Join me for the first in a new series of messages "Evangelism: The Heartbeat of God." According to the National Association of Evangelicals, the statistics on the modern church are sobering. A study done by them reveals that the vast majority of "growing churches" are doing so through "transfer growth" rather than reaching lost people with the Gospel. While 73% of born-again Christians will say they feel an obligation to share the Gospel with others, only 52% will say they actually did so at least once last year.

The problem may well be that Christ never intended that evangelism become a "program" or an endeavor of the organized church. And in order to most effectively reach the whole world He likely never intended that our efforts to win the lost be relegated solely to the "evangelistic" crusade held in the large auditorium or in a local fellowship. The key to effective evangelism has always been and will always be about relationships: a mature, committed disciple of the Lord Jesus developing a real and genuine relationship with a lost person and through his lifestyle and example lead them to a relationship with the Master.

The so called Great Commission is great because it is all encompassing and all inclusive. Everyone is commissioned to Go into their own world and tell of the good news! In the current culture we will not likely get them to come to church we must BE the church. they will not come to us so we must GO to them. According to Paul in 2 Corinthians 2:1-3, each of us individually are the only letter most of the people already in our circle of life will ever read. So, what does your letter say to those lost folk in your orbit?