Are We Ashamed Of Jesus?

How often do we talk to other people about a book, movie, TV show, news event, or sports team that we like?

How often do we talk to other people about Jesus? Or to be more specific, how often do we talk about Jesus with people who do not believe in Him as Lord and Savior?

 Why do so many of us talk so easily about all manner of things that have no eternal consequence for anybody, yet fail to talk about the one thing that does have an eternal consequence for everybody.

Are we ashamed of Jesus?

Well, Jesus does not appreciate being ashamed of Him or His words.

Luk 9:26  For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when he comes in his glory and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels. ESV

I certainly don't want to be ashamed of Jesus. But what should we say to others about Him? What if they ask us questions that we can't answer? Will we make a mess of things, and only further convince them that we Christians don't have a clue as to what we are talking about?

Are we afraid of offending people by claiming that Jesus is the only true Savior and Lord? But by our avoiding offending others are we then offending Christ?

So, should we rush out and confront everybody with a demand that they repent from their sins and believe in Jesus as their Savior and Lord? How effective would that be? Is that what Jesus expects of us?

Did Jesus do that while He was here in the flesh?

Not exactly. So first of all we should read Scripture and learn what Jesus did, and what the apostles did after He returned to heaven. And we should take heed to what Peter wrote:

1Pe 3:15  but 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,  ESV

We ought to be prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks us for a reason for the hope that is in us, and do so with gentleness and respect.

Yes, we ought to be prepared. Are you, am I, as prepared as we could be or should be to give reason for the hope that is in us?

Is there anything we can do to be better prepared to talk with others about Jesus?

I believe there is. I believe we should take a fresh look at evangelism. Rather than leave the sharing of the good news to preachers and evangelists, we should do what we can to do better when it comes to talking with others about our Lord.

Today I purchased Questioning Evangelism by Randy Newman, a rabbi who came to believe in Jesus. I read the introduction this morning, and I intend to read the rest of it in the coming days so as to hopefully be better able and more confident when talking with others about Jesus.

The introduction of the book also mentions other books that should be worthwhile reading for Christians who want to do better at letting others know about salvation.

There is More Than a Carpenter by Josh McDowell.  Know Why You Believe by Paul Little.  Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis. Also The Case for Christ and The Case for Faith by Lee Strobel.

I intend to read all of these books on my Kindle reader. If you also want to be better prepared to talk with others about Jesus then I hope you will consider reading these or other books that could help you share the good news. I'm sure you can get them in whatever format is best for you.

We don't have to become an "expert" or "professional" to talk with others about Christ. But we can become better able to tell others about the hope we have in Jesus.

When Jesus returns I don't want Him to ask "why were you ashamed of Me and My words" or "why did you act as though you were ashamed of Me and My words?"