witness or evangelist! Ours is a world in flux. A world constantly growing smaller by fast travel, communications media, and scientific achievements. The fearful debauchery of our times has made this moment in history a time of balancing and weighing, of judging and measuring. But along with the problems created by a rapidly changing world come unprecedented opportunities: Young People, offspring of a so-called “generation gap” are open to the Christian message. The rock opera “Jesus Christ, Superstar,” is, I believe, symptomatic of our time—a restless search for identity, meaning, etc. The “Jesus people” or “Jesus freaks” are undoubtedly a counter-revolutionary reaction to the demonstrations and marches of a year or two ago. But I am tremendously encouraged by the Christian young people of the church I serve, and of many others that I have heard about who are putting many of their elders to shame, in their personal involvement in the teen-age evangelism program of the World Home Bible League and related projects.
Momentum of the Neo-Pentecostal Movement: What could possibly be more exciting than a revival and renewal of interest in the total ministry of the Holy Spirit? Just so long as the movement remains Biblically directed and Holy Spirit-motivated! Certainly the church in her present weakened condition should do everything in her power to encourage a genuine concern for the Spirit’s ministry in the church and in her members.
The Bankruptcy of Our Times can be viewed as an asset and not necessarily a liability. An asset, if we are at all serious about what we have sung for many years, namely, that “we have an anchor that holds in the storms of life”; and for times like these “we need the Savior.”
Indeed, we do have unprecedented opportunities. And how will the Church of Christ respond? How will the church grow? Dr. Donald Mc Gavran, of the “Institute of Church Growth” of Fuller Theological Seminary, in his 1970 book, Understanding Church Growth, has pointed out that the church can grow chiefly in three ways: biologically, transferally, and conversionally.1
Biological growth derives from those born into Christian families. It is good growth. God commands such growth when He says “to be fruitful and multiply.”
Transfer growth means “the increase of certain congregations at the expense of others.”2
But our concern is with the third kind of growth, conversion growth: growth derived when those “outside the church come to rest their faith intelligently on Jesus Christ and are baptized and ‘added to the Lord’ in His church.”3 And this being the goal of missions in Christ’s name, evangelism of necessity is the church’s lifeline, not her sideline.
Believing that the Word of God is still the tool of the evangelist, that “Word of God assured and insured” as Dr. Hyman Appelman used to say,4 I call attention to Romans 1:5, which Dr. Mc Gavran has called “The Great Commission as given to Paul.”5 “Through him we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nations.” Three elements are immediately evident in Paul’s great commission: namely, the supreme task, the supreme test, and the supreme triumph.
The Supreme Task
The text is found in the epistle that “was written by a slave to saints about the Savior.”6 Written from Corinth around A.D. 56, Romans was addressed to men and women living in the world’s metropolis. Paul, however, was not particularly impressed by the Roman Empire or Emperor, because he was the commissioned messenger of a Divine Empire and Emperor! His apostleship had come to him from none other than Jesus Christ, his Lord. So that it was not by his own commission or commissioning that he did his work.
From that same Divine source we must receive our call and our commission to work for the Lord. We must be sent if we would serve! And Paul does not hesitate to use the pronoun “we.” He says that “we” have received grace and apostleship. We includes all who have truly been born again. And all who have been born again have received double divine equipment.
We have received grace. The definition of grace as “unmerited favor” fits in well with the exalted character of the office to which we have been appointed. However, Calvin, in his commentary on the text, regards this grace as more specific than the love and mercy of God by which we are saved. This is the gift of grace given for the exercise of a specific function or office.7
We have also received an “apostleship.” It may differ in degree but not in kind from the apostleship that was given by God to Paul.
And that is what has made evangelism our lifeline and not a sideline. Our lifeline is the grace of God. Every Christian has an apostleship through the grace of God. “Our mission in this world must be what Cod desires. It is not a man-initiated activity.”8 God remains Sovereignly in charge by first giving the grace and the apostleship as absolute qualifications for any Christian witness. As Scripture says: “How shall they preach, unless they be sent?” In John 20:21 we are told that as the Father sent the Son, even so our Lord sends us to do Him service. So, you see, we are witnesses first by our person and our presence, and only secondarily by our performance and proclamation. Dr. Samuel Shoemaker, who was for many years rector of the Calvary Episcopal Church of New York City, and author of several famous books, has written in his work, With Tile Holy Spirit And With Fire: “The Evangelist is primarily an obstetrician. He is concerned with birth, ‘new birth.’”9 I like that. But we cannot be obstetricians or midwives unless and until the grace of God has softened our hardened hearts and we have been made “channels of His grace.” One of the more recent hymns reminds us:
“How I praise Thee, precious Savior, that Thy love laid hold of me; Thou hast saved and cleansed and filled me, that I might Thy channel be. Channels only, Blessed Master! But with all Thy wondrous power Flowing through us, Thou canst use us, every day and every hour.”
The Supreme Test
We, however, who have received both the task and the Divine equipment, stand secondly, before a supreme test. J. B. Phillips casts the next words of the verse we are considering (Romans 1:5) into the language of the test: “From whom we received grace and our commission in his name to forward obedience to the faith . . .”10 God had a purpose in making us channels of His grace, and that purpose is to forward obedience to the Lord among all men. Christ, in other words, has a yoke to be borne and a cross to be carried. And, therefore, Paul does not hesitate to speak of authentic Christianity in terms of obedience, surrender, and submission. Beyond everything else, this is the very reason of our existence, namely, to bring men everywhere into line with obedience to the faith in our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. As Dr. D. T. Niles of India is reported to have said: “Evangelism is one beggar telling another where to get bread.”11
Do we pass or fail the test? What is our personal record? What is the record of our home? our congregation? our denomination? I hear, what I think you too grow weary of hearing, and that is talk of missions and evangelism as if they were adjuncts or appendages of our Christian life and of that of our church life. For too many, evangelism is what Billy Graham does. The notion is abroad that mission activity is optional . . . a sideline to be supported by those “who are interested in that sort of thing.” When in reality evangelism is the heartbeat of the church! As Emil Brunner said: “The church exists by mission as fire exists by burning.” From 1555 to 1566, eleven crucial years in that Reformation era, John Calvin personally trained 121 evangelists, and having trained them dispatched them from Geneva to France. In their first four years in France these 121 pioneer evangelists were used of the Lord to found 2000 new French-Calvinist congregations.12
Our Savior desiring the salvation of the lost, puts the test of obedience before us as surely as our first parents were confronted with the test of obedience in the garden of paradise. Their record was one of failure. What of your record and mine? His command and His commission, not only to the Apostle Paul long ago, but to everyone who names the name of Jesus Christ, is to come, to obey, and to go! And we are to do more than just go—more than just watch more than just search, etc. The Good Shepherd wants His lost sheep and lambs found.13 That is just the point of the three parables He has given us—the shepherd found his lost sheep; the woman her coin; and the father his son. He demands faithfulness in finding, folding, and following.
Many years ago the students of Dr. Charles Spurgeon were engaged in a discussion of the question; what is the condition of the lost who never heard the Gospel? those who have died before the missionary reached them with the Gospel? One of the students asked Spurgeon himself for his personal opinion, “whether he thought the heathen who had never heard the Gospel would be saved?” Spurgeon is reported to have answered: “It is more of a question with me, whether we, who have the Gospel, and fail to give it to those who do not have it, can be saved.”14
The Supreme Triumph
The results of the test will come in one day in that hour of supreme triumph. Until then the world is our parish, as John Wesley is said to have claimed. Paul wrote, “Among all the nations for His name’s sake.” “ALL NATIONS!” Think of it, no less than all nations are included Or comprehended within God’s electing decree and our commissioning. God may have limited His work in that Old Testament age to one nation and to one people but in this New Testament age the sphere and range of His grace are universal. Paul envisions the church on its knees before God in intercession, and on its feet in witnessing, in order that many from the ends of the earth may be brought to the feet of the Lord Jesus Christ, and to salvation through His name.15
What an hour of triumph that will be! When the army of the saved comes man:hing from their graves and all shall bow before the King of kings! The challenge is, therefore, before us! Are we prepared and ready to meet it? Do you remember the story the Norwegians tell of two small children who lived along Norway’s rugged coast line? They were children of the village lighthouse keeper. One day their parents went ashore in a small boat to bring back supplies. They left their twelve-year old son and their ten-year old daughter by themselves, promising to return before dark Something happened to detain the parents and deep dusk fell. Johan said to his sister: “We’ve got to get the light burning or father and mother will never get back.” So the two of them went up into the lighthouse tower but found that they were unable to get the big lamp going. Knowing that they had to get some kind of a light into the tower they took a small kerosene lamp and tried to place it in the window where it would show above the huge swells that were rolling in from the sea. But neither of them was tall enough to reach the window, even when they stood on the only chair in the tower. Finally, Johan got on his hands and knees on the chair and instructed his sister to climb on his back and see if by standing there she could get the lamp in place. Sure enough, she could get the lamp to the window, but there was no ledge there upon which to place it. It had to be held in her small hands! “Am I hurting you much?” she asked her brother. “Not much! Just keep the lamp in the window!” he told her. So she tried as hard as she could to keep her position, changing her hands occasionally to rest her very tired arms, even though she knew that Johan was suffering beneath her feet. Finally, they heard a welcome hail from their father and knew that their parents had found their way home through the darkness, guided by their lamp.16
Dare we do less?
“Shall we whose souls are lighted
With wisdom from on high,
Shall we to men benighted,
The lamp of life deny?”
1. D. Mc Gavran, Understanding Church Growth, Wm. B. Eerdmans Co., 1970, pg. 87.
2. Ibid., pg. 88.
3. Ibid., pg. 88.
4. H. Appelman, Treasury of Great Gospel Sermons, Vol. II, Baker Book House, 1949, pg. 11.
5. D. Mc Gavran, op. cit., pg. 62.
6. D.G. Barnhouse, Exposition of Bible Doctrines, Vol. I, Man’s Ruin, Wm. B. Eerdmans Co., 1952, pg. 71.
7. J. Murray, The Epistle to the Romans, Vol. I, Wm. B. Eerdmans Co., 1959, pg. 13.
8. D. Mc Gavran, op. cit., pg. 31.
9. S. Shoemaker, With the Holy Spirit and with Fire, Word, Waco, Texas, 1960, pg. 68.
10. J.B. Phillips, The New Testament in Four Versions, Christianity Today, 1963, pg. 451.
11. S. Shoemaker, op. cit., pg. 69.
12. S.H. Moffett, “What Is Evangelism?”, Christianity Today, Vol. XIII, August 22, 1969, pg. 2.
13. Mc Gavran, op. cit., pg. 15.
14. S. Shoemaker, op. cit., pg. 74.
15. H. Appelman, op. cit., pg. 14.
16. G.F. Allee, Evangelistic Illustrations, Moody Press, 1961, pg. 391.
Garrett H. Stoutmeyer, pastor of the Christian Reformed Church of Elmhurst, Illinois, delivered this article as an address at the 45th Annual Evangelism Conference of the Christian Reformed Church at Green Lake, Wisconsin. The topic was the conference theme.
Momentum of the Neo-Pentecostal Movement: What could possibly be more exciting than a revival and renewal of interest in the total ministry of the Holy Spirit? Just so long as the movement remains Biblically directed and Holy Spirit-motivated! Certainly the church in her present weakened condition should do everything in her power to encourage a genuine concern for the Spirit’s ministry in the church and in her members.
The Bankruptcy of Our Times can be viewed as an asset and not necessarily a liability. An asset, if we are at all serious about what we have sung for many years, namely, that “we have an anchor that holds in the storms of life”; and for times like these “we need the Savior.”
Indeed, we do have unprecedented opportunities. And how will the Church of Christ respond? How will the church grow? Dr. Donald Mc Gavran, of the “Institute of Church Growth” of Fuller Theological Seminary, in his 1970 book, Understanding Church Growth, has pointed out that the church can grow chiefly in three ways: biologically, transferally, and conversionally.1
Biological growth derives from those born into Christian families. It is good growth. God commands such growth when He says “to be fruitful and multiply.”
Transfer growth means “the increase of certain congregations at the expense of others.”2
But our concern is with the third kind of growth, conversion growth: growth derived when those “outside the church come to rest their faith intelligently on Jesus Christ and are baptized and ‘added to the Lord’ in His church.”3 And this being the goal of missions in Christ’s name, evangelism of necessity is the church’s lifeline, not her sideline.
Believing that the Word of God is still the tool of the evangelist, that “Word of God assured and insured” as Dr. Hyman Appelman used to say,4 I call attention to Romans 1:5, which Dr. Mc Gavran has called “The Great Commission as given to Paul.”5 “Through him we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nations.” Three elements are immediately evident in Paul’s great commission: namely, the supreme task, the supreme test, and the supreme triumph.
The Supreme Task
The text is found in the epistle that “was written by a slave to saints about the Savior.”6 Written from Corinth around A.D. 56, Romans was addressed to men and women living in the world’s metropolis. Paul, however, was not particularly impressed by the Roman Empire or Emperor, because he was the commissioned messenger of a Divine Empire and Emperor! His apostleship had come to him from none other than Jesus Christ, his Lord. So that it was not by his own commission or commissioning that he did his work.
From that same Divine source we must receive our call and our commission to work for the Lord. We must be sent if we would serve! And Paul does not hesitate to use the pronoun “we.” He says that “we” have received grace and apostleship. We includes all who have truly been born again. And all who have been born again have received double divine equipment.
We have received grace. The definition of grace as “unmerited favor” fits in well with the exalted character of the office to which we have been appointed. However, Calvin, in his commentary on the text, regards this grace as more specific than the love and mercy of God by which we are saved. This is the gift of grace given for the exercise of a specific function or office.7
We have also received an “apostleship.” It may differ in degree but not in kind from the apostleship that was given by God to Paul.
And that is what has made evangelism our lifeline and not a sideline. Our lifeline is the grace of God. Every Christian has an apostleship through the grace of God. “Our mission in this world must be what Cod desires. It is not a man-initiated activity.”8 God remains Sovereignly in charge by first giving the grace and the apostleship as absolute qualifications for any Christian witness. As Scripture says: “How shall they preach, unless they be sent?” In John 20:21 we are told that as the Father sent the Son, even so our Lord sends us to do Him service. So, you see, we are witnesses first by our person and our presence, and only secondarily by our performance and proclamation. Dr. Samuel Shoemaker, who was for many years rector of the Calvary Episcopal Church of New York City, and author of several famous books, has written in his work, With Tile Holy Spirit And With Fire: “The Evangelist is primarily an obstetrician. He is concerned with birth, ‘new birth.’”9 I like that. But we cannot be obstetricians or midwives unless and until the grace of God has softened our hardened hearts and we have been made “channels of His grace.” One of the more recent hymns reminds us:
“How I praise Thee, precious Savior, that Thy love laid hold of me; Thou hast saved and cleansed and filled me, that I might Thy channel be. Channels only, Blessed Master! But with all Thy wondrous power Flowing through us, Thou canst use us, every day and every hour.”
The Supreme Test
We, however, who have received both the task and the Divine equipment, stand secondly, before a supreme test. J. B. Phillips casts the next words of the verse we are considering (Romans 1:5) into the language of the test: “From whom we received grace and our commission in his name to forward obedience to the faith . . .”10 God had a purpose in making us channels of His grace, and that purpose is to forward obedience to the Lord among all men. Christ, in other words, has a yoke to be borne and a cross to be carried. And, therefore, Paul does not hesitate to speak of authentic Christianity in terms of obedience, surrender, and submission. Beyond everything else, this is the very reason of our existence, namely, to bring men everywhere into line with obedience to the faith in our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. As Dr. D. T. Niles of India is reported to have said: “Evangelism is one beggar telling another where to get bread.”11
Do we pass or fail the test? What is our personal record? What is the record of our home? our congregation? our denomination? I hear, what I think you too grow weary of hearing, and that is talk of missions and evangelism as if they were adjuncts or appendages of our Christian life and of that of our church life. For too many, evangelism is what Billy Graham does. The notion is abroad that mission activity is optional . . . a sideline to be supported by those “who are interested in that sort of thing.” When in reality evangelism is the heartbeat of the church! As Emil Brunner said: “The church exists by mission as fire exists by burning.” From 1555 to 1566, eleven crucial years in that Reformation era, John Calvin personally trained 121 evangelists, and having trained them dispatched them from Geneva to France. In their first four years in France these 121 pioneer evangelists were used of the Lord to found 2000 new French-Calvinist congregations.12
Our Savior desiring the salvation of the lost, puts the test of obedience before us as surely as our first parents were confronted with the test of obedience in the garden of paradise. Their record was one of failure. What of your record and mine? His command and His commission, not only to the Apostle Paul long ago, but to everyone who names the name of Jesus Christ, is to come, to obey, and to go! And we are to do more than just go—more than just watch more than just search, etc. The Good Shepherd wants His lost sheep and lambs found.13 That is just the point of the three parables He has given us—the shepherd found his lost sheep; the woman her coin; and the father his son. He demands faithfulness in finding, folding, and following.
Many years ago the students of Dr. Charles Spurgeon were engaged in a discussion of the question; what is the condition of the lost who never heard the Gospel? those who have died before the missionary reached them with the Gospel? One of the students asked Spurgeon himself for his personal opinion, “whether he thought the heathen who had never heard the Gospel would be saved?” Spurgeon is reported to have answered: “It is more of a question with me, whether we, who have the Gospel, and fail to give it to those who do not have it, can be saved.”14
The Supreme Triumph
The results of the test will come in one day in that hour of supreme triumph. Until then the world is our parish, as John Wesley is said to have claimed. Paul wrote, “Among all the nations for His name’s sake.” “ALL NATIONS!” Think of it, no less than all nations are included Or comprehended within God’s electing decree and our commissioning. God may have limited His work in that Old Testament age to one nation and to one people but in this New Testament age the sphere and range of His grace are universal. Paul envisions the church on its knees before God in intercession, and on its feet in witnessing, in order that many from the ends of the earth may be brought to the feet of the Lord Jesus Christ, and to salvation through His name.15
What an hour of triumph that will be! When the army of the saved comes man:hing from their graves and all shall bow before the King of kings! The challenge is, therefore, before us! Are we prepared and ready to meet it? Do you remember the story the Norwegians tell of two small children who lived along Norway’s rugged coast line? They were children of the village lighthouse keeper. One day their parents went ashore in a small boat to bring back supplies. They left their twelve-year old son and their ten-year old daughter by themselves, promising to return before dark Something happened to detain the parents and deep dusk fell. Johan said to his sister: “We’ve got to get the light burning or father and mother will never get back.” So the two of them went up into the lighthouse tower but found that they were unable to get the big lamp going. Knowing that they had to get some kind of a light into the tower they took a small kerosene lamp and tried to place it in the window where it would show above the huge swells that were rolling in from the sea. But neither of them was tall enough to reach the window, even when they stood on the only chair in the tower. Finally, Johan got on his hands and knees on the chair and instructed his sister to climb on his back and see if by standing there she could get the lamp in place. Sure enough, she could get the lamp to the window, but there was no ledge there upon which to place it. It had to be held in her small hands! “Am I hurting you much?” she asked her brother. “Not much! Just keep the lamp in the window!” he told her. So she tried as hard as she could to keep her position, changing her hands occasionally to rest her very tired arms, even though she knew that Johan was suffering beneath her feet. Finally, they heard a welcome hail from their father and knew that their parents had found their way home through the darkness, guided by their lamp.16
Dare we do less?
“Shall we whose souls are lighted
With wisdom from on high,
Shall we to men benighted,
The lamp of life deny?”
1. D. Mc Gavran, Understanding Church Growth, Wm. B. Eerdmans Co., 1970, pg. 87.
2. Ibid., pg. 88.
3. Ibid., pg. 88.
4. H. Appelman, Treasury of Great Gospel Sermons, Vol. II, Baker Book House, 1949, pg. 11.
5. D. Mc Gavran, op. cit., pg. 62.
6. D.G. Barnhouse, Exposition of Bible Doctrines, Vol. I, Man’s Ruin, Wm. B. Eerdmans Co., 1952, pg. 71.
7. J. Murray, The Epistle to the Romans, Vol. I, Wm. B. Eerdmans Co., 1959, pg. 13.
8. D. Mc Gavran, op. cit., pg. 31.
9. S. Shoemaker, With the Holy Spirit and with Fire, Word, Waco, Texas, 1960, pg. 68.
10. J.B. Phillips, The New Testament in Four Versions, Christianity Today, 1963, pg. 451.
11. S. Shoemaker, op. cit., pg. 69.
12. S.H. Moffett, “What Is Evangelism?”, Christianity Today, Vol. XIII, August 22, 1969, pg. 2.
13. Mc Gavran, op. cit., pg. 15.
14. S. Shoemaker, op. cit., pg. 74.
15. H. Appelman, op. cit., pg. 14.
16. G.F. Allee, Evangelistic Illustrations, Moody Press, 1961, pg. 391.
Garrett H. Stoutmeyer, pastor of the Christian Reformed Church of Elmhurst, Illinois, delivered this article as an address at the 45th Annual Evangelism Conference of the Christian Reformed Church at Green Lake, Wisconsin. The topic was the conference theme.