E-Scale

In 1974, a Presbyterian missionary named Ralph Winter made a landmark speech to the Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization. This speech would eventually be called “The New Macedonia,” and it would set the tone and focus for evangelism and world missions for decades to come.

From his exposition of Acts 1:8, Ralph Winter developed something he called “the
E-Scale.” The E-Scale has become a widely used reference tool for describing God’s plan for the nations, and in it Winter identifies four different kinds of evangelism, each distinguished by the cultural distance the evangelist must span in order to communicate with his or her intended hearers. What follows is a description of the E-Scale itself, and how it may be applied. 

• E-0 (Jerusalem) refers to the evangelism of people who are already a part of a Christian church. It’s about re-igniting the passion of those who may have at one time professed Christ as Savior and Lord but now have fallen away into maybe a nominal relationship with Him. In essence, E-0 evangelism is about re-evangelizing ourselves. No real cultural barriers are crossed.

Our “Jerusalem” is usual referred to as the Church and its members. Do you know of anyone who could benefit from having their spiritual batteries re-charged? Think about becoming involved in a movement the Presbyterians are calling “Presbyterian Cursillo” or “Pilgrimage.” Cursillo weekends are held at a number of places within a day’s drive. These events are designed to bring believers into a deeper relationship with Christ and to heighten their joy in their life with the Lord. People find themselves moving from the periphery of faith to an active awareness of their ability to become leaders in the work of God’s Kingdom.

• E-1 (Judea) refers to evangelism of people outside the Church but within one’s culture. Only one barrier is crossed: the membership boundaries of the Church. E-1 evangelism—evangelism. People need to hear the gospel in their own language and understand it in a way that they can pass on to people like themselves. This is the type of evangelism with which most people are familiar.

Our “Judea” is the city or the region and its inhabitants. Offer the ALPHA class. ALPHA offers a place where “seekers” can learn more about the Christian faith in a low-key and non-intimidating atmosphere. Television and radio ministries and even door greeting on Sunday mornings can be considered a part of E-1 evangelism. Classes on how to share one’s faith on a person-to-person.

• E-2 (Samaria) requires evangelism of people of different but similar cultures. Two barriers are crossed: the membership barrier and an additional cultural distance that may require a separate church fellowship to be formed. E-2 evangelism can happen both locally and abroad.

Work with people who speak a different language. 

Support an overseas missionary or send teams to places. Typically, there are already Christian churches in these places—even though they may be small ones—and our task is to come along and support them and their E-1 evangelism efforts.

• E-3 (the ends of the earth) is evangelism of people of radically different cultures. Evangelists need to cross at least three barriers: the membership barrier, a language barrier, and a major lifestyle barrier. E-3 evangelism is the hardest form of evangelism. The easiest way to determine whether you are doing E-3 evangelism is to ask this question: “If someone came to Christ in this culture, would there be an already existing church where the person could attend?” If the answer is “no,” then you are engaging in E-3 evangelism. E-3 evangelism efforts are directed toward “unreached people groups,” ethnic groups that have no viable and growing Christian witness within them. Thousands of these people groups are still to be found, especially in places like Africa, Asia, and the Middle East, although this list is slowly shortening because of a mighty, Holy Spirit led movement of committed believers who are going to these hard-to-reach places.

Introduce your church to the foremost instructional course in North America on E-3 evangelism, a course called “Perspectives on the World Christian Movement.”  There will be a growing desire among your church body to see the Gospel of Jesus Christ taken even “to the ends of the earth.”