Evangelism

“Now when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked. But others said, ‘We will hear you again about this.’” – Acts 17:32

I came to the Bay Area intent on sharing Jesus with nonbelievers, convicted that this was part of the main reason we were called here. But it has been a slow and challenging process. People seem to respond like the Athenians: when Christianity comes up, they react with a sense of suppressed antipathy at worse or a complete lack of openness at best, like those who mocked Paul. Then I begin to build relationships, aware that I may be one of the few Christians they come to closely know: and that takes a great deal of time and patience, like those who wanted Paul to come and repeat himself again. We’ve been here almost three years, still hosting gatherings for friends and families and neighbors, still reaching out during school runs and swim meets and playdates, but it’s hard to see any kind of progress.

In the face of all that, my resolve to share Jesus has atrophied to some extent. I’ve stopped praying regularly by name for nonbelievers in our lives. I’ve become more cynical about the odds of anyone believing. I hesitate longer before mentioning my faith. And then I came across these words towards the end of J. I. Packer’s book Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God: “So persevere in presenting Christ to unconverted people as you find opportunity. You are not on a fool’s errand. You are not wasting either your time or theirs. You have no reason to be ashamed of your message, or halfhearted and apologetic in delivering it. You have every reason to be bold, and free, and natural, and hopeful of success. For God can give his truth an effectiveness that you and I cannot give it.”

The truth of God’s sovereignty, Packer argues, should make us take even more seriously our responsibility to evangelize, which he defines as sharing the good news regardless of conversion results, and which he reiterates is a command for all believers to obey. The fact that God is the one who can and does work against the blindness of sin and the schemes of Satan to bring people to a saving knowledge of Jesus gives us confidence: it is not up to us. And this confidence does three things: it makes us bold in the face of apathy or contempt, because we know God can change even the hardest hearts. It makes us patient when there is no immediate response, because we know God works in his own time. And it drives us to prayer, because we know we need help and that God alone is able to draw others to salvation. 

Do I really believe God is sovereign, or not? Or have I been unconsciously trusting in my own abilities and methods, applying my own timeline and expectations? Do I truly love the people around me, and do I truly love and believe in the power of the gospel? You are not wasting your time, Packer reminds me. Persevere in every opportunity. Don’t be ashamed; have hope. It is God who works, and he uses you to do it.