Author : Keith Sharp
God ordained the work of an evangelist (Ephesians 4:11). All aspects of the Lord’s will for the church are to accomplish His purpose (Ephesians 3:8-12). Thus, there is aim or purpose in the work of a preacher. An evangelist has six goals he should seek to accomplish in his work.
Toward God: Please
As of any other servant of God, the first obligation of a minister of the gospel is toward God. “For do I now persuade men or God? Or do I seek to please men? For if I still pleased men, I would not be the servant of Christ” (Galatians 1:10). A servant seeks to please his master. As Christ is our Master, we must seek to please Him. Of course, we would wish that our work is pleasing to those who hear us, and we should not be unnecessarily offensive, but we must always remember that ultimately we serve God rather than men.
Toward Sinners: Reconcile
It is God’s purpose in Christ to reconcile the sinful world to Himself by the preaching of the gospel (2 Corinthians 5:18-20). Though the apostles are the ambassadors of this passage, preachers are to proclaim this same apostolic doctrine (Galatians 1:8-9). The purpose of preaching to the world is to lead them to the obedience of faith (Romans 1:5; 16:26) that they might be forgiven (Luke 24:46-47; Acts 3:19) and thus be reconciled to God.
Toward Brethren: Edify
The word of God is able to build Christians up, that they might receive the inheritance of eternal life (Acts 20:32; 2 Timothy 3:16-17). Thus, preachers should teach brethren with the aim of developing in them “the divine nature,” so they might attain unto the heavenly kingdom (2 Peter 1:2-11).
Toward Faith: Guard
In every generation false teachers arise bringing heresies that test who will be faithful to the Lord (1 Corinthians 11:19; 2 Peter 2:1-3; 1 John 2:18-19). They will overthrow the faith of some (2 Timothy 2:16-18). The soldier of Christ must guard the faith against all error, whether from within or without (Jude 3; 2 Timothy 4:3-5).
Toward the Faithful: Teach to Teach
I believe the greatest measure of a preacher’s work is the ability of a congregation to prosper spiritually while he is away and after he is gone. A church which cannot effectively function without the evangelist there has not sufficiently matured. They should develop men and women to teach Bible classes, including home Bible studies, men to lead the worship assemblies, and men to preach. Thus, the wise preacher will diligently heed the apostle’s admonition, “And the things which you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also” (2 Timothy 2:2).
The word “men” of this passage is from the Greek term “anthropos,” which means “without distinction of sex, a human being, whether male or female” (Thayer. 46). Thus, the evangelist should carefully cultivate the knowledge of God’s word and the ability to teach that word in faithful men and women, that they might in turn teach others.
Toward the Congregation: Set in Order
But even though an evangelist might equip faithful Christians to teach, lead in worship, and preach, he still has not completed his obligation to the local church. The church is not complete until it has elders to shepherd the flock and oversee the work of the church and deacons to serve the congregation (1 Timothy 3:1-13; Titus 1:5-9; Acts 20:17,28-31; Hebrews 13:17; 1 Peter 5:1-4; Acts 6:1-6). Therefore, the faithful minister of the gospel will make it a long term goal to obey Paul’s admonition to Titus, “For this reason I left you in Crete, that you should set in order the things that are lacking, and appoint elders in every city as I commanded you” (Titus 1:5).
No local church is fully set in order until it has qualified elders and deacons appointed and serving in their divinely appointed roles.
Conclusion
As to his personal distinction, a preacher is no more important and to receive no more honor than any other Christian (1 Corinthians 3:5-7; Matthew 20:25-28; 23:5-12). But there is no more vital work than the proclamation of the gospel. It is God’s means to save the lost and to build up His church (1 Corinthians 1:21; Acts 20:32). Those who love God’s word love the men who proclaim it (Romans 10:15), and those who hate truth hate those who preach it (John 17:14-18). Even as the prophets of old were men of God (1 Kings 13:1), i.e., men whose life’s work was the service of God, so evangelists are men of God (1 Timothy 6:11). God has only one Son, and He was a preacher (Luke 4:18).
The Lord’s church needs good men who will devote their lives to proclaiming the gospel (Matthew 9:36-38) and good brethren who will hold up their hands in the thickest fight (Philippians 4:10-17). Thus, we will save both the lost and ourselves and glorify God.
