Fear of Evangelism

Fear of rejection is perhaps one of the greatest killers of evangelism in today's Church. It has been said that evangelism is something that both Christians and unbelievers alike hate. Two verses of Scripture, however, come to mind when dealing with this unhealthy type of fear. The first is Acts 1:8, which tells us, "but you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses..." This verse reminds me that as a believer in Christ, I have been given the authority and strength necessary from the Holy Spirit in order to preach the Gospel to unbelievers. The second verse is Luke 12:5 which tells us, "But I will warn you whom to fear: fear the One who, after He has killed, has authority to cast into hell; yes, I tell you, fear Him!" This verse redirects my perspective to what healthy fear is...fearing the One (God) Who judges righteously for salvation or for condemnation. Answering the question, "What is the worst that can happen?", we know that evil men can kill our bodies. As mere men, however, they (to include Satan) cannot kill the soul. If God is sovereign (and He is), my fear should rest in awe of Him alone. If God has given me both the power and authority to witness Christ and His Gospel, my only response can be obedience. As a sidenote, we are blessed to live in America, a country who has yet to prefer methods of physical persecution as many other nations in the world do. If this is the case, it only shows how much more unreasonable an unhealthy fear of rejection can be, both to obedience and to reason.