Why should the church be committed to evangelism? Wouldn’t it just be easier to focus on ourselves and worship without trying to reach others? That is the way that many churches think. But in Matthew’s gospel we see the answer. Not only is it necessary to do evangelism to obey the great commission (Mt 28), but we see the motivation for evangelism is the compassion of God in Christ and the fact that he is lord of the harvest. The text is Matthew 9:27-38 with Isaiah 35. The message is entitled, “Confidence in the Ongoing Ministry of Christ.” We will consider these four points from the text:
1. The fulfillment of the promises in Christ.
2. The division that must come.
3. The compassion of God in Christ.
4. The implications for the church today.