A Day at the Market

Picture this:

A clear day at the market. Despite a chill in the air, outside is packed with people; some buying and others selling. There are tables filled with various stocks and inventory, and the customers are shoving in order to be next in line. There are even birds on the ground eating the food droppings of pass-a-byers. Among the crowd of people shopping and selling, there are some Christians sharing their faith. Does this sound like a scene out of 1st century Jerusalem? Though it felt like it, it wasn't. That much was made obvious with the number of people wearing President Obama shirts and hats.

Today's witnessing experience was definitely one to remember. If not for the last person I spoke with, it would have been pretty much the same as every other witness encounter I had. What I mean by that is this: When I witness, I usually come into contact with two kind of people - those who listen and those that don't. Within those two groups are two sub-groups - those who listen and wrestle with what is being said (these are the type to get angry), and those who listen because they are just nice or because they don't know how to say "no thanks, not interested." While today, at least for the most part, I had a lot of good encounters, I had one encounter that was interesting. Today I met a young man who went to Seminary, and who was very much educated in what the rich would have considered "cultured" in a time past - namely the sciences, theology, philosophy, and so on. My initial thought after hearing that he was a theology student was... "way to go, dude!" But, after talking to him for a while, it was clear that he was not a Christian. My friend Ron and I discussed a myriad of topics with this guy, but after coming to my senses, I directed his attention to the heart of the matter. Here's a bit of how our conversation ended:

The Guy: "I don't take the bible literal, and I am good."

Me: "Here's the crux of the matter, bro. You have an innate idea of what you know is true, but because you do not want to submit to a Holy God, and because you want to remain autonmous, you suppress the obvious truth in unrighteousness. For this reason sir - and because you have come to know so much truth through your studies - your judgement will be much worse if you do not obey the gospel.

The Guy: "Your scare tactics won't work. Any religion can make that Claim. Muhammad made the claim to be the only way to God."

Ron: "Christ alone made an exclusive claim."

Me: "You must come to terms with the claims of Christ or else be guilty of evading the question. Here's the question Christ asks you: Who do you say that I am?"

The Guy: "Its getting cold, I have to get out of this weather. Stay warm guys."

Ron and Me: "Thanks for talking to us. Hope to see you around. Think about what we said!"
Top Stories