Inviting Evangelism Reclaiming the Gospel’s Winsomeness

Winsome: attractive or appealing in appearance or character (Oxford Dictionary). If the church is to learn how to invite evangelism, we must reclaim the Gospel’s winsomeness. What is appealing in appearance and character about being a follower of Jesus? Why should my family member, friend, neighbor or colleague care about the Story?

One way to answer this question is to ask ourselves about the lives we lead as people of faith: what does salvation look like? That is, at our best, to what do we aspire? What is the grand vision and great hope for our life together with God in Christ? This seemingly simple question is more difficult to answer than it appears. Do we list a set of actions and attitudes one expects from a Christian? To try this is fraught with the danger of legalism. Do we itemize the doctrines that must be believed in order to be a Jesus follower? This leads easily to the danger of dogmatism or a merely intellectualized form of faith.

Yet if we, the Church, as followers of Jesus are unclear on what we mean when we talk about being a Christian, how can we ever hope to invite another into the life of faith?

Rachel Srubas, pastor of Mountain Shadows in Oro Valley, has answered the question of what salvation looks like in a pilgrim’s life, and has given me permission to share her answer. I find Rachel’s description of the life of the Christian to be winsome and compelling; I aspire to be this kind of person. She writes:

Christlikeness consists of love for God and love for neighbor. Yet Christlikeness has many features, including:

·         profound personal openness to God’s will;

·         willingness to sacrifice personal comfort and convenience for the sake of pursuing God’s will;

·         acceptance of God’s grace and mercy;

·         dependence on God’s guidance and providence;

·         renunciation of self-interest;

·         the practice of self-giving love, forgiveness, and service of others without the expectation of reward;

·         continual immersion in scripture in order to know and follow God more closely;

·         responsiveness to the leading of God even (and especially) when this necessitates faithful risk-taking for a sacred moral good;

·         prioritizing the needs and care of society’s disadvantaged and maligned members;

·         ceaseless prayer and regular worship;

abiding trust in God throughout life and when facing death.

How would you describe the life to which you are inviting another? Your homework is this: write just such a description of the Christian life. Make it winsome and compelling; allow the music of your life to sing grace and the poetry of your life to whisper beauty and truth. Share what you think Christlikeness looks like with one other person – ask them to tell you honestly how you did.

What on earth are we doing for heaven’s sake,

Brad Munroe