In 1 Corinthians 2:4-5, Paul states, “My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the of the Spirit’s power, so that your faith might not rest on men’s wisdom, but on God’s power”. I was reminded of this verse this week after sharing the hope of Christ with a young man from France named Antoine. It was a new and unusual, though very good, experience to share Christ with someone who spoke very little English. He told me he was the worst in his entire class at speaking English! It was difficult to think through the best way to communicate this message to him so that he’d be able to think about it rather than simply trying to piece the strange English words together. That, of course, meant that I had to slow way down, use simple words, and leave any American slang and Christianese words tucked away. It wasn’t very easy. However, God taught me so much through it. It was a lesson for me to step aside. It’s not what I say or how eloquently I say it that is going to lead anyone to Christ. The only thing I need to do is to share who Christ is in a way that people can understand and let him do the rest. Kind of humbling!! However, it goes back to what Paul said. I would never want Antoine’s faith or any other person’s faith to be based on a fancy speech or convincing argument made by me. If it’s a faith that will last, it must be resting on the work that Lord has done in them. I just need to love them, share what’s true in a way they can understand, and let God do what God does.
