Before You Go . . .

By Antonio Figueroa, Jr

Jesus Christ told his disciples to go out into all the world and preach the gospel to every living thing. Today, the Great commission is as real as ever. It is our job as the church to take the message of salvation to our community and to the world. Unfortunately, many efforts of modern evangelism go without noticeable results. In his latest book, Antonio Figueroa, Jr. identifies five key characteristics that every community and mission field display. By understanding these five characteristics of our community we can become better stewards of the gospel message and preach the gospel with greater efficiency.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Antonio Figueroa, Jr
• Release date: Oct 29, 2014
• ISBN: 9781310233074

Antonio Figueroa, Jr

Antonio Figueroa, Jr. began working with church youth at the age of 14. He has since been teaching and preaching the word of God in both English and Spanish throughout the East Coast, Puerto Rico, and South America. His teaching videos have been seen in more than 30 countries around the world. His spanish language radio broadcast, Iglesia En Acción can be heard on 95.9FM WJRN Summerfield, Fl., or online at www.radiofe95.com. He is the founder of Action Ministries and author of the Action Ministries Bible Study Series. He is currently an itinerant preacher.

Book preview

Before You Go

What Every Church Must Know About Its Community

Antonio Figueroa, Jr.

Published by Action Ministries at Smashwords

Copyright 2014

All Scripture references are King James Version, unless otherwise noted, used with permission.

For every man and woman of God who dedicates their time and strength to the proclamation of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Continue to serve the Lord with commitment and excellence, for in due time you shall receive your reward.

Table of Contents

Prologue

Chapter 1: The Need For Evangelism

Chapter 2: What Is The Gospel?

Chapter 3: The Culture Of Our Community

Chapter 4: The Education Of Our Community

Chapter 5: Understanding Our Community Economy

Chapter 6: The Family Composition Of The Community

Chapter 7: The Religion Of Our Community

Chapter 8: Before You Go

Prologue

In the book of Mark we find Jesus’ mandate to his disciples, shortly before his ascension to Heaven, and the arrival of the Holy Spirit a mere ten days later. In chapter 16, verses 15 and 16, Jesus tells his disciples: Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be condemned.

It is impossible to talk about evangelism without taking these texts into consideration. Known as the Great Commission, it is the command to evangelize. These words should resound with the same authority today as in that day they were first spoken. The church has the responsibility, the commitment, to fulfill this Great Commission.

Upon reading the book of Acts, we find in the first chapter, when Jesus promised the explosive dunamis power of the Holy Spirit, that he tells his disciples it will be the power to witness (Acts 1:8). He then emphasizes that they will be witnesses in Jerusalem, Judaea, Samaria and then unto the ends of the earth. On the day of Pentecost, they were gathered together in the city of Jerusalem, which came to be their immediate community to be evangelized.

Just as the disciples, we should have a burden to evangelize our immediate community as well as the world around us. But before we go out into our community, we should be armed with the reality of our social atmosphere. Paul tells his readers in the book of Ephesians to have their loins girt about with truth (Ephesians 6:14). Paul defines the word of God as the sword of the Spirit in verse 17. So, then, to have loins girt about with truth is not to know the scriptures, for that is a separate piece of armor. Paul is rather referring to the word truth here in the sense of reality; the truth of one’s circumstances and awareness of their surroundings.

I intend by means of this book to teach the church, Christians, about various dynamics for evangelism that can and should be applied to our community outreach. I shall present some points to consider before walking out into our community with a handful of tracts. Our community is a large and complex organism which we must understand if we are to effectively influence it with the gospel of Jesus Christ. By not doing so, we shall be working in vain. Let us then equip ourselves for this task, Before You Go.

Chapter 1: The Need For Evangelism

How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!

- Romans 10:14,15

Think back to when you accepted Christ as your personal Lord and savior. What was it like? How did you hear about Christ? Perhaps it was in a church service in the traditional church setting. Maybe it was a coworker who insisted on telling you about Jesus. Or maybe you stopped on a program while you were channel surfing and heard the gospel of Jesus Christ preached on television and your heart was pricked with the conviction that you needed a savior.

Whatever the circumstances surrounding how you came to know Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior, you became a Christian by hearing of Jesus Christ. Thus it is not in vain that Paul tells the Romans faith cometh by hearing (Romans 10:17). If we are completely honest with ourselves, and others, very few if any of us can say that we came to know Jesus Christ because he presented Himself to us.

The bible clearly states that Jesus left the mission of evangelizing the world to the disciples. Before ascending to take His place at the right hand of God in Heaven, Jesus left the charge of evangelizing the world to His disciples when He said: Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature (Mark 16:15).

Luke records in his book of Acts that Jesus told the disciples that they would receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth (Acts 1:8). The power of the Holy Ghost did come over the apostles while they were gathered in the upper room. The second chapter of Acts tells the story of how the Holy Spirit arrived in the lives of the apostles and those gathered with them in the upper room.

What becomes immediately evident in Luke’s account of the Pentecost experience is that the power of the Holy Spirit upon the lives of the apostles empowered them for ministry. Each left the upper room, speaking in tongues, and confessing the truth of the Son of God in the languages of those gathered in Jerusalem for the feast. Peter arose among the crowd and began to preach with boldness and certainty about the saving power of Jesus Christ.

On the day of Pentecost, three thousand people gave their hearts to Christ. The Pentecost experience