My father is an avid reader. When he reads a book he loves, he is excited to tell me about it and encourages me to read it. His enthusiasm for what he is learning is contagious. We all have things we get enthused about. Often when we get excited about something that has made a difference in our lives we like to talk about it. It may be exercise, a movie, a recipe, a restaurant or any number of things that bring us some measure of joy. We don't think twice about encouraging people to read a new book or try a new food. It is odd, in our culture, that talking about our relationship with God and the new Kingdom worldview that comes with it has become taboo.
I think there are two major reasons evangelism or "Good News" has become bad news:
1.) The first reason is too many followers of Christ have a way of making the Good News sound like a sales pitch. We have taken the wonder and mystery of God's grace to us and boiled it down into a pamphlet full of bridges and bullet points. My friend at the book store sees me each Thursday as I sip my chai tea and prepare Sunday's message and he always asks me, "So, what are you selling this week."
2.) The other major reason our culture has made evangelism something to suppress or avoid is this: our culture has rightly discerned the Grace of God requires our repentance. Repentance goes against the grain of rugged individualism, the American dream, the Enlightenment's triumph of reason and the humanism that tells us we will evolve above our problems. In short, our culture hates the idea of admitting we are fundamentally flawed and need the Grace of God through the death and resurrection of a Savior to rescue us! Therefore, our culture will continue to do all it can to stifle and censor the Good News. And, let's face it, "culture" is a reflection of all of us. We all hate the idea of humility and surrender. We would all choose a friendlier, kinder way to God if we could.
We can do something about the first reason and that will be the topic of the message this Sunday. We will learn ways to live out the Good News of God's grace in such away that people are drawn to it rather than repulsed by it. All the while keeping in mind, at the heart of the Good News is some really bad news. The bad news is we are sinful and flawed beyond all hope. Nobody, no matter how well we present it, wants to hear that. But, until we come to grips with the depth of our sin we will never know the heights of His deliverance.