The Duty of a Disciple: Is Evangelism Outdated?

“Is the privilege of telling people about salvation through Jesus Christ confined to the ‘professionals’ – evangelists, pastors and clergy? Mr Palmer thinks otherwise, and, what I have long admired, practices what he preaches when urging us believers to be bolder in sharing the good news with others. I suspect that many will find, as I have, that what he has to say is a word in season. ”

“This excellent book will be a blessing to any believer looking to be equipped for the work of spreading the gospel to the lost. It is passionate without being manipulative. It convicts with the logic and glory of the gospel rather than guilt. It is thoroughly Scriptural and immensely practical without resorting to pragmatism or faith in methodologies. This book has helped me personally and will be a resource I look to for to help in equipping others. I highly recommend it. ”

“This is a book I want our whole church to read, because it is about the great commission which unites Christians together as the church: sharing the good news of our Lord Jesus Christ. Yet, in the West at least, we seem to struggle with great hesitancy in sharing the gospel personally. Drawing from a lifetime experience of sharing Jesus in his professional work as a surgeon, and in personal encounters everywhere, Bernard Palmer’s wonderfully readable book will help greatly. Read it, and you will find it hard not to be encouraged by the infectiously passionate heart he displays and equipped by the invaluable practical help he offers. ”

“This passionate and warm–hearted practical guide will motivate not depress, instruct and not simply incur guilt and above all encourage those who respond to its message to see that our everyday lives can count in new ways for Christ and his Kingdom. It packs a challenge which we need to hear and heed. ”

“Written by one of the most tenacious and effective evangelists I know, this book is packed with illustration, anecdote, quotations and personal example. It will inspire the reader to an evangelistic lifestyle. The later chapters contain immensely helpful training and practical instruction in good evangelistic practise. ”

“The most urgent task for the church in post–Christian Britain today is to reach its lost population with the saving news of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. This is literally a matter of eternal life or death. Bernard Palmer is one of the most passionate, effective and fruitful personal evangelists I know. This compelling book will challenge and inspire every Christian who reads it to engage in the vital work of evangelism with renewed determination. Its great strength is that is thoroughly Biblical, exegeting and applying multiple passages to demonstrate that evangelism is the task of all of God’s people, not an optional extra in the Christian life, and a privilege and joy rather than an inconvenient duty. Peppered with accessible personal anecdotes and the wisdom of great Christian leaders from past generations, he explains God’s glorious plan of salvation, the irreducible content of the gospel and the priority that evangelism must have. He provides many encouraging examples of faithful witness and shares practical ideas for more effective personal evangelism. It is a book to read carefully, prayerfully and repeatedly, but most importantly a book to read and put into practice. ”

“Drawing on a wealth of material from Scripture along with copious illustrations from his own experience, Bernard challenges us to recover the art of soul–winning. Especially helpful is the way he supports the heartbeat of the book—‘why we should share our faith’—with really helpful resources on ‘how we can’. ”

“This is one of the most refreshing and somehow discomforting books I have read in ages. This is infectious and important stuff and I am determined to read it with my local Christian friends to see if we can become infected and effective.”

“The church in the UK is in sharp decline and if that trend is to be reversed, we need to come back to the gospel of grace and regain a love for the lost: the love that drove Jesus to the cross in humble obedience to His Father. With passion and winsomeness, Bernard Palmer encourages us to do just that. This book is packed with personal anecdotes, practical tips and helpful illustrations that urge us to proclaim the gospel of Christ, who alone can save us.”

“Packed with stories, Biblical truth and personal experience, this book will stimulate fresh thinking about the urgency of evangelism. I thoroughly recommend it.”

“Bernard is passionately concerned to share the good news of God’s reconciling love in Jesus. He is also devoted to encouraging other Christians to be equally committed to intentionally share the Gospel with their neighbours, friends and colleagues at work and play. This book is full of practical wisdom about how to go about being an effective witness for Christ. There are numerous personal reminiscences and illuminating stories showing us how to be effective evangelists. Those with leadership roles in the Church have special responsibilities in making the Gospel attractive and credible but, for Bernard, they don’t have a monopoly. Every Christian has a duty to make Christ, His person and His work, known as widely as possible. Bernard’s book shows us how to and is, therefore, warmly to be welcomed. ”

“The remarkable surgeon evangelist, Dr Bernard Palmer, has written a critical diagnosis for the church in the UK. His prognosis is that we must ‘evangelise or die’, because in so many places the church is getting older and smaller. His book is, therefore, a passionate call to action, which I found deeply inspiring and profoundly disturbing in equal measure. On every page I could hear the echo of 2 Kings 7 verse 9: ‘What we’re doing is not right. This is a day of good news and we are keeping it to ourselves.”

“In the flyleaf of my Bible I have a quote from Charles Spurgeon, ‘The joy of Jesus is the joy of saving sinners.’  With passion flowing a lifetime of personal evangelism, Bernard Palmer reminds us that the joy of Jesus is to be shared by all His disciples and that being Christlike includes speaking to others of the grace of God.  Filled with Scripture and illustrations from history and personal experience, this book is both a challenge and an encouragement to prayerfully seek and seize daily opportunities to speak to others about our Lord Jesus.”

“o you have a faith yourself, or aren’t you sure about these things?’ Moved by the love of Christ and gripped by the challenge of mission, Bernard has been asking questions like this for generations. Balancing a convincing biblical challenge with helpful practical advice, this excellent book encourages every Christian to embrace the essential work of personal evangelism in everyday life. With less than half of UK based evangelical mission agencies seeing a place for evangelism in their work today, this book could not be more timely!”