A pressing responsibility

A pressing responsibility.

“Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.  
Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,  and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”                                                                                                                                              Matthew 28:18-20.
We Christians have a pressing responsibility to those around us. Jesus has called us to make disciples of all nations. He never limited it to any group he said make disciples of ALL nations.
To me that means open dialogue between ourselves and those around us. No matter who they are if they will listen to us we should be talking to them. Giving them the opportunity to accept Christ.
In order to be doing that correctly we need to be studying the Bible. We need to know more than just a few chosen verses.
We also need I think to have a realistic idea of what the society around us is like.
All too often Christians here in North America live in a bubble. They listen to Christian radio and television, visit Christian web sites but never watch popular television programs or care to learn about the latest movies showing in the cinema.
 They dismiss teachings on evolution as wrong without even knowing what the evolutionist is saying.
They judge homosexuals without even listening to them.
Most Christians I’ve met over my forty plus years as a Christian have no idea what a Muslim believes yet condemn them on the says so of some preacher or evangelist.  The apostle Paul wrote,
“If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.”
                                                                                                                Romans 12:18.
In order to get our message out to the world we need to be able to live in peace with all people. We need to respect what they believe and their lifestyle. We may not agree with those around us but we must respect them while still staying true to what we believe.
When the apostle Paul presented his message to the Athenians, he did not believe what the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers who invited him to speak believed. But he respectfully presented his beliefs to them and some who heard him that day did believe. While others wanted to know more about what he said. This is the example we Christians in the twenty-first century should be following.
Please think about it.