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26 of 27 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
One of the best books on evangelism, February 25, 2008
This review is from: The Gospel and Personal Evangelism (Paperback)
If you want to read a very good book on what evangelism is, why we need to evangelize, and what evangelism is not, then you must purchase this book. Dever has really hit the bullseye in this book when it comes to evangelism and all the implications associated with it. Though every chapter in the book is useful and valuable the better chapters are on the contents of the gospel (chap. 2) and what evangelism is not (chap. 5). In the chapter on what the true gospel is, Dever makes it clear that the gospel (contrary to many modern evangelicals) is NOT 1) that we are simply okay; 2) that God is simply love; 3) that Jesus just wants to be our friend; and 4) that we should just live rightly. The true gospel, according to Dever, is that we are all sinners, that Jesus lived a perfect life and died on the cross to take our punishment, that he rose from the dead, and that we are all called to repent of our sins and trust Jesus Christ alone for forgiveness and salvation. This chapter must be read by ALL evangelical ministers today who are tempted to follow the seeker-friendly or prosperity train. The chapter on what evangelism is not is also very enlightening. Dever rightly points out that evangelism is NOT 1) imposition of our beliefs on unbelievers; 2) personal testimony of our Christian life; 3) social action or public involvement; 4) and apologetics (this point is especially important to highlight since so many Christians today believe that they can persuade an unbeliever to Christ through clever argumentation). Also, Dever rightly points out that just because we do not see the fruits of our evangelism right away does not mean that our role as God's messengers have failed. In fact, the fruit of conversion may appear many decades later - the time when a sinner comes to Christ is not in our hands but it is in the hands of our wise and sovereign God. Our job is just to be faithful messengers of the gospel and let God do the actual saving. Finally, I also found Dever's statement that just because a person "accepts" Christ does not mean he or she is a true believer quite helpful. Having led bible studies for quite some time this is an important point that all Christian leaders need to be aware of. There will always be wolves in sheep's clothing in any church (even in solid Calvinistic ones). Many who appear to be Christians at first will later show their true colours as their supposed faith wanes and they go back to their old lifestyle. Dever points this out in his book to remind us that assurance is not an automatic thing and that we need to be careful of automatically considering a person saved just because he or she claims to be a Christian. Overall, I would highly recommend this short but important book on evangelism. Though Dever is a Calvinist, this book can be very useful for evangelical Christians of all theological persuasions. In an age where evangelism is mostly based on seeker-friendly methods and the gospel is watered-down to meet the carnal desires of the people this book shows what true biblical evangelism is all about and what the gospel gives us and demands from us.
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12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Helpful, Concise and Faithful; Dever serves the church well, September 25, 2007
This review is from: The Gospel and Personal Evangelism (Paperback)
One of my favorite podcasts subscriptions is the Capital Hill Baptist Church sermon audio. Capital Hill is where Mark Dever pastors. One of the reasons why I like Dever so much is (in addition to his biblical fidelity) his ability to communicate grand concepts clearly and with intentional application. So when I heard that Dever was soon releasing a new book on evangelism I was eager to read. The Gospel and Personal Evangelism is a short book (128 pages) but is filled with helpful, Bible saturated, honesty and exhortation. Dever is writing both as a pastor and a Christian. Therefore he is transparent about his own evangelistic struggles but also clear about the necessity for believers to faithfully herald the gospel. "My prayer is that because of the time you spend reading this book, more people will hear the good news of Jesus Christ." (p.16) As someone who teaches a class on evangelism I often cringe when I hear contemporary authors and preachers talk about the motivation and means of evangelism. Far too often emotional and pragmatic sentiments drown out the clear God-centered goal of evangelism as outlined in the Scriptures. Thankfully Dever does not swing and miss on this critical understanding of evangelism: "According to the Bible, good motives for evangelism are a desire to be obedient, a love for the lost, and a love for God....Ultimately, our motive in evangelism must be a desire to see God glorified. This was the end of all of the Lord Jesus' actions (See John 17)....God is glorified in being known. To see others truly come to know him glorifies God and honors him....The call to evangelism is a cal to turn our lives outward from focusing on ourselves and our needs to focusing on God and on others made in his image who are still at enmity with him, alienated from him, and in need of salvation from sin and guilt. We bring God glory as we speak the truth about him to his creation." (pp. 96, 101) Dever maintains a steady posture of introspection and exhortation throughout the chapters. I firmly believe that if you are a Christian and you want to grow in the area of evangelism then this book will be helpful. In each of the chapters Dever aims to makes us comfortable with obedience while stirring up discomfort with complacency and the fear of man. Here are the chapters titles, each are about 10 or so pages long: Why Don't we Evangelize? What is the Gospel? Who Should Evangelize? How Should We Evangelize? What Isn't Evangelism? What do we Do After We Evangelize? Why Should We Evangelize? In closing I want to highlight some of Dever's recommendations for increasing in our evangelistic faithfulness: Ask for testimonies Consider the reality of hell Consider God's sovereignty Meditate on the Gospel Consider the Cross This book is not exhaustive but it clearly was not intended to be. Dever aims to cultivate faithfulness in evangelism while also exposing some unbiblical practices that regrettably seem to characterize much of evangelicalism's evangel. In this Dever was successful. I suggest picking up the book for yourself or reading it with a friend or small group. The Gospel and Personal Evangelism is a helpful, God-centered shot in the arm for the church.
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
If you're looking for an excellent book on evangelism - this is it., January 29, 2008
This review is from: The Gospel and Personal Evangelism (Paperback)
The Christian life has three ugly step children. They get lots of lip service, and often little action: Consistent Bible Reading, Prayer - and (the BIG one) Evangelism. We all know we ought to to do them. We all WANT to do them - at least on some level. But if one gets shoved aside more than any other - its the last one - evangelism. Mark Dever has written an invaluable resource to help us out. In short, Mark's book is: #1 - Encouraging. Encouraging because he both addresses our universal fears and failings, and because he offers simple, clear, Biblical help. #2 - Clear. You cannot come away from it missing the need to evangelize; being incited to evangelize; being informed as how to evangelize - and above all - getting the Gospel simply and clearly so AS to evangelize. #3 - Concise. Short can often mean bereft of content. Not The Gospel & Personal Evangelism. Much more more can be said, and has been said. But what is here is the essential meat. The core. Digest this, and you are well fed. #4 - Practical. This book is not about theory - though underlying necessary concepts are not ignored. But it is all couched in the practical realm of loving people with the Gospel personally. #5 - Equipping. I cannot imagine anyone putting this book down and not being immensely more confident they can clearly and accurately share the Gospel with others. Or as he puts it in chapter 4: To share HONESTLY, URGENTLY and JOYFULLY. What a great paradigm. # 6- Necessary. For whatever reason, the Gospel message needs to be repeated over and over even to those of us who believe it - or it seems to grow nebulous, nondescript and inarticulable in a heartbeat. Thus he repeats it any number of ways throughout the book Helping us see it framed and re-framed a number of different ways. None more beautifully or simply than on page 43: "The good news is that the one and only God, who is holy, made us in his image to know him. But we sinned and cut ourselves off from him. In his great love, God became a man in Jesus, lived a perfect life, and died on the cross, thus fulfilling the law himself and taking on himself the punishment for the sins of all those who would ever turn and trust in him. He rose again from the dead showing that God accepted Christ's sacrifice and that God's wrath against us had been exhausted. He now calls us to repent of our sins and to trust in Christ alone for our forgiveness. If we repent of our sins and trust in Christ, we are born again into a new life, an eternal life with God." And as He closes that section - "Now that's good news". I agree.
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