Little Books of Guidance
Finding answers to life’s big questions!
Also in the series:
How Do I Pray? by John Pritchard
What Does It Mean to Be Holy Whole? by Timothy F. Sedgwick
Why Suffering? by Ian S. Markham
How to Be a Disciple and Digital by Karekin M. Yarian
What Is Christianity? by Rowan Williams
Who Was Jesus? by James D.G. Dunn
Why Go to Church? by C. K. Robertson
How Can Anyone Read the Bible? by L. William Countryman
What Happens when We Die? by Thomas G. Long
What About Sex? by Tobias Stanislas Haller, BSG
What Do We Mean by ‘God’? by Keith Ward
How Can I Care for Creation? by Stephanie McDyre Johnson
How Can I Live Peacefully with Justice? by Mike Angell
Making Money Holy by Demi Prentiss
What Is Evangelism? by Patricia M. Lyons
Who Is My Neighbor? by Samira Izadi Page
The Way of Love: Go
The Way of Love: Turn
The Way of Love: Learn
The Way of Love: Pray
The Way of Love: Worship
The Way of Love: Bless
The Way of Love: Rest
PATRICIA M. LYONS
What Is
Evangelism?
Copyright © 2019 by Patricia M. Lyons
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the written permission of the publisher.
Unless otherwise noted, the Scripture quotations contained herein are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the U.S.A. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Church Publishing
19 East 34th Street
New York, NY 10016
Cover design by Jennifer Kopec
Typeset by Denise Hoff
A record of this book is available from the Library of Congress.
ISBN-13: 9781640652125 (pbk.)
ISBN-13: 9781640652132 (ebook)
Printed in Canada
Contents
Introduction: From Burden to Broadcast to Blessing
2 
3
4
5
6
Conclusion: Be That Building
Notes
Introduction: From Burdento Broadcast to Blessing
Evangelism is listening.
This liberating and life-giving fact is contrary to so many of the messages about Christianity going back to at least the fourth century. Roman Emperor Constantine acknowledged the profound proliferation and political power of the followers of Jesus and named Christianity the mandated religion of the Empire. At that time and long after, Christianity was forced upon people by law and by sword. However, sacred and faithful evangelism—contrary to the habits and sins of any Empire—is not primarily an act of speaking or manipulating or even persuading.
Evangelism is first and foremost the ministry of the Holy Spirit in the world. In the beautiful image of creation found in Genesis, the world began with the Holy Spirit breathing and blowing over the whole earth, blessing, sustaining, and transforming chaos into creation, darkness into light, and void into life. Evangelism is what the Holy Spirit is doing, ever arriving as the catalytic and contagious Good News of God’s love. Although all creatures are invited to experience, embrace, and expand the love of God, evangelism is chiefly the holy work of God to make God known throughout all creation. To put it more directly, evangelism is what God does and what God is ever doing at every moment and every place and in every heart. The Holy Spirit is a siren sounding, even now, to find and follow the love of God.
The first step of human evangelism is to listen for the Spirit’s invitation to join God in loving the world and in loving yourself. The Holy Spirit evangelizes us, bringing the Good News of God into our lives. Some people listen to God in silent prayer, asking God to speak. Others listen for God in community or ritual, hearing God in scripture and song. Still others listen for God in human relationships, hearing God’s hope and healing in the wounds or wonders of other people. When we begin to listen for God (and not just talk or sing at God), we experience God’s constant evangelism of everything, drawing all that is toward the new heaven and the new earth. Creation is an act of God’s evangelism.
Today’s Reality
For centuries, Christians have spoken of their burden to convert the world. Although many generations of faithful people wanting holiness have participated in this burden of converting and done so with sincerity and love, I am glad that we in the Episcopal Church have moved away from this paradigm of colonizing the world with Christianity. Though the gospel was often shared and embraced by people who have made Christianity their own, the colonial conversion model has also come with moral disasters, war crimes, and cultural failures. Those who interpreted (and continue to interpret) the Great Commission as permission to subdue the earth with Christianity have driven as many people away from Christ as toward him. The increasing pluralism of America in recent decades has exposed the shallowness and arrogance of this model.
The twentieth century in America brought a crisis of membership in organized religion. And that century continues to leave us