II. Relationship Between Evangelism and Discipleship
Evangelism is proclaiming the Good News of Jesus Christ to the
lost. The “lost” are those people who do not believe in Jesus Christ as Lord
and Savior. They are like lost sheep, which a good shepherd seeks and brings to
safety (Matt. 18:12).
The goal of evangelism is to win converts. A convert is one who
becomes a believer in Christ; he is converted from being a non-believer to
being a believer.
A disciple is a convert who adheres to the basics of the Christian
faith. The word “disciple” means “a pupil, someone who learns by following.”
Such knowledge is more than head knowledge—it is also “heart-knowledge.” True
disciples not only know about Christ, they also follow the teaching of Christ.
In Christian theology, discipleship is the process of training individuals to
become mature disciples. Discipleship is more than just sharing information—it
involves developing individuals to love and obey God.
Evangelism and discipleship are linked together. Evangelism
results in converts, and converts are trained to become disciples. Disciples
evangelize to reach more converts, who are trained to become disciples. So
evangelism leads to disciples and disciples evangelize until the Gospel is
spread throughout the world.
Whenever possible, discipleship should follow evangelism.
Evangelism results in people being spiritually reborn (see John 3:3), so new
converts are “spiritual babies.” Converts need discipleship in order to grow to
maturity. It is not right to create a physical baby and then abandon it. In the
same way, it is not right to create a spiritual baby and then abandon it.
Converts need to be trained by other Christians.
Consider the relationship of evangelism and discipleship with
missions. Christian missions involve proclaiming the Gospel across cultures. So
a missionary spreads the Gospel to a people group or culture different from his
own. Evangelism and discipleship are the processes by which mission work is
accomplished. Evangelism and discipleship also occur within one’s own culture,
so not all evangelism and discipleship falls within the context of missions.
(For details and for free
course visit <www.missionstraining.org>)
