Photo by: tanakawho
Our last conversation about “sharing our faith” is one that deserves a second look. It’s another example of how followers of Christ can both agree and disagree about just about everything.
We agree that everyone needs to hear what Christ did for us. We differ, to some degree, about how we are each to respond to that need.
It is also an example of how differently we can read the Bible. We can read it as if it was written directly to us. Or we can read the Bible as if it was written for us. The difference is behind many of the disagreements that are dividing the Body of Christ.
How do the two words of “to” or “for” make a difference in the matter of “sharing our faith”?
If we believe The Great Commission was written to us, individually, then it seems to follow that we are personally being told by our Lord to “make disciples of all nations”. More specifically, if The Great Commission was written to us, then our Lord is saying to us individually and personally: “Go…and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, “teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you” (Matthew 28:19-20).
If, on the other hand, The Great Commission was spoken to Jesus’ eleven disciples— for the Church (Body of Christ) in every generation, then we have a different challenge. Then the challenge is to discover how the love, wisdom, and desire of Christ (1Cor 13: 4-7) can be expressed through us (1Peter 4:7-11).
If the Great Commission was spoken to us personally, we have an impossible rule that leaves us all with overwhelming feelings of false guilt and defeat. If it was spoken for us, then it becomes the mission that gives meaning and purpose to our lives—as the truth of the Gospel calls out our love for others, as expressed by our willingness to use whatever we have been given for The Cause and Love of our Savior.
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