CHALLENGES AND ISSUES FACING EVANGELISM AMONG CHURCHES IN NIGERIA: THE WAY FORWARD
| Format: Ms Word | 1-5 Chapters | Table of Content|
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Abstract
This study examines the challenges and issues facing evangelism among churches in Nigeria. The study attempts to know the difficulties and hardships encountered by missionaries and churches in their attempts to evangelize Nigerians. The day when God’s people from every nation, tribe, and tongue shall be assembled around the throne of God and the Lamb is the magnificent goal to which the Bible points. The healing of relationships is the goal toward which everything is moving. When individuals who carry the gospel go and create disciples of all nations, that gathering begins in this life. In order to preserve the Christian church’s doctrinal foundation, history, and ethics for future generations, the gospel of the Kingdom of God must be proclaimed to those who do not already know it. Evangelism is the only way to do this. The descriptive survey research approach was utilized for the study, and stratified random sampling was used to pick twelve congregations in the study area, four orthodox and eight Pentecostal. The study’s findings reveal that Christ’s earnest expectation from the church is to “go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled” (Luke 14:23b). This argues that Christianity is a lifeless faith in the absence of evangelism. As a result, the church praises God by evangelizing every lost soul and loving them as Christ loves the church. God does not require our worldly evangelism as payment for our salvation; rather, He requires them to ensure the welfare of His creation, just as we were once saved. His representatives are us. It was determined that the modern Christian churches have a significant role to play in bringing the world to Christ.
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background to the Study
Throughout history, the church has encountered barriers to evangelization, including open persecution, adversarial cultural influences, and demonic spiritual forces in the higher places. No one is claiming that converting the entire world will be simple, of course. People are finding themselves cut off from meaningful relationships, especially in a time when connectedness is greater than it has ever been. The difficulties of spreading the gospel are always increasing in a time when tolerance is valued highly. Without a doubt, this is just the tip of the iceberg compared to what the early missionaries and early believers (Apostles) in the bible faced in their missionary journey. The church of God owes Christ the task of reconciliation because there is still enormous delight in heaven over even one lost soul who is saved here on earth. Due to the fact that Christ died for our sins while we were still sinners, the son of God was sent to earth to make peace between man and God. As it is clearly stated in his word, “You have not chosen me, but I have chosen you (the church), and appointed you, that ye should go and bring forth fruits, and that your fruits should remain: that whatever ye shall ask of the father in my name, he may give you,” after Christ’s resurrection, he chose us (the church) to become the channel of reconciliation between the world and God (John 15: 16kjv).
From the aforementioned verse, it may be inferred that, in contrast to a church that is always evangelizing for Christ, one without evangelism cannot expand and can never consistently experience God answering prayers. Because it is written, “But ye shall receive power, after the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and you shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, in all of Judea, in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth” (Acts 1:8 kjv), poor performance in the area of evangelism among churches today has wasted the power of God vested in the apostle at Pentecost. Jesus issued the following directive before ascending into heaven: “Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.” (NIV Matthew 28:19–20). The church should pursue a vital mission in the world, according to this scripture. Regarding this, Rod Dempsey asserts that “the church exists to win individuals to Christ, to strengthen them in their faith, and to then send them forth to take part in the mission of winning the whole world. Discipleship is the process of developing people in their faith and sending them, and it is God’s will for every church (Rod Dempsey, 2008).
According to the Bible, a man who has won his soul is wise and will shine with the brilliance of the stars. This demonstrates the value that God places on the soul of the human being that he created in his own image, as opposed to his previous long-suffering wish that none of his creatures perish in hell. The ideas, teaching, style, and character of what is expected of his church in the past, present, and future (i.e., the end times) were demonstrated in the message of Christ. During his earthly ministry, Jesus explicitly addressed the expectations of his church for him to bring about the reconciliation of sinners with God by preaching in both the mountain and the plain. The salvation of the world’s nonbelievers is God’s greatest hope. (1 Timothy 2:3–4) He desires that everyone be rescued and come to know the truth. He carries out the hope through His church. This means that evangelism should be the focal point of all the church’s activities. However, a lot of contemporary churches have tried to build their congregations through evangelism and have failed. Evangelism should be viewed as a continuous process that wins souls and produces disciples rather than a one-time event that only raises church attendance (Wagner, 2004).
Being a purpose-driven church is really about putting people’s spiritual development first rather than aiming to expand the church through programming. A church must design a strategy for making disciples of Jesus and follow it if it wants its growth to be healthy, balanced, and consistent (Rick Warren, 1195). People find it difficult to make the transition from being inactive or unreached to being dedicated, active disciples of Jesus Christ. A successful evangelistic strategy with numerous stages is needed for this (Ed Stetzer and Mike Dodson, 2007).
According to David Wheeler (2008), a church’s mission statement typically lists five objectives: worship, evangelism, fellowship, ministry, and discipleship. Usually, evangelism is seen as a distinct field from the others. For instance, some people believe that even if discipleship is failing, evangelism can still succeed despite the failure of discipleship. However, evangelism ought to be regarded as one of the church’s close-knit ministries rather than just as a stand-alone initiative. Rather than serving as a little component of God’s overall plan for a church, evangelism ought to serve as the catalyst for inspiration and guidance in each area of the congregation’s productivity (Jonathan Falwell, 2008).
Evangelism ought to be a guiding principle, the key to how churches carry out God’s will, and should take precedence over all other components of their mission. Nigeria is home to numerous Christian denominations. Many non-believers visit churches because they want to meet people in their areas and because they are lonely. Unfortunately, the majority of churches lack effective evangelization techniques. Even though churches occasionally have success bringing in non-believers from the outside through an evangelistic event, they lack the next step that turns them into disciples. This is due to two factors. One is that the churches are more interested in bringing people into their church than they are in their regeneration. They are content with simply those who attend their church, which is the other reason. Forgetting the other side of Christ’s teachings and that your fruits might endure or continue to be a witness to the faith (John 15:16b). As a result, those who join the church as new members may continue to be atheists there for a very long period, which could lead to a hegemonic clash between the atheists and the church’s founding members. In other words, the church may have problems with evangelism if the current members are not actively engaging in witnessing to the regularly attending unbelievers.
1.2 The Statement of Problem
Currently, the church needs to expand both qualitatively and numerically through a successful evangelism strategy by churches in Nigeria. There is nothing positive to say about the country’s current state of anarchy and killings. Daily, news headlines like “herdsmen attack Benue state leaving 500 persons missing” and “19 people killed by Fulani herdsmen in Jos village attack” are broadcast in our society and the media (Fulani Herdsmen Archives, Information Nigeria, www.informationng.com). The conflict’s ethnic and religious component is more worrying. All of these issues raise concerns about the Church’s continued involvement in providing the necessary assistance in these troubled regions. The main concern is whether or not the Church is still relevant in light of these concerns and problems. Since relevance is a crucial component of any meaningful phenomenon, event, or institution, especially in the context of human life, the Church’s contribution to the resolution of issues in Nigerian society in the twenty-first century may serve as the ultimate justification for the sensitization of the Nigerian populace through evangelism. This study will examine the role of the Church in winning Nigeria to Christ and how it can use evangelism to help resolve social, political, and religious crises. It will do so by building on the Church’s tremendous signs of vitality and significant contributions to community development since the arrival of the early missionaries to Eastern and Northern Nigeria. Therefore, the present study will look into the challenges and issues facing evangelism among churches in Nigeria.
1.3 Purpose of Study
The primary purpose for this research is to examine the challenges and issues facing evangelism among churches in Nigeria; the way forward. The study will investigates the following sub objectives:
- To examine the role of the church in evangelizing the world to Christ.
- To examine the challenges facing the church missionaries in spreading the gospel of Christ in some part of the country.
- To find out the major causes of poor level of evangelism among churches in Nigeria.
- To develop a strategy of evangelism and apply it to every local church in Nigeria.
1.4 Research Questions
The following questions will guide the study:
- What is level of Evangelism Performance by Orthodox churches in Lagos State Metropolis?
- What is level of Evangelism Performance by Pentecostal churches in Lagos State Metropolis?
- What is the Comparative Evangelism Performance level between Orthodox and Pentecostal churches?
- Has the Church played her major role of reconciling the world to God?
1.5 Statement of Hypothesis
H0: The Church has not played her major role of reconciling the world to Christ.
H1: The Church has played her major role of reconciling the world to Christ.
H0: The church has not contributed in the aspect of love, caring, and giving to the needy which is another means of evangelism
H2: The church has contributed in the aspect of love, caring, and giving to the needy which is another means of evangelism
1.6 Significance of the Study
Readers will be reminded of Jesus’ promise to Peter that “upon this mountain will I build my church and the gate of Hell shall not prevail” by the researcher’s intention to provide all the information necessary for them to comprehend and be aware of churches’ poor performance in evangelism.
The results of this study will be helpful to every church worldwide, pastors, church leaders, and the general congregation regarding the church’s responsibility to ensure that the population of Hell is decreased in order to raise the population of Heaven.
This study will also be used as a resource for other academics and researchers who are interested in conducting additional research in this area, which, if put to use, could lead to the development of fresh explanations for the subject. It will give useful insights into the current interactions between Christians and the church in spreading the message of love. It will highlight the significant responsibilities that missionaries have played in evangelizing the world since the country’s independence. It will increase our knowledge and act as a guide for future research.
1.7 Research Methodology
The researcher will consult books that have been written on the research topic, as well as other researchers’ works on anything related to the research topic, libraries and online works shall be visited, and finally, some notable Gospel church leaders shall be interviewed in order to have a balanced and conclusive conclusion on the research work. The researcher will not base his conclusion on self-belief or to be subjective on the issue.
1.8 Scope / Limitation of the Study
Since the research is not specific to any one church, the researcher will concentrate on the majority of orthodox and Pentecostal churches in the Lagos metropolitan area. The researcher will also strictly consult with those in positions of authority on the research topic to ensure a balanced and objective conclusion.
The researcher will not be able to access all the challenges of evangelism and issues related to poor performance in evangelism among churches in Lagos State metropolis due to the short and inadequate time frame given for completion of this job. It was anticipated that Clerics, who should be a good source of information for the research, might not collaborate with the researcher due to earlier expressed differences in belief. However, considerable efforts will be made to address these issues so that the final product of this endeavor is devoid of any flaws.
1.9 Operational Definition of Terms
Challenges: this is a call to someone to participate in a competitive situation or fight to decide who is superior in terms of ability or strength.
Evangelism: In Christianity, evangelism is the commitment to or act of publicly preaching of the Gospel with the intention of spreading the message and teachings of Jesus Christ.
Church: A church or church house, often simply called a church, is a building used for Christian religious activities, particularly for Christian worship services.
Issues: this is an important topic or problem for debate or discussion.
Missionaries: A missionary is a member of a religious group sent into an area to promote their faith or perform ministries of service, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.
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