Gospel fluency is the ability to express oneself easily, articulately, and without hesitation when explaining the message of Jesus to someone.
When equipping teenagers to share their faith, youth leaders too often skip this crucial element and go straight to methodology. But an evangelistic method without Gospel fluency leads to faith-sharing frustration for youth.
In 1 Corinthians 15:3-4, the apostle Paul refers to the importance of Gospel fluency.
For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that He was buried, that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures.
Early on, somebody trained Paul in this simple message (For what I received…). Then, sometime later, he trained the Corinthians in this same mini creed (I passed on to you).
Paul calls this brand of Gospel fluency of first importance. This apostolic priority should be yours as well.
An Easy Way to Learn the Gospel
How do you train your teenagers in Gospel fluency? At Dare 2 Share, we use a simple acrostic:
God created us to be with Him.
Our sins separate us from God.
Sins cannot be removed by good deeds.
Paying the price for sin, Jesus died and rose again.
Everyone who trusts in Him alone has eternal life.
Life with Jesus starts now and lasts forever.
During the last 35 years, Dare 2 Share has used that acrostic to train millions of teenagers. At large arena events, on the Day of Global Youth Evangelism, and through all types of curriculum, we give students time to memorize those G.O.S.P.E.L. statements. Teens practice reciting the acrostic until they can say it without looking. I regularly meet full-grown adults who attended Dare 2 Share events decades ago and still can repeat those 47 words flawlessly.
To me, this isn’t a cute little acrostic for teenagers to quote. It’s a key element of preparing young people to be ready to wage war with Satan for the souls of their friends.
Why? Because even if teens don’t have a Gospel tract, an evangelistic bracelet, or a faith-sharing app handy, they’re ready to share the Good News of Jesus anytime, anywhere, with anyone.
I’m all for methodology (we have some too), but Gospel fluency comes first.
Good News That Travels Fast and Far
When I think about Gospel fluency, I often think of Rose. In 2022, on Dare 2 Share’s first major ministry trip to Africa, we met her selling wares at the Maasai Market in Nairobi, Kenya. When I started walking through the G.O.S.P.E.L. acrostic with Rose, she quoted it along with me.
“How do you know this?” I asked, amazed.
“How do you know it?” she shot back.
“Well, I developed the acrostic,” I said with a smile.
“No, you didn’t,” Rose said, brow furrowed.
“Yes, I did! I developed it more than 30 years ago.”
We finally showed Rose some of our material with the acrostic on it, and she believed us.
Because that was our first big trip to Africa, we dug deeper to see where Rose had learned the G.O.S.P.E.L. statements. Turns out her pastor visited America 20 years earlier, saw the acrostic in a youth room, and took a picture of it. Then he returned to Africa and trained his people to memorize and explain it.
For about two decades, Rose and her daughter had been coming to the market, explaining this acrostic to all who would listen.
I was in tears to learn this. But it also reminded me about the importance of Gospel fluency.
Use the G.O.S.P.E.L. acrostic to train your teenagers. Help them memorize it, as Rose’s pastor did decades ago. The long-term impact will have eternal ramifications.
For free curriculum to train your students, check out Life in 6 Words: The GOSPEL Explored on dare2share.org.
