Being a Witness in a Post-Modern Culture

I want to be brutally honest with you in what I am about to say. I really struggle with the methodologies of traditional witnessing or evangelism. The truth is that all believers (if they are honest) get nervous when they go to tell a complete stranger about Jesus Christ. That fact, however, does not mean that cold-call witnessing can't work. I have certainly seen it work. I am speaking from the vantage point of someone who has been involved in evangelism or witnessing for almost eighteen years. And most of the methods that were employed by me or the ones involved with me were traditional methods. Now, it might be helpful to clarify what I mean by "traditional" at this point. Because traditional for me may not be traditional for someone else. Traditional, to me, means going up to complete strangers and talking with them about Jesus Christ. This, of course, can take a number of different forms. The gamut runs from the most extreme form of street preaching to conventional door-knocking. Am I saying these methods can never be used again in any culture? No, I am emphatically not saying that. The truth is that I have used some of these quite a few times in the last year. However, I am just not sold on their effectiveness.

Let me continue to clarify what I mean here. We are not debating the message of the gospel. Jesus
Christ is the gospel. He is what must be proclaimed for people to be saved from themselves. I am debating the method that is to be used in this endeavor. As I have mentioned previously, the culture I am in has unique challenges that will undoubtedly widen my perspective on things, as well as open up my thinking to new ways of doing ministry. I am not bound by any denominational tag or doctrinal statement. I am committed to Jesus Christ and His Word and His kingdom and I want to see people's lives transformed by that.

Seeing people converted, moreover, is my desire but not my responsibility. "I have planted (Paul said); Apollos watered; but God gave the increase." Jesus Christ is the "Lord of the harvest" and He is calling out a redeemed people for Himself. What it does mean is that I must be committed to Christ's leadership in my situations in day-to-day life to affect the relationships around me. I must "launch out into the deep" with an eye of faith and ask Christ to show me what is an acceptable method and what is not. I have looked in vain for a book of the bible that strictly discusses these methods. If there is not one, then I may have to lean on Christ for the answer. Paul made a statement that leaves the door pretty wide open, howeve, for suggestions: "I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some." Knocking on doors might work in the outer suburbs of metro Atlanta, but I am not sure if it is really effective in yuppie, eccentric, post-modern Grant Park, East Atlanta, or Little Five Points. Street preaching may also work in Jamaica or Nicuragaua, but I am not sure if it is the best method to Americans.

So, what is my point? I am learning that an honest, respectful, and open dialogue might be the best way to go with a lot of the culture. What that really boils down to is authentic relationships. In most cases it is a rude assumption on my part to go up and ask someone about their eternal destiny. First of all, I have not earned that right, and for me to pretend that I have a listening audience is the worst form of arrogance. I must attempt to build friendships with those I love. Certainly, we are commanded to love those who are not Christians. So, I guess that would mean them. What? That can't be, because it says "friendship with the world is enmity with God." That is actually the "kosmos", or world system, which is in compliance with Satan. It means we shouldn't give ourselves over to the philosophy or wisdom of the world that contradicts God. Entering the culture and becoming friends with people for the sake of loving them I think is what Jesus did. He was even criticized for that by the religious people calling him such bad names as a "friend of sinners." Our relationship, however, must be genuine and not conditional. In other words, if they are not interested in the gospel I must not abandon them, but continue to try to be God's epistle to them through my life and actions. Jesus certainly did not betray Judas although He knew what was in his heart, and even extended love and compassion to him till the very end.

I will admit that this form of evangelism requires a level of commitment not typically seen in many Christians today, but that doesn't mean it is not essential to our being an effective witness for Christ. For some, this will cause them to say that I am promoting life-style evangelism, or even the social gospel, but never have I negated the absolute necessity of the gospel to be prolaimed. I am just submitting that it is time that we take a look at our culture and see what is needed in our approach to sharing the gospel.

Someone may ask the question, "how far do we go in this?" I am not totally sure, to be honest. I am still finding my way, to be sure. We obviously do not sin in our trying to be friends or build bridges. But, let us also be careful in discriminating what is sin and what is a cultural preference. There are a lot of things in our culture that we are not comfortable with that are not outright sins. And our problem is that we desire to clean them up before (or even when) they get converted. I won't go into all the specifics at this time, but I am suggesting that we go into the Word of God and into the depths of our heart, and see what God would have us to do to more effectively witness of Jesus Christ.