Telling people about Jesus might be as simple as showing people how Jesus would act. In the New Testament book of Matthew, Jesus was asked by Philip what God was like. It’s a great question. Philip was curious to know the nature and the characteristics of God. Rather than telling Philip the attributes of God, such as God is holy, just, righteous, and merciful, Jesus simplified it for him and said:
“If you have seen me, Philip, you have seen God.”
— John 14:9
In essence, Jesus said, “Watch me, and I will show you what God is like.”
I believe the number one reason Christians don’t evangelize is fear. Some Christians are terrified to share the gospel. We are paralyzed with fear, yet God calls us to share the good news. But what if God wasn’t really concerned with what we should say but rather how we should live?
The apostle Paul wrote to the Church in Thessalonica and actually encouraged them to focus more on the life they lived instead of the words they preached. He even encouraged them to live quiet lives, to mind their own business, and to work with their hands so that their daily lives would win the respect of others. (1 Thessalonians 4:11)
When I was in seminary, it was the last time I would work in a public, non-Christian setting. Everyone knew I was a Christian, not because I told them but because of how I lived. My goal was to be the nicest, happiest, and hardest worker on the team to win their respect and hopefully earn the opportunity to share with them. Most of the people who are reading this devotional work in an environment where they can’t share the gospel for fear of repercussions, but we can all work in a way that earns the respect of our colleagues and gives us an opportunity to share the Good News of Jesus Christ.
So rather than focusing on what to say, what if we focus on what we do? More is caught than taught. Stop trying to tell people the attributes of God and start showing them. Your actions could help an unbelieving world to start listening to our gospel message.