The Gospel and Personal Evangelism | 
 enlarge | Author: Mark Dever
Publisher: Crossway Books
Category: Book
Buy New: $9.99
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Rating:  17 reviews
Sales Rank: 24541
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 128
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.3
Dimensions (in): 8 x 5.2 x 0.4
ISBN: 1581348460
Dewey Decimal Number: 248.5
EAN: 9781581348460
ASIN: 1581348460
Publication Date: September 7, 2007
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Product Description
Evangelism is not only misunderstood, it is often unpracticed. Many Christians want to share the gospel with others, but because those Christians don t grasp the fundamentals of witnessing, they feel intimidated and incapable of sharing the truth of the gospel.
Yet those believers fail to recognize that God has already established who and how we are to evangelize. In The Gospel and Personal Evangelism, Dr. Mark Dever seeks to answer the four basic questions about evangelism that many Christians ask: Who should we evangelize? How should we evangelize? What is evangelism? Why should we evangelize? In his answers Dever draws on New Testament truths and helps believers apply those truths in practical ways. As readers understand the fundamentals of evangelism, they will begin to develop a culture of evangelism in their lives and their local churches.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 12 more reviews...
 Evangelizing Rightly December 27, 2008
Mark Dever's THE GOSPEL & PERSONAL EVANGELISM is an excellent book which lays out his theory regarding the Christian's business of evangelizing. Dever is concise (the book's body is only about 100 pages) but writes in a conversational style. Even so, this book will prompt most Christians to think more carefully about evangelism.
Dever's book is excellent because it views evangelism through the person and work of Christ. Though I enjoyed the entire book, it contains two chapters that I especially appreciated, both of which deal with definitions. In the second chapter, Dever explains what the gospel is. Too many Christians can't evangelize properly because they are confused about what exactly the good news is. The fifth chapter is entitled "What Isn't Evangelism." In this chapter, Dever explains that Christians and churches do many good things, but good works aren't the same as evangelizing. Evangelism must contain a proclamation of the gospel message.
Dever didn't aim to write a how-to-book. Though the book contains many personal stories, it doesn't contain much practical advice. This book provides a theological foundation for evangelism, not a step-by-step plan. It should be noted that Dever's own theological leanings could be described as Calvinistic, but this should not hinder Christians with other views from profiting from this book. THE GOSPEL AND PERSONAL EVANGELISM should engender a desire in its reader to evangelize in a manner that honors Christ.
 A Theological and Practical Guide to Evangelism October 19, 2008
At the 2008 Founders Conference, Ed Stetzer challenged pastors and students of the Reformed persuasion to demonstrate a passion for evangelism and warned them not to become "functional hyper-Calvinists."
Thankfully, no one in Southern Baptist leadership is promoting the heresy of Hyper-Calvinism (the belief that the gospel should not be offered freely to all). But could it be that many of us (Calvinist or non-Calvinist alike) are "functional Hyper-Calvinists?" We say we believe the gospel should be preached to all, and yet we fail to evangelize!
The Gospel and Personal Evangelism (Crossway, 2007) by Mark Dever, pastor of Capitol Hill Baptist Church, represents a passionate plea from one of the leading Calvinists in the Southern Baptist Convention. Dever seeks to inspire his readers to evangelize more often and more faithfully, and he hopes to promote a culture of evangelism within our churches. In order to make his case, he focuses each chapter on answering specific questions like:
Why don't we evangelize?
What is the Gospel?
Who should evangelize?
How should we evangelize?
What isn't evangelism?
What should we do after we evangelize?
Why should we evangelize?
Dever's book is thoroughly biblical and practical. He warns against certain evangelistic strategies that sound more like sales pitches for a new product. And yet he is equally insistent that we should demonstrate urgency when pleading with people to trust in the mercy of Christ.
Dever believes it is important to back up our gospel proclamation with holy living, but he does not believe that we should substitute evangelistic proclamation with "lifestyle evangelism." Verbal proclamation is key. Dever urges us to proclaim the gospel, not merely our personal testimonies, apologetic reasoning for Christianity, or the results of Christian faith.
Many books on evangelism devote little time to actually defining "the gospel" and instead jump quickly to practical strategies. Dever does not assume his readers know the message that needs to be shared, so he devotes an entire chapter to the gospel message itself. Dever defines "the gospel" more comprehensively than the New Testament uses the word, but in a book about how to share the gospel (and thereby incorporate the major emphases of the biblical witness regarding our need for salvation), his definition works just fine.
The Gospel and Personal Salvation will probably do for this generation what J.I. Packer's Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God did for the previous generation - provide a theological and practical guide to evangelism from within the Reformed tradition. I highly recommend you pick up Dever's book. It has challenged me to become more intentional in my evangelism and to be more aware of the non-Christians I meet day to day.
Excellent Encouragment to Personal Evangelism August 13, 2008
Mark Dever has written an excellent resource for personal evangelism. I bought this book having heard of Dever's particular passion for personal evangelism. I was not disappointed. On the other hand, I was a little surprised. My perception of Dever is that of a pastor-scholar excelling at theological argumentation and biblical exegesis. Yet the power of this book is not in it's scholarship or argumentation. Its peculiar strength comes from how personal, practical, and honest it is written.
Dever fills this book with stories of evangelistic successes and failures. Some of these stories are from Christian history and some are from his own life. He avoids complex theological terminology making this book readily accessible to layman and pastor alike. What is so disarming about the book is how frequently he inserts his own reflections on personal evangelism and even on writing a book about evangelism. At one point he breaks in mid paragraph to write:
"And just to drive this home, as I've been writing this, a non-Christian friend called and wanted to talk to me. We chatted for about thirty minutes, the whole time during which I was impatient to get back to writing this book on evangelism! Aargh! Wretched man that I am! Who shall deliver me from this wretched body of indifference? If we would evangelize more, we must love people more."
When you add together the simple vocabulary, rich stories, personal reflection, and short chapters you get a book that is incredibly easy to read in a single sitting yet profound enough to stick with you for years to come.
This books is also, of course, profoundly Christ-centered. Each chapter repeatedly brings the reader's attention back to consider the magnificence of the cross of Christ. Why should we evangelize? Consider Christ. What should we say when we evangelize? Consider Christ. What should we do if the response is less than positive? Consider Christ. What is the end goal of evangelism? Christ, Christ, Christ. It is a joy to read this book and join in Dever in his praise for the crucified and risen Lord Jesus Christ.
You will also find in this book helpful discussion on the relationship of God's sovereignty and personal evangelism. Dever is very concerned to place personal evangelism soundly within the frame of God's sovereign power in salvation. He does not want people to evangelize out of guilt. He does not want people to rely on their own sales tactics to bring the lost to Jesus. He wants the church to find tremendous encouragement and power in the truth of God's sovereignty as it related to personal evangelism.
Another aspect of this book which was particularly welcomed was the way Dever addressed common excuses for not evangelizing. He doesn't pull punches. He doesn't excuse excuses. In multiple places he completely annihilates the kind of thinking that leads Christians to live lives of un-evangelism. He leaves no other option to the reader but to say along with him, "It is the responsibility of every Christian to be involved in personal evangelism."
Lastly, you will find this book very practical. Many of the chapters provide numbered lists of things to do as you prepare in, participate in, and follow up personal evangelism. Dever avoids the pitfall of pretending to provide a flawless step-by-step plan for cookie-cutter evangelism. Instead he provides biblical and practical help for growing in your desire for and skill in personal evangelism.
I highly recommend this book.
Accomplishes Its Purpose; Let's Accomplish Ours July 8, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
In this book, a pastor who personally evangelizes people, tries to get other Christians to do the same. The book consists of seven brief chapters; since the obstacle in evangelism less the knowing and more the doing, the brevity of the book lends to its being used for regular reminder or even as a sort of manual. Here is a very brief summary of the content:
1. Why Don't We Evangelize?
This chapter examines obstacles, imagined and real, and prescribes 12 simple correctives. The first 8 are more concrete, and the last 4 are more compelling.
2. What Is the Gospel?
Most of this chapter is spent debunking what the Gospel is not, before arriving upon a definition that attempts to summarize what the Bible says about how God accomplished the salvation of sinners and applies it to them.
3. Who Should Evangelize?
Although I don't think the case was strongly made from Scripture, I do agree with his conclusion that all Christians should evangelize. This chapter included a helpful example and exhortation that just thinking, speaking, and living in a radically Christian way is often used of God as evangelism.
4. How Should We Evangelize?
This chapter deals with our manner as we evangelize and with some practical suggestions of things to do when we evangelize. The former is too often done poorly; the latter are too often not done at all; so, this is a very helpful and important chapter.
5. What Isn't Evangelism?
This chapter attempts to distinguish evangelism (our duty) from many things that go by its name--things that we would rather do, or things that are not ours to do.
6. What to Do After We Evangelize
This chapter helps us process the various kinds of responses that we get when we tell people the Gospel. It is helpful both to Christians who don't know how to respond to a negative response and who fall short of engaging a new convert in discipleship. Both are important, since evangelism seeks to make disciples and not just converts.
7. Why Should We Evangelize?
This chapter identifies three healthy motives for evangelism: obedience to God, love for others, and love for God and His glory. Recognizing that these are not often our motives for anything in the way they should be, Dever then gives a list of ways to foster such motives in our hearts.
There is also a concluding section reminding us that evangelizing is our job, but converting is God's alone, and we ought not attempt to do it ourselves. This is a slight expansion of some content from chapter 5.
Happily, I believe that Dever accomplished his stated purpose for the book: "It is meant to be an encouragement, a clarification, an instruction, a rebuke, and a challenge all rolled up into several short chapters." (p16)
Because of the importance of the topic, the brevity and accessibility of the writing, and the amount of practical content, I think that if you are a believer you will find this book useful to have and to read and to reread.
Great Evangelism-training Tool March 25, 2008
I bought this book in order to gain more practical insights into evangelism - i.e., why engage in it, how to engage in it - and I have not been disappointed! Mark Dever's writing is theologically sound and I think would be very approachable by most everyone. Mark answers the questions and calls the reader to accountability in the necessity and the practice of evangelism. Well worth the money.
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