We think we’re better than them, those nonchristians out there. 

It’s a tragedy. 

Jesus was better than all of us, and he didn’t go around sticking his nose in the air. As is, they’re better than us at creating community. 

I just read The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck (warning, it’s dark), and one passage made a shocking point.

The Good Earth is about a man in 20th-century China. He’s given a gospel tract by a missionary, but he’s afraid of the foreigner and the foreigner doesn’t talk to him or draw him into community.

Then he’s given a tract by a communist. The communist invites him to a gathering and starts a conversation. 

He doesn’t join either group in the book, but the point is true. In some ways, cults and communists are doing a better job at inviting people in than Christians are. 

We don’t want to put too much pressure on people, but if we’re serious about Jesus, we can’t be afraid of inviting people in. 

We have our bubble. We’re scared to invite people into it that make us uncomfortable. Why do you think we’re known for shunning the LGBTQ and transgender communities?

It’s because we’re uncomfortable (I’m preaching to myself) and we don’t extend a bridge.

But that’s not what Jesus did. 

• Jesus went to the red-light districts, saving prostitutes. 
• Jesus died in the place of a murderer (Barrabus).
• Jesus said it’s the sick who need a doctor and he came to call the sinners, not the righteous (Mark 2:17).

We need to be strong enough to emulate Jesus. And the only thing that can help us become that strong…is Jesus.

So how do we live out community with people who are different than us?

Well…I don’t have the answer. It’s the question I’m asking in my own life. 

We need to be strong enough to emulate Jesus. And the only thing that can help us become that strong…is Jesus.

The other question I’m asking is: how can I be brave enough to just tell them the good news? 

It’s good news!! The gospel is the most amazing thing that’s ever happened in the history of the world, knowing Jesus has changed my life, and somehow I’m still scared to share it.

I finally have friends who aren’t Christians and I chicken out when they ask me questions about faith. I’m trying, I’m truly trying, but it’s terrifying to think that they might say no.

That I might spell out the gospel and how to accept Jesus’s gift and they might reject it. I think I might cry if they reject it. 

We need God so much. He’s so amazing. And nothing I can do will open their eyes to the gospel. 

My actions have an impact, of course, but it has to be God. It has to be God opening their eyes. I can’t make it make sense to them. I can’t touch their hearts. I’m helpless before those facts. 

But again, Jesus is the only one who can make me brave. 

Will you join me in building bridges instead of building walls? I think we’ll become more like Jesus in the process.