What if somehow you stumbled across the absolute cure to cancer – no matter what form? Wouldn’t you want to tell everyone you could about it? Or just imagine you discovered an iceberg was directly in the path of an ocean liner on which you were traveling? (Think Titanic.) Wouldn’t you want to alert anyone in authority to take immediate evasive action?
In a real sense, this is one of the primary responsibilities of the Church: to warn people heading for death and destruction. We refer to the Gospel of Jesus Christ as the “good news.” It definitely is. At the same time, telling people about Jesus and the Bible cautions them about the bad news – failing to receive the “abundant life” Jesus promised in John 10:10 and being separated from God for all eternity.
Words from a hymn written more than 150 years ago by Fanny Crosby state it well: “Rescue the perishing, care for the dying; Jesus is merciful, Jesus will save.” We don’t hear this anymore in many churches, since it doesn’t mix well with drums, electric guitars and flashing lights. But Jesus Christ’s desire in Acts 1:8 remains unchanged. After His resurrection, Jesus charged His followers, “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
We find similar commands elsewhere in the New Testament: “Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation” (Mark 16:15). And Jesus’ Great Commission to “…go and make disciples of all nations…teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you…” (Matthew 28:19-20). Our faith in Christ isn’t to be kept to ourselves. It’s to be shared with others, anyone willing to listen.
The problem is many of us aren’t sure how to do this. There are lots of faith-sharing strategies out there. I’ve taken part in some of these programs. But no two people are alike and rarely do they match the examples presented during the training. Especially one-size-fits-all evangelistic approaches.
In the gospels we see Jesus relating differently to each person. He interacted with them according to who they were and their needs. The woman at the well, the rich young ruler, the woman caught in the act of adultery, people who were blind, crippled, or afflicted with leprosy. All came from unique circumstances, but the Lord knew exactly how to respond to each of them.
‘Well, that was Jesus. He had divine wisdom, being God incarnate,’ we might think. That’s true, and I can’t count the number of times I’ve thought, ‘Lord, I wish I could look into people’s hearts the way You can.’ Some people have the gift of evangelism, which I compare with someone walking through an orchard, grabbing fruit ripe for the picking. In a similar way, God sends them to individuals ready to hear about Jesus and respond to His offer of salvation.
Most of us, however, aren’t so gifted. We don’t encounter desperate spiritual seekers at every turn. But that doesn’t excuse us from being obedient to share our faith whenever an opportunity presents itself. The question is, how? The Bible gives many verses about sharing the Gospel, but two of my favorites address not the mechanics of evangelizing, but rather the mindsets and attitudes we should have.
The first is Colossians 4:5-6, in which the apostle Paul admonishes, “Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.” There’s a lot packed into those sentences.
We’re dealing with “outsiders,” not folks we typically encounter at church on a Sunday morning. We must be wise in how we handle an opportunity to talk with someone about Christ. How do we do that? By speaking with grace, kindness, compassion, and genuineness. They’re people, not projects. And we should do so in an engaging manner – tastefully – expressing the Gospel as palatably as possible without compromising the Truth.
The second passage, 1 Peter 3:15-16, admonishes, “But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give answer (make a defense) to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander.”
Being prepared to “give an answer,” or as another translation puts it, “make a defense,” implies someone has asked a question, perhaps wanting to know what and why we believe: “the reason for the hope that you have.” Or they may have taken the offensive, presenting opposition to what we know to be true.
But as in the passage from Colossians, we’re to do so with “gentleness and respect,” not in an offensive manner. The Scriptures tell us that Jesus is – and always has been – “a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense” (1 Peter 2:8). We should let Him be the one who offends, not ourselves.
For an example of someone who did this very effectively, look at videos of the late Charlie Kirk interacting with students on college campuses, as well as in public forums. While some regarded him as “polarizing and divisive,” viewing his public interactions we see that wasn’t his intent.
In most instances he was winsome, engaging, respectful, and willing to listen to other viewpoints – but always faithful to biblical truth. He spoke boldly about politics and social issues but always emphasized the importance of seriously considering the claims of Christ. While others spoke with strong emotions and opinions, Charlie stuck with facts and logic – and the truth. This is one reason he encountered strong opposition, ultimately to the point of someone taking his life.
Most of us won’t in the crosshairs of someone’s gun for talking about Jesus and the Bible, but Charlie continues serving as a model of someone who lived for Christ and whose heart’s desire was to point others to Him. I believe he would have echoed the words of the apostle Paul, who urged first-century Christians to “Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ” (1 Corinthians 1:11).
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