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"But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear."
(1 Peter 3:15)
The dialogue of Methodist pastor Howard Mumma and the famous French philosopher Albert Camus is an inspiring one. While Mumma was a guest pastor in Pairs in the 1950s, Camus would come and hear him preach. They developed a friendship and had many private conversations about matters of spirituality and faith. You can read the dialogue between the two men in this article.
This conversation between the French existentialist philosopher and a Christian pastor made me appreciate again the power of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. God is always at work drawing people into a relationship with Him. There are multiple examples in the Bible, in Christian history, and in our modern day of men and women of faith befriending seekers and having the joy of leading them to Christ. A few biblical examples are Jesus and Nicodemus, Ananias and Saul of Tarsus, Priscilla and Aquila and Apollos, and Philip and the Ethiopian. A couple more modern historical examples would be the conversations JRR Tolkien had with CS Lewis and the one between Mumma and Camus.
The story of Rosario Butterfield's conversion to Christ is another example of the power of intentional friendship. Butterfield was led to faith in Jesus through the many conversations she had with a Presbyterian pastor named Ken Smith. Both Smith and his wife befriended Butterfield, a professed atheist and lesbian professor of English at Syracuse University. You can read her testimony here.
The Apostle Peter commands all followers of Jesus to set apart Christ in our hearts or sanctify the Lord in our hearts and be ready to dialogue with those who do not know Jesus and have many questions. Dialogues are much more effective than mere monologues. I learned a lot about evangelism by reading Adam Grant's Think Again. Grant, an agnostic, was voted the top professor seven years in a row at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.
Grant shares many helpful pointers on evangelism without ever addressing the subject. For example, he eloquently writes on subjects like confident humility, the power of influential listening, and how we are to engage people and show them respect. In dialogues, we should not come across as a preacher, prosecutor, or a politician, but as a scientist, one who is open and investigating.
Let us all be ready for those that God will bring into our paths. It may be a stranger you meet on the plane or at a restaurant. Or God may be bringing into your path someone like Lewis, or Camus, or Saul of Taurus who will become the Apostle Paul. You never know. Be open. Be available. It is amazing the things God does through His people when we are humble and obedient. |
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