Evangelism Options

[yummy_delight]

A good friend of mine and I recently got into a heated debate about evangelism. We're both Christians, but we have very different ideas about evangelism. When my friend started getting really involved in church a few years ago, he also became a rampant evangelist. He believes that by bringing more people into the church he is not only saving them from eternal damnation, but also doing his duty as a Christian. He has often quoted Charles Spurgeon, saying "Every Christian is either a missionary or an imposter," essentially stating that you can't truly be Christian without evangelizing non believers.

I, however, don't like the idea of evangelism at all. Although I'm a devout Catholic, I dislike the idea of evangelism because I don't believe that anybody, myself included, has the right to force his or her beliefs on someone else. I think that everybody has a right to be whatever the religion they choose. Perhaps it's because I have a different idea about God than other people. I don't think that God sends honestly good people to Hell just because they don't believe in him. There are such things as Christian people who are hypocritical, paying lip service to God at church on Sundays, and still go about causing harm to other people. In my opinion, these people are less deserving of heaven than the good-hearted people whose only "fault" is that they don't believe in God. I think that my duty as a Christian is to be a good person and have a positive impact on the world, which doesn't necessarily mean that I HAVE to be an evangelist.

I'd just like to know what everyone else's opinion is on this, not merely from a Christian standpoint, but from another religion's or atheist's perspective as well. Do you approve of evangelism? Are you an evangelist? Do you think that evangelism is a necessary requirement for all good Christians?

[sdingfelder]

If you can hold off responding to me until the next time I post in here, I'd appreciate it. I'm not done with my thoughts on your latest response yet, but I am pressed to study for three impending finals this week. I always like to be thorough with debates.

Until then, have a good week.

I look forward to your additional thoughts, Spirited Away.

I hope you do well on your finals...

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Post edited: 12/28/06 (after Spirited Away's continuation)
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Is it really easy to not listen to conscience? If my conscience exists to tell me the right things, and I know they are right, why would it be hard to listen? Because of weakness. What else? Weakness that comes from our imperfection. To overcome imperfection, to be perfect? No one can be perfect except God.

How many times have you heard someone say that they believe they're going to make it Heaven because they "did the best they could" ? Your understanding of "weakness" here is the exact reason that people don't do the "best they could" because they could ALWAYS have done a little better. They could always have turned away from something their conscience told them to. Instead, they reject their conscience by giving an excuse that they're weak and that they're not perfect. They succumb to that which their conscience tells them to reject.

You're right that there none perfect except God. But unless you understand the due judgement coming to each person who's broken His Commandments, then you cannot understand His boundless Mercy and Grace in paying the fine for those transgressions that we've all committed.

The only Book to show itself to be archeologically, historically, and prophetically accurate gives details about the One, True God and His requirement for perfection. If anyone thinks that the good works they perform are "good enough" to warrant His approval, then they're looking to self-righteousness and not His righteousness.

Actually, I did regret doing the right thing once. My conscience agreed with me at the time, that I should tell the truth about my Aunts' feud to my niece so that she can be prepared to face their rivalry. Keeping quiet when she asked would have been 1) lying, 2) putting her in a situation where she doesn't know where she stands, and 3) confusing the shit out of her. Now she's pulled into this crazy game of tug-o-war, and what's worse, she's taking sides. I thought that was the right thing at the time, but I guess what's "right", even by our conscience standards, is questionable at times. "Right" and "conscience", is rather subjective, and can be fickles things.

That is unfortunate that it didn't work out the way you wanted. Even though the outcome wasn't as you'd have liked, though, would you have appreciated someone preparing you for a confrontation that they knew was coming and you didn't ? You showed that you cared for someone.

I actually read this from a Harvard Case Study about an Ophthalmologist in India who devoted his life to helping as many blind people in India as he can. I did not have time to go back and read the title nor look for the author as it was a case study we had to read before answering a series of service related questions for my Service Operations final.

The Ophthalmologist said "You do not have to be religious to serve God, you can serve humanity and serve God." He is a devoted Christian who believes that God gave him the purpose and the means to help people, yet he can say that we do not need to be religious to be useful to God. He summed up my beliefs in one sentence, that man.

Interesting. I hadn't heard about this guy.

The word "religious", though, is so relative. What does it mean to you ? We can all check the dictionary for what Mr. Webster thinks, but I would agree with this guy ("You do not have to be religious to serve God...") since I don't see myself as religious based on my definition based on how I've seen the word used. To me, religion is defined by the outward tradition made by man in order for him to make himself pleasing to God. I don't believe there's anything I can do to make myself pleasing to God. I've broken His Commandments and am a transgressor of His Laws. The only way I'm pleasing to Him is because of the fact that He did something to allow me to approach Him.

"[Y]ou can serve humanity and serve God." What good would it do for me to build Habitat for Humanity homes during every work day and at night burn down the homes of neighboring communities so that there's more room for Habitat homes ? Of course, it wouldn't do any good. My evil deeds would immediately put a black spot on my "good deeds". In the same way, doing nice things for others is great for those it helps, but it means nothing to God as I continue to break His Commandments which He gave along with the knowledge not to break them.

The love letters may be left unopened. True unconditional love for a person need not to be returned in kind. If I am a mother and my children hates me for whatever reason and I love them even in their hate and with their flaws, wouldn't you call that unconditional love? Yes, it would be nice if they reciprocate my feelings, but my love for them shouldn't change if I can say I love them unconditionally.

If there are conditions to by loved by Him, then who is the one not being fair here?

First, who ever said that God gave unconditional love ? Even when He gave the Commandments to Moses, there were conditions. He specifically said that IF you keep these Commandments, you'll be blessed. He also said that if you do not keep them, you'll receive His judgment.

Unconditional love is a wonderful and beautiful concept, but it doesn't apply to a Holy and Righteous God.

Second, any parent who wants to bless their child with gifts would find themselves creating a monster if they continually give those gifts without expecting the child to be pleasing to them. How can a parent expect the child to come back to a right relationship if wrong behavior supplies the child's desires ? There's no incentive for the child to end that which is displeasing the parent. The logical conclusion is that the gifts must stop until the child turns away from that which is not pleasing to the parent.

Please don't forget that the parent's job is to protect and raise the child. When I say that the child must do that which pleases the parent, I mean that the fundamental and foundational desire of the parent is to do what's best for the child. I tell my children not to run in a parking lot NOT because I don't want them to enjoy the gift of being able to run, jump, and play. I tell them not to run in the parking lot because I know there's danger. In the same way, God's Commandments tell us not to do things that He knows are hurtful and dangerous.

Remember, also, that the parent that has the child that "hates them for whatever reason" has got to be broken-hearted that they don't have a loving relationship with their child. That parent's greatest desire is to bless their child with awesome gifts, but (again) how can disobedience be rewarded ?? This is more like how God looks to those who have rejected His Son and do not repent of the transgressions they've committed.