Evangelism: Dying Men Preaching in Love to Dying Men for God’s Glory

Richard Baxter famously wrote: “I preached as never sure to preach again, and as a dying man to dying men.”[1] God has given the great privilege and work of evangelism to the church, which it has carried out since its inception. The first six chapters of Acts illustrate this quite strikingly. Not only does Luke explicitly report four gospel presentations to unbelievers in the first six chapters (Acts 2:14–41; 3:11–26; 4:8–12; 5:29–32), but we read formulas that point to ongoing evangelism like:

 

And with many other words he bore witness and continued to exhort them, saying, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation.” So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls (Acts 2:40–41).

 

And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved (Acts 2:47).

 

But many of those who had heard the word believed, and the number of the men came to about five thousand (Acts 4:4).

 

And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness (Acts 4:31).

 

Now many signs and wonders were regularly done among the people by the hands of the apostles (Acts 5:12) (The Holy Spirit bears witness to the gospel through signs and wonders. Therefore, Signs and wonders in Acts go hand-in-hand with gospel proclamation. Cf. Acts 2:22; 5:32; 14:3).

 

And more than ever believers were added to the Lord, multitudes of both men and women (Acts 5:14).

 

And every day, in the temple and from house to house, they did not cease teaching and preaching that the Christ is Jesus (Acts 5:42).

 

And the word of God continued to increase, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests became obedient to the faith (Acts 6:7).

 

Evangelism is and has always been the work of the church. But, is there a way to go about this great work of evangelism in a wrongly? Is there a way in which we preach the gospel not as dying men and women to dying men and women for God’s glory?

 

The Right and Wrong Way to Evangelize from Paul and Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Paul says in Philippians 1:18, “What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth Christ is proclaimed, and in that I rejoice.” Does this mean that the ends justify the means when it comes to evangelism? Not really. When Paul rejoices that Christ is preached even when the motive of that preaching is envy and rivalry (Philippians 1:15), this is a testament to his utter dearth of selfish ambition when it comes to gospel proclamation, not an approval of motive or how to go about it. Rather, Paul himself here offers us an the right example to follow when it comes to evangelism. For Paul, evangelism is not about himself or his influence. It is about loving and glorifying God in Christ and loving the lost at the expense of oneself.

It must’ve been in this same spirit that the great Welsh pastor (and in many ways evangelist) of Wales and England Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899–1981) (ML-J) offered these five principles for evangelism at a conference in England in 1942:

 

  1. The supreme object of this work is to glorify God…The first object of preaching the Gospel is not to save souls…Nothing else however good in itself, or however noble, must be allowed to usurp that first place.
  2. The only power that can really do this work is that of the Holy Spirit…
  3. The one and only medium through which the Holy Spirit works is the Word of God…The medium which is used by the Holy Spirit is the truth.
  4. The true urge to evanglization must come from apprehending these principles and, therefore, of a zeal for the honour and glory of God, and a love for the souls of men.
  5. There is a constant danger of error, and of heresy, even amongst the most sincere, and also the danger of a false zeal and the employment of unscriptural methods.[2]

 

ML-J’s fifth principle here makes clear the assumption of the biblical foundation of the first four. Therefore, this affords us a helpful exercise. If the first four principles define biblical evangelism, then the opposite of each should help us define unbiblical evangelism. So let’s rewrite the first four principles as the photo-negative version of themselves:

 

  1. The supreme object of this work is to glorify man…The first object of preaching the Gospel is to save souls…
  2. The only power that can really do this work is that of man and his innovation…
  3. The only mediums through which the Holy Spirit works is man’s personality, celebrity, clever words, and persuasive rhetoric.
  4. The true urge to evangelization must come from apprehending these principles and, therefore, of a zeal for the honor and glory of man and a love for self.

 

These principles define an evangelism that will err—stumble headlong into heresy, produce a false, manufactured and manipulated zeal, and employ unscriptural methods. Such evangelism is not the work of dying men seeking to rescue dying men and bring them to God for his glory and influence. This is the work of dying men seeking to rescue dying men and collect them for their own glory and influence. This type of evangelism is evangelism of self-love. But true evangelism is not about self. It is about loving God and loving the souls of lost men even at the expense of oneself.

 

Jesus: The Supreme Evangelist
Jesus is the supreme model for evangelism. In Jesus we see every principle that ML-J articulated. Jesus came evangelizing: “Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel’ (Mark 1:14–15). And what Jesus called lost men to, he fulfilled in love for men and for God’s glory: “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:12–13); “For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God” (1 Peter 3:18). Jesus suffered and died to bring lost souls, whom he loves, to God for God’s glory. Jesus, the living Word, the man of the Spirit, gave his life for the glory of God and in love for the lost. Jesus was the epitome of a dying man bringing the gospel to dying men in love for the glory of God.

 

A Call to Evangelize
Let us be like the founder of our faith. Let us continue his great evangelistic work that he passed on to the church, who has continued to pass on this great work down through the centuries ultimately to you and me. Let us “do the work of an evangelist” and so “fulfill (our) ministry” (2 Timothy 4:5). Let us not evangelize for man’s glory and for love of self, but for God’s glory and for love of the lost. Let us “preach as a dying man to dying men.”

 

[1] Baxter’s Poetical Fragments (1st ed.; 1681), p.40, lines 7-8.

[2] Iain H. Murray, D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones: The Fight of Faith 1939–1981 (Carlisle, PA: Banner of Truth Trust, 2016), 2:90.

What Changed at Pentecost? Part 1

Acts 2 describes the events of the day of Pentecost. Before the day ended, God had saved 3,000 people. But if God saved 5,000 people tomorrow, Pentecost would still be a far more important day.

Why? Why should we consider Pentecost to be one of the most important days in the history of the world?

Most Christians would answer: Pentecost is important because on that day the Holy Spirit came. But we know the Holy Spirit was active prior to this day. So what changed? And why is this change so important?

Let’s look at this by, first, considering how the relationship of the Holy Spirit to believers is the same before and after Pentecost. Next week we’ll consider how that relationship changes on this momentous day.

How is the relationship of the Spirit to Believers Similar Before and After Pentecost?

Five ways:

1) The Spirit gives life to those who believe

This statement is true of all believers of all time

Consider Ephesians 2:1-5, one of the most important biblical passages describing salvation:

You were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience– among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.  (Ephesians 2:1-3)

Paul makes clear that he is not speaking only about the readers of this letter, for he says we are by nature objects of God’s wrath. That is, God, as the moral authority of the universe, must mete out punishment in response to our sinful nature, not only our sinful deeds. And since this holds “for the rest of mankind,” this is true of all men everywhere at all times since the Fall. No one is able do anything on his own to change his being under God’s wrath.

But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ. (Ephesians 2:4-5)

“But God!” Only He could change our condition. He makes us alive; He enables us to believe; He cuts through the blinding fog so that we might see Him.

There has never been anyone saved by any means other than by God’s grace through faith. This is true before Pentecost and after Pentecost: The Spirit gives life to those who believe.

2) The Spirit gives love for the character of God, and thus for His Law

The Law is a reflection of the character of God, helping us to know Who He is. So the one who loves God must love His Law.

This is one of the New Covenant promises in Jeremiah 31: That His people will have His Law written on their hearts. There will be an inner change, not only external obedience to rules.

But while Jeremiah 31 is not fulfilled until after Pentecost, there are those in the Old Testament who have a similar inner change – who have the Law on their hearts, who love God’s Law. Consider the following verses:

  • Isaiah 51:7 Listen to me, you who know righteousness, the people in whose heart is my law.
  • Psalm 119:97  Oh how I love your law! It is my meditation all the day.
  • Psalm 119:18-19   Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law. I am a sojourner on the earth; hide not your commandments from me!

Note that in Psalm 119:18-19, the psalmist acknowledges that this love for God’s Law is God-given.

So before and after Pentecost, God engenders love for His character, for His Law, in the hearts of people.

3) The Spirit is constantly with those who believe

This is clearly true after Pentecost, as it is another of the New Covenant promises contained in Ezekiel 36:27: “I will put my Spirit within you.”

But hear what David says:

Psalm 139:7-10  Where shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence? If I ascend to heaven, you are there! If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there! If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me.

David is not only saying, “God is everywhere.” He is also saying, “No matter where I go – even if I am being rebellious, trying to flee from You – You are with me, leading me, holding me.”

So the Spirit’s presence with believers was real before and after Pentecost.

4) The Spirit enables obedience in those who believe

Again this is obviously true after Pentecost; it is the Spirit that bears the fruit of love, joy, and peace in believers (Galatians 5:22-23). And Ezekiel had prophesied that God would “cause you to walk in my statutes” (Ezekiel 36:27).

But before Pentecost, David says, ‘He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake” (Psalm 23:8)

Or as the author of Psalm 119 writes:

Make me walk in the path of Your commandments, For I delight in it. Incline my heart to Your testimonies And not to dishonest gain. Turn away my eyes from looking at vanity, And revive me in Your ways. (Psalm 119:35-37 NAS)

The Spirit enabled obedience in believers before and after Pentecost.

5) The Spirit enables perseverance in those who believe

Once again, this is clear after Pentecost; 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24 and many other passages teach this truth.

But consider the perseverance in faith of Old Testament characters. We have already seen from Ephesians 2 that faith is a gift of God. In Hebrews 11, the author lists many Old Testament characters who display extraordinary faith. After summarizing the difficulties they endured, he concludes:

Destitute, persecuted and mistreated– the world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, and in caves and holes in the ground. These were all commended for their faith (Hebrews 11:37b-39a)

This is extraordinary perseverance. And it is the result of Spirit-given faith.

The Spirit has always been at work. No one would ever believe, ever obey, ever persevere apart from the Spirit. As Jesus says in John 15:5, “Apart from me you can do nothing.” He was speaking to his disciples, using present tense, before Pentecost. And His statement is therefore true of all men, of all times.

Next week: How then does the relationship of the Spirit to believers change after Pentecost?

[This is an edited, shortened excerpt from the sermon ”What Changed at Pentecost?” preached 10/19/08. The audio is available here. The two previous sermons on Acts 2, “The Promise of the Father” and “The Crucified is Both Lord and Christ” are also relevant. John Piper’s sermon “How Believers Experienced the Spirit Before Pentecost” is another helpful resource on this topic.]

Be Very Diligent to Love God

Jesus tells us the first and greatest commandment is to love the Lord our God with all our being (Matthew 22:38). Joshua 23:11 tells us this is neither natural nor easy:

Be very careful, therefore, to love the LORD your God. (ESV)
So be very diligent to love the LORD your God for your own well-being. (HCSB)

Though God has given to all mankind “life and breath and everything” (Acts 17:25), though, having given His Son on the cross, He surely will give His people all things (Romans 8:32), and though nothing will separate His people from His love (Romans 8:35-39), our love for Him comes and goes. In difficult times we are tempted to blame Him for our problems; in good times, we are tempted to ignore Him, to think and act as if we don’t need Him – like a teen who ignores the loving parents who feed him, clothe him, educate him, and pour out their lives for him.

Even when we know the Gospel and in our minds agree that we ought to love God, we often effectively slip into a pagan religion. While we would never be this blunt, our attitudes and actions can communicate: “I’ll attend church and small group, give money, read the Bible, help the poor, and speak the Gospel to others – then, God, how will you hold up Your side of the bargain?”

So Joshua speaks to us: “Be very diligent to love the Lord your God! Be very careful about this!” That is: “Don’t fall into such temptations! And don’t expect loving God to be easy – love is never easy! Work hard at it! Keep working at it day by day, week by week, year by year.”

One aspect of such diligence is to examine your heart – particularly when engaged in an activity you consider religious. Are you expressing and deepening joy in God, in Jesus? Or are you simply going through the motions?

But as important as the examination is your response when you fail! When you see yourself engaging in such perfunctory obedience, don’t fall for the lie, “If I can’t do this with the right attitude, I should just stop!” Instead, confess that lack of love to God (and possibly to other believers around you), ask God to incline your heart to Him – and continue in the task. Often, our Lord will give you a right heart as you persevere in that task.

For example, in the mid-1990s, our church in Massachusetts held two or three services every Sunday afternoon in the nursing homes in our town. If I had preached Sunday morning, everything in me wanted to go home, relax, and play with my kids. My heart was not right. I was not loving the Lord or acting out of that love. But when I went to the nursing home (often bringing children with me), prayed for a right heart, and opened up the Word, virtually every time God gave me love for Him and joy in Him along the way.

So be diligent to love the Lord your God! Fight the good fight to love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength.