Evangelism and Love

I have always had a nagging concern that the love Christians show to those who haven’t met Christ is in some way disingenuous, that our “love” exists solely for the purpose of conversion. I’m sure many of us (including myself) have fallen prey to seeking trophy converts for whatever reason – maybe it’s to look good in front of our Christian peers, or to legalistically attempt to satisfy God…or maybe for no other reason than to arrogantly paint another kill for Christ on our fuselage.

Lately, however, I’ve learned that our love for those who don’t believe doesn’t have to be disingenuous. When we know Christ as our Supreme Treasure, we will know that the greatest thing that can happen to any human being is to know Him. It follows that being used by the Holy Spirit to introduce someone to Him can be an act rooted in deep, genuine love. It is important that our motivation not be to love others in order to convert them, but to seek to convert them because we love them. Are we viewing people as a means to more spiritual brownie points, or as they truly are: fellow image-bearers of God who desperately need Him, just as we do?

Jesus, grant us the grace to have your heart for the people you created in your image, for our cities, our neighborhoods, our friends, our families.