Apostolic Kingdom Movement International

Minister Training & Development

The Passion of an Evangelist
In 1 Chronicles 12:32, the Bible describes a fascinating group of people among the followers
of King David. They were men of the sons of Issachar who had understanding of the times,
to know what Israel ought to do. Do we whom Jesus has called to be evangelists
understand the times we are living in? Have we understood what God is doing in our
generation, so that we may be wise co-laborers with Him? Have we seen our calling from
Gods larger perspective? If so, then it is an exciting time to be alive!
Understanding Gods Plan for the Body of Christ
As evangelists, we need first to catch the vision of what the Lord has been doing in
history, so that we can recognize His work in our own day. Over the last several hundred
years, the Lord has been restoring Biblical truths that had long been lost through
compromise, false teaching and false teachers, and the exaltation of human religious
traditions in place of eternal, Biblical truths. These eternal truths include salvation by faith
and not by works, the assurance of the forgiveness of sins, sanctification, and holiness, the
baptism of believers by immersion, and the baptism and gifts of the Holy Spirit, among
others. In recent years, the Lord has been restoring to His church all of the ministries, gifts,
and functions of the Biblical Body of Christ. This includes the critical role in the early church
of elders in the leadership of local congregations, something believers are only just believes.
During the first century A.D., a multiplicity of ministry was the normal experience of the
congregations of the saints. The traditional role of a single pastor serving as spiritual leader
and chief executive officer of a local church was a historical development in later
centuries as churches became institutionalized. Remember that the Biblical Body of Christ
will never be an institution or an organization, nor is it the property of any institution or
organization. The Biblical church is a living organism made up of many members with a
wide variety of functions, and it belongs only to Jesus Christ.
To summarize, we are living in a day when Christ is restoring the church to her full
New Testament pattern and power. The Father is preparing an eternal Bride for His Son,
one that will be ready for Him when He returns to earth! Remember the famous passage
from James 5:7-8: Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. See how
the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, waiting patiently for it until it
receives the early and latter rain. You also be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming

of the Lord is at hand. As the Lord gave the former rain to establish the early church
beginning with the day of Pentecost, may He give us the latter rain to restore His church to
her original Biblical pattern, power, and purity in these latter days.

The Role of the Evangelist in the Body of Christ

As evangelists, we need to understand our place and our role in the church. Ephesians
4:7-8, 11-14.
The Passion of the Evangelist
First of all, the true evangelist cannot rest at peace while souls are perishing, dying
because they have never had the chance to experience the grace of Jesus Christ. The
heart and soul of the evangelist focuses on the lost. He or she may minister to the
saints in various capacities, but the heart inside constantly yearns to be in the
harvest fields among the perishing. Many believers live perfectly comfortable lives,
happy to be saved, oblivious to the lost all around them. But the man or woman whom
Jesus has touched with His burden for dying souls finds a restlessness inside that is not so
easily satisfied. As Proverbs 24:11-12. Gods heart is so tender toward the lost!
Brokenness should therefore be the normal condition of the heart of every follower of
Jesus: brokenness because of the greatness of our sin, brokenness because of the
marvelous mercy we have received, and brokenness because we realize that so many
around us are still lost and on their way to eternal death.
The Motivation of the Evangelist
Second, the evangelists motivation must be Gods love for people, not our love for
them. Our love will soon grow cold in the face of human indifference, hardness of heart,
and even mockery. But the love of God is a fire that will never grow cold! As Isaiah 52:7.
How long has the Lord been calling the House of Israel to repent, and how long have many
Jews resisted that call? Yet Gods love for the Jewish people will never fail. As Jeremiah
31:3-4 states, Yes, I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore with lovingkindness I have drawn you. Again I will build you, and you shall be rebuilt, O virgin of
Israel!
Is not the Gospel of Jesus Christ still for the Jew first and also for the Greek? Gods
plans and purposes for this present world will never change. Until Jesus returns, our
Heavenly Father is continually seeking out both Jews and Gentiles who will repent and turn

away from their sins. If it were up to most of us, however, we would soon act like the
disciples who wanted to call down fire from heaven on the miserable wretches who dared to
resist the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Oh, how quickly we forget how bad we werebefore the
grace of God transformed our lives, enabling us to become humble rescuers of others!
The Power of the Evangelist
Third, the power is in the message, not in you or me! As Paul reminded the saints in
his day, But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may
be of God and not of us. (2 Corinthians 4:7-8) We are simply ambassadors, called to pass
on a message that we did not write and called to deliver that message faithfully! The
Gospel existed long before we were born so woe to us if we start tampering with this eternal
Good News, adding or taking away anything from it! The message of sin, judgment, and
salvation in Jesus Christ is the greatest story anyone can ever tell. May God make us
faithful bearers of this Great News.
The High Calling of the Evangelist
Fourth, the calling of the evangelist is a high calling. We have been ordained by the
Lord to reach unreached multitudes for Christ. The fulfillment of this part of our calling is
neither easy nor automatic. It may also be strongly contested and even belittled, but with
God all things are possible. We need to prayerfully remember the words of Isaiah 55:8-11.
The Difficulty of the Evangelists Calling
Fifth and last, and I feel that I must emphasize this, the calling of the evangelist is not
an easy one.

Never give up on your calling! Never become something other than what

God has called you to be! Being an evangelist usually does not come with a salary, but God
will still provide. Being an evangelist does not come with a written manual or agenda. We
must advance on our knees and by yieldedness to God. The words of 2 Corinthians 5:7-8
must be true of our lives, For we walk by faith, not by sight. Then again, the greatest
works of God are always done by faith, and not by human ability or ingenuity.
To be an evangelist is to be misunderstood by some, including believers. Some church
leaders and pastors may even think that we are in competition with them, but the work of
the evangelist is to build up the church of Jesus Christ, not our own little kingdom. Some
believers will not understand our burdens, what it is that concerns us so much, yet let us
never despise the burdens that God puts on our hearts.
Called to Faithfulness, Not to Fame

Last but not least, most evangelists will never be famous here on earth. A few will,
but most remain largely unheralded and unknown in this life. Nevertheless, may God give
us grace to be faithful in every aspect of our calling here, and thereby to have our names
known in Heaven!