Scripture tells us “always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect” (1 Peter 3:15).
Sometimes sharing Christ or discussing Scripture goes smoothly. God's Spirit gives us the right things to say, we do our best, and the person acknowledges the truth.
Sometimes it goes badly. God's Spirit gives us the right things to say, we do our best, and the person gets angry, rejecting us and our message.
If we are faithful to the two principles below, we can be confident that we've done our best even if our message is rejected:
1. we refuse to act rude.
We refrain from anger (James 1:19-20) and avoid contentious, foolish, and repetitive debates (2 Timothy 2:14, 2 Timothy 2:23, Titus 3:10).
We stand firm, refusing to sugarcoat the hard truths but balancing them accurately. For example, when we share God's condemnation of specific sins, we also share the wonderful good news that repentance leads to Christ's forgiveness and redemption.
To stand firm on God's truth, 2 Timothy 2:14-15 explains we must know what it teaches and correctly “handle” it.
Each time we share Christ or discuss Scripture is unique. We should ask for the Lord's guidance, approach others graciously, and speak truth without compromise.
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For more on this subject, see Kindness, Not Sarcasm and An Authority We Can Trust.
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