a Christian walks into a bar...

If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others?

-Matthew 5:46-47

One of the things that makes Paris such an inspiring city, is the nightlife. No matter what day it is, come rain, snow or thunder, you will always find Parisians out and about at night. Cafés, bars, and even bakeries stay open well into the night to give Parisians their daily dose of night-time leisure. I told myself I would immerse myself into Parisian culture (within reason) no matter how far out of my comfort zone it was. On Wednesday, March 14, after a long day of work, I stayed up past my weekday bedtime (10:30 pm) and spent the night with friends…in a bar.

You might be asking yourself, “What’s the big deal? It’s a bar. And why do you sleep so early?” Well, my friends, I sleep early because I cannot function well with less than seven hours of sleep. But that’s beside the point. The point of me announcing that I went to a bar for the first time (yay, be proud of me) is that this experience made me realize that I had been looking at evangelism (the spreading of the Christian gospel) the wrong way. I always thought that spreading the gospel was about telling people to come to Church or to your Bible study. This isn’t an incorrect way of sharing the good news; in fact, I don’t think there is an incorrect way. However, looking at evangelism this way got me into the mindset of thinking that the ideal “method” was to give people a quick blurb about Jesus, invite them into your space where you encounter or learn about Jesus, and then share the gospel with them in-depth when they arrive.

On a larger scale (ie. churches and other Christian organizations) this makes sense because it’s impossible to talk to every single person. However, on an individual level, I believe that we should be placing ourselves in the spaces of the people we’re trying to reach. When I was in that bar with six of my non-Christian friends, I saw how comfortable they were. They were just having a drink, talking, and getting to know each other. I had placed myself in an uncomfortable setting so that I could get to see them for who they are, and not as a “good news target” who I can cross off the list once I’ve told them about Jesus. We get so excited when people come to our spaces, but we often forget that those spaces are incredibly uncomfortable for people who don’t know Jesus. It’s harder for a non-Christian to step into a religious setting than for a Christian to step into a secular setting because most of the places we frequent daily are secular. This doesn’t mean that we should go to the extremes to build relationships with people who don’t know Jesus, but if they are willing to interact with us in our comfort zones, then we should be able to reciprocate this courage.

As he is with everything, Jesus is a perfect example of this. Although he spent a lot of time preaching to crowds in Synagogues and courtyards, he also got to know people on a personal level in their settings. An example of this is when he asked the Samaritan woman for water at the well (see John 4:1-26). He was in Samaritan country, which was shocking because Jews and Samaritan’s didn’t (and weren’t supposed to) get along well and her response confirms this. But Jesus showed this woman that, even though society wanted them to be enemies, he trusted her, which allowed her to trust him, and then he shared the good news with her. Guys, Jesus is awesome! Another example of this is when Jesus ate with the “tax collectors and sinners”, people who were considered outcasts (see Mark 2:13-17). Not only did Jesus eat with people he “wasn’t supposed” to eat with, he did it in their space. He ate in Levi the tax collector’s house and again, the encounter ended with a lesson about who Jesus is.

I am guilty of thinking of evangelism as a chore - a once-off task that I can cross off my to-do list. It’s more than that. It’s about building a relationship with your brothers and sisters in Christ. It takes time to build that level of trust with someone to the point where they trust you enough to come into your space. As Christians, I believe it’s our responsibility to be uncomfortable in the name of God. It’s our responsibility to show people that the kingdom of God extends beyond “religious spaces”, and that Jesus can meet people wherever they are. As you think about sharing the good news with the people around you, think about how you can get to know them (perhaps in a bar), appreciate them, and love them as Christ has called you to do.

God truly loves you.

With love,
Mandile.