My new article on the shortcomings of Evangelism-Driven Mission is stirring up quite a bit of interaction on the Resurgence FB page. Here is a brief comment to clarify my intention:
I am trying to chart a gospel middle between liberal and conservative methods, to show that the gospel must be contextualized, communal, and propositional. I am not anti-tract, anti-apologetics, and so on. God uses these means of grace, but that doesn’t always make them right, in content or delivery. However, the greater struggle in evangelism lies in our hearts. Will we put our faith in Jesus or in defenses, in the transforming power of the Spirit or in methods, in the sovereign electing will of God or the will of our hearers? In the end, the evangelist must first have faith in the gospel himself, this authenticates our words more than any saying, method, or defense. All too often we share the gospel without believing it.