Maybe youâre afraid to share your faith because you donât know what to say. Or maybe youâre sharing the Gospel but nothing is happening; people arenât committing their lives to Christ. Are you doing something wrong?
You can’t open someone’s heart to the truth of the Gospelâbut God can, by His Spirit. The Apostle Paul wasn’t eloquent, but God used him because he depended on the Holy Spirit to guide him (see 1 Corinthians 2:1-5). God guided many others in the Bible as wellâlike Moses, who at first asked God to get someone else to lead the Israelites to the Promised Land, or Jonah, who didnât think the wicked Ninevites deserved Godâs mercy and tried to run the other way.
Remember that God does not call the equipped; He equips the calledâand as Christians, we are all called to share what Christ has done. Some of Christâs last words on earth were, âGo and make disciples of all nationsâ (Matthew 28:19). Sharing our faith isn’t just a suggestion, itâs a command. And God is with us when we obey Him.
What Do I Do?
One of the best ways to share your faith is to live a godly life. Non-Christians often look at Christians as hypocritical because we say one thing but do another. Show those close to you that you careâspend time with them, help meet their needs and offer to listen when they have problems. You might not be able to answer all of their questions, but they can’t deny the reality of what Christ has done in your life. If you find this is hard to do, perhaps God is speaking to you about your own need to walk more closely with Him every day.
Another important part of sharing your faith is to pray for those you interact with. If you can’t think of anyone who isn’t a Christian, pray for God to place someone in your life who needs Him.
Also make a habit of reading the Bible, praying and going to church. (Read more about diving into your walk with God through prayer, Scripture and relationships.) These things shouldnât be done for attention or for the sake of doing them, but to help you grow in your own faith. Being passionate about Christ will help others see that thereâs something different about you, and they will want to know what it is. You can also reflect Christ through kind words, patience, a gentle temperament, choosing to love even difficult people, carefully monitoring what you watch or listen to, and treating others with respect.
At the same time, we must do more than live godly lives. People need to hear the Gospelâto hear that God loves them, Christ died for them and that they can have eternal life. Romans 10:13-14 says, ââEveryone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.â How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?â
4 Simple Steps
To share the Gospel, you can follow these 4 simple steps:
1. Tell them about Godâs planâpeace and life. God loves you and wants you to experience the peace and life He offers. The Bible says, âFor God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting lifeâ (John 3:16). He has a plan for you.
2. Share our problemâseparation from God. Being at peace with God is not automatic. By nature, we are all separated from Him. The Bible says, âFor all have sinned and fall short of the glory of Godâ (Romans 3:23). God is holy, but we are human and donât measure up to His perfect standard. We are sinful, and âthe wages of sin is deathâ (Romans 6:23).
3. Talk about Godâs remedyâthe cross. Godâs love bridges the gap of separation between you and Him. When Jesus Christ died on the cross and rose from the grave, He paid the penalty for your sins. The Bible says, ââHe Himself bore our sinsâ in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; âby His wounds you have been healedââ (1 Peter 2:24).
4. Our responseâreceive Christ. You cross the bridge into Godâs family when you accept Christâs free gift of salvation. The Bible says, âBut as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of Godâ (John 1:12).
To receive Christ, a person needs to do 4 things:
- Admit youâre a sinner.
- Ask forgiveness and be willing to turn away from your sins.
- Believe that Christ died for you on the cross.
- Receive Christ into your heart and life.
Romans 10:13 says, âWhoever calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved.â Hereâs a prayer you can pray to receive Christ:
âDear Lord Jesus, I know I am a sinner, and I ask for your forgiveness. I believe you died for my sins and rose from the dead. I trust and follow you as my Lord and Savior. Guide my life and help me to do your will. In your name, amen.â
More resources to help you share your faith:Â
- Share PeaceWithGod.net, an interactive website that presents the Gospel in a simple way.
- Read more about the Gospelâwhat it is and what it does.
- Find resources for sharing the Gospel, including videos, printable tracts, advice on sharing your testimony and articles about sharing your faith.
5 Things to Remember
Gary Cobb, a BGEA staff member who helps train others to share their faith, shares five things to remember.
1. Understand that your own life is a great part of your witness. If my relationship with Christ isnât vital, then I really donât have a lot to share. People not only listen to your words, they look at your life. We still fail and arenât always a good example, so our only hope is to come to God and surrender to Him. Itâs nothing that we can do. Itâs Godâs work.
2. Realize that we earn the right to be heard by sincerely listening to others. Everyone has a story. You canât just blunder into a situation and callously share without listening. The Bible says that Jesus was a friend of sinners. Thatâs our exampleâto be a friend, to listen to people, see where they are, and then take them where they need to go.
3. Recognize that people are looking for a cure. When you go to the doctor, you donât say, âI have cancer.â Instead, you describe your symptoms. Thatâs where most people live. They only see symptoms. âIâm lonely. Iâm suffering from a broken relationship. Iâm stressed. Thereâs darkness within me that I donât know what to do with.â How do we share Christ with someone who is overwhelmed with their symptoms? We know the ultimate cure. Itâs Jesus Christ. Jesus didnât die for their symptoms. He died for their sins. Yet, people donât wake up in the morning and think, “You know, I need to accept Jesus.” They wake up with the symptoms, and so as people who are attempting to rescue those who are lost, we need to start with their symptoms, show them the disease (sin), and take them to the ultimate cure (Jesus).
4. Keep it simple. The Gospel is already simple. Christ died for our sins. He was buried. He rose again. We need to turn away from the things that are wrong in our lives, and accept what Jesus did on the cross for us and receive Him as Lord. Donât complicate it. So many times we throw in things like our denomination or other doctrines or we use religious terms that a lot of people donât understand. We end up confusing them and creating barriers. Explain the Gospel in a way that people can understand.
5. Stress the love of God. John 3:16 says, âFor God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal lifeâ (NIV). It starts with love, and thatâs where we need to start. Ultimately, we have to explain that weâre all sinners and have violated Godâs standards, and, because of that, there is a judgment. âThe wages of sin is deathâ (Romans 6:23, NIV). But donât start with that. People know theyâve done a lot of wrong things, but they first need to hear that God is still open to forgiving them.