A friend and I were talking tonight about how hard witnessing is for us. As much as we want to see people come to Christ, there is little that we find more difficult than squeezing out the message of truth when talking with unbelievers. I've tried to figure out why this is and I realize it does not have anything to do with my being ashamed of Christ. I really don't care if people think I am weird or stupid. I WANT people to know I am a Christian, and I really would love to talk to unbelievers about Christ. But only if they initiate the conversation.
The thing that is so hard for me is I hate to offend. For example, I interviewed a Muslim for a homework assignment a few weeks ago. She told me that Islam agrees with everything the Bible says. But then she went on to describe a salvation that is based on works. I knew I had to tell her the truth, that the Bible really does not teach the same message as Islam at all. I did tell her that Christianity believes Jesus is the Son of God rather than just a prophet, and I gave her some Bible verses about salvation by faith, but it was excrutiating! I HATED being that person who had to come out and basically say, "What you've belived your whole life is a lie." People of different religions often seem so happy with their own faiths that the easiest thing to do is just tolerate everyone. "Coexist", as the picture above so wisely advises us. Tearing apart other people's faiths may feel cruel. But it is necessary. The world already has too many tolerant people who want nothing more than to live and let live. What the world needs is truth, and like it or not, the truth can be pretty offensive. (After all, the truth is that we are all totally depraved and that our good works, which are "as filthy rags" come nowhere close to earning us a place in God's Kingdom!) But it is this offensive, humbling truth that ultimately sets us free. The world is in need of Christians with the ability to speak the truth with boldness and without compromise. Tolerance is just the easy way out. It is the option taken by those with nothing worth standing for, or living for, or dying for. Our world is in such a desperate condition that the cruelest thing a Christian can do is to sit back and "coexist" when there are eternal destinies at stake. It is my hope that as I grow into a more mature Christian, my love of truth will outweigh my hatred of offending.
"And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." -John 8:32
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