AN UNPREACHED SERMON (198)
I’m an absolute sucker for murder mysteries. “Hercule Poirot” (especially David Suchet) is top of the list of course. But I also like “DCI Vera” (Brenda Blethyn, with her warm Geordie accent) and Lieutenant Columbo (David Falk, with his fumbling methods). The one thing the last two have in common is their almost innocent way of questioning and tracking down suspects. They always come up with the desired result due to the crime perpetrator being blissfully unaware that he or she might be in the frame. The most recent addition to this unique style of detective work is “Ludwig” (David Mitchell).
It’s a technique that we as Christians could learn from in our one-to-one attempts to witness for Christ. Far too often in such conversations we can be so busy thinking of what we want to say next that we don’t really take in what the other person is saying. It can descend into a shouting match where all parties are on the defensive. Vera, Colombo and Ludwig are adept at creating a conducive, almost bumbling, environment by apparently harmless questioning which eventually entangles the suspects in their own web of deceit.
ANSWERS AT THE READY
As part of our commitment to Christ we should always be ready “to make a defense to anyone who asks for a reason for the hope that is in you” (1 Peter 3:15), but don’t forget the continuation of the sentence, “yet do it with gentleness and respect, having a good conscience, so that when you are slandered those who revile your good behaviour in Christ may be put to shame” (1 Peter 3:16). Gregory Koukl, the Christian apologist and radio talk-show host, explained it as the ability to ask disarming questions that get right to the nub of the problem. He gives as two examples, “Do you mind if I ask you a question?” and “What do you actually mean by that?”. They allow the other person to clarify and explain. Jesus sometimes used this method (Luke 20:4, 24).
READY TO LISTEN
The next time you are having a religious conversation with someone, listen carefully to what they are saying. It will give you an understanding of where they are coming from. It will also give you a clue as to their knowledge or ignorance about Christ and the Gospel. Such thoughtful listening and questioning allow the conversation to be interactive, and not just you or the other person trying to make their point.
It leaves plenty of scope for the Holy Spirit to challenge the other person by causing them to reflect on where they really stand. In a recent article according to Dr E M Hitchin from the Institute for Science and Religion in Paris, such questions “invite the other person to join in the discussion. They are neutral in the way that you don’t argue, but ask.... this makes it easy to engage in a friendly conversation without appearing too blunt, rude or insistent”.
The Bible makes ample provision for asking questions and seeking answers. It recognises that the critical faculty is an important part of human nature, and can be utilised as an effective tool in reaching out to others with the message of Christ. As believers we should be committed to reaching people’s hearts without insulting their minds. To do that effectively we need to recognise that people ask questions from differing motives. It is up to us to discover where they are coming from.
• Is it open hostility? Often coloured by a person’s background and previous negative experience of the church and Christians.
• Is it from idle curiosity? You can build on an attitude like that no matter how casual or incidental it may seem. Be on the lookout for the implied question in the passing comment or off-the-cuff remark.
• Is it from genuine enquiry? People are looking for answers and hungry for reality.
READY FOR THE QUESTION BEHIND THE QUESTION
The way Jesus handled people’s questions is our benchmark. He didn’t always answer people’s questions as framed. Sometimes He answered the unspoken question underneath their original enquiry. The NT has many examples.
• Zacchaeus: “Can my loneliness be cured?”
• Rich young ruler: “I’ve got it all, what is there left to live for?”
• Nicodemus: “Can my religion come alive instead of being just a formality and duty?
• Woman at the well: “Am I going to be someone’s plaything and sex object forever?
Peter says that when someone asks us about what we believe we should be ready at least to attempt an answer. John Calvin’s comment takes the worry out of witnessing: “Peter is not commanding us to be prepared to solve any question about any matter that may be raised, for it is not the duty of everyone to speak on every subject”.
All we are asked to do is share our experience and “explain the hope you have in you”. By so doing your witness can be used by the Holy Spirit to use what you say as part of his working in the other person’s life. You could be any one of three things:
• The catalyst, who sets the person thinking and gets them started
• The link in the chain, forging a strong chain of evidence
• The midwife, bringing new spiritual children to birth in Christ
As Shakespeare has Hamlet say to Horatio, “If it be now, ‘tis not to come; if it be not to come, yet it will come: the readiness is all, the rest be silence”.
A PRAYER FOR MY WITNESS THIS DAY.
Gracious Father, Grant that I may know how to answer people’s questions about You, so that I help them understand and learn about You, and eventually find You for themselves, amen.
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