{"id":67,"date":"2007-06-05T03:01:01","date_gmt":"2007-06-05T03:01:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/markdroberts\/2007\/06\/sent-to-proclaim-the-good-news-part-3.html"},"modified":"2007-06-05T03:01:01","modified_gmt":"2007-06-05T03:01:01","slug":"sent-to-proclaim-the-good-news-part-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/2007\/06\/sent-to-proclaim-the-good-news-part-3.html","title":{"rendered":"Sent to Proclaim the Good News, Part 3"},"content":{"rendered":"

Part 9 of series: The Mission of God and the Missional Church<\/em>
\nPermalink for this post<\/a> \/ Permalink for this series<\/a>
\nIn my last two posts I’ve been explaining how we who believe in Jesus have been sent by Him to share His good news with others. In my last post I said that one of the easiest ways to do this is simply to be honest. As an example, I talked about one of my friends in college, a man named Lance who, though he was a new Christian and not especially articulate, nevertheless had many opportunities to share his faith because he was honest about it.
\nNevertheless, many Christians hold back. I’ve found two main reasons why. The first I’ll discuss in the post; the second will be the focus of my next post.
\nFirst, some are afraid that if they attempt to speak with others about Christ, they will botch it up. They fear that their lack of biblical knowledge will keep them from being effective, and even turn people further away from Christ. Certainly the more you know about the Bible, the better you’ll be able to explain the good news about Jesus. That’s one major reason to devote yourself to Bible study. But if sharing your faith is a matter of being honest, not winning arguments or hawking your spiritual wares, then you can tell people about Jesus without worrying about how little you know. In fact, many of the most effective “evangelists” are brand new Christians whose knowledge base is tiny, but whose enthusiasm for the Lord is contagious.
\n“But what should I do,” you might wonder, “if I get questions I can’t answer?” I once raised this very issue with Gary, my high school pastor at Hollywood Presbyterian Church. (Picture to right: The First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood)
\n“I’ll tell you what to do,” he said. “I’ll give you an answer that always works, every time.”
\n“Wow! That would be great!” I replied, expectantly, but with a bit of skepticism. “How can I answer a question I don’t know how to answer?”
\n“It’s easy,” Gary continued. “Here’s what you say: ‘I don’t know.’ It’s really that simple.”
\nHis advice shocked me. Somewhere along the way I had picked up the idea that I needed to have all the answers before beginning to talk with people about Jesus. In retrospect, I realize what a silly idea that was. But, at the time, Gary’s counsel set me free to be honest, not all-knowing. Since that conversation with Gary, I have probably said “I don’t know” more than thousand times when talking with people about Jesus. I have found that my willingness to admit my lack of knowledge, far from turning people away from Christ, often encourages them to be more open. They seem to trust me more if I freely confess my theological limitations.
\nI should add, however, that I will often follow the admission “I don’t know” with an offer: “But I’d be glad to try and find out for you.” The questioner usually feels honored that I’m willing to do research on his or her behalf, and it’s easy to pick up the conversation about Jesus at another time. Moreover, I get the chance to learn something of real value. There are abundant resources available \u2013 books, articles, tapes, leaders \u2013 to help us formulate solid, biblical answers for any question a person might ask.
\nMy friend Lance, so free in talking about Jesus yet so limited in his knowledge, kept saying “I don’t know” until both he and his non-Christian friends became a bit frustrated. So he decided to take advantage of the relationships he had with other Christians in our dorm. He asked me and a mutual friend, John, if we would be willing to meet with his friends for a bull session about Christianity. John and I were thrilled because we loved to share our faith with people, but weren’t quite as forthcoming as Lance, even though we knew more than he did about the faith.
\nI’ll tell you what happened in that meeting in my next post in this series.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Part 9 of series: The Mission of God and the Missional Church Permalink for this post \/ Permalink for this series In my last two posts I’ve been explaining how we who believe in Jesus have been sent by Him to share His good news with others. In my last post I said that one…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":214,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-67","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-mission"],"yoast_head":"\nSent to Proclaim the Good News, Part 3 - Mark D. 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Roberts","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-content\/wphb-cache\/gravatar\/f2d\/f2ddf5f080861f66ea230384f9d1bab2x96.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-content\/wphb-cache\/gravatar\/f2d\/f2ddf5f080861f66ea230384f9d1bab2x96.jpg","caption":"Mark D. Roberts"},"description":"The Rev. Dr. Mark D. Roberts is a pastor, author, retreat leader, speaker, and blogger. Since October 2007 he has been the Senior Director and Scholar-in-Residence for Laity Lodge, a multifaceted ministry in the Hill Country of Texas. Before coming to Laity Lodge, he was for sixteen years the Senior Pastor of Irvine Presbyterian Church in Irvine, California (a city in Orange County about forty miles south of Los Angeles). Before his time at Irvine Pres, Mark served on the staff of the First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood as Associate Pastor of Education. (Thanks to Janel Pahl for taking the photo to the right.) Mark studied at Harvard University, receiving a B.A. in Philosophy, an M.A. in the Study of Religion, and a Ph.D. in New Testament and Christian Origins. He has taught classes in New Testament for Fuller Theological Seminary and San Francisco Theological Seminary. Mark has written several books, including No Holds Barred: Wrestling with God in Prayer (WaterBrook, 2005), Dare to Be True (WaterBrook, 2003), Jesus Revealed (WaterBrook, 2002), After \"I Believe\" (Baker, 2002), and Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther (Word, 1993). His most recent book is Can We Trust the Gospels? Investigating the Reliability of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John (Crossway, 2007). He is currently working on a commentary on Ephesians that will be published by Zondervan in 2014. Mark writes a devotional for The High Calling of Our Daily Work, a website associated with Laity Lodge. His \"Daily Reflections\" can be viewed online or sent as a daily email. If you wish to receive this email, just visit TheHighCalling.org and sign up. Mark serves on the editorial board of Worship Leader magazine, where he publishes articles and reviews, including his regular column \"Lyrical Poetry.\" Additionally, he has published dozens of articles in leading magazines and journals. He often speaks for churches and other Christian groups, and has been interviewed on over seventy-five radio programs nationwide. Mark is married to Linda, who is a Marriage and Family Therapist, a Spiritual Director, and a retreat speaker. They have two children, Nathan and Kara.For Publicity Photos and Bio Statements for Mark, please check here. Mark's Dossier Professional History: Senior Director and Scholar-in Residence, Laity Lodge, October 2007 to present. Senior Pastor Irvine Presbyterian Church, June 1991 to September 2007 Adjunct Assistant Professor Fuller Theological Seminary, 1994 to 2007. Courses: New Testament Theology and Exegesis. Adjunct Instructor San Francisco Theological Seminary, 1995 to 2001. Courses: New Testament Greek and Exegesis Associate Pastor of Education First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood, 1987-1991 Teaching Fellow Harvard University, 1980-1983 Education: Ph.D. in the Study of Religion. Harvard University, 1992. Area: New Testament and Christian Origins M.A. in the Study of Religion Harvard University, 1984. A.B. magna cum laude in Philosophy Harvard University, 1979. Phi Beta Kappa; Danforth Fellowship Books: Can We Trust the Gospels? Investigating the Reliability of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Crossway, 2007 No Holds Barred: Wrestling with God in Prayer. WaterBrook, 2005 Dare to Be True: Living in the Freedom of Complete Honesty. WaterBrook, 2003. Jesus Revealed: Know Him Better to Love Him Better. WaterBrook, 2002. After \"I Believe\": Experiencing Authentic Christian Living. Baker, 2002. Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther in the Communicator's Commentary Series. Word, 1993. Contacting Mark: You can reach Mark at: E-mail: mark@markdroberts.com mroberts@laitylodge.org Phone: Laity Lodge: (830) 792-1216 Address: Laity Lodge 719 Earl Garrett Kerrville, TX 78028","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/author\/mroberts"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/67","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/214"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=67"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/67\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=67"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=67"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=67"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}