I have to say this, there are times when I listen to well-meaning Christians try to explain Jesus and salvation to people and it comes out sounding like a military sergeant barking out orders in army acronyms. Now, I do not want to upset or insult anyone but trust me, if someone does not understand the lingo, they are not going to fully understand the message. In my mission courses at college, the professor let us in on a story that happened decades ago that made us sit up and take notice of our language when we are speaking to others.
A missionary went into the jungles of South America and armed with tracts, an interpreter, and a Bible, He set off to tell the unreached about the good news of Jesus. He wanted to keep the message simple, so he chose to start with the birth of Jesus. Not where I would have started but he felt it a great starting point. The conversation started out well although the idea of God impregnating a mortal woman was a tad difficult to explain but this was not the toughest part. You see, there are no sheep in the area and to reference shepherds tending the sheep at night took a long time to explain but that was not the obstacle. The tough part came when the missionary referred to Jesus as the Lamb of God. To them, Jesus came as a boy child, born of a woman whose father was God and He was a shapeshifter who became a sheep, and this sheep was a creature they had no clue as to what it was.
So often we think that people understand what we are talking about, but they look at you with that smile and nod attitude and hope you will just go away. No one has ever said I am subtle so take this as a word of advice, Keep It Simple, Seriously (KISS). Leave the thousand-dollar words like sanctification, justification, or glorification in the briefcase for those deep dives into faith at a Bible study and tell it like it is. God is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, even that one is a tough one, but it is a good foundation to start on. Next, there is recounting the birth of Christ, God among us and what this truly means for us all. Simplicity is the key, and His message does not need words to satisfy a professor in a university but rather speak to the hearts of the shepherds who did not have the education to understand. The gospel was meant to speak to all, not just the elite so why present the gospel to those today in such a way that can be confusing. Take this for what it is worth, in my opinion, the Word of God is so simple and so pure, we do not need to jazz it up with fancy words or lofty ideas. For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16 NLT
For the next month, we are going to explore what mission means and how we can all be a part of communicating His promise to those who are seeking a new way to love and peace. The service will be broadcast online (see links below), or you are more than welcome to join us in person at 10:30 AM, at 402 Main Ave. W in Sundre, AB.
Blessings,
Our Mission “To live the love of Christ”
