4.02.2011
Let the Unthirsty Thirst
12:10 AM | 
Posted by
Codie Leath
Have you ever noticed how Jesus gave grace to the humble but the law to the proud? In John 4, He offered the woman at the well living water and declined to condemn her for her loose lifestyle. Two chapters later, however, he boldly tells the Pharisees they don’t know God, aren’t righteous enough for heaven, and are actually sons of the devil. So…as students of the Master, which style of evangelism should we reproduce?
Obviously, both are valid, being that they were modeled by Christ Himself. There is a trend though: grace first, then law. I first see it in Exodus 33 when God passed by Moses and declared who He is in a list of character qualities. Of all the characteristics He could name, which do you think He chose first? The answer - compassion. Very interesting isn’t it! (You should stop and think about that for a second.) Then He continues His list with gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, forgiving wickedness, sin, and rebellion. The last trait listed, however, has a different feel. It is a little harder to read: “He does not leave the guilty unpunished.” Notice that He uses 7 adjectives to convey his love and grace and only 1 phrase to warn us about His justice. Now He’s no less just than He is loving but what this passage tells me is that He is patient! He patiently and carefully is teaching us to respond to His love and grace before He brings His judgment.
The same message of patience comes through when you look at Scripture as a whole. God bears with His chosen nation Israel for hundreds of years in the Old Testament as they move in and out of loyalty, mostly out. He sends prophets, kings, judges, and miracles, to shepherd, instruct, and rescue His people. He foreshadows and straight up predicts the coming of the Savior in hundreds of different ways, encouraging them to put their hope in Christ. All the while Israel is mostly defiant and suffering the consequences of “He does not leave the guilty unpunished.” God always preserves a remnant, though, a small remaining group of faithful Israelites, which eventually lead to the birth of Christ.
Then, as Jesus is interacting with individuals in the New Testament, He appeals to their hunger and thirst for eternal life. He calls Himself the living water and the bread of life. He could have just as accurately called Himself the Judge of the living and the dead like in Acts 10. But He’s graciously offering His life as the first approach of evangelism. With the Pharisees, who were professional students and teachers of the scripture, He exposes their sinfulness as His method of evangelism. This is because they were fully aware of God’s gracious call to salvation but pridefully remained standing on their own works.
I use this as a template for my evangelism. I begin by highlighting our inner thirst for purpose, security, and fulfillment. The New Testament and my life are full of examples of how Jesus quenches this thirst, supplying me with plenty of material to share with my non Christian friends. Despite this convincing evidence, I often get blank faces and unenthused responses. If you don’t feel thirsty, why drink the water? And some people just don’t feel the thirst. They are fine with themselves. So then I move to the law. I share such verses as Romans 3:10-12, 23, Genesis 6:5, 8:21, Isaiah 64:6. These verses expose our sinful nature as seen by God. They communicate to the unbeliever that even if you don’t feel a need to be saved, you are at odds with the Creator of the Universe and His wrath already remains on you (John 3:36). Its takes guts to go there but this is where evangelism gets good in the sense that their apathy is shaken and you are now dealing with an awake person. My fervent prayer is that salvation lies around the corner from these tough conversations, which always makes it worth it!
So how has it been in your life? Has God been patient with you as you put together the pieces of His gracious gospel? Has He spared you what you deserve so that you might come to Him? I hope you have responded in faith because if pride is all that’s in your heart then the 8th adjective is left for you: justice. God does not leave the guilty unpunished.
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