The Doors of the Church Are Open

1. The Doors of the Church Are Open Rev. Tyrone D. Gordon St. Luke “Community” United Methodist Church Dallas, Texas West Virginia Annual Conference Commission Possible II

2. --Dr. Zan W. Holmes “There is a difference between growing and swelling.” A Look @ Evangelism and Discipleship in the Church

3. What is holistic Evangelism? --It’s about moving persons from mere church membership to committed Christian discipleship A Look @ Evangelism and Discipleship in the Church

4. What is it really about? • It’s about raising disciples . . . • It’s about bring them in and moving them out . . . • It’s about producing prophetic disciples • Who are about going out and bring change and transformation to a world gone mad! A Look @ Evangelism and Discipleship in the Church

5. Working Definition of Evangelism According to Gordon— “Holistic evangelism is the proclamation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, through Word and deed!” A Look @ Evangelism and Discipleship in the Church

6. Our Membership Vows I will be loyal to the United Methodist Church by upholding it with our prayers, presence, gifts and service-- Membership producing – Old Membership Vows I will be loyal to Christ, through the Church by upholding it with our prayers, presence, gifts, service and witness--Disciple Making – New Membership Vowss A Look @ Evangelism and Discipleship in the Church

7. The Great Expectation! [18] Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. [19] Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, [20] and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." --Matthew 28:18-20 (NIV) A Look @ Evangelism and Discipleship in the Church

8. Teaching Reaching Training & Deploying A Cyclical View of Evangelism-Discipleship A Look @ Evangelism and Discipleship in the Church

9. What Are We Really Dealing With? This is NotLine Fishing! This is Net Fishing! A Look @ Evangelism and Discipleship in the Church

10. The Art of Disciple-Making • In order to “make” disciples, we have to go and get them! • In order to “make” disciples, we have to capture their minds, hearts, trust and respect • In order to “make” disciples, we must resist the temptation to choose which fish we want to catch A Look @ Evangelism and Discipleship in the Church

11. The Worship Experience --and the preaching moment must comfort, confront, challenge and invite persons to come to Jesus. A Look @ Evangelism and Discipleship in the Church

12. Teach Them! Good preaching, inspiring and celebratory worship can draw folks; but teaching will grow people. Churches cannot grow disciples if opportunities to learn what the traits of a disciple are not being taught. A Look @ Evangelism and Discipleship in the Church

13. Christian Education in the Mix The role of Christian Education does not simply impart information, but gives inspiration to go beyond the walls of the Sanctuary. “The Word became flesh and dealt among us.” A Look @ Evangelism and Discipleship in the Church

14. Train Them The primary ministry of the staff—both clergy and laity is to equip and empower the saints for ministry. Great care should be given to how we train, not only new members, but also existing members and leadership team. We invest time and energy in raising and developing Spiritual Leaders. A Look @ Evangelism and Discipleship in the Church

15. There is a difference between church work and the work of the church. A Look @ Evangelism and Discipleship in the Church

16. The work of the church mainly is to proclaim Jesus Christ, invite others into relationship with him; and send them out into the world to bring spiritual, social, political and economic change and transformation to all of our communities. A Look @ Evangelism and Discipleship in the Church

17. Deploy Them! • Other disciples make the greatest impact upon the world, particularly in the lives of others. • We must move from “in-reach to outreach.” • We must move from being a “come to” church to a being a “go out and do” church. A Look @ Evangelism and Discipleship in the Church

18. The Great Songwriter Challenges “If you’ve got good religion, you ought to show some sign.” A Look @ Evangelism and Discipleship in the Church

19. The Heart of the Community • When folks in the community see that the church has the community at heart—the community will hold that church to heart. A Look @ Evangelism and Discipleship in the Church

20. Act 1:8 [8] What you'll get is the Holy Spirit. And when the Holy Spirit comes on you, you will be able to be my witnesses in Jerusalem, all over Judea and Samaria, even to the ends of the world." (Msg translation) A Look @ Evangelism and Discipleship in the Church

21. What Happens When. . . • The people are deployed? • The people are released? • The people of God themselves are transformed? • The people of God take seriously the command to bear fruit for the upbuilding of the Kingdom? A Look @ Evangelism and Discipleship in the Church

22. And the final word . . . And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." Matthew 28:20 (NIV) A Look @ Evangelism and Discipleship in the Church