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Assignment 1 - Roxy
By: Roxy Date: February 18, 2020, 1:27 am
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From the 2nd epistle of Saint Paul to the Corinthians chapters 6
and 7 (2 Corinthians 6-7), mention the characteristics of an
evangelist and what's the importance of each of these
characteristics for the service.
St Paul established the church at Corinth, and after they caused
the Apostle much distress and anguish, he sent a letter with
Titus in the hopes it would bring about change. Thankfully, the
letter proved successful and the Church at Corinth repented (2
Corinthians 7 8-16).
2 Corinthians gives us an invaluable insight into Paul’s
teachings to the Corinthians. 2 Corinthians 6 begins with St
Paul begging us as co-workers with God not to receive God’s
grace in vain; imploring us to do the good works of God and work
with Jesus to spread His word. At the end of verse 2 St Paul
says, “Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day
of salvation.” Through our works and God’s grace in us we will
bring salvation to those who do not believe, however there is a
sense that this time of salvation will not last forever, putting
greater importance on evangelism and works while that time is
still here.
Paul urged that we as Christians give no offense, that our
ministry may not be rightly blamed, therefore we should not in
our preaching, offend those we speak to, but to speak with
wisdom and discernment.
The qualities of an Evangelist
In 2 Corinthians 6- 7, St Paul describes some of the qualities
of an Evangelist which I will describe and explain the
importance of below.
1.
The life of an evangelist can be hard, and Paul himself faced
many stripes, hardships and tribulations for preaching the Word.
Christ warned us in Beatitudes that we would be persecuted
falsely for His sake, however if we possess patience and
longsuffering, we will be able to not only endure these, but to
rejoice in them, with the help of Christ’s strength which He
gives to us.
2.
Purity is essential to make an impression on the earth. God
himself punished Ananias and his wife Sapphira (Acts 5:1-11) for
being impure and lying. As evangelists, we must examine
ourselves to make sure we are walking in the light. As St John
said, “He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His
commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.” If we say
we know Christ, but do not walk in purity according to His will,
then the truth is not in us, so how can we then preach that
truth to others? We must hold ourselves to account and to the
highest standards in order to be the light and the salt of the
earth.
3.
Many people think they know the truth about Christianity, but
they can possess many misconceptions. It is therefore important
for us to have a deep knowledge of the bible to correct these
misunderstandings and misconceptions others may have. When
challenged or questioned, we need to respond with knowledge and
love to others, having our feet shod with the preparations of
the gospel of peace…and the sword of the Spirit, which is the
word of God (Ephesians 6:15-17).
4.
As Christians, we should possess the fruits of the Holy Spirit,
two of which are love and kindness (Galatians 5:22-23). When
preaching and talking to people about Christ, we must keep in
mind that they too are children of God, therefore our words need
to exude kindness and love, in spite of the words that they
might have towards us. Furthermore, it is our love for others
that motivates us to share salvation with them.
5.
When describing an evangelist, we must look beyond poverty as a
material possession, but being poor or humble in spirit, thereby
attaining the Kingdom of Heaven (Matthew 5:3). Through this, we
will provide to others the riches of salvation and eternal life.
Though we may possess nothing by the standards of the world, as
the disciples did, choosing to live a humble life, we possess
all things and the most important thing, the Truth, Salvation,
and Grace of God. In this way we are rich, and we share our
treasure with others.
6.
Chapter 7 starts with a powerful verse about the necessity of
repentance, cleansing us from the filthiness of body and spirit
to perfect our holiness in the fear of God. In order to set an
example and preach to others, we must be without reproach.
Repentance does not just stop at cleansing us; true godly
repentance grows within us vehement desire and zeal for God,
bringing us closer to God and igniting within us a desire to do
His work. This gives us the passion and voracity to preach His
word and talk to people about God.
If we as evangelists possess these qualities, we will be
successful in our mission to spread the Gospel and talk to
others about Christ.
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