THE GOSPEL & PERSONAL EVANGELISM

Mark E. Dever

Foreword by C.J. Mahaney

CROSSWAY BOOKS

wheaton, illinois

The Gospel and Personal Evangelism

Copyright © 2007 by Mark Dever

Published by Crossway Books

a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers

1300 Crescent Street

Wheaton, Illinois 60187

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher, except as provided for by USA copyright law.

Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible: New International Version.® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved.

The “NIV” and “New International Version” trademarks are registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by International Bible Society. Use of either trademark requires the permission of International Bible Society.

Cover art direction: Josh Dennis

Cover design: Luke Daab

Cover illustration: Bridgeman Art Gallery

First printing 2007

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Dever, Mark.

The Gospel and Personal Evangelism / Mark E. Dever; foreword by C.J. Mahaney.

p. cm.

ISBN 13: 978-1-58134-846-0 (tpb)

ISBN 10: 1-58134-799-5

1. Evangelistic work. 2. Witness bearing (Christianity) I. Title.

BV3790.D4765 2007

248ʹ.5—dc22

2007016748

With thanks to God

for his faithfulness

in fruit given through evangelism,

now precious friends—John, Karan, Ryan—and in

friends who’ve taught me about evangelism:

Jim Packer

Will Metzger

Mack Stiles

and

Sebastian Traeger

Contents

Foreword

Introduction: An Amazing Story

1 Why Don’t We Evangelize?

2 What Is the Gospel?

3 Who Should Evangelize?

4 How Should We Evangelize?

5 What Isn’t Evangelism?

6 What Should We Do After We Evangelize?

7 Why Should We Evangelize?

Conclusion: Closing the Sale

Recommended Reading

Appendix: A Word to Pastors

Foreword

One of the first things I discovered about my very good friend Mark Dever is that he walks as fast as he talks. It was over ten years ago that I drove from my home church in the suburbs of Washington DC to meet Mark at Capitol Hill Baptist Church, where he serves as senior pastor. It was a pleasant day, so Mark suggested we walk the short distance from his church’s historic building to a nearby Subway restaurant. Even though I usually walk at a brisk pace myself, I had trouble keeping up with Mark.

Moments before entering the fast-food establishment, Mark explained that he ate there often, not because of the fine cuisine, but for the purpose of sharing the gospel. Inside, he greeted the owners—a Muslim couple from India—by name and engaged them in friendly conversation.

As we sat down, I began to quiz Mark about his heart for unbelievers and his strategy for sharing the gospel. He told me that he intentionally frequents the same restaurants and businesses so ...