When you grow up in the Church, talking about the Gospel and sharing your testimony can be a lot less intimidating because it is the ‘norm’. Church is where everyone around you talks about Jesus. As a result, you don’t feel like you are going against the standard society has set. Do any of you relate? 🙂 But what does it mean to really share the Gospel in a secular setting? I am here to remind you that you are not the only Christian who is/has struggled with sharing their faith in a world that not only dislikes Jesus, but completely REJECTS Him.

The secular world that we live in doesn’t know Jesus. We have for so long rejected the One who died on the cross for us that even if we were to come face to face with Jesus Christ Himself, we probably wouldn’t recognize Him for who He was. In fact, the world would probably scorn Him like they did 2000 years ago!

So sharing the gospel with unbelievers in the secular world that we live in is not simple. In fact, it can be very hard. It is not a topic that we should be blasting without mercy into people’s faces. But at the same time, we should not be withholding the truth from the people who need it most. But I believe that knowing how to share the gospel with someone is one of the greatest gifts a person could have!

The Two Major Reasons People Don’t Share the Gospel with Others

#1 The ‘I’m Not Good Enough Yet Mindset

One of my earliest struggles with Jesus was when I was 14 or 15 years old. I remember sitting in the car on the way back home one day; probably listening to some Taylor Swift like all other teen girls!; and thinking to myself, “I am not good enough to be saved”.

I thought I could only be worthy of sharing the gospel and talk about my testimony if I was ‘perfect’. I thought I could only be good enough for God if I was this holier than thou kind of Christian who just wanted to start up her own anti-trafficking organization and lived completely off faith and donations from other generous church members.

Let me tell you something. Everybody is called by God to do something completely different. And there is and never a ‘one size fits all’ mold that you need to conform to before you are considered ‘good enough’ to begin sharing the Gospel with someone! From the moment you accepted Jesus as your Lord and Saviour, God planned on using you to spread His good news!

—> You might like this blog post: How to Find Your Identity in Christ (+ free downloadable devotional!)

Click the image below for a beautifully designed, FREE workbook with prompts and guides on how to share your testimony. Because sharing your testimony is one of the most powerful tools you can use to share the gospel!

#2 The ‘I’m Too Different’ From the World Mindset

As my relationship with God deepened, the mindset mentioned above completely switched and flipped some years later. I knew that I didn’t have to earn my salvation but that it was given by God to me by His grace. But slowly, I went from thinking that I wasn’t different enough to thinking, “I am too different”.

I was beginning to feed into the lie that it was weird and strange that I didn’t quite fit in with the world’s view of what was normal. And a fleeting, but very real thought that passed through my mind was, “People are going to think I am absolutely insane.” Drop a comment at the end of this blog post and let me know if you feel me!

At the time, the idea of being too ‘set-apart‘ from the standards of the world began to create a sense of fear within. I believed that people were going to think that if I smiled too much or if I shared too much about my faith then I would be considered absolutely out of touch with the world. But this season of my life ended when I began to understand more and more of what Jesus said to His disciples.

“If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world.” – John 15:18-19

From the moment you accepted Christ, you were called to live a set-apart life. No longer were you called to be a slave to the sins of the world, but you were called to be a slave to righteousness. (Romans 6:15-23) And so while you might feel like others would condemn you and judge you for sharing the Gospel with unbelievers, it is just because you no longer belong to the world!

Now, without further ado, let’s move onto the Q&A portion of this blog post! WHOOOOOP!

Q&A: How to Share the Gospel with Someone in a Secular World

#1 How Can I Share the Gospel with Someone Without Coming Off to Strong?

Do you remember as a kid there would always be that one adult who always seemed to push your buttons? The adult who always seemed to know what they were doing and what they were saying, but seemed to always force things down your throat? Do you remember how you reacted to that? Did it make you gladly and excitedly accept what they were saying or did it make you try your hardest to resist?

Sugarcoating the Gospel or giving the watered-down version of it is not the way to go either though because then you would be withholding the truth. But at the same time, sharing the Gospel with unbelievers in a secular setting will require grace and humility. It should never come from a place of condemnation and hate, but one of love and gentleness.

“But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect.” — 1 Peter 3:15

Click the image above for a beautifully designed, FREE workbook with prompts and guides on how to share your testimony. Because sharing your testimony is one of the most powerful tools you can use to share the gospel!

#2 Is There Ever a ‘Wrong Time’ to Sharing the Gospel with Unbelievers?

This is very much an interesting question and one where I think it is important to look at your heart’s intentions. Do you want to share the Gospel with someone to condemn them publicly so that you can feel superior? Or do you want to share the Gospel over a public platform like Facebook or Instagram because you know that even though it can cause heads to turn, you want nothing more than for the world to turn their heads towards Christ?

Isn’t that cool? When you turn heads for being different, you’re actually turning heads towards Jesus!

Ask yourself before you share the Gospel of your heart’s intentions; are you using the Gospel as a weapon for yourself, or as an instrument for pointing others towards Christ. Because if your foundation is rested upon something that is not Christ-centred, then it is the ‘wrong time’ to share the Gospel. But if your heart is resting fully upon God, even if it isn’t naturally comfortable for you, it is never the ‘wrong time’ to share the Gospel with someone.

“Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted. Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” – Galatians 6:1-2

#3 How Can You Overcome the Feelings of Shame From Sharing the Gospel?

This one makes me smile. Because in all honesty, I believe that so many Christians go through this experience. I mean every single page of the Bible talks of believers like you who went through public shaming! From Moses to King David to Paul and Jesus, we can see that even those who we learn about in the Bible has gone through all of that!

I think that this article by John Piper puts it so beautifully…

Taking Jesus as an example, Jesus was abandoned by his friends, falsely accused of blasphemy, beaten with rods, ridiculed and taunted, stripped of his clothes, scourged with a whip, tortured in public, and made to look like a fool as people hollered at him on the cross: “You who saved others, save yourself.”

So, if his present supports were all being stripped away in shaming persecution, how did he not capitulate to such shame? Hebrews 12:2 says he set his heart not on the supports of the present, but on the joy of the future where very soon he would “sit down at the right hand of the throne of God.” Though he was being shamed, Jesus was not ashamed of his God and Father. Why? Because God had the power to save him from death and give him all-satisfying glory at his right hand forever.

So the next time you feel ashamed to be set-apart from the crowd and embarrassed of sharing what causes you to leap with joy in the morning, remember the very fact that if Jesus had given into shame after all that public humiliation, then what would have happened to God’s plan? For all of us who were destined for His wrath, who could have possibly have been saved? Take heart and rest in the comfort in His wonderful promises!!

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile.” – Romans 1:16

#4 How Can I Share the Gospel with Someone Without Getting CRUSHED by My Expectations?

One tricky thing that happens when it comes to spreading the Gospel with others that I have noticed is that oftentimes, people get crushed or even downright annoyed when the recipient of their goodwill just doesn’t get it. But this is when you really need to check your heart. You are only a vessel that God uses. You are not the main character in someone’s salvation story. So when you share the Gospel with someone, only to get frustrated, remember that.

When we begin sharing the gospel with unbelievers with the humble mindset that God intends to use us as part of His process, we begin to feel less like it is about us, but more about Him! And so, we become less frustrated that the person isn’t listening to us. And we begin to trust that God has other measures in place, but that we have successfully been used by Him to share the Gospel with them.

“Therefore, holy brothers and sisters, who share in the heavenly calling, fix your thoughts on Jesus, whom we acknowledge as our apostle and high priest. He was faithful to the one who appointed him, just as Moses was faithful in all God’s house. Jesus has been found worthy of greater honor than Moses, just as the builder of a house has greater honor than the house itself. For every house is built by someone, but God is the builder of everything. “Moses was faithful as a servant in all God’s house,” bearing witness to what would be spoken by God in the future. But Christ is faithful as the Son over God’s house. And we are his house, if indeed we hold firmly to our confidence and the hope in which we glory.” – Hebrews 1:5-6

Click the image below for a beautifully designed, FREE workbook with prompts and guides on how to share your testimony. Because sharing your testimony is one of the most powerful tools you can use to share the gospel!

#5 Is There a ‘Right’ Style when Sharing the Gospel with Unbelievers?

This is honestly a very interesting concept. What would constitute the ‘right way’ of sharing the Gospel with unbelievers? This question would be almost the same as asking a pastor, ‘what would be the right style of preaching’? There will be a range of answers. And perhaps, we would start a little spar between denominations and churches if people really got into it! This is because a pastor of a charismatic Pentecostal church will have a very different preaching style to a pastor of a conservative Baptist church. But neither one’s preaching style is ‘more right’ than the other.

At the end of the day, God made you to have a personality that is unique and different from the next person. So the way that you present the Gospel to someone will be very different from someone else. But what is truly important is not necessarily the style with which you choose to present the Gospel to someone, but the content and message behind it. So before you share the Gospel, always be sure to ask yourself the following question…

• Are you sharing the Gospel according to how God actually presents it in the Bible? Or are you sharing the Gospel according to how you think it should be?

“You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge another, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things. Now we know that God’s judgment against those who do such things is based on truth. So when you, a mere human being, pass judgment on them and yet do the same things, do you think you will escape God’s judgment?Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, forbearance and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness is intended to lead you to repentance?” – Romans 2:1-4

Hey! Here Are Other Resources…

—> CLICK THE LINK TO READ … Signs of a Lukewarm Christian | Jesus Didn’t Die for You to Be Ashamed of Him

—> CLICK THE LINK TO READ … How to Share Your Testimony When You Don’t Know What to Say

—> CLICK THE LINK TO READ … 6 Characteristics of a Godly Friendship

—> CLICK THE LINK TO READ … How Keeping Your Life PG-Rated Grows Your Relationship with God

or browse the blog HERE!

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Before you go…

Thank you for joining in on this Q&A on how to share the gospel with someone in a secular world. Let me know about an experience you had with sharing the gospel! I would LOVE to hear all about it! Drop a comment below and let me know!

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