Table of Contents

The Office of the Evangelist

By Wade I. Goodall

Angels cannot preach the gospel; only beings such as Paul, you, and I can preach the gospel.¹

When God created the church of Jesus Christ, He also determined how He would nourish it. He "gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ" (Ephesians 4:11–13, emphasis mine).

This issue of Enrichment focuses on the office of the evangelist. These wonderful, gifted people are critical to our churches, for our Creator knew what the church would need to bring it into balance and maturity. I have often thought about what kinds of tools or helps could be found to pastor more effectively. All of us have attended ministers' seminars and conferences, read the latest books, and sought out clues from how other successful pastors are doing their work. All this is good, but sometimes we miss some of the perfect advice given in the Scriptures: using the gifts God has given to the Church.

One of these gifts is the gift of the evangelist. Like pastors, evangelists are unique gifts to congregations. We need to utilize every tool God has created to make our churches work effectively. We are a team with various players doing their jobs. All the team members have the same goals in mind; namely, to help the lost come to Christ and to help the found come to maturity in Christ.

Undoubtedly the church that works with an evangelist in precrusade or single-meeting preparation will have better results when the evangelist leaves town. Many evangelists have brochures or programs that advise how to invite a non-Christian to the meetings, how to pray for the services, and how to follow up effectively on those who were saved, baptized in the Holy Spirit, or ministered to in other ways. The preservice preparation and the follow-up work together to help assimilate the new Christian or visitor into the congregation.

Selecting the right evangelist for your church is another important factor. For example, if you need a children's evangelist, some evangelists specialize in communicating with children. If you need an evangelist who will speak in a multiple-service crusade, other evangelists primarily do that. If you are sensing that the church needs messages on eschatology, faith, repentance, etc., evangelists are available who have unique abilities to communicate in one or more of these areas. Jimmy Davis, national evangelists representative, has provided a booklet with the names, addresses, and specialties of Assemblies of God evangelists. Looking through this enclosure will give you a sense of the different gifts these leaders have.

If your church has not utilized the gift of the evangelist, may I suggest that you do? Pray and think carefully about the results you would like to see. Ask other pastors, friends, or the district officers about evangelists they would recommend. Speak to your congregation about the need for utilizing the gift of the evangelist and what you are praying about concerning the upcoming special meeting/crusade. God will bless you and the congregation.

Evangelists focus on evangelism and messages that will stir up faith. They have a God-given, unique passion for those without Christ. They sometimes see things pastors do not see—people in your community whom you might have overlooked or forgotten. They hear a heart's cry that busyness and other voices possibly have shut out. They sense negative attitudes in your church that, because of weariness, you might have learned to live with, and they challenge you to get stirred up and fight for the faith that perhaps has grown lukewarm with many of your members.

One evangelist said, "While women weep, as they do now, I'll fight; while little children go hungry, I'll fight; while there is a drunkard left, while there is a poor lost girl upon the streets, where there remains one dark soul without the light of God—I'll fight! I'll fight to the very end!²

Evangelist, thank you, thank you for fighting for us.

ENDNOTES

1. Oswald Chambers, quoted in Edythe Draper's Book of Quotations for the Christian World, (Wheaton, Ill.: Tyndale, 1992), 181.

2. General William Booth, quoted in George Sweeting's Great Quotes and Illustrations, (Dallas, Tex.: Word, 1985), 107.