Years ago I started a new job in an electronics company. One of the techs I'd be working with greeted me with, "I hope you're not one of those born-again Christians." Interesting way to break the ice, right? But he was smiling when he said it, so I smiled and asked, "Oh, why is that?" "Well," he told me, "those Christians started all those wars." That's his concern?
I gave him my "pep talk." "You're married, right? You and your wife get along? Good. Imagine I came to work tomorrow, pulled a gun, and said, 'I'm going to kill you now.' You ask, 'Wait! Why?' I tell you, 'Your wife told me to.' What would you tell me?" He almost looked as shook up as if the event was real when he answered me. "I'd tell you that couldn't be. I know her better than that. She's not like that." "Good answer," I said. "So why is it when someone comes up to you and says, 'Those Christians have started all those wars in the name of Christ,' we're not allowed to say, 'Nope, couldn't be. We know Him better than that. He's not like that'? Just because you've been told that people started wars in the name of Christ doesn't mean -- can't mean -- that Christ approved."
When we talk with people we're often ready to cede ground we shouldn't. We allow their worldview to dictate what is and isn't so and we feel we need to respond to their biases when there is no basis for them. We need to start with the truth or we'll be spending a lot of time explaining why we believe lies ... which aren't. But I suppose this would require that we have a firm grasp on the truth, wouldn't it? Oh, yeah, we have a book about that (John 17:17).
5 comments:
Hey, Stan, just to assist my comprehension today: By “all those wars,” did you assume that your co-worker meant the Crusades? or something more recent? Thanks for the clarification!
Yes, the normal "go-to" is "Christianity is toxic because of the Crusades," to which I typically reply, "What do the Crusades have to do with following Christ?"
I think the inability to articulate truth comes from the great make people that believe that doctrine divides and they don't need doctrine, only Christ. In my head, I'm an apologist. I believe it is existentially important for us to know what we believe and why we believe it, it we end up with crystal worshipping Christians that base their lives on the stars.
I can agree that your co-worker’s comment was audacious; imagine someone saying to a fellow employee (or a customer or client, etc.), “I hope you’re not a Jew” or “I hope you’re not a Muslim” and getting away with that! In any case, I am sure he was equally and appropriately shocked in return by your good response to him! Hopefully he has since learned that the Crusades (as well as the Spanish Inquisition--another common point of contention) were orchestrated by the prevailing church, i.e. the Roman Catholic Church, and not by “born-again Christians.”
You are right that when we witness to the lost, we can become sidetracked by countless side arguments--which is exactly what Satan desires. The better we equip ourselves with the truth and learn to avoid such distractions, the more adept we will be at getting to essential, core issues of the Gospel--which is exactly what Satan hates.
To that end, God has led me to strengthen my “apologetics & polemics” skills by pursuing a general knowledge of world, national, and church history, as well as of science, religion, logic, and the language arts. (I also have a basic awareness of “pop culture,” political issues, and current events, but I strive to keep all of that in proper perspective.) The vital things, as you point out, are a biblical worldview and a firm grasp of the truth--which God has graciously made freely available to those who desire it.
Meant to say "from the great many people"
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