About the Bureau of Evangelism

Quadrennial Evangelistic Theme 2001-2004:
"Making Christian Disciples: A Mandate from Christ"

Because evangelism is the first major step in fulfilling Christ's mandate of making Christian disciples, in 2001, we want to stress the importance of aggressively taking the good news of Jesus Christ to people from every walk of life. The Christ-Centered gospel is indeed "the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile."[Romans 1:16] The Lord Jesus said that "the harvest is truly plenteous, but the laborers are few." [Luke 10:2] Christ revealed that the problem in evangelism is not with the harvest. The harvest is ready. People in the world are ripe for the gospel. The problem is with the laborers. There are too few of them willing to laborer in God's harvest. Let us begin praying in earnest to the Lord of the harvest that He would send laborers into His harvest. Let us also hear and answer Christ's call and become laborers sent into His harvest. Let us labor in the harvest with complete confidence in the gospel's power to save those who believe it.

In 2002, we are stressing the importance of initiating those who make decisions for Christ into a local church where they can be nurtured to maturity in Christ. A significant part of fulfilling the Great Commission of making Christian disciples is that of baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. [Matthew 28:19] Baptism signifies our divinely appointed responsibility of initiating and assimilating converts into a Christ-Centered Church. A Christ-Centered Church is one that places disciple making at the heart of the church and keeps it there. It makes disciple making the church's priority and passion, both in principle and in practice. A healthy and loving local church is the nurturing environment in which disciples are made.

Central to the Great Commission given by the Lord Jesus Christ is the mandate to teach believers to obey everything that He has commanded. It is not enough for us to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ, so that those who believe it might be converted and experience a new birth. It is not enough for us to initiate and assimilate converts into the nurturing environment of a Christ-centered Church. Our mission includes that of teaching these believers to incorporate into their lives the commands and principles of the Lord Jesus Christ. Only then can it be honestly said that these converts have been made into true followers or disciples of Christ.

The most vital step in the disciple making process may very well be that of training disciples to make disciples. Disciple making is a cycle that is not complete until the individual who has been discipled is equipped and empowered to disciple others. This is exactly what the Apostle Paul says to Timothy, his son in the ministry, "and what you have heard from me through many witnesses entrust to faithful people who will be able to teach others as well." (2 Timothy 2:2 NRSV) The church must not only make disciples, it must train disciple makers. Only then, can the church be assured that disciple making will be ongoing.