DO THE WORK OF AN EVANGELIST

                                II Timothy 4: 4-5 
"And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall
     be turned to fables.  But watch thou in all things, endure 
   afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of 
     thy ministry..."
    
  "Wherefore He saith, when He ascended on high, He led cap-
       tivity captive, and gave gifts to men."
     "And he gave some, apostles, and some prophets, and some
  evangelists; and some pastors and teachers." 
     "Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth,
  but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may mini-
  ster grace unto the hearers."
                                                         Ephesians 4: 8,11,29, kjv 

       As much as I believe that every follower of Jesus Christ 
     is given a mandate to communicate the "Gospel of Jesus 
     Christ" from God's Word as he/she has opportunity, it is
     not  everyone's  principle  occupation.  It does, however; 
     remain a blessing to the one who hears and believes this
     message.  There are benefits to  the one who, through an
    in depth study of God's Word is able to effectively present
     the claims of Christ to every individual with whom there
     is opportunity, whether it is a principle occupation, or a
     response to the call of the Spirit of Jesus Christ. The call,
     I believe, is on every follower of our Lord.  From John 3:
     5, Jesus says, "Verily  I say  unto thee, 'Except a  man be
     born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God."  Then in
     verse 6, He says; "Verily, verily, I say  unto thee, 'Except
     a man be  born of water  and of  the Spirit, he cannot see 
     the Kingdom of God..."  In order to follow Christ, in His
     kingdom, one must be born of  the Spirit of  Jesus Christ,
     Since Jesus Christ is "God of very God." 

     What then, is the "work of an evangelist"?  When we think
of evangelist, the word "fervor" comes to mind, as in "evange-
listic fervor." There are times when our Lord puts someone on
our hearts, one at a time, and this concern compels one to pre-
sent the Gospel of Jesus Christ to that one.  He may also put a
number or group of persons on our hearts and we are compel-
led  to share our witness with that group.  (The witness would 
be the experience we have of following Christ,  by faith in  his 
Word.)  
 
       The benefit to the one who is willing to follow God's call
     to "evangelize" may be;  the calm assurance of the Lord's
     presence in his life.  There is another similar,  but distinct
     blessing to the one who becomes effective in this work and
     communicates this gospel.  He is given opportunity to con-
     fess "his" faith in our Lord and that according to Romans
     10: 9-10,  this is that  which  affirms one's  faith in Christ,
     more specifically his salvation.  If, in every instance I bear
     witness  to my  belief in  the name of  Jesus Christ,  the act 
     reiterates my faith in Him, and there is little room for any
     doubt of my salvation.  Since doubts and fears are the ene-
     mies of  the follower of Jesus Christ; removing them gives
     believers an invaluable confidence required in the commu-
     nication of his faith,and a life well pleasing to God. When
     doubt and fear are constants in life, we are rendered inef-
     fective, powerless, and frustrated in our walk with Christ. 

     There is also the Word of our Lord in John 4: 34-38, "My
     meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his
        work.  Say not ye, 'there at yet four months, and then  
    cometh harvest?'  behold, I say unto you, 'Lift up your eyes,
and look on the fields; for they are white, already to harvest.
And he that reapeth receiveth wages, and gathereth fruit unto
   life eternal that both he that soweth and he that reapeth may
rejoice together.  And herein is that saying true, 'One soweth,
   and another reapeth.'  I sent you to reap that wereon ye
bestowed no labour:  other men laboured, and ye are entered
into their labours.   (Our Lord does not call "lone wolf evan-
gelist" or followers. He requires us to be part of a community
of believers through the local church.  But you must find one
whose congregants and leadership believe the inerrant, infal-
lable Word of God is their source to salvation in Jesus Christ,
and teach that Word as from the Lord.) 

     So, every follower of Jesus Christ is to communicate the
Gospel of Christ with those to whom the Spirit directs.   

  "God is Spirit, and those who worship him must worship
    him in Spirit and truth."  John 4: 24  nkjv

God bless and thanks for looking, donporter,sr...11.06.17
edited 11.25.17...