Every so often I hear someone make the statement that evangelism is not a spiritual gift. Usually this is said in an effort to keep Christians from thinking that they are off the hook when it comes to sharing their faith just because they do not feel particularly gifted in evangelism. The intention is good. Lots of Christians either really believe that it is someone else’s job to do evangelism, or they just don’t care that they are neglecting their job.
The Bible is clear. We are all called to evangelize. Jesus did not place any limitations on The Great Commission. He spoke directly to His disciples, but His words are to be obeyed by all Christians until He returns. So, I am not arguing that only some Christians are called to evangelize. I am arguing that the call of all Christians to evangelize does not eliminate the possibility that there could be a gift of evangelism.
Ephesians 4:11-12 says, “And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, 12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ.”
Sometimes this passage is cited when people say that evangelism is not a spiritual gift. It is argued that Paul lists several offices in the passage. He is not listing spiritual gifts. I agree with that understanding of the text. But do those called to these offices not have special spiritual gifts that equip them for these tasks? Regardless of whether you are a cessationist or continuationist, we all know that prophecy is a spiritual gift. Would we not expect a prophet to have the gift of prophecy? Is anyone arguing that teaching is not a spiritual gift? Surely we expect those who teach to have this gift. Why would we not expect evangelists to have a special gift of evangelism?
Think about this with me in a slightly different way. Romans 12:6-8 lists service, generosity, and mercy as spiritual gifts. Is anyone arguing that only those with the gift of service are required by God to serve? Is anyone arguing that only those with the gift of generosity are required by God to give? How about mercy? Surely we would recognize that it is required of all Christians to show mercy to others.
Perhaps you might object and say, “But the Bible doesn’t mention a gift of evangelism. The Bible clearly lists service, generosity, and mercy as spiritual gifts.” That of course is true. We’ve already seen that Ephesians 4:11 is talking about the office of evangelist not a gift of evangelism. However, I do not understand any of the lists of spiritual gifts in the New Testament to be exhaustive. In fact, I do not think we can develop an exhaustive list of spiritual gifts simply by combining the individual lists that we find throughout the New Testament. So, I do believe that there is a spiritual gift of evangelism.
Consider Billy Graham for a moment. The man led many crusades and saw thousands of people come to faith in Jesus as a result of his ministry as an evangelist. Can we really say that he was not particularly gifted by the Holy Spirit in a way that equipped him to lead so many to faith in Jesus? Maybe you have a friend in your church who is able to turn a conversation about the weather into a conversation about Jesus with seemingly little effort. Most of us find such conversations challenging. Would you not say that your friend has the gift of evangelism?
Again, none of this lets anyone off the hook. Whether evangelism comes easy to you or not, you are called to evangelize. It’s part of the job description as a Christian. May we become increasingly faithful in fulfilling this call on our lives.
What do you think? Is evangelism a spiritual gift? Why or why not?
I think some people do have a gift of being able to evangelize more effectively than other people. It’s like a gift of prayer, though. We are all supposed to pray even though we are not as gifted at it as others. Likewise, we are all to evangelize even though a few of us are better at it than others of us. I’m going to make an observation, though. I think it goes far beyond just someone having a special ability. I would consider the command to be a spiritual gift to the church. I would also consider the people… Read more »
Adam I do not know if your piece was promoted by the April 4 entry in Theological Matters; however, I definitely view Evangelism as you do. To say that Evangelism is not a spiritual gift because every believer is called to evangelize could be said of many spiritual gifts. My wife and I had lunch last week with a lovely couple who “evangelize” virtually every place they go whether it be by word or tract or some other means. It is a special gift of grace given to them and they use it for the Lord to the max of… Read more »
I had not seen the article in Theological Matters. Thanks for the link.
I just read the article. Here are Dr. Queen’s 4 points with my responses. 1. If evangelism were a spiritual gift, then additional spiritual gifts would exist outside those identified in the New Testament. Yes, this is true. I do not know of any reason why this would be problematic. It seems clear to me that none of the spiritual gifts lists in the NT are intended to be exhaustive. 2. If evangelism were a spiritual gift, then the beneficiaries of spiritual gifts would need to be reconsidered. I disagree. Does the church not benefit when people repent and believe?… Read more »
Adam, I agree with you. I believe some Christians have the spiritual gift of evangelism; however all believers have a responsibility to witness. I’ve been in the ministry now for 48 years, and I’ve known people who had a God-given ability to witness to others and/or to preach evangelistically. I’ve had seminary students who excused themselves from witnessing because they did not possess the gift of evangelism. My response is that we all have a responsibility to witness. Pastors and missionaries do not have the luxury of just serving in the area of their spiritual giftedness; rather they must perform… Read more »
Well said.
I believe our calling (if anyone wants to use that term) is meant to line up with our giftedness. So it makes sense that those called to be evangelists (as opposed to preachers, teachers, etc) are particularly gifted in evangelism. Having said that, I believe trying to identify ours or other’s spiritual gifts is a fairly pointless exercise. I’m a teacher. I’ve done it a long time and I’m fairly good at it. It seems quite likely that I have that gift. OK. Now what? I see the benefits of teaching well. I’m not so sure I see the benefit… Read more »
No argument here. I find spiritual gifts tests to be useless. Want to know your gift? Start serving Christ’s church and your gifts will become evident.
Right on, Adam. That is exactly right.
I also do not view spiritual gifts as *necessarily* being a lifetime “this is your gift – and that is not your gift” idea. I have seen in my own life and in the others that different seasons of life and ministry bring different gifts from the Spirit for the glory of the Lord and the good of the body of Christ. For example, a person who has not seen themselves as one with the gift of giving…might at some point find himself in a season where God blesses him with the desire and ability to give to the work… Read more »
Adam, thought you would find that interesting. I agree with your thoughts. There was something in the article that seemed “out of place.”