How to Use Gentleness and Respect to Share the Gospel

The Bible tells us how we can more easily share the gospel when we share it with gentleness and respect.

They Are Watching Us

The Bible tells us how we can more easily share the gospel when we share it with gentleness and respect. I remember John MacArthur saying, “You might be the only Bible anyone ever reads,” and I love that. If we live our lives like Christ did, then people should easily see Christ in us, through the attributes of Christ through the Holy Spirit. No one was ever debated into heaven so I’d rather not win an argument and lose a soul; instead I’d love to win them by the love we have for one another and treating unbelievers with dignity, respect and gentleness. Jesus never forced Himself on anyone and never crammed religion down anyone’s throats. The more assertive we are, the more defensive they can become. People who are not Christians are surely watching us who are, to see if we might slip up or lose our temper or grumble about the boss, but when we are content, we show godliness (1 Tim 6:6-10).

Your Conduct

People are more drawn to Christ through us if they see Christ in us, so “let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ” (Phil 1:27a). I remember seeing a lady in the store one day and she was smiling at everybody she saw, including me. I was curious, so at the checkout line, I asked her if she was a Christian, and she beamed, “Yes, I have been saved by God’s grace.” This lady wore her salvation on her sleeve, for all to see, so by our conduct, we can be winsome and perhaps have doors open for us for sharing the gospel. If we’re living like the world, we’re not going to stand out in the world; rather we’ll blend in. Be different and distinct and show God is living in you so can help them know Christ someday.

Humility and Submission

The Apostle Peter tells us that all believers should “have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind” (1 Pet 3:8). This humility means we “Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing” (1 Pet 3:9). The world gives people what they deserve (payback) but we give them what they need (love, mercy and grace), because that’s just what God did for us (Rom 5:6-10). If anyone claims to be a Christian, “let him turn away from evil and do good; let him seek peace and pursue it” (1 Pet 3:11). If we are not turning from evil, we’ll be turning people away from Christ. Jesus said that the saved and unsaved will know who His disciples really are. How? Our Lord said, “By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:35).

Gentleness and Respect

The way the world is watching us is like the way the Pharisees looked at Jesus to see if He would sin in some way (Luke 6:7), but of course we know He never did (John 8:46; 19:4), so it is incumbent upon us that, “in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect” (1 Pet 3:15). If we witness for Christ without gentleness, we lose their respect. If we do not respect those we are witnessing to, then we’ll have no gentleness. It takes both gentleness and respect to share the gospel properly. We must be gentle with unbelievers as God was with us through Christ. We must show them respect as they are also created in the image of God (although severely tarnished image). All people deserve dignity and respect and to be treated with gentleness. If we do all three of these, we can gain an ear to hear the gospel of Jesus Christ, for which we are called (Matt 28:18-20; Acts 1:8). If it’s without gentleness and respect, it is better not to witness to them at all because our only witness might be bad one. We don’t want to drive people further away from God.

Be Prepared

Being prepared. That was our motto as a Boy Scout, so how can we be prepared to “make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you” (1 Pet 3:15)? It is by knowing the gospel well enough that you don’t need to carry a Bible with you or flip through your Bible to give them an answer for that hope of eternal life that is in you. If we don’t know the gospel by heart, we will not be prepared to give an answer when someone “asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you.” Knowing the gospel well enough makes it easy to share. We can quote John 3:16 or 2 Corinthians 5:22 or Acts 4:12 or other memorized Bible verses when we are asked about the hope that we have in us. If we don’t know the gospel well enough, how can we expect to share it?

Conclusion

It is my prayer that you have already put your trust in our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. If not happened, you are in real mortal danger of hell fire. And I do mean, in immediate danger. You’re one breath, one heartbeat…one accident away from eternity when it’ll be too late to repent. This is the reason that today is the best day to believe (2 Cor 6:2) because tomorrow is not a given for any of us. This is exactly the reason why I plead with you as you read this, repent today and put your trust in Jesus Christ. If not, you will surely face God’s judgment after death (Heb 9:27) or at Jesus Christ’s appearance (Rev 20:12-15), which could happen in the blink of an eye.

Here is some related reading for you: Five Ways to Evangelize Through our Actions

Resource – Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version^® (ESV^®), Crossway Bibles. (2007). ESV: Study Bible: English standard version. Wheaton, Ill: Crossway Bibles. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Tagged as: evangelism, Gentleness and Respect, gospel, Witnessing