YOUR ROLE IN EVANGELISM
The messengers of the Gospel are born-again disciples. God's method is for each disciple
to bear "witness" of the Gospel message. To "witness" is to tell what you have seen,
heard, or experienced.
In a court of law, a witness is one who testifies about someone or something. As a
witness, you are to testify about Jesus and His plan for the salvation of all mankind.
There are two kinds of evidence presented by witnesses in a court of law. One is
testimony which is verbal witness about the subject. The other is evidence which is
visible proof. The Holy Spirit helps you bear witness to the Gospel both verbally and
through the visible demonstration of God's power.
DIVISION BETWEEN CLERGY AND LAITY:
God's plan is for each disciple to be a witness of the Gospel. The early Church grew as
they followed this plan. Each believer shared the Gospel and reproduced spiritually. As
the Church grew, God called some people to serve full-time as pastors, evangelists,
prophets, teachers, and apostles. Over a period of time, believers became part of one of
two divisions in the Church. They were either clergy or laity.
The word "laity" comes from a Greek word which means "belonging to the chosen people
of God.” The basic meaning of the word is "all the people of God." The terms "layman"
or "laity" came to be used for those who were not serving in special full-time functions in
the church. The term "clergy" developed to identify professional ministers in the church.
Clergy refers to those who consider the ministry their profession or who are employed
full-time by the church.
Over a period of time in church history, a gradual separation developed between clergy
and laity. Many laymen stopped reproducing spiritually. They began to leave the
challenge of reaching the world to the full-time clergy. No professional clergy can ever
accomplish what the entire Church was commissioned to do. This is one of the reasons
we have not yet reached the world with the Gospel. Believers have shifted their
responsibility to the clergy. The Bible does teach division of labor in the Church, but
every person is to be involved in the spread of the Gospel (Acts 6:1-6).
As the church at Jerusalem multiplied, it became necessary for a division of labor to meet
all the needs in the church. The leaders gave themselves full-time to study of the Word
and prayer. Laymen performed duties like ministering to the widows and other such tasks
of serving. But although believers served in different offices in the church, they were all
involved in the spread of the Gospel:
-Stephen was one of the laymen chosen for serving tasks, yet he bore
powerful witness to the Gospel (Acts 6:8-11).
-Philip was another layman chosen for serving tasks. He shared the Gospel
with the Samaritans (Acts 8:5-12).
-When persecution came in Jerusalem and believers scattered to other cities,
they continued to be witnesses of the Gospel (Acts 8:4). For true believers,
there is no division between sacred and secular because Jesus is Lord of all.