The topic of evangelism and our personal responsibility to spread the gospel is frequently discussed in Christian circles. It’s at least periodically on all of our minds, and there seems to be widespread agreement that we as individuals and as the body of Christ aren’t doing enough.

Various reasons are offered as to why this is unsatisfactory, satisfactory, or at least normal and consequently somewhat acceptable.

I’ve heard and expressed many myself.

“”I don’t have the gift of evangelism,”" we say
“”Some people can walk into a mall and start a conversation with someone, but that’s not where my gift is. I witness through my relationships.”"

And while some of these excuses have a certain amount of truth, they are still excuses. As my father often reminded me growing up “”An excuse is the skin of the truth stuffed with a lie.”" Each time he said it, I naturally disagreed with his assessment.

I guess I should confess right now: I’m the worst. I’m just as apathetic and ineffective as anyone else when it comes to this issue. Probably worse. In fact, definitely worse.

So now that that is out in the open, the question of what I could possibly offer this discussion needs to be answered. Simply put: Not much.

What I do offer is some simple truths that I have become aware of as I’ve discussed this with friends over the past few months.

I think at the heart of our fear (or at least my fear) of evangelism, is the fear of messing things up. As ludicrous the idea of a finite creation messing up the plans of an infinite creator may be, part of me is afraid of turning someone away from Christ through my zeal.

As Christians, the idea of being witnessed to by a person of another faith is counterintuitive. We have the answers. We are more than confident in them and we know that if someone of another faith tried to offer us another belief system we would be unreceptive at best.

So when we place ourselves in another person’s shoes–when we consider sharing Jesus with someone, we imagine the same resistance that we know we would have to another’s world view.

But here’s something to consider: most people don’t claim to have the answers.

It is safe to say that most Americans rely upon a kind of cultural agnosticism that says “”There is a God…we think. If I’m good enough, I might get to go to heaven…if there is a heaven.”" This viewpoint is reinforced in the beliefs of secular friends, coworkers, and media representations of religion where the Bible is only “”The Good Book”" and God is an uninvolved almost mythical entity that is easily satisfied by the shallowest of efforts.

We may safely assume there is little security in this viewpoint. There aren’t any logical proofs to rest upon. There aren’t any religious texts of any credibility that hold this viewpoint.

So the resistance to other viewpoints we perceive in ourselves and expect in others probably isn’t there.

Consider your own attitude towards the unknown. Personally whenever I have a question without an answer, I become very interested when I perceive someone around me has an answer…one that they are sure of. I respond by seeking out the truth. At the very least I want to know other opinions.

Another assumption I’ve made in the past is that everyone has had the same exposure to the gospel that I have. “”This is America.”" I say. “”Everyone knows about Jesus.”"

My experience has been that this is a very bad assumption. Most people do not know very much about Jesus outside of what they might see on primetime television. Sadly, even people who grew up in the Bible belt and went to VBS at the corner Baptist church have only a cursory knowledge of who Jesus is for the most part.

So the thought that someone has heard it all before may or may not be correct.

The final observation I would like make concerns how we view the truth we have. I think most of us separate the truth of the Gospel from the truth of the rest of the world. We have one category that includes “”Today is a beautiful day.”" and “”In 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue.”" that we keep very distinct from other truths like “”Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life� and �If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins.�

What is it that keeps us from telling the cashier “”What a beautiful day the Lord has made.”" when we wouldn’t think twice about saying “”What a beautiful day!”"

Why are we so quick to comment on historical truths but so reluctant to add Jesus to our everyday conversation?

What’s my point? My point is this: Wouldn’t evangelism be so much easier if we simply allowed ourselves to talk about Jesus in the same way we might talk about something else that excites us?

Most of us don’t think twice before recommending our favorite food or a movie. But we panic at the thought of asking someone if they want to go to church with us.

I view this as the heart of the issue. It’s why I titled this note “”As A Matter of Fact”". We need to represent Jesus as a matter of fact. He is fact. He’s the most important fact.

Anyway, I say all of this as someone who has yet to turn his world upside down for Christ. These are just some ideas. I don�t claim them to be anything else.

I welcome feedback.

I’m tired of making excuses.

“”How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching?� – Romans 10:14