Before we draw an initial close to our evangelization effort, we should always be open to proclaiming the Gospel to our atheist conversation partner. Part of this proclamation may be embedded in your personal testimony, but a major step in evangelization is reminding people that God is personal and seeks a relationship with every one of us. That God can be known, and his presence experienced. Most of all, that God loves us.
Here’s how a conversation along these lines might proceed.
E: I know we’ve covered a lot of ground in this conversation, but could I just say one more thing.
P: Sure… go ahead.
E: So far, I feel we’ve only been talking about the “what” of God. Which is important. But Christianity is ultimately about the “who” of God—specifically, of God’s love for us. Could I ask you to try something?
P: Why not.
E: OK, great. Christianity makes claims that are both personal and testable. Specifically: If you want a relationship with God, He will respond. “Seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you,” as Jesus says in the Gospel of Matthew.
So, here’s what I would ask: Test these claims. After all, what harm could come from seeking? You don’t have to be inauthentic—just curious, open, and investigative. Dive deeper into the conversation we’ve had today, and perhaps read some of the material. Take your time with it. But also, pray!
P: What’s the point in prayer if I’m not religious?
E: A lot, I think! I’ll speak from personal experience again. When I was a skeptic, I would often pray the agnostic’s prayer, which goes, “God (if there is a God), save my soul (if I have a soul).” I figured I had nothing to lose in doing so, but potentially everything to gain. A prayer like that doesn’t commit you to anything; it just expresses a sincere seeking [pause]. So, what do you think? Will you try it out?
P: Yeah, sure, I guess …. What have I got to lose?
E: Exactly! One last thing, how would you feel if I prayed for you now?
P: I’d be OK with that.
E: Great… [says prayer & hands out final material]. I encourage you to read this information. The philosophical arguments for and against the existence of God, like many things, take some real effort to understand well. Once you’ve read them, give me a call and I’d gladly meet with you to talk about it. Sound good?
P: Absolutely. And I’ll give you a run for your money.
E: I expect you will!
***
In this example, we shared the Gospel by proclaiming the basic message that God is real, He can be known, and He loves us. But you may be moved to share a fuller Gospel message. In the following example conversation, the evangelist shares the Gospel according to the common four-point model.
E: For me, the existence of God is most especially confirmed by the Gospel. I’m more certain of God’s existence because Jesus reveals the goodness of God.
P: Just because a man called Jesus of Nazareth said that God is good, doesn’t mean that God exists.
E: True, but on top of all those philosophical arguments for God, the addition of Jesus and what He says about God just makes the whole thing all the more plausible for me. In other words, the revelation of Christ is just the sort of thing you’d expect from an all-good God.
P: … Well, even God, as Jesus speaks of Him, is not all good: What about hell? What about a God that would send people to hell for some minor infraction like not going to Church? Or even hell for anything!
E: I understand that objection very well and have wrestled with it myself. But, if you don’t mind, I’d like to focus on something else that, without it, makes Jesus’ teaching on hell unintelligible. Then we can talk about hell later, if you’re open to it, over coffee or beer or something. Is that alright?
P: Yeah, that’s fine.
E: Great! May I ask what your understanding is of the Gospel?
P: It’s basically the idea that Jesus died to save us from our sins.
E: That’s a huge part of it, one of the most important parts, in fact! Oftentimes, though, we talk about there being four basic parts to it.
P: Ok, and what are they?
E: Number one: God created us out of love to share His life with us. He has a beautiful plan for each of our lives.
Number two: Sin has entered the world—wrongdoing that separates us from God and prevents us from sharing fully in His life. And, we’re stuck in that sin. We have evil in our hearts, mixed in with the good.
Number three: God sent His eternal Word (His Son) into the world to deliver us from sin so that we can share in God’s divine life and live the beautiful plan He has for us. Jesus Christ is that eternal Word and He has delivered us from sin by His death on the Cross, and His resurrection.
Number four: Through His Church, God now calls all people in the world to repent of their sins, change their lives, and enter into the divine life for which they were made through living according to Christ’s teachings as members of His Church.
P: That is definitely a lot to take in. And I have a bunch of thoughts—and even some objections.
E: Yes, and any one part of that we could dig in deeper and learn about more. Regardless, this Gospel is critical. I once thought to myself that if I came to think that God is real, then I ought to give the Christian message the attention it deserves because if it’s true, then it changes everything and it gives new, amazing meaning to life. I didn’t want a potential opportunity to pass me by.
Therefore, I examined the Gospel very carefully, and became convinced that it is true—even beyond what I expected. As for things like hell and plenty of other things, I found the explanations for which I had been looking [pause]. So, what do you think? Do you want to examine these things further? I’d be happy to help.
P: Yeah. Can we meet up for a beer soon, like you suggested? [E & P exchange contact information & say their goodbyes]