EVANGELISTS AND THEIR WORK IN THE CHURCH.

The mainstream work of the Lord's church (to which all else is tributary) is evangelism, a word which actually means "good-news-ing." The only man in the church whose name means evangelism is the evangelist, the man "charged" with the work of "good-news-ing" in each congregation. To a great degree, the original "good-news-ing" work done by evangelists in the New Testament has been changed by tradition so that today pastoring, administering, and pulpiteering have largely replaced the work of "good-news-ing" so that preachers may be called evangelists who do not evangelize. This is very true in the denominational world and has become true to a great extent in the Lord's church. But 2 Tim. 4:1-5, summarizes the evangelist's work by saying that he must refuse to be intimidated away from "the" work of an evangelist so that he "fulfil his ministry" (do his job). When Paul here charges a young "good-news-er" to do the work of a "good-news-er", it is like telling a welder to "do the work of a welder." That work is to weld. This does not mean to keep the doctrine of welding pure, it means to do it. It means to "give himself wholly" to welding, and Timothy was told to "give himself wholly" to evangelizing, to do the work of an evangelist.

Good new cannot but be told! The only one who doesn't tell good news is one who doesn't know it. But once the original and powerful good news is known as it should be known, and this is accomplished by studying the Word of God, 2 Tim. 2:15, this should impel and restore the telling of it "night and day with tears" as it was told in the Book of Acts. The good news. that is the power of God unto salvation, Rom. 1:16,17, should cause the good-news-ing to go forth especially in the hands of the "good-news-ers", the evangelists. Restoring original evangelism begins with restoring New Testament evangelists. Just as the effort was put forth many, many years ago to restore the scriptural organization of the church by restoring the rightful place of elders, so it is with restoring the rightful place of the evangelist in the church. Doctoring cannot be improved without improving doctors. So it is with evangelism, we cannot restore New Testament evangelism without restoring New Testament evangelists to where they were in the beginning of the church. The original "good news" produces original "good-news-ing" spear-headed by original "good-news-ers" who do "the" work of an evangelist "night and day with tears." This is the way that God intended it be done.

THE CHARGE TO DO THE WORK. THIS IS THE BIBLE'S STRONGEST CHARGE.

2 Tim. 4:1,2. "I charge thee in the sight of God, and of Christ Jesus, who shall judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom: preach the word." To "charge" is to order with an emphatic and solemn warning. Paul orders Timothy before God's sight and before Christ's sight and because the living and the dead will be saved or lost as a result -- to preach the word! He charges him by Christ's certain re-appearing and reign as a just Judge (v.8) to judge Timothy and those he must preach to -- to preach the word! Here is the Bible's most serious charge, and it is addressed to a preacher, an evangelist. If we can determine and appreciate what it means to "preach the word", then this should help us to determine and appreciate what it means to be a "preacher of the word".

We, in this study, will allow the Bible Books written to preachers, about preaching, reveal to us what is meant by "evangelizing", "evangelists", and doing "the work of an evangelist." The Bible's strongest expressions of authority for the actor and actions to be taken by evangelists in their evangelizing, should deserve our strongest effort to determine such and comply therewith.

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