Reaching the Lost: “Go Ye” Means “Go All”

When Jesus said, “Go ye and teach all nations . . .” He was not placing the evangelistic work of the Kingdom of one person. There is not a preacher, elder, deacon, or church member who is able to carry out the Great Commission on his own. The command phrase, “go ye” is in the plural. It means, “Go all.”

Evangelism is congregational—one unit made up of individual members. Paul said, “For the body is not one member, but many” (1 Corinthians 12:14). The body of Christ is made of members who are expected to carry out the orders of their Captain. His orders are simple yet complex. The simplicity is in the mission; the complexity is in the execution. Anytime an army carries out a mission, there is some level of complexity.

The House to House/Heart to Heart School of Evangelism was created to help a local congregation formulate a plan to reach the lost and execute it among the entire congregation.  We do not focus all the work on a preacher or small group of Christians; we provide a congregational approach that will utilize the talents of each member. Since we are all different, our functions are different. Paul said, “Now hath God set the members every one of them in the body, as it hath pleased him. And if they were all one member, where were the body? But now are they many members, yet but one body” (1 Corinthians 12:18-20).

The HTHSOE model emphasizes six simple words. Recently, Steven Ford of the Highway church of Christ, said, “The plan is simple, but there are some complexities involved.” The complexities are within each word and how to achieve the objective. How do you obtain “contacts?” Once you have contacts, how do you “prospect” them? What are the tools available, and how do you use them for a “Bible study?” How do you reach “baptisms”? Moreover, how do you help “new converts” grow? Finally, what constitutes a “growing church”? To train a congregation, we have three suggestions:

We stand ready to assist. If you need any of these tools or additional training, just reach out, and we would be glad to provide it. The success of each member is a congregational victory. A congregational victory is kingdom growth. “Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen” (Ephesians 3:20).