What is friendship evangelism?

Disciples, Friends, Witnesses

The first moments of the Holy Ghost's presence here on earth were employed in sweeping into the circle of blessing thousands of souls. Those disciples, in fervent love to their Lord and Master, began to fulfil His command that day. Empowered by the Spirit of God, they proved themselves to be His friends, worthy to be trusted with the precious gospel. But how do we stand? The gospel is just as dear to the Lord's heart as ever, and the power of the Holy Ghost is just as great. But are we proving ourselves to be His friends in this line of His work? If we are near to Him we shall. Andrew went and found his own brother Simon and brought him to Jesus. The woman of Sychar went forth eagerly to bring others to the One in whose company she had been. Had the apostles held their peace it would never have been recorded that "they took knowledge of them that they had been with Jesus" (Acts 4:13).

"You know," said a christian lady to a girl whom she found one day ill in bed, "that Jesus died for us." "Yes," replied the feeble voice, "but I know something better than that; I know He died for me." A chord was struck in the visitor's heart which instantly vibrated to the touch of these telling words. They were friends in a moment and for ever. The dear uniting name was precious to both. They were one in Christ Jesus. Conversation led them to speak of the time, the means of the girl's conversion, and other circumstances familiar to the mind of the christian friend. It was a moment of real joy. Up till then the sick one was unknown as having received blessing through the preaching.

Mark it well, dear brethren; we are apt to forget the injunction. It is not merely, Go to the world, or, Go to every creature; but, "Go home to thy friends." How comes it that there is such difficulty, often, in speaking to our friends? Why is it that persons who are bold enough with strangers, are so timid before their household, relatives, connections? It often tells a tale which it is well to bear in mind. We shrink from the comparison which our friends are so apt and sure to make; who test our words — however clear, and good, and sweet — by that which they have such abundant means of ascertaining in our daily ways. An inconsistent walk makes a coward, at least, before "our friends." It would be well if it really had the effect of humbling us before all. Were there genuine lowliness with fidelity before God, there would be courage, not only before strangers, but before "our friends." Here, however, the point simply amounts to this: The Lord would spread the message of grace, would send him to make it known to his friends; for it was clearly they who had best known in his case the awful and degrading power of Satan. They would, of course, be most interested in the men who were his familiars; and therefore there were special reasons, I doubt not, for it. For us, too, it is a good thing to bear it in mind. Not that a saved soul should only go to his friends; but it remains ever true and good that the secret of grace in the heart should send us to our friends, to make it known to those who have known our folly and sins, that they may hear of the mighty Saviour we have found. "Go home to thy friends, and tell them how great things the Lord hath done for thee, and hath had compassion on thee. And he departed, and began to publish in Decapolis how great things Jesus had done for him."

Jesus called His disciples friends and He had well acted the part of a friend to them, for He had laid down His life for them. And not only that, but He had made known to them all that He had heard from His Father. In this way He had brought them into intimacy with Himself and His Father. Now on their side they had the opportunity of showing that they were His friends by doing whatsoever He commanded them. In this way we can prove that we are friends of Jesus. We believe on Him for our own salvation. This we do out of love to ourselves. But it is out of love to Him that we do what He tells us to do.

From the first moment of their attachment to Himself the disciples had been His servants, but the Lord now indicates that henceforward He was going to treat them as standing on a higher basis of friendship. This friendship was a real thing, inasmuch as He had made known to them all that He had heard of the Father, as the Revealer of the Father's love and purposes. In saying this we believe the Lord had also in view the coming of the Comforter, who would endow them with the capacity to discern these things, as He had already told them. This privileged place is open to all believers today on the same simple ground — love and obedience. Hence we have the Apostle John using the term in the last verse of his third Epistle. As the first century drew to its close Paul's prediction, as to men speaking perverted things "to draw away disciples after them" (Acts 20:30), was being fulfilled, and Diotrephes was an example of such men. Yet there were found saints marked by love and obedience — shining contrasts to Diotrephes, and acknowledged as "friends." Some were with John, joining in the salutation: some with Gaius, to be greeted by name.

The result of the first of these blessed facts, i.e., of the love of God having been shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost given to us, is the testimony, by the same Spirit, to a hostile world around us, of the love of God towards sinners and enemies (provided that Spirit dwells as an ungrieved Guest within us, and we can say: "The love of Christ constraineth us"), to commend the love of God to enemies and sinners, and to beseech them in Christ's stead to be reconciled to God. For it is not only the love of God shed abroad in the heart, that makes a Christian a proclaimer of His love and grace; (I do not speak here only of gifted "evangelists," in the strict sense of the word), but the "love of Christ" constraining us to tell out that love towards others, who are still strangers to it, instead of resting satisfied in self-contentment with the fact that the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts.

In speaking of the work of an evangelist, we must not confine it to public halls and rooms, which, of course, demand a distinct gift from the Head of the Church. We believe it is the sweet privilege of every child of God to be in a condition of soul to tell the glad tidings to individual souls in private life; and we must confess we long to see more of this. It matters not what our position in life or sphere of action may be, we should earnestly and prayerfully seek the salvation of those with whom we come in contact. If we fail in this, we are not in communion with the heart of God and the mind of Christ. In the Gospels and Acts we see a great deal of this lovely individual work. "Philip finds Nathanael." "Andrew first finds his own brother Simon."

Amongst Satan's many fruitful devices for lowering the saints is that of subtly introducing the world without their being aware of it; on this account it is well not to be ignorant of his weapons, so as to be able to turn them aside. I will try and indicate some of them, with the hope that we may profit by the experience of other Christians who have preceded us on this difficult road. In the foremost rank may be placed old acquaintances, just because we have been on intimate terms with them, and to them our weaknesses are known. There are but two ways of avoiding this danger - either to break off all connection with them, or to proclaim the truth to them, by showing them that we have found an object worthy of our affections - an object which has taken possession of our heart, which has given a new direction to our life, and which is jealous of any friendship which is not based on the work of redemption. I admit à priori the difficulty of turning our back on an old friend, who has perhaps been of service to us, and the enemy takes occasion by all this to keep us in slavery, and to allure us into an atmosphere very unhealthy for those whose senses are fitted for a heavenly one. It may happen, for instance, that a worldly acquaintance of former days comes in and expresses a wish to pass an evening with us. What should be clone under such circumstances? If we are not careful, it may become the means of making us miss a meeting, or a projected study of the Word with others; so what is the right path? I think the best service we can render to a worldly friend, who persists in seeking our friendship, is to speak to him faithfully of the Saviour's work, and the result will be generally one of two - if he listen, so much the better, the Lord can work and help us to win a soul; if he do not listen, he will probably complain that we are changed, have new ideas, and are less amiable than formerly, but meanwhile we shall be left free to follow the Lord. This may appear a hard thing, as truly it is to the flesh, and it would be an ignoble action if the motive were not the Lord's; but we ought not to forget what Peter said to his contemporaries - "Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind: for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin." (1 Peter 4:1.) And then there is the exhortation which Paul addressed to the Corinthians - "Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing and I will receive you, and will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty." (2 Cor. 6:17-18.)

Then we find, further, it is not a question only of guests but of a host: He has a word for every man. God looks for love in this world, and this, too, apart from nature. His love is not for one's friends or family alone; it is not on this principle at all. "When thou makest a dinner or a supper, call not thy friends, nor thy brethren, nor thy kinsfolk, nor rich neighbours, lest it may be they also should invite thee in return and a recompense be made thee." A witness for Christ is marked by that which is supernatural. There is no testimony to His name in merely natural kindness or family affection, but where there is love without a human motive or any hope of recompense, there is a testimony to Him. It is exactly so that God is doing now in the Gospel, and we are called to be imitators of God. It is not meant to be merely in making a feast or a supper, but that grace should stamp its character on all our Christian life. The whole time of the Gospel call, as we shall see farther on, is compared to a feast to which the activity of love is gathering in from the miserable of this world.