I enjoy reading biographies. I have read life stories of many people who are well known for their contributions to society, the arts, and humanities. I can safely say that I know a lot more about these famous people now than before I read their biographies. However, if I claimed to know these people, someone could rightly ask, “How can you possibly know them? You have only read books about them.”

Notice the important truth unfold­ing here. Even if I know a lot about certain people, it does not automati­cally follow that I personally know them or have a personal friendship with them. This truth is important in spiritual areas as well. Just because I know a lot about God because I have read and memorized Scripture, it is possible that I still do not really know Him in the sense of enjoying a personal, saving connectedness with Him. Throughout my ministry years, I have met many people who know a lot about what God requires of them day by day but are unsure about their security in Jesus Christ.

I wonder if this uncertainty is due to our only studying the Bible to discover what God wants us to do rather than to discover what He is like. Scripture certainly contains much information in regard to God’s will in our everyday lives; Scripture also reveals His primary will for each one of us. Jesus said, “ ‘For it is my Father’s will that all who see his Son and believe in him should have eternal life’ ” (John 6:40).¹ And of course, when we discover what God is really like, we will fall in love with Him and then have no issue with doing what He requires of us.

While our personal relationship with Jesus is important in our daily lives, there is also a vital relationship between the assurance of personal salvation and success in evangelism and witnessing. When it comes to the core reason for evangelism, how can one who has no personal assurance of salvation in Jesus lead another to such a faith position? Make no mistake; although we should recognize the importance of leading people to under­stand biblical truth and join a local church family, our primary goal should be to lead them to the assurance of personal salvation in Jesus. This is the ultimate goal of evangelistic endeavor.

I suspect that many enthusiastic people are sent out on a variety of evangelistic missions without ade­quate spiritual preparation. This indeed was my personal experience in the first few years as a Seventh-day Adventist. I have no doubt that I pos­sessed a reasonable head knowledge of what to say, and how and when to say it. I was closely following the tried-and-true procedures that had been passed on to me; but in those early days of my Christian experience, I had no assurance of personal salva­tion. I felt that I had to add my works to God’s grace to convince Him that His grace was not misplaced and that I could be obedient enough to be safe to save. I share this personal detail because in my ministry I find that many Christians are still struggling in the area of assurance of personal salvation. Such situations underscore the need to give attention to personal spirituality and its relationship to successful witnessing and evangelism.

Disciples first, then disciple makers

We recognize the significance of Jesus’ first recorded command, “ ‘Come, be my disciples, and I will show you how to fish for people!’ ” (Matt. 4:19), and His last recorded com­mand was “ ‘Go and make disciples of all the nations’ ” (Matt. 28:19). Jesus called men to be disciples and equipped them to be disciple makers through teaching them both practi­cally and spiritually. The disciples would have learned not only from direct instruction (see Matt. 5:23, 24; 10:7) but also from observing the Master Preacher at work. They were taught concerning a spiritual con­nectedness with God and the power in preaching (see Matt. 10:20), and, from time to time, they were taught through practical ministry tests (see John 6:5, 6). They sensed their need of connecting with the supreme spiritual Being, and this caused them to request help in the area of personal prayer (see Luke 11:1–4).

Ellen White sums up well the need of spiritual preparation for successful evangelism and witnessing. “Learning, talents, eloquence, every natural or acquired endowment, may be pos­sessed; but without the presence of the Spirit of God, no heart will be touched, no sinner be won to Christ. On the other hand, if they are connected with Christ, if the gifts of the Spirit are theirs, the poorest and most ignorant of His disciples will have a power that will tell upon hearts. God makes them the channel for the outworking of the highest influence in the universe.”²

Of course, personal spirituality cannot be taught in a training session nor gained from reading a highly rec­ommended book. Personal spirituality cannot be programmed; however, per­sonal spirituality can be encouraged and nurtured. This spirituality comes from a face-to-face encounter with Jesus Christ and His claim upon our lives as Christians and by the powerful influence of the Holy Spirit working in each life. 

The essential ingredient in per­sonal spiritual growth and preparation for evangelism is the Holy Spirit—not in the sense that we use the Holy Spirit but in the sense that He uses us as His instruments to reach those outside of God’s kingdom. By ourselves we cannot lead another person to Christ, but as we allow God to work in us, evangelism becomes the natural result of the Spirit’s dwelling within.

Furthermore, Scripture is clear that the Holy Spirit decides which spiritual gift(s) each individual believer receives (see 1 Cor. 12:1–11). We would therefore not expect that every church member would be equipped for every evangelistic ministry. It surely fol­lows, then, that pleading and nagging for people to become involved in ministries that leaders choose to run, and for which members are possibly not gifted, is probably not the best way to evangelistic success.

Although Jesus’ words about the vine and the branches, recorded in John 15:1–8, have references to fruit, pruning, and burning, the central theme is spiritual connectedness. Seven times in this passage, dealing with the vine and the branches, the words abide and abides occur, again emphasizing that the main thrust is connectedness to Jesus.

While evangelism may take a little longer to organize, we would do well to first challenge our church members to consider their connectedness to Jesus and explore their giftedness before we encourage them, by whatever means, to witness for Him. If we do not take this time, we may send people out to share information and thus mistakenly expect the fruit before the connection. The simple biblical equation is, No spiritual connection = No spiritual life = No spiritual fruit, and therefore no rightly motivated enthusiasm for witnessing and evangelism. That is why it is most significant that Jesus said, “ ‘For apart from me you can do nothing’ ” (John 15:5). While we would not knowingly argue with Jesus, in any unattached attempt to bear fruit we are saying that although Jesus said we could do nothing without Him, we will try anyway. As Ellen White points out, even the disciples needed special instruction in this area. “The Saviour knew that no argument, however logical, would melt hard hearts, or break through the crust of worldliness and selfishness. He knew that His disciples must receive the heavenly endowment; that the gospel would be effective only as it was proclaimed by hearts made warm and lips made eloquent by a living knowledge of Him who is the way, the truth, and the life.”³

So, understanding the importance of personal, spiritual preparation for evangelism, what should we do for those already involved in evangelism and for those whom we would encourage to become involved? The following four points suggest a direction that will help to direct us to some satisfactory answers.

Steps to a new life

1. Be convicted of sins, John 16:8
2. Confess and repent, 1 John 1:9; Romans 2:4
3. Be converted, Matthew 18:3
4. Choose whom you will serve, Joshua 24:15
5. Ask for the Holy Spirit, Luke 11:13
6. Believe that you have received the Holy Spirit, Mark 11:24
7. Be baptized with water and the Spirit, John 3:5
8. Receive the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, Philippians 2:1,2

Focus on the ultimate goal

Everything we do in evangelistic training must be based upon the ulti­mate goal of leading people to Jesus. It is not enough to lead people into doctrinal truth and church member­ship, as important as these are, but it is vital that we lead people to a clear understanding of God’s unconditional love and complete forgiveness. There exists a vast difference between believ­ing that God is a God of love and believing that He is a God who loves me unconditionally. There also exists a vast difference between believing that God is a forgiving God and believing that He is a God who forgives me completely. The first of each of these is a head knowledge, and the second is a heart experience. Failure to consider these important differences may work against introducing people to the One who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life in a way that will enable a personal connectedness to form.

Focus on personal security

Evangelists must be sure of their own security in Jesus Christ. They must be able to share that in Christ we can be assured of salvation full and free; right here and now; with no maybe, could be, or possibility. Security of salvation in Jesus should be the focus of teaching, preaching, and general conversations. This focus upon personal connectedness with Jesus contributes to a congregation’s growth both spiritually and numerically. Continued positive reminders and challenges for members to spend personal time with their Lord will prompt many to share their Savior’s love.

Maintaining the Spirit-filled life

1. Allow the Holy Spirit to continually dwell within, James 4:5
2. Be spiritually minded, Romans 8:6
3. Allow the Holy Spirit to continue guiding into all true, John 16:8, 13; 2 Corinthians 3:8
4. Walk in the Spirit, Galatians 5:16
5. Let the Holy Spirit set the standard for your life, Psalm 19:7
6. Let the Holy Spirit guard and guide your conscience, Proverbs 28:26; Acts 24:16; Philippians 2:13
7. Grieve not the Holy Spirit, Ephesians 4:30 t
8. Pray without ceasing, 1 Thessalonians 5:17; James 5:16
9. Be continually filled with the Holy Spirit, Ephesians 5:18

Focus on Holy Spirit power

The written Word of God, inspired by the Holy Spirit and preserved through the ages by God’s grace, is the main connecting point between God and us. It is the spiritual nourish­ment that we receive as we continue to feast upon God’s Word, which is the factor in our ability and willingness to be involved in the gospel commission. Jesus knew that we would need some help in the area of witnessing and evangelism, so He made the wonderful arrangement recorded in John 14:16, 17: “ ‘And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor, who will never leave you. He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth. The world at large cannot receive him, because it isn’t looking for him and doesn’t recognize him. But you do, because he lives with you now and later will be in you.’ ”

How to lead others into a Spirit-filled experience

1. Encourage deeper understanding of the human need of salvation, Romans 6:23; 2 Peter 3:9; Isaiah 64:6
2. Review the cost of human rebellion, Isaiah 53:5; Hebrews 2:14
3. Encourage an understanding of God's great love for each person, 1 John 4:16, 8, 9
4. Encourage people to realize their personal need, John 8:35; Acs 4:12
5. Encourage people to personally claim the promises of God, Revelation 22:17; Psalm 51:10, 1l; Romans 8:16

This is a somewhat circular arrangement. As Christians begin to serve their God through evangelism, they become more aware of their spiritual needs. As they then request, and receive, a greater infilling of the Holy Spirit, they are empowered for greater service, that, in turn, drives them to seek more of God’s enabling power. “ ‘If you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him’ ” (Luke 11:13). If we allow Him, the Holy Spirit can equip us for a very powerful and spontaneous witness.

Because the reception of the Holy Spirit is vital to successful personal witnessing and evangelism, and because understanding that evan­gelism includes spiritual nurture, I suggest that definite plans should be put in place to lead church members into the Spirit-filled life. This deeper experience with God, however, cannot be manufactured by us as we move through a prescribed process. Rather, this experience is something that happens to us, that we are drawn into, as we discover more of what God is like through our study of and meditation on God’s Word. (See sidebars illustrating further study to deepen a converted and Spirit-filled life.)

Focus on prayer

The importance of prayer in the Christian’s life cannot be overstated. Acts 1:12–14 reveals that the apostles met together with other believers for prayer and fellowship. These were also times of encouragement, planning, and evaluation. Today there is still the need for the encouragement factor that comes through prayer fellowship with God and fellow believers.

The power in witnessing and evan­gelism relates directly to the power we receive through prayer. The prerequisite for success is that the witnesses and evangelists must have met with Jesus and are abiding in a close relationship with Him. The spiritual relationship that the disciples enjoyed with Jesus after the Ascension, which caused them to be continually on fire for Him, is available to all believers.

Often we search our own hearts to evaluate where we are at spiritually, and while this is good, we need to understand that the human heart can be less than objective with self- evaluation. Therefore, it is good also to invite God to examine us and show us our true condition. The psalmist prayed, “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlast­ing life” (Ps. 139:23, 24).

Conclusion

Normally when we hear good news, we want to share it. When we hear and understand the good news of salvation through Jesus Christ, we desire to share that too. The challenge for individual believers is to make sure that they are not only communicating information but also sharing a salva­tion experience. Thus, we will not be trying to do the Spirit’s work; we will be doing His bidding.

When the focus on spiritual prepa­ration for evangelism is in place, that evangelism training and those highly recommended evangelism books become invaluable support resources. Thus, preparation for personal wit­nessing and evangelism involves much more than memorizing a few so-called proven techniques and procedures. Because of our deepening relationship with God, we desire to do His will. “For God is working in you, giving you the desire to obey him and the power to do what pleases him” (Phil. 2:13).