Go See God, Go See God, Go See God
And Inter-Varsity Christian Fellowship has a take on the Worthington thing:
In subtle ways, I’ve picked up the wrong image of an effective evangelist. I’ve listened to the witty lines and slick responses of some well-known evangelists and tried to come up with my own versions. My assumption has been that Joe Unbeliever has no desire or interest in spiritual things (much less in Jesus), and it is my job to give him that interest....
When I was a boy, I used to park myself in front of the TV every Saturday morning to watch my favorite cartoons and dozens of Cal Worthington commercials. Cal looked like a Texas tycoon, dressed in a flashy western suit and big cowboy hat. A twangy country jingle played as a voice announced, “Here’s Cal Worthington and his dog, Spot!” Cal would show off his “dog” spot—which never was a dog, but usually a tiger or an elephant or an ostrich—and then in his smooth, southern drawl, he would rattle off the fantastic deals of the week. He sold thousands of cars this way. I thought his cars were heaps of junk, but the ostrich was pretty cool.
It recently dawned on me (much to my nausea) that I’ve thought of evangelism as a sales job. First, you create slick and attractive packaging that appeals to your target population. Then you have to create a “felt need” for your product. You’ve got to convince the customer that they need what you’re selling, even if they don’t need it at all. Once you’ve done that, you have to persuade them that your product can meet this need better than anything else on the market. That’s not easy—the competition is fierce. But if you can convince them that your product will somehow make their life better, more comfortable and safe, then there’s a pretty good chance they will sign on the dotted line. Some “sales agents” will also try to minimize the cost in order to get the sale. Whatever it takes. For the good salesperson, it’s all about closing the deal.
The problems with this paradigm are obvious. Jesus is not a product. So many products in our world are unnecessary—but Jesus is absolutely essential. And if we minimize or negate the cost of following Jesus, we are being terribly dishonest....
Jesus made it clear that people can’t come to him unless the Father draws them to him. (Jn. 6:44, 65). He said that his job was to speak the words of life (Jn. 6:63), keep all those whom the Father had given him (Jn. 6:39), and give them eternal life. Clearly, the Father was involved in a person’s spiritual journey before Jesus got to them! As an Evangelist, Jesus cooperated with the Father and completed what the Father was already doing in the life of a seeker. That’s why Jesus did not have to “sell” himself to people. Did he use language and images that were pertinent, meaningful and relevant? Absolutely. But he wasn’t trying to conjure up a spiritual interest that wasn’t already there. He spoke about the living bread from heaven because he wanted to bring forth those whom God had given him, those with a genuine hunger for life in union with God. He was looking for spiritual vital signs—for a pulse. In the process of keeping those people God had given him, Jesus also caused those who had no spiritual hunger to move on (John 6:66). That’s what the Father sent him to do....
Comments