{"id":13303,"date":"2025-01-16T14:49:32","date_gmt":"2025-01-16T20:49:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/?p=13303"},"modified":"2025-02-06T13:26:05","modified_gmt":"2025-02-06T19:26:05","slug":"jesus-isnt-a-product-were-selling-and-other-evangelism-no-nos","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/2025\/01\/jesus-isnt-a-product-were-selling-and-other-evangelism-no-nos\/","title":{"rendered":"Jesus Isn’t a Product We’re Selling (and Other Evangelism No-No’s)"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>\n

This post is the first in a six-part series, 6 Barriers to Sharing Your Faith\u2014And How to Overcome Them<\/strong>, taken from the book, Lit Up with Love: Becoming Good-News People in a Gospel-Starved World<\/a> <\/em>by Derwin L. Gray. If you like what you’re reading, you can click through to the next post when you’re finished reading this one. <\/mark><\/p>\n\n\n\n

If sharing the gospel with other people is meant to be a way of life for a disciple of Jesus, why do most of us not share our faith? Lifeway Research offers some insight from their study of unchurched Americans: Despite the openness and relationships with Christians, few unchurched Americans have ever had someone explain exactly how to become a Christian or why they should think about doing so. Only 3 in 10 unchurched Americans (29%)<\/a> say a Christian has ever shared with them one-on-one how a person becomes a Christian. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

What keeps us from doing this? Theologian Ken Boa, in his book, Conformed to His Image<\/em>, suggests that most followers of Jesus do not share their faith because of six common barriers:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

  1. The Barrier of Method<\/strong><\/li>
  2. The Barrier of Fear<\/li>
  3. The Barrier of Inadequacy<\/li>
  4. The Barrier of Indifference<\/li>
  5. The Barrier of Shame<\/li>
  6. The Barrier of Time<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    Note: Derwin Gray changed Boa\u2019s Barrier #5 from A Barrier of Isolation to A Barrier of Shame.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Before I talk about these six barriers, let\u2019s adjust our mindset. These barriers aren\u2019t walls; they\u2019re invitations.<\/strong> When you\u2019re lit up with love, you know that barriers are opportunities to press deeper into Christ and rely on the Holy Spirit\u2019s power.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    When you choose to let God walk with you past the barriers, three things will happen:<\/p>\n\n\n\n