NT Reflecting Pool - Feb 7

Paul as an Evangelist
Focusing on 1 Thessalonians 2:1-12, we examined the nature of evangelism for Paul, as well as understanding Paul’s strategy for evangelism. In our pairs, we came up with the following list of observations about how Paul talks about evangelism:

- how much they suffered to preach the gospel;
- how the manner they preached was bold and honest, not manipulative;
- how they were surrounded by opposition, that opposition was included in preaching;
- that evangelism wasn’t about flattery, but rather about friendship and the intentionally sharing of their lives;
- how God was the responsible agent, the one who called the Thessalonians;
- and how through their witness, they took on a parental role, of both nurture (nursing mother) and model (father).

From all of this we came up with a profile of Paul as an evangelist.

- that evangelism and witness are a family act for Paul, like being a father and mother;
- that authority for witness is rooted in a certain sense of self-sufficiency: not being a burden on the resources of those you are sharing with, nor being a charlatan for greedy gain;
- that witnesses hold a dual posture: approved by God, and yet genuinely invested with the people they are with;
- that witness happens because of – and not inspite of – the suffering, hard labor, and difficulties that will come from preaching the Gospel;
- and that evangelism strategy is not primarily understood in terms of principles or actions steps or insights, but rather in terms of authentic relationships.

Having said that, Paul as a missionary did have several specific "strategies" that he employed or took advantage of.
• Exploiting strategic possibilities - Paul took advantage of the physical, linguistic and travel possibilities around him. On his first missionary journey, he traveled to major cities and cultural centers along the main routes of travel, taking full advantage of his Roman citizenship and the transport and peace of the Roman empire.
• Bridging Cultural Gaps - In three different cities (Iconium in Acts 14, Athens in Acts 17 and Lystra in Acts 14), Paul utilizes very different approaches to communicating the Gospel.
• Building Personal Relationships - As stated above, Paul say evangelism as a 2 way communication involving personal care and affirming people's spiritual search.