Some Guidelines on Relational Evangelism
by Jack Partridge
How far should you go in your relationships in order to win people to Christ? I don’t pretend to have all of the answers, though I have some pretty strong opinions. I am against “missionary dating”, having a few drinks, meeting in clubs, watching trashy TV shows and movies, and doing anything that affects the purity of the individual Christian under the guise of “building relationships” with lost people. But the world doesn’t need more opinions; it needs more of God’s word. Matthew 5:13-16 is one of the many scriptures that explain the role of a follower of Christ in the world. This passage speaks of believers being salt and light in the world. Jesus teaches that the only use for salt is to season things and if it loses its taste, then it is worthless. Also, light is for the purpose of lighting up dark places. So here is the test: if you are failing to season and light up your environment with Jesus, then you are probably in the business of being transformed by the world instead of transforming the world with the gospel of Jesus Christ. So stop kidding yourself. Watching rated “R” movies and using profanity in order to “connect” with lost people only causes you to lose your salt and dim your light; becoming useless. Do you want to make an impact on your world? Then become so salty and shine so brightly that you can’t be ignored. Risk everything, including all relationships, for the sake of the gospel.
