The Place of Persuasion

Does a person have to be pushy and belligerent to talk about religious opinions, particularly the Gospel? Does a person have to be slick and salesman-like? Maybe just emotional and effusive?


May it never be! I assert that a person who relies on these traits or methods to proclaim Christ actually betrays the Gospel. The work of drawing people to Christ is the work of God, and no human being can accomplish it. This is what prompts Paul to say, "But we have renounced disgraceful, underhanded ways. We refuse to practice cunning or to tamper with God's word, but by the open statement of the truth we would commend ourselves to everyone's conscience in the sight of God" (2 Corinthians 4:2).


Not only this, but if there is a universal methodology to proclaiming Christ, it is to persuade people by appealing to their will and emotions through the mind. Any direct appeal to the will ("Just Do It!") or the emotions ("Look how much Jesus loves you!") is manipulation, a self-derived and self-reliant approach that exalts the skill of the persuader rather than the beauty and power of God. "For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake" (2 Corinthians 4:5). A good proclaimer of the Gospel does indeed address the will and emotions, not directly or manipulatively, but by the open statement of the truth. "For we are not, like so many, peddlers of God's word, but as men of sincerity, as commissioned by God, in the sight of God we speak in Christ" (2 Corinthians 2:17).


Put another way, all of the skill of the proclaimer ought to be directed towards faithfully serving the hearer in the manner of the communication, and towards faithfully serving the Lord in the content of the communication. For a thorough and thoughtful approach to the topic, check out Tim Keller’s talk, Persuasion.