Have you ever wondered what is the best way to share the gospel? Should we use an evangelism method, a simple gospel outline or quote the Bible? There is no one more amazing than Jesus, so how do we introduce people to him?

Jesus did not talk about 'becoming a Christian' because that phrase was not used until about a decade after his ascension (Acts 11:25-26). Instead, Jesus spoke about a treasure that was worth giving our all for (Matthew 13:44).

Jesus and his kingdom are the incomparable treasure that is worth seeking after and holding onto. Jesus’ message was about the gospel of the kingdom (Matthew 4:23) and how it was within reach (Matthew 3:2).

In the New Testament (NIV UK), the terms ‘gospel’ and ‘good news’ are used 122 times and the terms ‘Kingdom’, ‘Kingdom of God’ and ‘Kingdom of Heaven’ 124 times. Putting these terms together, they refer to Jesus’ message – the good news of the kingdom.

So what is the good news of the kingdom? The term gospel means to announce, herald, bring, and show good news. It is the origin of the word evangelise, which means to talk about how good you think something is.

The term kingdom announces the realm of the royal power of a new triumphant king. Messianic prophecies include a suffering servant (Isaiah 53:4-5) and a victorious king (Isaiah 11:1-5).

The gospel is therefore about both Jesus’ kingship and his suffering.

So when we share the 'gospel of the kingdom' we need to speak about Jesus suffering on the cross, but also that he is a victorious king. It is these two together that create a need for repentance.

Our evangelism should introduce people to the king (Revelation 19:16) so that they can experience his kingdom. This could include being miraculously healed, experiencing Jesus' love, or hearing his voice.

We can then explain the significance of Jesus suffering on the cross and our need for forgiveness.  It is God's kindness that leads us to repentance (Romans 2:4).  Jesus' approach was to help people experience his kingdom and look for people who wanted to follow him. Jesus did not use coercion or manipulation.

We cannot ignore hell, but Jesus only mentions hell in his public preaching after he has performed miracles and spoken about his kingdom. Jesus also has only one conversation about hell with an individual (John 3:1-21). This individual, Nicodemus, had already had encounters with Jesus.

The focus of this conversation was about being born again and the reason that Jesus was sent - to save the world. Jesus' kingdom is the primary motivator for repentance, not hell. God’s dream is to reconcile the world to himself because he desires everyone to be saved (1 Timothy 2:4).

Being reconciled to God when you have an experience of Jesus and an experience of what he is like, becomes an easy next step in the process. Evangelism reveals King Jesus and his kingdom realm so that people can discover how magnificent and awesome he is and choose to follow him.

This is evangelism 101, i.e. how to share about Jesus and the gospel with others easily and affectively.

We explore this further in our book God's Dream Our Greatest Privilege, and our Podcast.