How important is it to be able to talk about our faith?
I think it's very important.
But, is it all that matters?
That action of "telling" others what we believe and why we believe it? Without the "telling" is anything else even there?
There are those who would have us believe that, if we don't evangelise our faith, then it's worthless. There are those that believe, that the most important thing we can do with our lives, is to shout from the rooftops about Jesus, shoving Him in peoples faces, and telling them that if they don't believe in Him, then they will burn.
There are even those who believe that persecuting & judging others because of the way they live is biblical. Could they have got it any more wrong? The people who cast others down as sinners, and abominations, and just plain wrong....I have to wonder, have they even read the Bible themselves?
I believe that Jesus has called us to love. I believe that we are, all of us, sinners. There is no one capable of throwing the first stone. There is no perfect being on this Earth.
The only perfect person to have existed, died for us. I believe that through Him, we are washed clean, made pure & made in His likeness, into a new creation.
I believe that Jesus has called us to love.
I believe that the Bible's underlying, overwhelming theme, is love.
Out of love for us, Jesus died on the cross.
Out of love for us, He conquered death.
Out of love for us, He forged a new covenant, not to undermine the Old Laws, but to reinforce them...through love. Through Himself.
I believe that "telling" people, is not the only way to evangelise about our faith.
I believe that our biggest advantage, our best tool, is to love.
Jesus loved the sinners. He was friends with them, He ate with them, He lived with them, while other people looked on in disdain & disbelief.
I believe that the most authentic way we can tell other people about our Saviour, is by showing them.
Live the way He lived. Love the way He loved. With compassion, and tenderness, and gentleness, without judgement or discrimination, or ulterior motives.
I admire those people who can stand without fear and evangelise without hesitation. I couldn't really imagine anything worse than standing on a street and proclaiming my faith, without even really being sure that anyone is even listening to me.
Don't get me wrong, I think it is so important to tell people about our faith. It's important to be open about our relationship with Jesus, and not to keep it hidden from those around us. I do enjoy talking about my faith, with my friends, people I may not know very well, even complete strangers. But I prefer to do it on a smaller scale, one-on-one, in small groups or during our Youth Fellowship. These are the places I'm most comfortable.
Talking in front of Church is something else entirely. It's a strange one for me. Once I'm up speaking & after I'm finished, 9 times out of 10, I enjoy it. But on the run up to talking, or while having to prepare something I am always so nervous!
I understand that being a Christian isn't about being where you are most comfortable. I understand that we have to trust God, and to follow where He leads, even if that happens to be outside of our comfort zones (which it more than likely will be!).
However, I still believe that sometimes the best way to tell people about our Saviour, doesn't involve "telling" them at all, but showing them Him.
Showing other people Jesus through the way that we live, act, speak, love, work. Our day-to-day lives, and our interactions with other people, tell a bigger & more genuine story than anything else we have to offer.
1 Peter 4:8 Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.
1 Peter 4:8 Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.
1 John 4:18 -19 There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. We love because he first loved us.
That's what I believe, anyway!
What ways are you most confident in sharing your faith?
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