Reasons to Evangelize the World; not the Church
1. It is the command of Christ. "Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature." (Mark 16:15).
The adversary will use any means to bring the world into the church.
2. It is the example of the apostles. Every gospel message in the book of Acts was preached in the world. Not one was preached in the church. If
you wish to see how the apostles addressed the church, read the letters they wrote to them. Interesting that although some of the churches
had carnal Christians in them (I Cor. 3:1), the terms used to describe the recipients of every letter are consistently ideals; saints, holy, beloved,
elect, faithful etc. Not once does any apostle say anything like: "If there should be one lost person reading this letter........"
3. It maintains a clear distinction between the church and the world. ".....they are not of the world even as I am not of the world." (John 17:14).
4. It allows the church to attend to family matters when gathered. These items are listed in Acts 2:42. The student ought to ponder these 4 items and
ask himself which of these 4 things in which the early believers continued steadfastly was for lost people. None!
5. It allows the church to become a place where disciples are equipped and then sent out. (Eph 4:11,12). Note that even the evangelist has a
responsibility to use his gift for "the equipping of the saints....." How rarely does one see an evangelist spend time in the local church equipping
the believers to be better witnesses so that when he departs, they can carry on the work of spreading the good news!
6. It helps to prevent pride. There is something in every heart that will congratulate itself on being one of the chosen while hoping that those
visitors will listen carefully as they are outside. For a clear and pointed illustration of this, see a personal note.
7. It encourages the development of faithful witnesses. The flesh is lazy. Much easier to leave the proclamation of the gospel to those who are
trained or in full time Christian work. The adversary is quick to suggest: "You would feel terrible if you said the wrong thing and turned this
person away from the Lord rather than winning him. Much better to invite him to the meeting and let the evangelist handle it." How many
saints go on year after year ill equipped and afraid to lead a friend or neighbor to Christ. Don't believe it? Take a survey where you
fellowship and see what a small percent of the people are actually winning the souls. For an illustration of this see this personal account.