Evangelism (Fall 2023)

Small Group Study

Open each group meeting for 6 times in a row with this evangelistic question & prayer:

Does anyone have a lost individual we can:

1.  pray for tonight

2.  give an update on a conversation

3.  discuss a strategy in reaching someone   

Be willing to let the opener dictate the time even if it means not studying the Bible that evening. If no one has anything—have one person pray that the Lord would provide opportunities for an evangelistic encounter of sorts that very week.

WEEK ONE - Evangelism as Joyous Talk about the Glorious Jesus

Watch the video below.

30min OR two 15min Sessions - Session 1 (0:00-14:00) & Session 2 (14:00-end)

 

  • Discuss the following questions:

 WHAT IS EVANGELISM?

  •   1:35  Was it helpful to think of ‘listening as a river not a reservoir’?  

  • 4:50  Evangelism is simply talking about Jesus and trusting God to do what we can’t: open blind eyes. How does this simple, Biblical definition take the pressure off of saying it right, answering right, etc? Consider the story of the blind man in John 9—he knew almost nothing about Jesus yet he spoke about Jesus by describing his encounter with Jesus.

  • 7:23  It’s never comfortable to talk about ‘wrath and repentance.’ What happens when wrath and repentance are not part of our conversation?

  • 10:40  What are some creative ways to get at these essential gospel elements that might not quickly shut down the conversation? (1Cor 9:19-22)

 

HOW DO YOU DO EVANGELISM?

  • 14:25  What are some ways to celebrate people, even people you’re not inclined to like?

  • 17:05  What is the distinction between celebrating people and serving people?  Can you think of an example in the past few months where the Lord has given you and opportunity to serve others?

  • 17:46  What did you think of the ‘pain line’ questions he mentions in telling people?  Can you think of other ‘pain line’ (i.e. important questions to ask that are uncomfortable to ask) questions?

 

WHY DO EVANGELISM?

  • 21:00  Fear of rejection is the number one reason hindering evangelism. What does this reveal about our identity and how do we address it?

  • 25:00  Our hearts get captured by lesser things than the One who should capture our heart, idols that prevent us from speaking. What gets between you and Jesus the most?

WEEK TWO - Evangelism: Same Message but Different Approach for a Changing Audience

Read the article & Handout below.

 

1.   What does it mean to describe America as ‘post Christian’?  (Share different answers to this question using your phones and Google.)

 

2.   What Is Expressive Individualism? (See the handout. Have you seen any of these ideas show up in what you watch, conversations, news, shopping, etc?)

 

3.  How have the questions changed that skeptics are asking today from the traditional apologetics questions from past decades?

 

4.   In evangelism, we have moved from a “know-the-answers” approach to a “know-how-to-listen” approach. What are some tips in learning to listen that you have or you need?

 

5.  Summarize the main idea or tone of this article in your own words.

 

WEEK THREE - Evangelism as primarily a Long-term Group Activity

Watch the video below.

 

  • Discussion: Spend one entire group focused on how you can do group evangelism:

 

  1. Perhaps it’s simply one lost soul that someone in the group would like to commence a relationship or start a conversation over the next few months and the group simply prays for them out loud each week providing encouragement for opportunity.

  2. Perhaps a hospitality event—cookout, kids event, etc—in which non-Christian friends/co-workers are invited along with one small group family.

  3. Perhaps a concert, Lugnuts game, park, festival, community charity event, etc that non-Christians find attractive in which several group members commit to attend inviting non-Christians while non-participating group members commit to pray during the event.