The New Evangelism Revolution
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
By: Michelle Diedrich

Internet Evangelism is revolutionizing personal faith sharing

“On a typical day some 70 million American adults log onto the Internet to use email, get news, access government information, check out health and medical information, participate in auctions, book travel reservations, research their genealogy, gamble, seek out romantic partners, and engage in countless other activities. That’s a 37 percent increase from the 51 million Americans who were online on an average day in 2000 when the Pew Internet & American Life Project began its study of online life.” Pew Internet

The new mission field is in your home. The Internet has redefined economies and created new rules. The secular world has learned that it can react in one of two ways: live in denial and ignore it, or leverage it to an advantage to create new and highly successful business models. Likely your church has a program to bring children to Christ and disciple them through the church. But how are you reaching the people in your community and the world that don’t go to church, may have never been to church and haven’t heard of your church in particular?

Jesus said, “And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.” (Matthew 24:14). Preaching the gospel to “all the world” has historically been viewed as one person being in front of another person or perhaps a group.

But we are fast approaching an entirely new world where preaching to all the world has become an electronic reality. Every desktop, cellphone, ipod, etc, will enable the gospel to be available to the entire world, just as Jesus said it would be. It is easy to think that online evangelism, done in the safety of the home or office, is not 'real' evangelism. But anyone sharing the Gospel online has a ministry as vital as that of any overseas missionary.

How many people are on the Internet now?
The growth of the Internet in global communications technology is unprecedented. More than 2 billion Internet users “log-on” worldwide, expected to become 3.5 billion in the next five years. Pew Internet and the American Life Project recently reported that nearly two-thirds of online Americans use the Internet in search of spiritual meaning and religious activities. Two-thirds of our neighbors are seeking answers, but church may be the last place they will go.

How can you and your church reach people through the Internet? Although most Christian websites, bookstores, and churches have all the information on the Gospel, they seem to be created by Christians for Christians. Too often, non-Christians cannot relate to them. Yet millions of people each day do a search on the Internet for a spiritual term. People are seeking answers. And they are looking for those answers on the Internet.

The focus of internet evangelism is to effectively reach the diverse range of Internet users, including but in no way limited to teens, college students, women, men, business leaders, government and military audiences, and executive leadership in multiple languages. Currently, there are few purely evangelistic websites. Some examples are http://www.jesus2020.com/, http://www.lifesgreatestquestion.com/, and http://www.godlovestheworld.com/.

Many websites have used an adaptive or “bridge” strategy (as coined by the Web Evangelism Guide) where web pages on secular or spiritual subjects are used to lead across to the gospel. Examples of this type of site include www.womentodaymagazine.com and http://www.secretsofsuccess.com/. Yet sites that simply present the Gospel are also achieving outstanding results. Why? Seekers are reaching those sites as they go on their own spiritual journey using Internet search engines.

How can you be sure the Internet is working to reach people for Christ?

Internet results are measurable on a daily basis. Traffic to every website can be monitored regularly. And since, in most cases, a response to receive Christ includes an email address, a trained volunteer can actually follow-up through email with the new believer. For example, online response centers from organizations such as Campus Crusade for Christ, Global Media Outreach (an internet ministry of Campus Crusade), (www.globalmediaoutreach.com) and the Luis Palau organization (www.palau.org) provide a way for people to respond directly to those who are looking for help in their spiritual journey. Biola University and Wheaton University are examples where even students can be trained in online ministry.

How does online evangelism work?

Search engines have replaced the phone book, encyclopedias and often the library as a source of information. Typing in a word on any subject brings up a list of (hopefully) relevant websites. When the person goes to one of these sites where a gospel message is presented, they can experience that message through audio, text or even video. Some sites have a button that the person can click on to fill out a form indicating their decision. That form generates an email that a volunteer can respond to and begin to open a dialogue with the seeker. Comments and questions on the form range from “what do I do now” to “I still have questions” to “can you help me with a difficult issue.”

At Global Media Outreach websites, for example, more than 6,000 people a day are indicating decisions for Christ. So many emails are coming in that the organization is actively seeking  volunteer responders to answer emails and connect them with churches. Since the Internet isn’t “face-to-face,” some may be surprised at the high numbers. But the very fact that it’s NOT face-to-face is why the Internet is so effective at reaching some people. Some people are uncomfortable meeting with a Christian, or, for those in closed countries, they may even fear for their lives! The sites not only present the gospel, but but also provide a direct connection with a Christian. The next step is to connect these people to a local church. Sites such as www.iChristianLife.com provide discipleship materials and a church finder for those seekers in the United States.

Connecting to the local church

As a tool for presenting the Gospel, the Internet is one of the most efficient AND effective. But presenting the Gospel is only the first step. Connecting a new believer or someone who has recommitted their life to Christ to a local church is key to helping that person grow as a Christian. To help grow disciples, Internet evangelism can’t be about a one-time interaction. Discipleship must reflect a process of how people grow as Christians, providing the tools and resources to help someone move forward in their journey. The future is the growth of the local church, supported by Internet access to content from the best and brightest thinkers in all of Christianity.

Applications of Internet Evangelism

If there is nothing else you do, at least be sure that there is a message on your site that introduces a casual browser to God. That, after all, is the entire purpose for our existence. The most important thing is that people understand the ultimate goal is not a church but the discovery of a deep, personal relationship with God. Ideally, the message would provide an online form that the reader can fill out to get more information about salvation. One important note is that the simpler the gospel presentation, the better. Many Bibles are available as online tools. One Bible search engine that is being used on a number of sites is called the Bible Gateway from the Gospel Communications Network (www.gospelcom.net) You can add this feature directly to your site. Human interest stories also reach people. You might refer to these as simply stories, rather than “testimonies”.

There are so many true personal experiences that will touch the lives of strangers. Because these personal stories are so powerful, how can you get members of your congregation to share their story with those who are seeking a relationship with God? Many people are afraid to bring up spiritual matters at work or with their friends and family because they don’t feel “qualified” to answer questions that might come up. Online evangelism can give them an opportunity to learn how to share their faith on their own time with online resources to help when “difficult” questions come up.

The first step is to provide articles, ecards and other online materials that your congregation can email to their friends, family and co-workers. One website, http://www.evangelismtoolbox.com/, offers multiple articles on some of the most common questions asked, addressing everything from why are there different religions to how to deal with anxiety.

Community Email communication is becoming one of the most effective ways to keep in touch with your home groups, Sunday school classes and visitors. Because people now have so many phone numbers (work, home, cell) having one point of contact that is not intrusive, yet can easily be kept up to date helps establish communication on an ongoing basis so people are touched outside of the actual church service.

The Internet also has revolutionized prayer. No longer do prayer requests have to wait for a prayer letter or printed bulletin. Now urgent prayer requests can be sent within the community in seconds. Christians have never been better informed, or more in touch. Kicking off an online evangelism strategy at your church The first step should be to organize a volunteer team or staff group dedicated to helping your church move beyond a static website. If you, like most of us, need a deadline to try and have the plan in place, then Internet Evangelism Day could be the right target. The Internet Evangelism Coalition (IEC) an umbrella group of evangelical Christian organizations who share a vision for online outreach created Internet Evangelism Day and on their website are program ideas and ways to incorporate online evangelism into your current missions program. (http://ied.gospelcom.net/)

Every day, more people look for help. Through the reach and power of technology, it is now possible to identify a body of believers in almost any area or culture and help the new believer transfer from an Internet relationship to a genuine connection in his/her community of believers.