Everybody can and should evangelize

[Godspells]

MarcoPG, I agree with you, totally. There is a lot of clever wordiness around used to uninspire taking faith to the world in all love and confidence. To have faith is to share love. As you said: 'It is impossible for a true Christian, therefore, to NOT evangelize.’ In fact, God even evangelizes through us when we don’t even know He has. We are the eyes, ears, mouths, arms and legs - the body of Christ, “to go therefore and make disciples of all the nations.” Well, the ‘disciples’ that he is making in these nations are us - His disciples!!! He didn’t say to the apostles “go therefore and make two kinds of disciples of all the nations - you have the ones in charge who are Gold Member Disciples who are the ones that must evangelize, and you have the Silver Member Disciples who are strictly not to evangelize although all they want to do is shout: “Jesus IS”, at the tops of their voices, no, they are not to spread the Good News - this is for GMDs only. SMDs are not to share love and faith.” This is the reason God has given us a variety of holy Popes in this century and previous, who have been trying to encourage us to do what the Lord asked: to go and love God and neighbour. If I love someone I am sure as anything going to share my faith with them. What greater act of love is there?

That was actually from my post, but I will take you agreement to it as a complement all the same.

It is unfortunate that “Evangelicals” have tainted that concept of evangelism. The make their love conditional to those who accept their beliefs which is exactly what Christ did NOT do. As He said, “Sick people need a doctor, healthy people don’t.”

It is especially disheartening to see charity withheld from people who have sins in their life. As if there was anyone who needed the love of God MORE in their lives.

 

[friardchips]

That was actually from my post, but I will take you agreement to it as a complement all the same.

I probably did snatch it without thinking so your post obviously got something into my head: I’ve been evangelized!! Credit where credit is due; please take it as such!

 

[Godspells]

I probably did snatch it without thinking so your post obviously got something into my head: I’ve been evangelized!! Credit where credit is due; please take it as such!

It wasn’t even that, you just cited a direct quote from one of my posts as someone else’s.

“It is impossible for a true Christian, therefore, to NOT evangelize.” was originally from one of my posts, but I think the person you quoted had trouble quoting me on it. So I was just telling you that you probably were intending to respond to me, but I accepted your complement all the same.

And in any case, the idea isn’t even mine, it was from a saint and he got it from the Gospel. Our Lord didn’t speak much to how we ought to tell people about Him, but He did show us how to act.

 

[friardchips]

It wasn’t even that, you just cited a direct quote from one of my posts as someone else’s.

“It is impossible for a true Christian, therefore, to NOT evangelize.” was originally from one of my posts, but I think the person you quoted had trouble quoting me on it. So I was just telling you that you probably were intending to respond to me, but I accepted your complement all the same.

And in any case, the idea isn’t even mine, it was from a saint and he got it from the Gospel. Our Lord didn’t speak much to how we ought to tell people about Him, but He did show us how to act.

Oh, right! I thought you meant a different quote. Yes, I thought that one you have specified was from MarcoPG, which is why I put it in quotes marks as coming from him. If it came from you then great, and if it came from a Saint, even better, although you may be a Saint too, which is good also; please accept the compliment from me to you. It was a nice quote. Thanks for sharing it.

 

[MarcoPG]

“It is impossible for a true Christian, therefore, to NOT evangelize.” was originally from one of my posts, but I think the person you quoted had trouble quoting me on it.

Exactly So to return to the question: Wouldn’t Paul be the perfect exemple of a “later” apostle, one who wasn’t not there when the Twelve received the Commission?

 

[Godspells]

Oh, right! I thought you meant a different quote. Yes, I thought that one you have specified was from MarcoPG, which is why I put it in quotes marks as coming from him. If it came from you then great, and if it came from a Saint, even better, although you may be a Saint too, which is good also; please accept the compliment from me to you. It was a nice quote. Thanks for sharing it.

Ah, well I do accept that complement, though alas I’m no saint, maybe one day though.

 

[Godspells]

Exactly So to return to the question: Wouldn’t Paul be the perfect exemple of a “later” apostle, one who wasn’t not there when the Twelve received the Commission?

I’m not sure what your getting at, but I think that one doesn’t have to be an apostle to evangelize? Yes, all Christians can and should evangelize. But evangelism has a bad rap because of how some have chosen to do it.

The most compelling way I’ve ever been evangelized has been to be treated with kindness and love. This, I think is why LDS is growing so fast, even though their theology is so strange, they’re such nice people that others want to know what inspires their love.

Imagine how much more we trinitarian Christians could do? We see that with Pope Francis recently, and I would be willing to bet the interest and conversion to Catholicism has spiked since he has been in office.

 

[MarcoPG]

I’m not sure what your getting at, but I think that one doesn’t have to be an apostle to evangelize? Yes, all Christians can and should evangelize. But evangelism has a bad rap because of how some have chosen to do it.

The most compelling way I’ve ever been evangelized has been to be treated with kindness and love. This, I think is why LDS is growing so fast, even though their theology is so strange, they’re such nice people that others want to know what inspires their love.

Imagine how much more we trinitarian Christians could do? We see that with Pope Francis recently, and I would be willing to bet the interest and conversion to Catholicism has spiked since he has been in office.

The thing is: If I can show my friend that Paul was an apostle without being present during the great Commission, this would demonstrate Jesus calls people outside the Twelve. So, he didn’t refer only to them, when he said to evangelize the nations. Plus, he said to make disciples, and a disciple is to evangelize with his/her life.