Two Examples of Making Evangelism a Priority

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Mobberly Baptist and Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship are examples of churches ensuring that sharing the gospel of Jesus remains a priority.

Almost every church wants to tell others about Jesus.  Some churches adopt evangelistic vision statements or implement evangelism programs.  Many, though, are not intentionally, actively engaged in evangelism.

I’ve been blessed to be part of two churches that don’t just say they want to share the gospel — they make it a priority!  I’m talking about Mobberly Baptist Church and Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship.

While Mobberly and OCBF are larger churches, that does dampen their evangelistic focus, thanks in large part to their pastors, Dr. Glynn Stone (MBC) and Dr. Tony Evans (OCBF).  Each of these men has a passion for sharing the gospel and showing Jesus’ love to their communities.

In this article I want to highlight these two churches and briefly explain what they are doing.  This will, hopefully, inspire you and your church to find new, creative ways to become more evangelistic.

Mobberly Baptist Church: Engage 10K

I served as bassist at Mobberly from 2014 till 2018.  It was during that time that Pastor Glynn introduced a new outreach strategy called “Engage 10K.”

The name is well thought out.  “Engage” means intentionally interacting with someone on a personal basis; “10K” refers to 10,000 households.  As Mobberly puts it, “By 2020, Mobberly Baptist Church will engage 10,000 East Texas households with the life-changing gospel of Jesus Christ.”

Engage 10K map showing Mobberly’s “Jerusalem” and vital statistics.

This strategy was designed to meet three needs: help every member become more evangelistic in their daily life, help the church reach their community, and help the raise funds to expand their campus to meet their growth (in some areas they were exceeding capacity).

Engage 10K builds on Acts 1:8, and looks at East Texas as Mobberly’s “Jerusalem.”  As part of the campaign, they launched a website, a mobile app, and instituted evangelism training to help every member begin sharing the gospel with their neighbors.

While Mobberly is remains active in other ministries, Engage 10K is everywhere.  Why?  Because Engage 10K reminds the members that what they do is about sharing and living the gospel of Jesus in every aspect of life and ministry.

In 2018 my wife and I moved our membership to Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship, where I encountered another gospel-focused church.

Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship: Kingdom Agenda

We joined OCBF this year after I was hired as their new web administrator.  Since arriving I’ve learned more about Pastor Evans’ vision: Kingdom agenda.

Like with Mobberly’s strategy, “Kingdom agenda” is an ingenious name.  “Kingdom” refers to God’s rule and influence in all aspects of life; “agenda” indicates an intentional plan to accomplish a goal.  OCBF describes the Kingdom agenda is this way: “The Kingdom Agenda is defined as the visible demonstration of the comprehensive rule of God over every area of life.  This rule is reflected through the four divinely ordained spheres of the individual, the family, the church, and the government.”

Two of the boards OCBF set up for names of those who need to be saved.

The Kingdom agenda philosophy defines everything OCBF does, including outreach; the gospel defines the Kingdom agenda.  Whether it’s counseling or community service, the gospel is both lived and shared by OCBF members.

One example of Oak Cliff’s evangelistic focus is “Impact Saturday.”  During this activity, members go out into the local area to help meet the physical needs of others.  However, the mission isn’t merely neighborhood improvement.  OCBF’s purpose is to show others the love and compassion of Jesus and to make the gospel known.

In preparation for Impact Saturday, the church set up multiple prayer boards for those who are not saved.  People were invited to write the names of people they believe need to hear the gospel.

Church leaders and members then pray that the Spirit would give members the opportunity and boldness to share the gospel, and that the other person would respond in faith and be saved.

Another example is of a personal nature.  I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard folks here at OCBF ask me or others how they got saved.  If the person isn’t saved, or if there’s any doubt, the gospel is shared.

These examples tell me that, like at Mobberly, evangelism is a priority at OCBF.

Final Thoughts

I’ve been blessed to be part of two churches that make evangelism a priority.  It’s not merely one small part of the church’s work; it is the church’s work.  Both Mobberly and Oak Cliff realize that Jesus came to seek and save the lost.  They both realize that the cross and empty tomb matter, and that the gospel is the most important message this world needs to hear.

Another thing Mobberly and OCBF realize is that evangelism isn’t something done only by professionals or paid staff; evangelism should be done by every believer.  Each church is organized to help Jesus’ followers become more engaged with others and to improve their evangelistic outreach.  In short, both Mobberly and OCBF are organized to make disciple makers.

It’s my hope that you’ll be inspired by these two examples.  Each church is unique, but each shares a common mission: living and sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ.

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