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We Are the Church, and We Tell the Story of Jesus

Think about the last time you shared good news with someone. Maybe you got your dream job, so you texted your closest friend. Or you might have had a great latte at a coffee shop, and you want your coffee-obsessed sibling to share your experience. What did you do when you shared the news? You evangelized.

Evangelism means sharing good news. If you’ve heard the word evangelism before, it’s probably been connected to faith in Jesus. That’s because evangelism is a word many Christians use to describe anything that tells the story of Jesus.

On the first day of the Church, Jesus called His followers to evangelize—to share the good news of Jesus. And we share the same calling today. But how do we evangelize?

In today’s Scriptures, we’ll see some ways the early church communicated the story of Jesus—which drops some clues about how we can continue that joyful work through the power of the Holy Spirit.

1. We get to know the good news.

The good news of God’s plan to save the world starts on page one of the Bible and continues through today. We don’t need to become Bible experts to know the story. We simply need to spend time exploring the Bible consistently.

2. We tell our stories.

Reflect on these questions: How did God meet you? How is God changing how you view yourself and others? How has following the way of Jesus challenged and changed you? These questions can help you see how your story connects with the good news of God’s story.

3. We live the good news.

Evangelism is much more than just sharing information and hoping people agree with a set of beliefs. Instead, evangelism involves telling the good news and living the good news.

The good news reminds us that we’re forgiven by God—so we can forgive others. The good news reveals God’s humility—so we put others first. And the good news connects us to a global family—so we seek relationships with diverse people.

As you share the good news, remember that Jesus didn’t have a 100% “evangelism score.” Many people rejected His message and walked away—so we can give ourselves grace. We can’t force people to accept the good news, and it could be relationship-breaking to try. Many people need to wrestle with the good news for a long time before they’re prepared to respond at all. Others might reject the good news quickly now but decide years in the future to welcome Jesus into their lives as Lord after all.

Our role is to be faithful as we learn, live, and share the story. But the process is in God’s hands. So we pray, trust, and continue to share with anyone God puts in our path—and we celebrate with all our hearts when people say yes to the good news of Jesus.

Challenge: Be the Church today by asking God to give you the opportunity to share the good news in some way with someone else.