Irresistible Savior – Our calling to be like Him
by Mary E. DeMuth
Have you ever viewed evangelism as a checklist? I have. I’ve worried over things to memorize, illustrations I should capture correctly, arguments I need to wrangle and win. And I’ve beaten myself up over failed attempts at sharing Jesus. So many people have walked this earth doomed to an eternity without Him, and I’ve shrunk away in fear.
Yet guilt and obligation mar what evangelism should be. Sharing our faith should be an irresistible adventure. Why? Because Jesus walked this earth as an irresistible Savior. Wherever He ventured, folks — including children — clamored after Him. The Lord often had to slip away from the pressing crowds because His ways were beautifully alluring and utterly invitational.
So why, when sharing our faith, do we resort to the rote? Why do we forget how compelling the Lord was when He lived on earth? Why do we exalt methods when we should be happily sharing who He is and how He’s changed us? We risk misrepresenting the joyful Jesus when we limit our witness to math-like equations and how-to-guides.
Our greatest privilege is introducing friends, acquaintances, family members, and even airport strangers to Jesus. For an example of exuberant evangelism, simply look at the Samaritan woman in John 4. A notorious sinner and outcast, she encountered Christ at the well, where He spoke the truth gently, through lively conversation. He disarmed her through His candor and deep love for her. The woman continued in conversation with Him because of His invitational ways. She couldn’t help herself.
At the end of her time with Him, she ran back, forever transformed, to the village and shared her story with everyone she knew. Her enthusiasm inspired the townspeople to chase after Jesus. And after encountering Him, they too, left changed.
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Our part of evangelism can become a want-to,
a privilege, a holy act of storytelling.
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That’s our job as evangelizers — to first have an encounter with the irresistible Christ, and then to share that encounter with joy. The result is that our part of evangelism becomes a want-to, a privilege, a holy act of storytelling. All we need to do is show people Jesus, and watch them become attracted to our irresistible Savior.