Because evangelism isn’t enough

A church works hard in making visitors welcome in their meetings, ensuring that the gospel is preached faithfully and engagingly and putting on events and programmes to give everyone an opportunity to hear the gospel of Christ.

And yet, despite the prayers of many and the faithful witness it is harder than ever to get people into our buildings. Maybe evangelism isn’t enough? Are we really being all things to all people if all we offer are our services in our buildings in our language on our terms?

A growing number of churches are looking for ways to reach outside the church.  Whether we prefer the name ‘missional church’, ‘fresh expressions’, or anything else the goal is to take the gospel to those who don’t do church or at least wouldn’t get church doing it in the way we’ve always done it.

At New Word Alive 2011 I’m heading up a track called ‘Reaching outside the church’ and our aim is to think creatively about how we do exactly that – reach the majority of the British population who are asking no spiritual questions and see no relevance to the church and the message of the gospel to their lives.

So here are 8 questions and reflections to help us assess whether our church thinks evangelism is enough;

1. Are we about evangelism or mission in our church life? Evangelism is about bringing in. Mission is about going out.

2. Do we think we’ve done our job as a witnessing community if we have offered evangelism training and are putting on evangelistic programmes? If we run a mission week or leaflet drop the local houses?

3. Do we think it’s the fault of the unbeliever if he doesn’t come to our events or do we feel that the responsibility lies with us, at least in part, to think of new ways to get the gospel out.

4. Do we seek to identify individuals in our churches who are gifted evangelists & missionaries to our own communities?  Are we willing to let this work be their main ministry. Do we seek to train them and to send them into our neighbourhoods and communities?

5. Are we ready to orientate ministries of the church around new ideas for outreach? For example meetings in different locations to reach different people?

6. Do we give people permission and positive encouragement to develop ministries and outreach strategies that reach outside the church.

7. Have we even identified those people  in our communities who are as yet not reaching with hte gospel. Do we know what makes them tick, what they think of church, what might be the most effective way of reaching them?

8. Do we look to other churches for ideas, information, training in reaching outside the church. Are we ready to make time to think this through.

Perhaps its time to move from evangelistic programmes to missional communities