Today, my Carlsboro Wanderer Delux II arrived. “Your what?” I hear you say. My Carlsboro Wanderer Delux II. Its a very useful portable PA system. Got a CD player, tape player, three different kinds of radio mic, jacks for plugging in yer iPod player etc etc. It has a great sound and even pulls along like a little suitcase with wheels.
Its all an officer needs for conducting meetings in community halls in his expansive corps district, open air work, Christmas carolling, etc. The thing I am enjoying most about this appointment is the freedom to be out just sharing the gospel. Sure, we do all the other regular stuff, but as an officer I’m covenanted to make the salvation of the lost the primary focus of my life. I wonder how many of us officers manage to keep that right up there in the priorities.
Even in a corps like mine, full of faithful people, it can be a challenge to raise the profile of evangelism in all its forms but it must be done. Soldiers must have the confidence to be out there being active in sharing their faith in whatever way possible. Time is too short to sit around…this generation of people will only be introduced to Jesus by this generation of Christians. Its too late when you’re dead.
I’ve listened to incessant drivel over the last 12 years as a Christian as to how you can’t evangelise this way or that way…how you can’t say this or that. In my opinion, the stakes are too high so we do whatever we can in whatever way and wherever we can do it just so that we can save some.
Lets take our cue from the Commander-in-Cheif, Jesus. He went around proclaiming the Kingdom of God was near, suggested (!) that people repent and then, if they needed convincing, healed a few people and cast out a few demons in the power of the Holy Spirit. The great thing for us is that Jesus never did anything that he didn’t hear the Father tell him to do and did all that he did in the power of the same Holy Spirit who is available to us.
So, go buy yourself a Carlsboro Wanderer Delux II and whatever else you think you’ll need for the journey and get on with it. Time is short, the stakes are high.
Andrew M Clark 
Whilst I agree that evangelism is essential I disagree with one point. You suggest that Jesus called people to repentance at every single event, yet in reality He often healed people simply because they asked Him in faith to do so.Where is the call for repentance when the woman touched the hem of His robe? Where is it when the 10 lepers asked Him to have mercy on them?Jesus healed and cast out demons to show that the Kingdom of Heaven was at hand, not simply as some sort of spiritual gimmick to reinforce a message of individual salvation.
What I was saying was that he very rarely proclaimed the Kingdom without demonstrating it. You seem to have taken my words out of context. I was neither suggesting that there was an order to his healing ministry i.e conversion then healing…just that he ministered in word and power. Gimmick was your word, not mine.Incidentally, the ten lepers addressed Jesus as Master, and one even came pack to praise him. I’d suggest that they had heard his name and his message to be able to call Him ‘Jesus, Master.’I’m advocating that simply preaching/speaking is never enough. We too are commissioned to proclaim AND demonstrate the Kingdom…check out the Great Commission.
If I took them out of context I apologise but your words were,”He went around proclaiming the Kingdom of God was near, suggested (!) that people repent and then, if they needed convincing, healed a few people and cast out a few demons in the power of the Holy Spirit.”As I read those words it suggested to me that the healing was simply to reinforce the teaching, rather than as a non-verbal mode of teaching in itself! The reality is of course that we do not know the reasons behind every interaction that Jesus had. If we take the story of the Samaritan woman for instance there was no spoken call for repentance yet she clearly was a changed woman because of her encounter with the Lord.Good to discuss and I do agree with what you are saying.