Evangelism and Social Action Are Close Friends
by Cynthia Ruble, The Gospel Coalition:
Eighteen years ago when I first came to Japan as a missionary, I had to clarify my purpose. The Japanese unbelievers around me wondered aloud about the nature and intent of my work. A young Japanese Christian even told me, “We don’t need missionaries anymore.”
If my aim was conversions to Christ, it wasn’t a popular mission.
When we encounter skepticism about our evangelistic efforts, it can be tempting to answer, “Oh no, I don’t want to convert you. I want to serve you. I want to show you God’s love.”
But when we fall into this kind of mentality, we can lose sight of the gospel of grace. We can begin to think we need a larger gospel and a broader mission to better engage the culture. Of course, we do need to establish credibility and the right to speak. If Japanese people think I spend my days in their country just hanging out and going out to eat a lot, that doesn’t really inspire respect for my message. It looks like laziness to the Japanese, who themselves are often working long hours every day. Gaining respect from these hard-working skeptics was one reason I taught English in colleges for 10 years.
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