I hate Evangelism?!

I have become aware of some big mistakes I have made when thinking about sharing with others the life-changing relationship I have with Jesus the creator of the universe. Firstly I believed sharing Jesus with others was An Activity. Something to put on my To Do list, which I could tick off when done - or not as the case often was, leaving me feeling guilty. My understanding was that I had to go and Do Evangelism, go and tell someone about Jesus.

 

But Jesus said “I am the WAY.” In other words evangelism is more about following Jesus in every aspect of my daily life. As I started to let Jesus be the way, I started having encounters with people with Jesus. People started asking about Jesus or opportunities were made for me to tell my story or ask, “where they were with God.” My life became a place where people encountered Jesus not something I went out and did. As I followed Jesus he became the way I shared Him in my everyday life rather than through contrived or created encounters.

 

Secondly I believed there was a gospel message and my job was to get people to believe ‘the message.’ Of course there is a message of truth but Jesus said, “I am the TRUTH” In practice I have learnt it is not about trying to persuade people to believe a message but inviting them to meet Jesus - who is the truth. Christianity is not about a truth that needs to be believed as much as a person who needs to be met. I have persuaded several people to buy iPhones because I have found them to be such a good product. Jesus is not simply a good product but the Saviour of the universe a truth revealed only by God himself. It is the God-given faith in Jesus that reveals Jesus, who is the truth. We can only introduce people to our Saviour, not argue a good case for him. If we have a really good friend it becomes natural in the everyday to share Jesus with them, whether at home or work.

 

Lastly I thought if I invited people to a holy place such as church or a bring-a-guest Christian event they would get to know the amazing life changing God I had met. What I had done was to separate out the Christian part of my life with my daily life. This meant I only believed God worked in church or Christian events. Jesus said “I am the LIFE” which did not mean just the Sunday part of my life but my whole life. I had to change my thinking to let God into my whole life. Then I started seeing God at work, on the train, at school, over coffee, at the pub, at the hairdressers, shopping etc. A whole world has opened up where God is revealing himself to people around me and He has invited me to be a part of it.

Jesus said “I am the way, the truth, and the life” I need to stop ‘doing’ evangelism and start letting God be the way, the truth and the life!