Tell the Truth

Recently I have had a few interchanges at the coffee shop with a man of a different religion. We’ve had one very long conversation and one or two short ones. Our communication has been interesting, intense, and very respectful. I praise God for that! This man understands that I want him to believe in Christ for salvation. And I even think he respects my ambition to pursue him. Similarly, I respect his attitude, genuineness, and kind countenance.

Because of my inclination toward having this gentleman as my friend I am tempted to back off from my pursuit of preaching Jesus to him. Why? Because the person and work of Jesus is our point of disagreement. And frankly I don’t like disagreeing or arguing with anyone. So I would rather steer away from a subject that may create some kind of relational conflict. But this would be a significant error in judgment! This man can be my friend and an object of my Gospel love at the same time. The key is that I must always tell the truth, the truth about Christ. Jesus said it Himself, “You shall be My witnesses.” We are His witnesses who must tell the truth wherever we are to whomever we see.

So what does telling the truth about Jesus look like? What kinds of things should we declare when we preach Jesus to friends, family, and total strangers? Well, I would like to propose the seven truths about Jesus that I seek to declare when I give witness to His person and work (Acts 1:8):

1.     Personal Deity – Jesus is more than a divine being or heavenly messenger. He is the second person of the Trinity. He is not only the Son of God, but also God the Son.

2.     Virgin Birth – In order to be man’s righteous representative He had to be fully man, but He could not be a sinful man. Jesus was not conceived by two sinners through physical union, but by the Holy Spirit in the womb of a virgin.

3.     Sinless Life – Sin separates man from God. The only way to have fellowship with God is to be pure as He is pure. Because Jesus lived a pure life and because He is our representative we can have fellowship with God.

4.     Substitutionary Death – Because of our sin we all deserve physical death and spiritual death. Instead, Jesus died for us. That is to say, He died in our place.

5.     Powerful Resurrection – In order to defeat the power of sin, death, and hell Jesus rose from the dead on the third day. His physical resurrection ensures our spiritual resurrection. If Jesus had not risen from the dead the human race would be hopeless.

6.     Heavenly Ascension – After His resurrection He did not live a while longer and then die again (as did the people He raised from the dead during His ministry). He was raised into the heavens and sat down at the right hand of God the Father, where He now functions as our Mediator.

7.     Future Return – One day Jesus will return and will be worshiped as King of kings and Lord of lords. Every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that He is Lord to the glory of God the Father. Some will do this joyfully and others begrudgingly. But His Lordship will be questioned by no one.

When I see my new friend at the coffee shop again I pray that I will represent Jesus well by speaking the truth about Him if given the opportunity.

*I did not give Scripture references and interpretations under the seven truths about Jesus simply because this post would have become a long essay on the defense of Christianity rather than a brief blog you can read in a matter of a few minutes for encouragement. But it is vitally important for every Christian to speak Biblical truth to unbelievers because God uses His Word to change hearts (Heb. 4:12-13). 

by Ryan Limbaugh