II Kings 5:1-4

“Heart to Heart Evangelism”

Part I

Introduction:

Blessed Hope Bible Church is committed to the work of spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ. We welcome you to our ministry, and pray that you will be encouraged by the word that will be spoken today. Please feel free to visit our website at www.bhbcstl.org. Today we begin a new series entitled, “Heart-to-Heart Evangelism.” The purpose of this series is three-fold:

1) First, to inspire you to share you the gospel of Christ;

2) Second, to equip you with an effective strategy for doing evangelism; and

3) Third, to give you the confidence and enthusiasm to approach others with the life-changing message of Jesus.

Heart-to-heart evangelism is a method of sharing the gospel that is natural and effective. It is based on engaging people at the place of their need, and pointing them to the Savior. Throughout this series we will look at passages from the bible that illustrate heart to heart evangelism, and share principles that you can use immediately to make a difference for the kingdom of God.

All of us have been called to evangelize the lost. But many Christians today approach evangelism with a sense of awkwardness and anxiety. Telling someone about Jesus simply does not appeal to us on a number of levels.

Let me say that I completely empathize with those of you who struggle with sharing the gospel. But did you know that telling others about Jesus should be the most comfortable thing we do as Christians? Not only that, there are several benefits that come when we share the good news:

1) We fulfill the great commission;

2) We increase our faith;

3) We give people hope;

4) We bring healing to those whose lives are broken by sin;

5) We strengthen the body of Christ;

6) We improve our society; and

7) We change the world.

Listen, as we look at the crisis facing our world today, can we afford not to share the gospel? Imagine what our schools would be like if all of the young people knew the Lord? What would our communities be like if families were led by biblical principles? Consider what would happen to the crime rate if more people came to Christ. Government programs and social services are great, but nothing transforms a society more than the message of the gospel of Jesus Christ. And it is up to you and me to share that message every chance we get. Today we are going to meet a little girl who was effective in sharing good news. Her story is found in the Old Testament in the book of II Kings 5:1-4. Please join us if you have your bibles:

¹Now Naaman, captain of the army of the king of Aram, was a great man with his master, and highly respected, because by him the LORD had given victory to Aram. The man was also a valiant warrior, but he was a leper. ²Now the Arameans had gone out in bands and had taken captive a little girl from the land of Israel; and she waited on Naaman's wife. ³She said to her mistress, "I wish that my master were with the prophet who is in Samaria! Then he would cure him of his leprosy." ⁴Naaman went in and told his master, saying, "Thus and thus spoke the girl who is from the land of Israel."

From this text, we would like to share three principles that involve heart-to-heart evangelism:

1) Identify your Naaman;

2) Look for the opportunity to share; and

3) Don’t just give a message…offer a solution!

Indentify your Naaman:

In our passage, we are introduced to Naaman, who was a successful warrior. In fact, we are told that God used Him as an instrument to chastise the nation of Israel who had forsaken Him. But despite all of his achievements on the battlefield, there was one battle he was losing: the battle against the disease of leprosy.

In order to spot the Naamans in your life, you need to identify someone who fits the following profile:

1) You know them on a personal basis;

2) They are fighting a losing battle over an issue in their life; and

3) They are running out of options.

Any one who meets this description is your Naaman. So at this time, write down the name of the person who is your Naaman. They may be a co-worker, a relative or a neighbor. A Naaman may be one who confides in you and shares their problems and their heartaches.

Identify your opportunity to share:

Next, you want to identify your opportunity to present the gospel. Let me first say that there is a right time and a wrong time to tell someone about Jesus. Here are some examples of the wrong time:

1) After you have had an argument with the person;

2) When the person is not in a mood to listen;

3) When someone is pressed for time;

4) When they are occupied with other interests.

And I am sure that you could come up with other examples as well. Now let’s talk about when it is the appropriate time to share the good news:

1) When you have earned the trust of the person;

2) When the person has confided in you regarding an issue in their life;

3) When they seek you for advice;

4) When they appear open to listening to you.

Notice from our text that this little girl had a mistress whose husband was facing a crisis. Because she served her mistress she had gained her trust. We know this because the mistress was willing to share a very private matter regarding her husband.

The role of this servant girl was to make sure that her mistress needs were met. And the role of the mistress was to be presentable for her husband. But what good would it do to go through the effort of staying beautiful for a husband who had leprosy? So Naaman’s disease had become her crisis! Listen, when someone pulls you aside and shares discreet information about their lives, they are looking to you for answers!

And regrettably, too many of us say things that do nothing to help the Naamans in our lives. We will say things like; “Oh, it’ll be alright,” or “hang in there, you can make it,” or “I’m praying for you.”

These are not answers! They are cop outs! We use these and other tired phrases to disguise the fact that we do not want to be bothered with them or their struggles! When the Naamans in our lives call us we hold the phone away from our ears, looking for a delicate way to express that we care when the fact is we really don’t.

Look! If you and I don’t listen, the casino will! The bartender will! Their so-called friends who are trying to get them to participate in destructive behavior will! The online predator will! As Christians, we must not only listen…we must feel the pain of those who are going through! Then and only then, can we seize the opportunity to tell them about Christ!

Don’t just give a message…offer a solution!

When the Naamans in your life reveal their struggles to you, don’t just give them a message; offer them a solution! In our text, the little girl says to her mistress, "I wish that my master were with the prophet who is in Samaria! Then he would cure him of his leprosy."

There are three things about this little girl’s response that I want you to consider when sharing the gospel:

1) Be sincere!

2) Be direct!

3) Be Brief!

Your ability to feel the pain of the person who is talking with you will allow you to be sincere when you respond with the message of the gospel. And once you speak, don’t get bogged down in telling them to come to church or visit our website; they may not make it to Sunday! Instead, be direct and point them to Jesus Christ.

Here are some responses that you may want to consider:

1) “Listen, I do not claim to have all of the answers, but I know someone who does…His name is Jesus. And I believe that if we pray to Him now, He will give you peace. Let’s pray together.”

2) “I remember when I was going through a painful situation in my life. And then I prayed to Jesus and asked Him to give me strength and He really helped me to get through it. Let me pray with you right now…”

3) “It really hurts me to see you going through this situation…I wish I had the words to say that would take away all of your pain. But I know that if you would allow me to pray with you, that Christ will meet you right were you are…let’s pray together…”

How many of you can honestly say that you are comfortable doing heart-to-heart evangelism based on what we have shared with you so far? Do you feel that you could minister hope to the Naamans in your life? Jesus said, “The harvest is plentiful but the laborers are few.”

Evangelism is not a gift that is reserved for a chosen few. It is a responsibility or everyone who is born again. May God give you the grace to reach the “Naamans” in your life.