How Do I Get Started in Evangelism?

EMQ » July – Aug 2025 » Volume 61 Issue 3

Reviewed by David R. Dunaetz, professor of leadership and organizational psychology, Azusa Pacific University, former missionary to France, and book review editor of Evangelical Missions Quarterly.

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This small book seeks to present a simple useful approach to personal and group evangelism that is both practical and theologically solid. Mack Stiles is a missionary who spent 20 years in the Middle East. He has had many years of seeking to share the gospel with people who were not especially open to it. Nevertheless, he argues that we should still try to get people interested and share what we can when the door is open. The book is part of the 9Marks Church Question Series which provides biblical responses to common questions related to church.

The book focuses on how to share with individuals enough of the gospel so that they can make a decision to follow Christ, not just how to share snippets of biblical thoughts or a testimony of what Jesus has done that can generate interest in the gospel further down the road.

Stiles’ definition of evangelism is “teaching the gospel with the aim to persuade” (15). Teaching the gospel may take on many forms, from one-on-one to large group presentations. The content of what is to be taught is very broad, essentially all that Jesus taught in the New Testament. Being persuasive is essential. If the recipient of the gospel does not understand it or is not fully convinced of it, a positive response to one’s effort has little meaning. Persuasion also excludes manipulation or forcing.

Concerning the essential of the message to be communicated that will enable a non-Christian to follow Christ, he proposes a simple outline defined by four questions:

1. Who is God?
2. Who are we before God?
3. Who is Christ and what has he done?
4. How should we respond?

Stiles argues that we should be able to explain these points in one or two minutes to get a discussion going that will enable us to communicate more.

The difficult part of personal evangelism is initiating the conversation in an attractive, natural way. Stiles proposes looking for opportunities to explain how God has acted in our life or how some situation relates to the gospel. If we sense at least a semi-positive response to something like this, we can follow up with the question, “Could I explain the core message of the Christian faith to you? I promise it only takes a minute” (24). After such a short presentation, the interaction switches to a dialogue which prevents the situation from becoming awkward.

This book presents a simple approach to sharing the gospel, which is natural, an approach that is especially valuable in a world of social media and religious distortion where it is easy for people to be convinced that they know enough about Christianity to reject it. It’s therefore useful for anyone who is seeking new approaches to share the gospel naturally and effectively. It is also useful for anyone who might want to teach evangelism in a small group or in a one-on-one discipling relationship. It presents much basic information in a clear and structured fashion.

For Further Reading

Evangelism: How the Whole Church Speaks of Jesus by J. Mack Stiles (Crossway, 2014)

Marks of the Messenger: Knowing, Living, and Speaking the Gospel by J. Mack Stiles (IVP, 2010)

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EMQ, Volume 61, Issue 3. Copyright © 2025 by Missio Nexus. All rights reserved. Not to be reproduced or copied in any form without written permission from Missio Nexus. Email: EMQ@MissioNexus.org.