Missional Monday - Evangelism in Context

I had an eye opening moment last week during a session I attended at the Send North America Conference.  The session was on planting in urban contexts, led by Ellis Prince who has planted The Gallery Church in Baltimore. 

Ellis was sharing about evangelism and how many of the "techniques" or "programs" used to share the gospel are designed to take someone to the bible, to share what the bible says regarding sin, Jesus, His death and resurrection, and salvation.   For example, "The bible says in Romans 3:23 that 'all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.'"  What do you do, Ellis asked, when those you are sharing with those who don't believe the bible?  At this point I found myself in complete agreement with his observations when it hit me...there may be people for whom this would be a real foreign concept, in whose context this would not be the norm, and for whom this might be a real paradigm shift. 

I have often shared with visiting mission teams that many Canadians are suspicious of the church, don't trust it and don't trust the bible.  What I realize I may have been doing is underestimating what a significant difference this might have been and what a radical shift in thinking that this might require.

As I work here in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada my default position is that those around me do not know, have rejected what they do know, or both, with regards to the church and the bible.  I assume that people do not believe that the Bible is the inspired word of God, that it is trustworthy, true, and that what we have today is a reliable account of what is found in early and authentic ancient sources.  In fact, there are many who believe it is a source of evil in the world today.  This means that apologetics and especially basic information about the authenticity of scripture are necessary tools in ones evangelism tool kit.

I also believe that this is another key reason why relationships and trust are so central to sharing our faith these days.  In contexts with so much doubt and skepticism a real sense of trust must be earned if anyone is going to give a second thought to what we may have to share.