Understanding the Role You Play in Evangelism
By Clarence L. Haynes Jr.
“When he comes, he will prove the world to be in the wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment. “- John 16:8
I grew up in NYC, and the doorbell would ring on a typical Saturday morning. When I looked to see who it was, I thought there would be someone from the local Kingdom Hall wanting to offer me the latest edition of The Watchtower magazine. You may know I am talking about Jehovah’s Witnesses. Many people used to get annoyed when they rang their doorbell, but I didn’t. I saw this as an opportunity to share the truth with them, so I always invited them in. Usually, they could not do it on the spot, so we would schedule a time for them to return to my house.
Sunday afternoons after I got home from church always seemed the best time. Before they arrived, I would get prepared. I would study and have all my reasons to show them the truth from Scripture and why what they believed about Jesus, the Trinity, and other doctrines was wrong. A typical conversation would include dialogue, where we would exchange questions and answers, which would go on for an hour or two. I would show them the truth from Scripture to the best of my ability. I thought they saw this, and I would wait to see how they would respond. Those conversations never led to any further conversions, and afterward, I would ask myself questions. How could I show them the truth, and they miss something so plain to see? Did I fail in my efforts to win them to Jesus?
Years later, I now understand my conversation with those Jehovah’s Witnesses was not a failure. Here’s why. In evangelism or sharing your faith, there is a role you must play, and here it is.
Your job is to tell and compel.
With witnessing, your part is to tell someone and compel them to listen and respond to the truth. That is all you can do. Sometimes we miss what our responsibility is. We think our job is to save people. That is not what God has called us to do. God wants us to go out and tell people. When we share the gospel with people or tell people the truth from Scripture in love, we have done our part. After that, the Holy Spirit steps in.
The Holy Spirit’s job is to convict and convince.
Once we do our part, the Holy Spirit takes over. Our job is to tell. His job is to convict. In Greek, the word convict can also mean to convince with solid, compelling evidence, expose, prove wrong, refute, or show one’s fault. The Holy Spirit takes the truth we share with people and makes it come alive to them. When someone experiences conviction, they know what they are doing, or thinking is wrong. That role is beyond our ability, and we must depend on the Holy Spirit to do that.
This is also true with the things people believe. The Holy Spirit takes the truth and helps people see that what they believe, specifically about Jesus, themselves, or salvation, is wrong. When he does this work, a person’s understanding of truth becomes like scales falling from their eyes, and suddenly, they can see. When I think back to the days of sharing the truth with the Jehovah’s Witnesses, they could not understand it because either the Holy Spirit did not reveal it to them, or he did, but they rejected it.
Just keep telling the truth.
From now on, whenever you share the gospel or the truth with someone, specifically the truth from God’s Word, pray the Holy Spirit will open their eyes so they can see it. Don’t get discouraged if that person isn’t instantly saved. Keep praying for, telling, and compelling them. Just know when you do this, you have done exactly what God wants you to do.
Intersecting Faith and Life:
God has called us to plant seeds and water seeds. He never told us to make the seed grow. That is his job.
Further Reading
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