Shine Jesus Shine
In my teens I was involved in what was called a “Make Way!” march. I hid behind a drumkit on a flatbed lorry one Saturday afternoon, while we banged out Christian songs as people marched behind singing. It was a great event that brought all the churches of the town together.

I don’t know how many people got saved though.

What I do know is that the next morning one of my friends asked me about it in school.

“Yeah, that would have been me you saw.”

“Oh it wasn’t me, it was my dad. He came home saying, ‘I was trying to get into the bookies to place a bet and I couldn’t get in. I was blocked by your mate Jon Petts on the drums and everybody singing Jesus wants me for a **** sunbeam.’”

I have been involved in many forms of street evangelism. They have ranged from super-cringe to not so cringy. Sometimes I cringe unnecessarily because I just feel awkward. Don’t judge, I’m human.
What is evangelism?
Evangelism is, “The spreading of the Christian gospel by public preaching or personal witness,” and can take many forms. Today I want to set you free from any awkward or uncomfortable stereotypes and release you to let others know about Jesus in a way you are called to.
Engel scale
The Engel scale was developed by James F. Engel, as a way of representing the journey from no knowledge of God, through to spiritual maturity as a Christian believer. Some have criticised it as too linear and simplistic but it does help us understand that although there is a decisive moment when someone chooses Christ, there is a journey leading up to that decision. And a journey afterwards too. Here’s one version taken from greatcommission.co.uk:


Mark 4
Jesus told this story which has been made famous by Church children’s workers around the world. I’ll warn you, it’s not gripping, there’s no suspense and the ending is pretty predictable. But at least there is a happy ending. For some. Ready? Here’s my short version:

A farmer sowed some seed. Some fell on a path, some in rocky places, some among thorns and some on good soil. The seed in good soil grew and reproduced. The End.

Not much of a story in a literary sense. No twist at the end. No suspense.

Really Jesus? You’re telling me that if a seed hits good soil it grows better than other seeds in rocky, thorny places or on a path? This is not earth-shattering news. We all know this! You’re telling people who live in a farming community. What are you really telling us?

Let’s break it down.
The Farmer
Jesus said,

14 The farmer sows the word.

You are the farmer. Yes, God sent Jesus, the Word, but in this context, we’re talking about anyone who proclaims the gospel. And all disciples are called to do that. We’re told to go into all the world and proclaim the gospel. So first up, this story is about you.

May I say this kindly, if you’re not sharing your faith with anyone around you, you’re not a Christian.

Now let me qualify that in two ways. Stay with me.

A Christian is a Christ-follower. And if you are following Christ, you’ll be doing what he tells you to do. And he told his disciples clearly to go and make disciples. By definition, Christians share Christ. But before you get too uncomfortable, it’s not always all about preaching to your neighbour over the garden fence or handing out leaflets in the street. You could do both of those things and be a lousy Christian. You could do those things and not be a Christian at all.
A Christian is a changed person. You share Jesus automatically when people see that change. Or if you meet them for the first time and they don’t know what you used to be like, they will see a difference. If anyone is in Christ, they are a new creation. The old has gone and the new has come in. you’re a new creation. If this is genuinely true of you, if you have fully surrendered you whole life to the Lordship of Jesus, something changed on the inside of you that will show on the outside.

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