Acts 17:1-15 | Leaving the Results to Godಮಾದರಿ

Negative 10 to 10

Some people seem to have all the luck. When they witness, people respond and give their lives to Christ. For others, this never seems to happen.

In truth, those we think of as being gifted in evangelism will tell you this is not the case. Many times when they witness, there is also no response.

The reality is that our witness will not always result in someone dropping on their knees and giving their life to Christ. Nor should we expect it to.

Our job is not to “close a deal.” It’s to give witness to the victory of Christ and the hope we have in Him, with a simple invitation that this same hope is available to anyone who trusts in Him. Period.

That’s because people exist on a spiritual spectrum. Christians tend to divide people between the saved and the unsaved. Better to think of people ranging from -10 to 10. On this scale, anything positive (1-10) represents people who have put their faith in Christ, with anything negative (negative 1-10) representing people who have not.

But not all people are at the same place. Just because someone isn’t saved, this doesn’t mean they’re at the same place in terms of their responsiveness to the gospel. Some people are hostile to God, like the jealous Jews we saw in Thessalonica, while others are quite open, like the Bereans.

You’ll never know where someone lands on the spectrum. Don’t try to figure it out. Simply give witness. And know that through your testimony, you may have helped someone move a couple of steps closer towards Christ. Sometimes our role isn’t to lead someone to that final moment when they move from -1 to 1. Sometimes it’s to help move someone from -7 to -3, knowing God will use others at the right time and place to move them even closer still.

Evangelism is a team sport. And you have a role to play.