Oikos Evangelism

Philip P. Eapen

Discover the most effective way of sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ and to bear lasting fruit for the Kingdom of God. The early church made full use of the strongest of human ties to lead fellowmen to God.

The apostles and the early church proclaimed the gospel to the public in market places, synagogues, and town squares. However, the majority of Christians shared the gospel privately with their friends and family.

The strongest human ties are often ties of kinship within a family or household. There are other ties too. Households don’t often exist in isolation. Households are found in a community. Members of this community too often experience a strong bond with one another. Another level of human ties is found in extended “clans”. In the modern context, these “clans” are groups that share a particular interest - at the workplace, a trade union, clubs, a religious community, etc.

The three levels of kinship are: kinship, community, and shared interests. The early church made full use of these human ties. The Gospel flowed freely from one person to another who belonged to the same household, community or interest group.

The basic thrust of the New Testament evangelism was not individual evangelism, it was not mass evangelism; and it was definitely not child evangelism. The normative pattern of evangelism in the early church was Oikos Evangelism. - Dr Thomas A. Wolf

Oikos, in Greek, means household. There are a few English words that are derived from the Greek word oikos. Economics (oikos + nomos) is the “law of the household.” Ecology (oikos + logos) is the study of the household called planet Earth that we share with other humans and organisms.

Examples

Things To Remember

Things To Do

 

Read the next article on Person of Peace: Outreach to a new Community or return to the list of articles on Evangelism.

 

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About the author

Philip Eapen, an environmental scientist by training, devoted his life to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ ever since he realized that the world needs Jesus Christ more than anyone or anything else. Apart from sharing the good news of Jesus Christ, Philip teaches Christians in order to equip them for service. He is supported by donations from readers. Philip is married to Dr. Jessimol and they are blessed with three sons and a daughter.

Date: May 1, 2018

 

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