Learning Evangelism from Jesus

So long time no post. So much to talk about but don't really have the time to right now. I will try to be better about posting on here but we all know the saying, "Best laid plans of mice and men...."

So very rarely (as in never) do I post stuff that I have written for classes but I wanted to post this short review I wrote for the book Learning Evangelism from Jesus. It is a wonderful book written by one of Covenant's professors, Dr. Jerram Barrs. If you have the opportunity you should definitely read it. But this essay just really expresses what God has been doing in my life while here in St Louis and just continuously revealing to me how my life should reflect the grace that He has given me. I am very much still in process, and the process is often harsh and painful, but ultimately it is good because He is good and He is faithful.

As I read through Dr. Jerram Barrs Learning Evangelism from Jesus I came to an understanding of a harsh reality in my life: I think more of myself than I do of Jesus. I trust more in my own self-righteousness than I do in Christ. I puff myself up with knowledge rather than letting the truth and grace of Christ be my witness. During my time in St. Louis what has struck me hardest is that I do not live a life that reflects the grace that we are called and created to show. I have come to the realization that I am not reflecting God’s glory in the way that I interact with others. This comes down to a complete lack of understanding of what Christ has done for me. If I truly understood God’s grace I would not act the way that I do towards non-Christians. Barrs writes, “The fundamental issue is to remember the undeserved kindness of God for oneself and to therefore be generous to anyone in need, for at the heart of these laws is to imitate the character of God and to remember his mercy in redeeming people” (240.)

Most of my life as a Christian could be categorized as that of a Pharisee. I care more about being seen as right and moral, often not based on the desire to obey God because of what He has done for me. Pharisees desired to serve God and deeply pursued righteousness, but unfortunately their hearts were not impacted with an understanding of God’s mercy towards sinners, nor did they realize they also needed God’s grace. They thought “Bad company corrupts good morals,” and therefore stayed as far away from sinners as possible. As I think back on my 8 years of being a Christian, I am ashamed to admit that I have been that way for the majority of the time. I rarely formed relationships with those who were outside of the church, fearing that they would rub off on me rather than trusting that God would be able to use me to show them the grace of Christ. When I did keep the company of non-Christians, I would often shower them with condemnation rather than with grace and mercy. My words were not seasoned with salt but rather with bitterness and judgment.

It is clear from Dr. Barrs’ book that Jesus cared deeply for people rather than keeping with social norms or cultural mandates. I often find myself making the excuse that He was able to care for people because He was God and I am not. But if I truly believed the Gospel, truly owned it, I too would care about people, rejoicing in who God has made them to be rather than merely seeing them as a sort of evangelistic project. The most important thing that I am taking away from this book, and also my time at Covenant so far, is how my life must change if I truly believed the Gospel. If I truly believed and owned the Gospel of grace how would my life be different? The greatest struggle I have as a Believer is being able to take what I know in my head, then owning it with my heart, and finally translating it into action and how I relate with people. Being able to see how Jesus interacted with everyone he came in contact with has shown me tangible ways of how I am to relate to people.