Yeshua, before His ascension, left His disciples the mandate to preach the Gospel to everyone (Mark 16:15; Matthew 28:18). From Luke’s account of the early church’s events in Acts, we see how they went from place to place, fulfilling that commission. The first four chapters of Acts recounts how the disciples’ outreach in Jerusalem alone had produced up to 8,000 converts (Acts 2:41; Acts 4:4). Praise God for such a great harvest of souls! Personally, I believe we (individuals and creative media ministries like ours) can have the same results in Israel today.
Christianity’s best days are not in the past. In fact, God’s Word says the glory of the latter days shall surpass the former. We can actually trust God for more souls to be won in our time. If I guessed right, you’re probably thinking, How possible could that be? Well, as Luke 18:27 says, some things are genuinely impossible with men, and maybe this is one of them. But with God, the Bible says ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE!
In this article, I will be sharing a few thoughts on how we can reach everyone in Israel with the good news. May the Lord grant you understanding as we look through His Word.
1. See the Great Commission as Your God-given Mandate on Earth
Generally, being effective in evangelism starts with seeing the Great Commission as your God-given responsibility. Serving the Lord over the past few decades in Jewish evangelism ministries, I’ve heard believers say the job of evangelizing is for a selected few. I used to feel the same at one time too. But growing in my faith, I discovered that God’s Word says otherwise.
In Paul’s second letter to the church at Corinth, he said every believer has a God-given ministry to witness the reconciliation that God wrought through Yeshua (II Corinthians 5:18-20). Evangelism is a personal God-given ministry.
Thank God for churches that have incorporated evangelistic outreaches into their regular activities. But you see, whether or not you belong to the evangelism team in your local church, God has called you to preach the Gospel.
Your perception of evangelism is going to influence your level of commitment to reaching the lost sheep of Israel. God is willing to bless all our efforts in Israel – both our public outreaches and digital labors in great commission media ministries. However, we need first to see soulwinning as a heavenly mandate for us personally.
2. Be Consistent in Your Outreach Efforts
As the saying goes, consistency is key to success. Studying the Bible, I’ve discovered that the same principle applies to spiritual matters. But let’s face facts: it is not always easy to stay consistent in evangelism. With the kind of strong objection to the Gospel common with Jewish people today, Israeli evangelism is even more challenging.
Personally, I strongly believe that many unfavorable happenings are orchestrated by the Devil to frustrate our evangelistic efforts. Over the years, he’s been inspiring many of those oppositions in creative media ministries also. But God is with us, to give us creative ideas to overcome any and every opposition we face.
God’s love can help us get over all of the negativity that comes along. We should be motivated by II Corinthians 5:14. In the face of adverse opposition and rejection, only God’s love can inspire us to keep preaching the Gospel.
If we are going to be consistent with evangelizing the lost, God’s love must be our motivation. We have a blog on how to be inspired by God’s love in evangelism. You can read it here.
3. Never Rely on Your Eloquence
And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God. (II Corinthians 2:4-5)
Being eloquent and persuasive is important in evangelism. However, we must never get into thinking that is all we need to turn men to get men saved. It is the Holy Spirit alone who can change men’s hearts. Reviewing the activities of our ministry and other creative media ministries over the years, I discovered the more we trust God, the more effective we are in evangelizing the lost.
1. Believe God for Utterance and Boldness
In relying on the power of the Holy Spirit to persuade people, we must learn to trust God for utterance and boldness. Even if you know what to preach, trust God to lead you tothe right expressions, illustrations, and approaches. More importantly, believe Him to grant you boldness to share your faith (Ephesians 6:18-19).
2. Never Leave Out Prayer
Regardless of the means you use to share the Gospel, never leave out prayer (Acts 6:4). There is this temptation that comes with trivializing prayer, especially when you share the Gospel over the internet. Whether you go out inpublic evangelism or share digital resources like Israel music videos, devote quality time for heartfelt and continuous prayer (Ephesians 6:18-19; James 5:16).
Final Thoughts
The harvest is ripe in Israel, and above are five things we can do to reach everyone with the news of God’s saving grace. But beyond these five points we’ve discussed, ensure you are not acting as a barrier to the growth of the Gospel. If you don’t mind, I recommend reading this article as a follow-up – Don’t be a barrier to spreading the Gospel. Educate your mind and accept your call. The Holy Spirit will guide you to become a powerful evangelist!