I’ve been chewing on a question. There seems to be this constant question of “proselytizing”. I’ve heard it quite often lately, and always in the negative. In the last couple of days I heard it in reference to the actions of a teacher at a Christian college, and it got me thinking.
If you set out to a task – homeless shelter, afterschool program, teaching, construction – in service to others, what is your evangelistic responsibility when you encounter a non-believer? Should we follow the overused Francis quote and preach the gospel without words, or do we verbally “proselytize”?
And if you have a friend who you know is in sin, do you confront them? Is it judging, as Jesus described Matthew 7, or is it gentle restoration, as Paul prescribed in Galatians 6? What is your responsibility?
I think that in the first case our responsibility is to verbally preach the gospel. We live in a world where people do nice things because they’re nice, and where even people who have heard of Jesus don’t know the truth about him. How can we preach the gospel through service without describing why we’re serving?
In the second case I believe its our responsibility to speak up directly – no passive-aggressive asides or indirect anecdotes about “this guy I know” – and share our conviction. God tells Ezekiel that if he doesn’t warn people about their sin, he’ll be held responsible. And what kind of love are you showing your brother or sister in Christ by leaving them in their sin? And what if you’re wrong? Then you’ve had your thinking challenged, and hopefully corrected.
Here in PC land (that’s “political correctness”) it’s always wrong to say that someone else’s “choices” are wrong, or that they’ll eventually find themselves in a heap o’ trouble if they don’t love Jesus. But that’s not our standard. Our standard is this: to make disciples and teach them everything Jesus commanded.
We’re here because the apostles followed that standard, and taught others to do the same. Let’s not give it up for the trend of the day. And we have to think of those we may save. What does it profit a man to gain a bed for the night, better grades, a degree, or a home if he loses his soul?
An old Penn Jillette video in which the avowed atheist talks about the good heart of the proselytizer.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7JHS8adO3hM[/youtube]
“How much do you have to hate somebody not to proselytize?”
