Last autumn, I received a revelation that challenged me, and I hope it will challenge you as well. Let me tell you about it. I have had the privilege of working with Livets Ord’s Bible schools in India, and during this academic year, I have taught a second-year class focused on creating growth in the church. The school year has been characterized by an outward focus, and we therefore started the autumn with teaching on evangelism, followed by a practical outreach where all the students went out in groups to evangelize in their local areas.
To be honest, I sent them out with a little lump in my stomach. I was uncertain how they would be received by the majority Hindus in their neighborhoods, who have sometimes caused problems for the local churches. I was also a bit doubtful about how much fruit could come from a single occasion, but I was still somewhat hopeful. (A faith-filled perspective, right?)
The following week it was time for reports, and to my great joy, several of the teams had met open people who wanted to receive! One of these was a man named Jhantu who had a motorcycle accident a few weeks earlier. He was seriously injured with a concussion and broken legs in several places. Our students offered to pray for him, and a few days later he reached out and told them he was healed! Afterwards, they visited him at his home, and then he also wanted to receive Jesus! What a miracle — not only was he physically healed, but he has come to know God and now his life is changed forever!
When I heard about Jhantu, the revelation I mentioned earlier came to me again; namely, that our mission is actually incredibly simple. Not necessarily easy, but truly childishly simple: We are to go out with Jesus’ love, in the power of the Spirit, and share the good news!
Growing up in a Christian home, as a graduate of Bible school and an overall active church member, you would think I should have realized this a long time ago. But it took me coming to India for the penny to finally drop. The problem wasn’t that I hadn’t heard the Great Commission before — I had simply made it more complicated than it is. And I don’t think I’m alone in this.
I can’t count the number of times I’ve heard that evangelism, especially street evangelism, doesn’t work in Sweden. We have been permeated by the message that faith is a private matter and that it’s offensive to share one’s faith with people unless specifically asked about it.
But keeping our Christian faith as a private matter is impossible. We cannot take the Christian message seriously, have Jesus as our Savior and Lord, and at the same time keep our faith to ourselves. It’s not possible when Jesus says that He is the way, the truth, and the life, and has given us the mission to spread that message.
Another way we complicate things is by placing the responsibility in the wrong place. We think that it’s up to us to save those we reach out to, to convince them of the faith, or to perform a miracle big enough to prove God’s existence to them. Fortunately, this does not rest on our shoulders. Jesus is the one who saves, the Holy Spirit holds the keys to every person’s heart and works miracles. Our responsibility is to be bearers of the message and to convey God’s love and power to people.
We can and should pray for our country, our friends, and families, but we cannot stay only in the prayer room—the gospel must also be preached.
I’m not trying to turn you into some kind of fanatic. Please keep chatting with your friends about sports, fashion, the weather, social media’s impact on our mental health, and other everyday topics — but don’t shy away from talking about faith either.
I’m not trying to force you out on the streets, but I do believe that IF you go out, it will bear fruit. Not because of your strong faith, but because of your obedience. We can trust that if we take the responsibility we’ve been given, God will do His part—bringing His power to work miracles, touching hearts, and guiding you in the conversations you have.
Yes, it can be difficult to reach socially withdrawn, secular Swedes, but that does not necessarily mean it is easier to reach out to believing Hindus in an increasingly Hindu-nationalist India, where religious conversions can lead to legal prosecution.
However, what both countries have in common is that they are filled with people whom God loves and who long for Him. What we— you, I, and the Bible school students in India—also share is that we are all equipped with the Holy Spirit who gives us the power to be witnesses.
Our mission is simple. Let us take our responsibility and trust that God will take His.
/Missionary, India
