1279. How Do I Evangelize?

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The school was founded in 1927 by the evangelist Dr. Bob Jones, Sr. His intent was to make a school where Christ would be the center of everything so he established daily chapel services. Today, that tradition continues with fervent biblical preaching from The University Chapel platform. Today on The Daily Platform, we're continuing a four-part series on evangelism.

Today, Pastor Tim Richmond of Grace Baptist Church in Queens, New York, will preach a message titled, How Should I Evangelize? Turn to Mark chapter 4. Mark chapter 4. It's so good to see you. I'm glad you came back. I was a little nervous yesterday that I would come back and nobody would be here.

Thank you so much. Mark chapter 4. We're gonna read quickly through this and we're gonna get to the how, right? Yesterday we talked about the what. Today, well, how do we do this? Like if you think of yourself as an ambassador, and this is the way I get, I'm just like, yeah, I've got to do this. It's such a responsibility that God has placed on it. It's like I've got to go to everybody and say, here's your pardon, please receive it. But if you come up to someone and you do that today, they'll probably cut you off because they don't know you and they're not used to people doing that, right?

So the question is not just what is evangelism, it's who I am as a born-again Christian, but how do I do this? Okay, so Mark 14, the sower sows the word. We're gonna look at how to do this. We did get a few responses. Several responses were similar, okay? So you guys answered this on Instagram through Dr. Pettit and I think on Facebook. I am not gonna put your name, okay?

I'm not gonna read your name. A lot of folks talked about being like Christ with our actions and who you live, like living Christ-like. A lot of suggestions like that, live your life for Christ, being Christ-like in your daily actions, go into the whole world and preach the gospel to every creature. That sounds familiar. Some great suggestions of how.

I did get one really helpful tip and I thought this is kind of where I was going with this, right? So this person gets a Chevy Tahoe or maybe just an A on the final exam. I don't know what we'll give. I'm gonna say her name, Jessica, good job. Just Jessica. Start talking to people about what they believe.

If they don't believe in God, share about him. That's good practice. Listening is a good way to start talking to people, right?

So good job there. Tomorrow we're thinking about the why, okay? So answer why should I evangelize?

Think biblical answers to that question. Today I really want to jump into the how, okay? Just give some practical suggestions from this text of how I can share the gospel, okay? So let's jump into the text itself. Mark chapter 4. Really, let's read together verse 14 and that's on your card here. We're gonna get to the card in just a moment. Mark 4, 14. What I want you to do with this card is put it in your Bible, okay?

Yesterday's card was on your mirror. This card I want you to put in your Bible. Keep it in your Bible because this is what the Bible is, okay? So that's how that's gonna be communicated to you and we'll talk about that in just a moment. Let's all read verse 14 of Mark 4. Just four words there. Mark 4, 14.

Actually, it's on your card too. The sower soweth the word. The sower soweth the word. I'm gonna look at several of these verses and what I'm gonna do is just read through them pretty quickly, okay?

Because our time is short and get really to some practical principles from this parable that Jesus taught to help us to know how to evangelize, okay? So, verses 1 through 9, we find the parable of the soils. The parable of the soils. He began again to teach by the seaside, the context here, and there was gathered in him, verse 1, a great multitude so that he entered into a ship and sat in the sea and the whole multitude was by the sea on the land. So you see Jesus teaching and the multitude starts gathering around the Sea of Galilee there as the hills go up from the sea and it's really a neat picture. He sits in the sea, so he like sits in the boat and you see Jesus start teaching the multitude. He gives him a story.

Gives him a story here. First case of seed in the soil scenario, birds come in. Verse 3, harken behold there went out a sower to sow and as he does sow some seed fell by the wayside and the fowl of the air came and devoured it up. The second case, verse 5 and 6, some fell on the stony ground where it had not much earth and immediately sprang up because it had no depth of earth. When the sun was up it was scorched and because it had no root it withered away.

So you have the stones interrupting the seeds growth. The third case here, the thorns come, verse 7, some fell among thorns and the thorns grew up and choked it and it yielded no fruit. And then we finally get to the good soil, verses 8 and 9, others fell on good ground and did yield fruit that sprang up and increased and brought forth some 30, some 60, some 100 fold. He said to them, he, this is the conclusion, if you have an ear to hear, hear, listen to what I'm saying to you.

A familiar story especially in their culture. You would see this and so there's this the sower he has a leather patch, a leather pouch, maybe like a little shoulder harness type thing and he reaches his hand, grabs the seed, he just kind of throws it out there, throws it out there, throws some more seed, hits the whole hillside there and they're sitting on the slope of a field and this is what's really cool. This is what Jesus is doing.

Master teacher here. What he is picturing in story form is what he is doing as he is speaking. He's like this sower goes and he sows it out there on a field and all these people are sitting on the field and they're receiving the seed of his word. And then he looks at maybe the Pharisees over here in this green section, sorry guys you're the Pharisees, and he stiff arms them and he's going to get in their face because he's just talked to them about them being, because they've just said that he was filled with Beelzebul, that's how he did miracles. So he's going to get in their face and he's like this is not for you. In fact that's where he goes next.

Look at the next section here. The purpose of parables. He's like why am I speaking in parables and he tells them why. Verses 10 through 12. When he was alone, they asked him, the 12 asked him about the parable. He said unto you this is given to know the mystery of the kingdom.

Others, right, this is not given to them. And I'm going to share this to them in parables. That seeing they may see and not perceive and hearing they may hear and not understand, lest at any time they should be converted and their sins be forgiven.

Right, so this is all about forgiveness of sins and there's some that have rejected his messianic message of the kingdom of God is here. I'm the king of heaven and I need to be ruling in your heart. Right, leave all and follow me.

Take up your cross and follow me. This is a revolutionary message of Jesus, not to overthrow Rome but to really overthrow the world as he rules in their hearts but those religious leaders were not about to receive this. And so he's going to tell them and it's really fascinating what he's doing here because the first group is snatched away by Beelzebub and they've just said you're doing this authority and teaching by Beelzebub. That's what they've just told him and then he's going to tell them Beelzebub is coming and snatching the seed out of your mind. Right, and so Jesus does this with his parables.

It's fascinating and I don't have time to go into it but he often commentaries say this or those who think real deep and communicate well that the parables are revealing and concealing at the same time. And so something even just like the Son of Man, Jesus says the Son of Man, he's talking about Daniel 7, the Most High who's coming to receive all the kingdoms of the earth. He's talking to you about that if you're ready to receive it but also, right, the Son of Man. Okay, he's a Son of Man. Right, and so in both, he's speaking in both cases to conceal and to reveal based on whether you will listen or not.

Are you going to listen? And so even this message that Jesus has given is the master teacher, he's spreading it out there on all the field and some of them are going to receive it and some of them are going to reject it. And so that's the meaning of the parable of the soils. Verses 13 and following, Jesus kind of unveils this to his disciples. The meaning of the parable of the soils, he said to them, verse 13, know you not this parable? How will you know all the parables?

And there's our verse, the sower soweth the word. That's it. That's what we got to get a hold of. Okay, we'll come back to that.

But you know what? The soils are going to be receptive and non receptive. In fact, Satan is going to snatch away some of the seed, verse 15.

These are they by the wayside, right? And so the ground had been beaten down there and Satan comes and snatches that as a bird. Second case, this is also going to happen. There's going to be soil there that it looks like it's receiving it, but it's not going to have no, there's not going to be growth that's deep and it's going to fade away. It doesn't have root. Verse 17, they have no root in themselves. And so they endure for just a little time and afterward when affliction or persecution arise for the word's sake, immediately they are offended. And so that the difficulties of life destroy. And then you have this other case here, the third case, verses 18 and following, 18 and 19, what comes in riches, cares, lust for other things.

These are they which are sown among the thorns. And there's a little bit of receptivity and then, oh, do I want this cross life of following Jesus, leaving myself and my stuff and living an idolatrous life of serving me? That doesn't sound good. I don't want to, I don't want to serve Jesus with my life. So let me continue to serve myself. And so some will turn away from the message of the cross and follow this utterly futile life of living for self and a big bank account and the American dream. But others, the fourth case here, are the ones who receive, verse 20, sown on good ground and hear the word and receive it.

Right? And so we're talking about being ambassadors and really encouraging you to grasp that it's not just what you do, but what you, what you be. This is who you are. And so we're doing this because it's who we are in Christ.

And so we're out there with this message of pardon, the way to get back to Eden through the glorious classic gospel of Jesus Christ. And yet some are going to reject. Okay. And so, so I just want to go on from the meaning of this parable that, that there will be receivers and rejectors. Okay. So we're going to just, just real quick, three quick principles to help you, um, from this. First of all, there, there will be those who reject this message that you bring to them. I don't think the point of this parable is that you need to go out and take all the rocks out of the soil. Okay.

There's some of that, right? But, but the point is not, okay, listen, our culture is wealthy. So we need to make sure we have a great depression, right? We need to make sure people are uncomfortable and miserable. So they'll receive the gospel. That's not Jesus's point. That might be what he does in our twenties, in the twenties here, if he sends a great depression, it's for the gospel sake. Um, but that's, that's not our job.

His point is, you know what? You're to get the soil into the soil. You got to meet people who don't know Christ and you just get the seed on there. There's going to be those who receive and there's going to be those who reject.

You're just bringing the message. How will they hear if there is no preacher? You're the preacher.

I mentioned Paul yesterday, right? Share the gospel with him in evangelistic Bible study in our local diner, older Jewish man, another Jewish man in that same diner. Jack respond to the gospel, believed, was able to baptize him. A Muslim man who was a waiter, same diner, evangelistic Bible study, gave him a Bible. He relieved, had to hide, hide his Bible in a placemat from that diner as he took it home, believed. But you know, another Jewish man that I witnessed to in that diner for years, Isaiah 53, at least, at least twice a month, regularly, he never believed, continued to reject, moved to Philadelphia, got cancer.

I went to Philadelphia to talk to him. Michael, if you do not receive this message, he's a friend. He died. He was a friend. You do not receive this message, Michael.

You'll die and you will go to hell. I shared that with him as a friend. I pleaded with him.

No, Tim, no. And our hearts break for that. We just recognize the seed is powerful, but the soil, Jesus says this.

This is his point. You got four soils there. One is receptive. Often it's not the three receive and one reject.

Often it's the three reject and one receives. And so we just get the seed on the soil, the seed on the soil. The second principle here, okay, so there will be some that reject, some will receive. Second principle here, the power of germination is in how fancy you sling that seed.

Is that what it says? The power is in how cool you are, right? The great medium that you use. No, the power is in the message. The germination, the regeneration comes from the seed, the gospel message.

Dr. Pettit shared with us Monday, right? The power has never been with you, so don't be nervous about it. Don't think I got to get all the answers. The power is in the gospel message.

It's just as simple as seed on soil, seed on soil, the word in the heart, the word in the heart. That's all it is. You guys, it's not rocket science. You guys do that.

I think a lot of you do. Just meeting all of you. You're very smart. This is all this is. It's getting this message, but you got to know the soil. You got to know people that are not Christian. So we got to get out there. The gospel is the powerful. It's the power of God into salvation, right?

COVID just really killed us as far as face to face interaction with folks in New York City just starting to open up again. But you know, the power of the gospel is still there. We had one guy email us and he's like, I got saved reading the Bible. The Bible tells me I need to go to church. Can I come to your church?

Right? He was your age atheist. He just starts God's working in his heart. The seed is that powerful. When he starts reading, he gets to First Samuel and he's reading about these kings and what the kings will do to people. And he's like, that's what kings do to people.

Politicians are corrupt. This might be true. And he's born again by reading his YouVersion app. This is the word. This is the gospel.

It is that powerful. And so our job is just to get the seed on the soil. That's the third point here. This responsibility is to get the seed on the soil, not to convert the soil, right? Our responsibility is to get the word out.

This is your responsibility today. Don't wait till you finish your degree, till you have all the answers. It never stopped me. I never have all the answers. I'm not very outgoing. I'm not very good at this. My wife is really good at this. Some of you are going to be so good at building relationships. I have had to learn. I love this mass communication. That's really what I enjoy. But I've really had to learn. I have got to have a lot of folks that I am meeting in this way. And so I'm just gonna, real quick, a few more minutes.

Let me give you some challenges of how to do this, okay? The sower soweth the word. So what I want you to do by the end of your summer is to have three people, at least three people that are non-Christian, who you've prayed for. And you're gonna put their names on the top of that red pot, that silver pot, and that gold pot. And you don't know them now. Don't put the names yet. These are three campers, perhaps. Three people at work. Those of you who work secular jobs, you're gonna really have a lot of names.

But for other of you, you're gonna have to go into coffee shops. You're gonna have to go, you're gonna have to connect with your community in a special way and just think, Lord, send me three folks that I can connect with in this way. And I want you all, keep this in your mind, I want all of you to have at least three people that you are praying for in this way that you are beginning to open up a relationship where you're going to get the seed on the soil of their heart, okay? All right, so two quick ways, big ways to do this.

Cultivate three potted plants. I encourage our people to do seven. Pray, pray, pray. First step. You gotta start there. Start on your knees. Pray for these three folks. And then you gotta get into the soil.

If you don't know any soil, you're not gonna have three people. Start meeting non-Christian people. You guys are so good at this.

Come on. I have to do this through coffee shops. I have to do this through coffee shops, diners, my community, walk-in dog, the people in my neighborhood, and then where my office is. I meet a lot of people through my church, right?

But that's not what I'm after. I'm after people that are in my community that don't know I'm a pastor. Once I know I'm a pastor, it's gone. All right, meet non-Christian people, all right? And then you move into sharing the Word with them, okay?

And I want you to share the Word with three of them. That's sharing your testimony. That's an evangelistic Bible study. Our church, try to get this, I'll try to remember to put this on a slide. Our church produces some of these, right?

On Amazon and Kindle. Just do a Bible. But you know what? What would be ever better is just, hey, you have a Bible? I'd love to read the Bible with you. That's all you gotta do. Start reading the Bible with them. That's all you gotta do. And the Bible does it. You don't have to convince them. The Bible does it.

The seed does it. Let's read Mark together. Read Mark chapter one. Ask them what they thought. What'd you think about that? Read Mark chapter two. By Mark 13, they're born again.

And you start discipling them. It's awesome, right? I just had our church, like, really focusing on our church to do this. Seven.

One of the guys in our church, he's probably watching, so I'm going to be careful about who I share our church, but like, with our folks, I'm thinking, how many people are gifted at speaking? I'm not thinking this young man, right? I have a hard time understanding what he's saying. He started doing this. Folks that he delivered food to over COVID. Started friendship with a man who's a Muslim. Started talking to him. Led him to Christ. Bible study. Started to disciple him.

You can do this! And what's cool is I know that I'm sharing that God wants God's doing this behind the scenes. He's already setting us up for all of you. Lord, help all of these students. We're going to start with the praying now.

All of these students connect with three. He's doing this. He's already working behind the scenes. You've just got to take a little bit of initiative, a little thought, but you are so creative, and I do want to. You've got to ask him to receive Christ. You've got to get the pardon papers there, okay? So you've got to get to that.

But that may take a couple of years. You don't necessarily have to do that the first time you sit down with him with Gospel of Mark, okay? But you've got to be doing this.

This is something that we are just trying to break it down into, you could do this, right? It is with your students at the Wilds, right? The counselors. But this should be a life calling for all of us to make disciples of the nations wherever we are. This is who we are. We're making disciples, not just pastors and evangelists.

The best people to do this are often you young ladies or relational, but you know all of you all. This is, you're young. You have a platform.

I don't have, because I'm 40, I'm in my 40s now, impossible. It's gone, all right? So okay, and then, oh boy, here we go. I just also want to encourage you to do this more comprehensively.

I do feel like we've gotten away from this. I'm just, as you go back to your community, pray about a way that you can actually do this. This is what Jesus is doing. He's doing this. This is His brilliance. He has 12 people down here that are His potted plants that He's spending a lot of time with, and you know what else He's doing? He's scattering the seed to the whole thousands there on the hillside, and this is what we need to be doing as institutions, as churches, as individuals. We've got to think of our whole neighborhood, and so please do this. You're so creative.

Cultivate the potted plants, but also think, how can I? This may be an op-ed about a political situation that you put up in your local newspaper. This might be something in your community that everybody knows about that you write a pamphlet about, you deliver to everybody's door. There's so many ways. For me, this was a YouTube channel.

I did a YouTube channel that was evangelistic that I'm trying to target little areas in my community that people know about the cemetery, the subway. Boy, I wanted to share some stories with this. I'm just going to share one.

This is just to illustrate what God's doing and how He puts all of this together. My wife was doing this with a lady, and she's at her office. Not many ladies, but she's talking to all of them because she's just kind, and she's listening, and this happens, and so she's talking to this lady, and she says, do you have a Bible? And the lady says, I do have a Bible. I was just given this Bible when I bought my dog, this Crockerdoodle. Isn't that awesome? Right, Dr. Crockett?

He's thinking this big, big scale, everyone who buys a dog gets a Bible, and God's using that, and then He's using my wife and her personality to be gracious to her potted plant, and using both of them. You guys are creative. You can do this better than I can. Think of a way, okay, I got to get three, but I got to get seven. I got to get 17 potted plants that I'm working on, but you know what? Also, New York City, 200 people are dying every day.

For me, I can't live with that if I'm not doing that also big scale. I'm making our church reach everyone in our community with Google ads, with YouTube, with all these other things as well, and so by God's grace, I leave that with you. Lord, help these students, I pray. Thank you for each one of them. I thank you, Lord, for what you are doing behind the scenes right now.

You're doing this. You're putting all these connections together on the map. You see the map, Lord, and you've got students from Indiana, from Michigan, from California, and you're building the connections now that they are going to make, and I pray that you would give them grace through your Holy Spirit to take those things that you are as the sovereign leader of the church putting together, and I pray that they would take those opportunities and they would make the most of them. They would love these folks and share the gospel with them. By your grace, for your glory, we pray in Jesus' name. Amen. You've been listening to a sermon by Pastor Tim Richmond of Grace Baptist Church in Queens, New York, which is part of the series on evangelism. If you would like to contact Pastor Tim, you can email him at tim at nycgrace.org. Listen again tomorrow, as we'll hear the final message in the series on The Daily Platform.