My fellow Christians, if we claim to know God, why don’t we talk enough about Him? And when we do, why do we go about it as a task that must be done just because “we have to”?
A recent study mentioned in a New York Times article refers to a Barna Research that found that among Americans, “a mere 13 percent (of practicing Christians who attend church) had a spiritual conversation around once a week.” Unfortunately, I don’t think the case is much different for us Middle Eastern Christians.
I think the answer to my question can be summed up in a single word: self. We’re too preoccupied with how people will perceive us if we say or do certain things, that we miss golden opportunities to witness. I’ve been busy with this thought for the past couple of days; if we as ministers of the Gospel are so self-centered, we will not only fail miserably at reaching people, but when we do, we will be preaching a false Gospel whose main storyline is a God who is anything but self-centered! Only when we truly die to ourselves, will we see those whom God has entrusted to our vicinities as more than “mere mortals,” to use the words of C.S. Lewis. Only then will God grant us the privilege of seeing people as He sees them, and only then will we realize that we have the cure for their agony and that “hiding it under a basket” (Matthew 5:15) is a crime!
If we are truly living out our faith, and not reserving it for Friday/Sunday mornings, we will be “like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither” (Psalm 1:3). If we live by the streams of Living Water, we will bear fruit. But trying to “talk” about God out of a sense of moral obligation to rescue people from hell while not living it out is hypocritical and reduces the Gospel message to a rescue ticket from hell, which is a terrible understatement.
I believe we have homework to do. We need to seek to know God with all our minds, hearts, and beings. And we need to seek to know our culture and where others stand. We must equip ourselves with the words and means by which to share the Gospel in such a way that reveals that it is not just relevant, but will never be constrained by time, because it is inspired by a God who is eternally transcendent beyond all time and space constraints. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is the only remedy for the malady of humanity by the Creator of humanity. And He has entrusted us the responsibility of sharing it with the world. I pray we prove faithful.