Our motives for sharing faith should never be to appease God, impress Christians, or oppress non-christians. “Don’t be,” says Brian McLaren, “the ecclesiastical counterpart of a mealtime telemarketer or email spammer barraging people with unwanted messages.”
We’re supposed to be signposts that point people toward Jesus not stumbling blocks that trip them up on their way. Even though Jesus’ miracle compensated for Peter’s meltdown, we shouldn’t presume that God will use this same MO in every case. He’s pretty busy as it is without having to mop up our messes.
“When we make sharing our faith a war of ideals,” writes Carl Medearis, “we create casualties on both sides of the boundary.” If we’re wounding more people than we’re winning we should find a better way.
– Originally published in Reaching Rahab: Joining God In His Quest For Friends
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