Sharing Your Faith

By Clint Morgan

ETEAM is IM’s premier program for high school students. Those entering their sophomore year may apply for ETEAM. Essentially, ETEAM participants give three weeks of their summer to learn about and experience cross- cultural ministry. Students engage in a full week of pre-field preparation before working alongside a missionary.

I enjoy teaching these students basic principles about sharing their faith. To kick-start this particular class students are presented the following paragraph:

It is imperative we grasp the epistemological underpinnings of our theological position as it relates to soteriology if we are to effectively articulate our faith in the existential milieu in which we live. We must be solidly attached to the nodal point of integration of our belief system in order to establish and live out a worldview that is intelligible and pertinent to today’s ‘post-modern’ mindset. It behooves us to give significant consideration to these issues. We can thereby avoid any postulation of semantic confusion when we truly embrace and declare the truths of His Word. Failure to do so will certainly be detrimental to the expansion of His Kingdom during this ‘kairos’ in which we live.

Generally, most do not fully understand several important words in this paragraph. The point is not to stump them, but to help them realize the way we present the gospel often becomes an obstacle to the listener. Our presentation of the gospel is many times so esoteric or hard to interpret the unbeliever cannot understand it and, therefore, cannot embrace it.

We may be getting way ahead of the game by assuming all Christians share their faith. It would be presumptuous to think all ETEAM students have a passionate desire to witness to their peers. Research reveals only 8% of regular church attenders believe sharing their faith is “very important.” This implies 92% of those in our churches are not committed to obeying the final command of Christ to preach the gospel to all nations. It is reasonable to assume these stats reflect, to some degree, our ETEAM participants.

I don’t want to get bogged down in seeking a solution for the 92% uncommitted to evangelism. Instead, I want us to consider a case study and draw out principles to guide those who desire to witness but are hesitant or unsure how to proceed.

A Case Study

It is impossible for me to say how many times I have been asked, “How did you share the gospel in Africa?” I like that the question assumes I did witness. Thankfully, it is a safe assumption.
Before answering the particular question addressed to me, I must present two important factors. One, Africa is a large continent; no singular method will effectively communicate the gospel in every setting and among every people group. Second, the methods I used are not necessarily best for everyone in every situation; our unique personalities, gifts, and abilities dictate the methods we use.

However, I do think some foundational principles are transferable and pertinent to all believers, wherever we may be. Let’s start with the question asked of me and build from there. We will address broader issues like how I determined the places, timing, manner, and persons with whom to share my faith while serving as a missionary to the Lobi people in Côte d’Ivoire, Africa.

One of the most common evangelistic methods was visiting village markets. We chose market days because those opportunities produced the largest social gatherings available. Also, those coming to market saw it as an all-day event, providing abundant time just to sit and chat. We took full advantage of those cultural norms, engaging as many people as we could, witnessing when the opportunity arose.

Before going to a market, the Lobi evangelist(s) and I spent time in prayer. We asked God for courage to speak the truth, strength to endure all day in the hot sun, and most of all for His Spirit to lead us to those whose hearts were prepared to hear the Word. We knew our hearts must be in tune with the Holy Spirit to know with whom to share the gospel, what to say, and patience to wait on Him to transform those who believed. After our prayer time, we traveled to market in anticipation of what God had in store.

After arriving, we quickly found ourselves chatting with passersby who stopped long enough for us to engage them. No doubt, being the only American in the crowd was somewhat of a plus factor in attracting people to our little straw-covered booth. We waited in constant anticipation for the right time to share the gospel. Though we felt compelled to share, we did not want to drive people away by “kicking down” the proverbial door to their hearts.

I seized every open opportunity to talk to people about Christ. It was imperative the words I shared be Bible based, Christ centered, and culturally comprehensible. The conversation with a Lobi would go something like this.

Me: Do you believe there is one God?

Lobi: Absolutely! (Note: Lobi tradition tells of a god who created all things, walked on the earth, and interacted with people. He eventually left because a woman hit him on the head with a big stick. He gave men idols to communicate with the spirit world and live under their control.)

Me: Do you know everything there is to know about God?

Lobi: No.

Me: Do you believe God can talk to man?

Lobi: If He wants to.

Me: Do you believe man could understand what God said if He spoke to him?

Lobi: If God wanted him to.

Me: Do you think man could write down what God said?

Lobi: If he knows how to write.

Me: Well, I believe God did talk to man, man understood what God said, man wrote it down, and we have the words written. Now, if you want to know about America, would you ask me or another Lobi?

Lobi: I would ask you.

Me: If you want to know more about God, would you want to ask me or ask Him?

Lobi: Ask Him?

Me: I have His words about Himself, and I want to share them with you.

Of course, every conversation did not unfold in precisely this sequence. But it was repeated often enough that it stuck in my memory as a means God used to nudge conversations toward the gospel.

My heart’s desire was to consistently share the truths of God’s Word in a manner people could comprehend and respond appropriately. They had three possible responses: 1) Yes, I understand, and I want to abandon the way of my idols; 2) Yes, I understand, but I’m not going to leave my idols; 3) I really don’t understand, but I want to hear more.

We sought to establish ongoing discussions, desiring they would lead to true conversion. In normal progression, the conversion was followed by discipleship, baptism, active church membership, and making new disciples.

Obviously, this dialogue and sequence should not be expected in all witnessing opportunities. In fact, I don’t want us to stumble over the method as the key focus of this article. I desire we look at this scenario and discern principles we can apply to the opportunities God provides us to share our faith.

I invite you to go back and reread this article. Then, using the help questions below, pull out principles you believe may help you share the gospel when opportunities come your way. I challenge you to write down the principles you discover and consider how to apply them in your life? Also, may I ask you to share some of your thoughts with me via email at clint@iminc.org? Thanks, and may He bless you abundantly as you serve Him.

About the Writer: Clint Morgan is general director of IM, Inc. Learn more: IMInc.org.

Questions to Discover Principles for Sharing Your Faith

1. Why is it dangerous to assume one method will work in all witnessing
   situations?
   

2. What broad principles should guide us in selecting where, when, and how we share our faith?
   

3. What cultural norms in your present context open the door to presenting the gospel? What cultural norm presents the greatest obstacle?
   

4. What role(s) does the Holy Spirit play in sharing your faith?
   

5. What draws people to your church? To you personally?
   

6. What would you add to the following principle to make it clearer and more applicable for you? “It was imperative the words I shared be Bible based, Christ centered, and culturally comprehensible.”
   

7. What should be the normal progression of moving from unbeliever to committed Christian?