How Can We Share the Gospel With Friends and Acquaintances?

2/14/12     Angel,    about 45

There is a big difference in how I relate the Gospel with strangers I may likely never see again; with friends acquaintances I run into only every so often; and with family and co-workers I see most every day.

Most of the conversations I write about are with strangers. As for coworkers and family members I respect their privacy and don't write about them, except maybe to say here that this is where the Gospel may be better "caught" than "taught". But for acquaintances I run into every now and then, I wonder if Jesus' habit of using stories and parables might be particularly helpful.

I used to go to a workout gym, and ran into a lady named Angel once in a while. We would have only polite, shallow conversations until one day when I asked for her opinions about the Parable of the Talents from Matthew 25 for an upcoming sermon I was giving. This is the story of the servants who were all put in charge of different amounts of gold and held accountable for what they had done with it.

Angel said she is Catholic but believes the Bible is only a human invention, not to be taken as the Word of God. She was familiar with the parable of the Talents but confused it with the Prodigal Son, a story that makes her mad because to her it seems the younger prodigal son is rewarded in the end for squandering his inheritance while the older brother was responsible with his.

Angel takes great pride in the hard work she does for a living, looking down on most poor people for being lazy. She liked the parable of the talents, because the two hardworking servants are rewarded for their efforts. Still, she felt the punishment of being cast in the outer darkness and the weeping and gnashing of teeth for the lazy one was too harsh. She finished her workout and had to leave before we could talk much further, but I feel that instead of burning a bridge of communication, talking about this parable helped build a bridge with Angel, and I felt I could share more gospel truths with her in the future.

Jesus, who taught so much through the use of parables, also said "I have not come to bring peace, but a sword". He knew that His good news of the Kingdom of Heaven would cause division, even among family members.

The gospel is by its very nature confrontational. Isn't that one thing we fear about witnessing - causing division? This is especially true when it comes to people we have an ongoing relationship with. So how do we avoid "burning our bridges" when sharing the deep truths of the Gospel, truths that could easily cause discomfort, division, and even alienation in the relationship we have with a loved one or a friend?

I believe this is one reason for Jesus' use of parables in conveying spiritual truth. They have a way of dispensing truth in small, easy to swallow doses rather than in a fatal overdose. I might not have the luxury of time with a stranger I may never see again, so with them I've learned to get to the point quickly. But with ongoing relationships a parable sharing spiritual truths might be just what they need to hear.