I was talking with a friend of mine recently about the subject of evangelism. We were discussing the different styles that are used and comparing them with the examples given in Scripture. He said something that really made me jump a bit: "Where in all of the witnessing accounts in the book of Acts do the apostles mention God's love? Nowhere." I noted that the people they spoke with were full of religious pride, hence they didn't need to hear a "soft" message about God's love, but a "hard" message about His humanly unattainable holiness. "Not true," he replied. "Look at Cornelius."
I confess that I haven't yet looked at Cornelius, but nevertheless, there are some things that jump out at me. Didn't Paul say that it is the kindness of the Lord that leads men to repentance (Rom. 2:4)? What about when Jesus was witnessing to Nicodemus in John 3, where we find Him saying the oft-quoted verse, "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him will not perish, but have eternal life,"? Is there something to be considered in the fact that 2,000 years ago, Christianity hadn't earned the bad name it has amongst so many people today due to the church's mistreatment of certain people (pogroms, the Inquisition, and the Crusades, for example) and other forms of hypocrisy done "in Jesus's name"?
On the other side of the coin, how many Christians are there who allow the worry of offending people to get in the way of witnessing, who delude themselves into thinking that being a person's friend long enough and demonstrating God's love will automatically result in the person wanting to know what's up? In fact, where in all of Scripture do we see any mention of a "silent witness"? Have you ever heard of someone coming to know the Lord just because somebody was "really nice and loving"? Sure, living out God's love is a powerful testimony, but there still has to be the preaching of the word.
I've wrestled with this dilemma for so long, and I'm coming to this conclusion:
A. Perfectionism is a horrible mistake to make. It forgets that God is bigger than our shortcomings and ends up getting in His way.
B. Some people are going to be offended by the message of the Gospel no matter what you say or do. Oh, well.
C. Part of "loving" people is telling them that they're lost. Is it loving to look at a man who is going to drown if he doesn't swim to shore asap and say to yourself, "He looks like he's really enjoying himself out there. I don't want to be rude and ruin his fun,"?
D. Many people might be more open than you think.
E. Simply being "nice" is more of a turn-off than you might realize. It communicates that you aren't serious about what you believe. If you can't take what you believe seriously, why should anyone else?
Bottom line - We have a mission to do, and whatever we've gotta do to get it done, do it. We know what's loving and what isn't, and if we're honest enough with ourselves, we'll know when "being quiet" is something we're doing out of fear as opposed to wisdom. There's really no need for it to get any more complicated than that, so grab that bull by the horns and do what you've gotta do. I'm Jimmy Ballenger, that's my story, and I'm sticking with it.
I confess that I haven't yet looked at Cornelius, but nevertheless, there are some things that jump out at me. Didn't Paul say that it is the kindness of the Lord that leads men to repentance (Rom. 2:4)? What about when Jesus was witnessing to Nicodemus in John 3, where we find Him saying the oft-quoted verse, "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him will not perish, but have eternal life,"? Is there something to be considered in the fact that 2,000 years ago, Christianity hadn't earned the bad name it has amongst so many people today due to the church's mistreatment of certain people (pogroms, the Inquisition, and the Crusades, for example) and other forms of hypocrisy done "in Jesus's name"?
On the other side of the coin, how many Christians are there who allow the worry of offending people to get in the way of witnessing, who delude themselves into thinking that being a person's friend long enough and demonstrating God's love will automatically result in the person wanting to know what's up? In fact, where in all of Scripture do we see any mention of a "silent witness"? Have you ever heard of someone coming to know the Lord just because somebody was "really nice and loving"? Sure, living out God's love is a powerful testimony, but there still has to be the preaching of the word.
I've wrestled with this dilemma for so long, and I'm coming to this conclusion:
A. Perfectionism is a horrible mistake to make. It forgets that God is bigger than our shortcomings and ends up getting in His way.
B. Some people are going to be offended by the message of the Gospel no matter what you say or do. Oh, well.
C. Part of "loving" people is telling them that they're lost. Is it loving to look at a man who is going to drown if he doesn't swim to shore asap and say to yourself, "He looks like he's really enjoying himself out there. I don't want to be rude and ruin his fun,"?
D. Many people might be more open than you think.
E. Simply being "nice" is more of a turn-off than you might realize. It communicates that you aren't serious about what you believe. If you can't take what you believe seriously, why should anyone else?
Bottom line - We have a mission to do, and whatever we've gotta do to get it done, do it. We know what's loving and what isn't, and if we're honest enough with ourselves, we'll know when "being quiet" is something we're doing out of fear as opposed to wisdom. There's really no need for it to get any more complicated than that, so grab that bull by the horns and do what you've gotta do. I'm Jimmy Ballenger, that's my story, and I'm sticking with it.
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