The last BLOG was an effort to show that for true evangelism to occur it must have the message of the glory of God in it to be true evangelism. This is in the context of trying to show that the Church as a whole must go back to the very basics of God’s purpose and intent for the Church in order to be the Church. No matter if a church is being biblical if it misses God’s terminal end or primary purpose for its existence it misses what is utterly vital about the church. If a church is focusing on evangelism and leaves out the primary message of the Gospel and the intent God has in saving sinners, it is not being evangelistic in a truly biblical way.
To recap for just a moment, we need to remember Paul’s words in Ephesians 3:8-11: “To me, the very least of all saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unfathomable riches of Christ, 9 and to bring to light what is the administration of the mystery which for ages has been hidden in God who created all things; 10 so that the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known through the church to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly places. 11 This was in accordance with the eternal purpose which He carried out in Christ Jesus our Lord.” We must have it driven into our minds and hearts that God has an eternal purpose for all things and that means that He has one for the Church. Whatever purpose He has for the Church is the purpose that all things must be in accordance with. Since evangelism is what the Church is commanded to do, the way that is done must be done in accordance with the purpose that God has for the Church.
What was God’s eternal purpose? We see that in Ephesians 1 in many places. “Just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love 5 He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will, 6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved” (Eph 1:4-6). In these verses we see that God chooses before the foundation of the world. That surely points to an eternal purpose. We see that in love He predestined some to adoption as sons through Christ. What was that in accordance with? The text says “according to the kind intention of His will,” but the more literal rendering would be “according to the good pleasure of His will.” And then we see that His predestining work was “to the praise of the glory of His grace.” In other words, God’s eternal purpose had to do with the exalting of His glory. God does all to the glory of His name and that includes the whole of salvation.
We then see in Ephesians 1:9 that “He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His kind intention which He purposed in Him.” Again the words “kind intention” is better translated “good pleasure” which means that God makes known the mystery of His will according to His good pleasure “which He purposed in Him.” This should remind us of Matthew 11:25-27 where Jesus praises the Father for hiding “these things” from the “wise and intelligent and have revealed them to infants.” What did He say after that? “Yes, Father, for this way was well-pleasing in your sight.” The Greek word for “well-pleasing” is the same word used in both Ephesians 1:4 and 1:9 that is translated (NAS) as “kind intention.” The revelation of the truth and glory of God is at His good pleasure.
For evangelism to be biblical, then, it must take into account that it is God that must reveal spiritual things to people. He does so according to His eternal plan and purpose for the Church. Evangelism must take this into account and realize that the Gospel is according to a grace that is uncaused in and by human beings but is according to the pleasure of the self-existent God. Anything less sure appears to be a form of humanism.
God Loves... Himself 
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