$^*%!(cuss word) Evangelism
$^*%!(cuss word). Evangelism in many circles has become a cuss word. This is because people are either tired of being judged and beaten over the head with how sinful they are and need repentance or because people realized that many of the tactics of evangelism that emerged in the 20th century simply cause harm and push people further away from the grace-filled relationship that is found in Jesus. Unfortunately, I was taught many of the manipulative tactics to beat people into submitting to a relationship with God. Yet, I am still convinced that we are called to be evangelists. I think we became too concerned with the transformation of a relationship with God being up to us and cutting God out of the equation of salvation and transformation together. Sadly, we have usurped God again and tried to take something that is empowered solely by God in the movement of the Holy Spirit and relied solely on our intellect, talents, and skills. To be an evangelist is simply the bearer or bringer of good news. It is God who is working through prevenient grace that moves someone to a relationship with the divine. The grace of God is not something that we control or can wield at our command but simply a gift that is freely given by God to everyone. Sometimes, we just have the privilege and opportunity of God using us for someone to experience God's wonderful grace.
As we find ourselves in March, I am reminded of the amazing evangelism and ministry of Saint Patrick and his team among the Celts of Ireland. Patrick and his team of missionaries understood that God moved in one's life and brought about true transformation, so they developed a methodology that allowed time and space for individuals and communities alike to experience and become aware of the prevenient grace of God. They allowed themselves to be vessels of the good news of God and tools to be used by the Holy Spirit. In his book, The Celtic Way of Evangelism, George Hunter brings this model out and demonstrates how churches within our modern context might be able to learn from this method that he calls the Celtic way of evangelism. Hunter describes how Patrick and his team would move into tribal communities of Celts. They would begin to just simply live as Christ called them to as people who are wholly and set apart, moving towards being perfected in Christ through sanctification.
As Patrick and his team settled into the community, they loved people by sharing their lives with them and inviting them into personal friendships and relationships. Eventually, as the Celtic people realized that there was something different yet beautifully wonderful about these Christians, they would move from being outsiders to being invited inside the Christian community. Through this invitation, the community would attend worship services, Bible studies, prayer meetings, and table fellowship. They simply were invited to belong. Over time, as they developed individual and communal friendships, they were invited into the transformation process, where they merely became aware of the prevenient grace within their lives and the need for God's saving grace. Through these three invitations, 1) to be friends, 2) to be a part of a community, and 3) to enter into a relationship with God, each invitation allowed sustainable and real Christian transformation. The focus of the transformation was not up to the evangelists and their ability to debate, convince, and persuade but up to the transforming power of the Holy Spirit moving and working within the beautiful gift of prevenient grace.
As we journey through March together, I hope we can redeem evangelism and not understand it as a “cuss word” or something to fear. I hope that we can be confident enough that God is at work in this world and is the one who is bringing about transformation by God's power, not by ours. Moreover, I hope that we are willing to be images of God's peace, love, and grace in an age of polarization, disconnectedness, and lack of trust.