Kindness or the Gospel?
John Hopper —
Recently, I hurried out of a Costco store to catch up with a long-time friend named Linda, who I spotted a few steps ahead of me. Linda is an earnest woman who strives to do her best to share Jesus with others. One way she hopes to do this is by befriending new U.S. residents in an ESL class and then introducing them to Christ.
An Iranian woman was one of her recent students, and Linda, along with other Christians, was able to show the woman a great deal of love as she struggled to learn English. Because the Iranian woman knew so little English, it was hard for Linda to tell her about Jesus in a way the woman could understand. But there was one thing the woman could understand: the kindness of Christians. And in her elementary, broken English, she was able to express just that to Linda.
Later, a local pastor who spoke Farsi (the language of Iran) was able to connect with the woman and clearly explain the gospel. Quickly, the woman gave her life to Jesus, as did her son.
So, what was instrumental in the woman coming to faith? The kindness of Christians in the ESL class, or the explanation of the gospel in understandable terms by the Iranian pastor? The answer, of course, is both. Without the kindness of Linda and others, the woman and her son likely would have been uninterested in the gospel, and without an explanation of the gospel in Farsi, they would not have understood the Jesus behind the Christians’ kindness.
Frequently, we think of evangelism as the point in time when we speak to others about the beautiful offer of forgiveness and reconciliation found in Christ’s death and resurrection. Without a doubt, that is evangelism, but the hard work of pointing people to Jesus often begins long before a word about Jesus is spoken. Rather than being a one-off event, sharing Jesus with others is usually a journey that calls for kindness piled upon kindness, along with countless conversations about God that often include voices other than our own.
So don’t worry if, like Linda, people don’t embrace Jesus the first time you mention our Savior, or even fully grasp what you are saying. Keep showing people the love of Christ and sprinkling in the Good News along the way.
John Hopper is the Executive Director of REACH, the author of Questioning God and Giving Jesus Away, a lover of a great family, and a big fan of tennis.
