Corporate evangelism

Many people responded to the Dutch edition of Joel News, in which I addressed the issue of evangelism. Too many churches still think in terms of campaigns and other forms of 'organised outreach'. But isn't it more natural and effective to help Christians develop a simple lifestyle of prayer, evangelism and making disciples in their own network? We all know that most people discover Jesus through personal relationships.

Darren Rowse from Melbourne, posted an excellent contribution on 'corporate evangelism'. He says: "Evangelism is not just something for individuals to engage in in isolation from each other. Rather I believe it is something that we're called to do together.

"Now I'm not talking about going door knocking or handing out tracts 'together' - but instead am talking about building relationships with those outside our community as a group. Jesus called his disciples to become 'fishers of men'. What does it mean to fish for people? When Jesus first said this, people fished with nets, not single fishing lines. What might a net symbolize? The net is like the relationships we have between one another. Its about creating an environment for building genuine connections, sharing life and building community."

Also see Darren's posting on 'redemptive parties', how to develop the 'spiritual DNA' (core values) of a community, and a missiology that shapes our ecclesiology.