One gospel, different responses

by Phoebe

“When they heard about the resurrection of the dead, some of them sneered, but others said, “We want to hear you again on this subject.” At that, Paul left the Council. Some of the people became followers of Paul and believed.” Acts 17:32-34

“It’s okay. You don’t have to say more (about Jesus). My life is very good. I have all that I need… I am not even sure if heaven is real. No one has ever come back from there to prove that it is real.” Uncle Job said when we visited him to share the gospel.

After the home visit, our church members and us felt discouraged but we also quickly picked ourselves up, acknowledging that this is part of the work of sharing the gospel. We cannot control the responses of the audience and we can only pray and trust that God will work in their hearts. Our job is to persevere in sharing about God and His gift for the people in Takhro.

Even Apostle Paul was not spared from rejection as recorded in Acts 17. Sometimes the people who hear the gospel will sneer, some want to hear more, and others believe. These different responses are to be expected as the gospel is preached, because everyone comes with their worldview and upbringing which have shaped their values, beliefs and their ideas of what spirituality means to them.

In our time sharing about God in Takhro, we have encountered all three responses. Thankfully Uncle Job’s unfriendly response is very rare.

There is Uncle Chub, who used to be the local temple lay leader. He frankly shared that Buddhism is a belief from his ancestors which is part of his way of life. However, he is open to studying more about Christianity. We pray that God will open his heart to encounter His truth and love.

There is Mr Serp who has an evident hunger for His word and prayed to receive Christ. He has eagerly began reading the Bible and hopes to learn more about God. We pray that God will open his eyes and provide answers to the questions that he has in his heart.

We also met Auntie Ling and Auntie Nam who have cancer and were open to pray to receive Christ on our first visits. We are not sure whether they know what the prayer means but God knows and we pray that He will help them to encounter His healing power.

We thank God that one of our church leaders, Auntie Kok, on her own initiative has committed to sharing the gospel at least once a week. We are very encouraged by her heart for the people of Takhro. Regardless of the responses of the audience, may the local believers be relentless in sharing about Him and turn hearts toward Him.