Evangelism requires patience, skill in connecting with people, and walking with them in life until such a time that an effectual door opens to reach them for Jesus.
Jesus was called a friend of sinners (See Matthew 11:19). That was not meant to be a compliment but a criticism. When Jesus went to eat with Nicodemus, the tax collector, He did not address his sin right away. Jesus only told him that He wants to eat at his house. It was Nicodemus who was convicted, and he admitted to his sin. Then Jesus encouraged him in the faith.
For though I am free from all men, I have made myself a servant to all, that I might win the more; 20 and to the Jews I became as a Jew, that I might win Jews; to those who are under the law, as under the law, that I might win those who are under the law; to those who are without law, as without law (not being without law toward God, but under law toward Christ), that I might win those who are without law; to the weak I became as weak, that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all men, that I might by all means save some.1 Corinthians 9:19-22
In the above passage, Paul tells us that he became all things to all people so that he might win them to Christ. Similar to Jesus, Paul’s goal was to reach people for eternity, and he did not allow various cultural or spiritual baggages to keep Him from interacting with various people and reaching them with the truth of the gospel.
According to the above passage, Paul had become free in Christ, but he was willing to give up that freedom when it meant reaching others for Jesus. When the Jewish people expected their religious ceremonies to be kept, Paul at times went along with it. Even though he no longer believed in them, he was willing to do certain things. For example, he wanted Timothy to be circumcised, so they can be effective in reaching the Jewish people.
I haven’t always done a good job in this area. Because I don’t want unbelievers to get the wrong message about the gospel, I am quick to point out the differences in my faith versus their faith. I also want to be sure that they know I am not just following a religion but I am in a relationship with the Lord Jesus. Our intentions might be good. The challenge is that focusing on the differences tends to alienate people. There is a time and place to address the differences, but to the degree possible we want to build on a foundation of trust and understanding before we have the opportunity to tell them their religion/philosophy is wrong.
Paul stated in the above passage that, “to the weak he became weak.” We tend to show ourselves strong and have it all together. While our intention is to represent Christ well, we have to be careful not to look down upon a person who is broken and has made some bad decisions in life. It is also important that when we are communicating about spiritual matters, we remain humble and don’t talk down to people as if we are the holy ones and they are the ones with issues. People have to have a revelation of their sin and their need for Jesus. Our self-righteousness or pressure will not cause them to get closer to Jesus.
Let’s find common ground with unbelievers and begin establishing a relationship that we can build upon. If Jesus can be the friend of sinners and remain sinless, we also can have God’s grace to do it with wisdom and not compromise God’s standard. We want to be the kind of people that others can rely on and confide in. So we can have the opportunity to reach them for Jesus.
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