The surprising truth about what people need to hear from Christians

In the last two posts I have reflected on some surprising results of a survey into attitudes towards evangelism—from both the Christian sharing good news, and the non-Christian hearing it.

Seems that:

1. Non Christians actually like us much more than we think. On the whole they think us warm, friendly, caring and intelligent. Very few find us bigoted, homophobic or stoopid.

2. There are a lot of people who are open to hearing more about Christ. Of course there will always be some negative reaction to us sharing the gospel. But 1 in 5 of our friends and neighbours really want to know more about Jesus and the gospel—and would be open to an invitation or a conversation with us.

The final intriguing reveal for me in the survey was the way it shed some light on the kind of things that people need to hear from us as we talk about the good news.

1. Jesus is real

The survey suggested that some 40% of adults were unsure whether Jesus is a real historical figure or not. 20% admitted that they thought him a fictional character, with the figure rising to 25% for under-35 year olds. Why is this?

Perhaps the cumulative effect of "Jesus imagery" used in art and comedy has something to do with it. Perhaps the "fairytale versions" of Christmas and Easter have had a gradual effect over the years, reducing Jesus to the same status as Santa Claus in many people's minds. Or perhaps a generation that has been raised to look up to "scientific" truth, and down on religious truth, finds it hard to conceive of a category where a religion is founded on historical facts.

Whatever the cause, this is an area where we have a ridiculously strong hand. Once presented with the evidence, you would have to be peculiarly stubborn to resist the fact that Jesus once walked this earth as a living, breathing, talking person. But the challenge for us is how to raise the question and how to address it. How about these phrases to drop into a conversation…

• It surprises me that so many people think that Jesus is a fictional or mythical character, considering the solid concrete evidence for his life and death—have you ever looked at this seriously?
• Jesus' existence isn't just a circular argument—it's not just that the Bible says he existed, so he must have existed. The reality of Jesus is attested by a number of other ancient writers who were not Christian, and, in fact, had a good reason to discount him if they could. It never occurred to them to claim he was made up.
• The vast majority of academic opinion is that Jesus was a real person. What do you know that they don't?
• Have you ever read a Gospel as an adult? What do you make of the portrait of Jesus it presents—does it stack up to you that this could be the invention of someone else?

Once presented with the evidence, you would have to be peculiarly stubborn to resist the fact that Jesus once walked this earth as a living, breathing, talking person.

Whatever we say must be respectful and gentle—but it can also be forthright. We are walking on solid ground here.

2. What the resurrection means

The other surprising finding concerns the resurrection. A full 43% of people who are not Christian believe that the resurrection of Jesus from the dead actually happened. While a good number of these are less convinced about every detail given in the Gospels, this is nonetheless a remarkable building block for gospel conversations.

Intriguingly, the Bible writers don't spend much time trying to prove the fact that Jesus rose from the dead—they simply state it as a fact. They saw him. They saw the empty tomb. They didn't need to give any fancy defences or explanations.

But they did spend a lot of time talking about what the resurrection proves. And that, it seems, is what we should be doing as well. Almost half of the people you know who are not Christian need no convincing of the fact of the resurrection. But they need to hear from you what the implications are. I like to remember this by thinking about the past, the present and the future:

• The past: Jesus' resurrection shows that what he said he was going to do on the cross actually worked. He said that he was going to die as a ransom for many. The Old Testament prophesies say that he died as a sacrifice and a substitute for sinners. When God raised Jesus, he did so as an approval that his sacrifice was effective and valid. Jesus resurrection shows us that forgiveness is now possible.
• The present: God raised Jesus as Lord of all. He is now ruling the world, and we owe our allegiance and lives to him. The resurrection points to his identity now.
• The future: The resurrection shows that death is not the end. Jesus will return as judge, and we will all be raised to face him.

The meaning of the resurrection is fertile gospel ground. And the research shows that for many people, we don't need to spend time proving it happened, just helping people understand the significance of it.

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