Common Ground

Tuesday, September 24th
Common Ground
By: Chrissy Cooney

Have you noticed?
Our world today is polarized. A discussion about almost any topic can lead to raised voices, angry tones, or worse. If you are for one side, you must be against the other. If you love something, you must hate all those that feel differently.

Can I ask you a challenging question? How are you sharing the gospel in this heated up, boiling over, polarized world?  How are you making room to show and share the love of Jesus with those around you?
 
One way that Paul shared the gospel was by finding common ground. In Athens, Paul was distressed by the idolatry he saw in every direction. Have you ever looked around at our culture and felt the same way? Paul knew the people needed Jesus more than anything else. Acts 17:22-23 says that he approached the conversation in this way, “Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said: “People of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious. For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: to an unknown god. So you are ignorant of the very thing you worship—and this is what I am going to proclaim to you.”

Did he stand up and tell them how wrong they were? No. Did he talk about Messianic prophecy while standing in a group of gentiles? Definitely not. He read the room. He saw the need to share the gospel and found the common ground.

If you pay attention, God will show it to you also.  That entry point into your neighbor, or coworker, or family member’s world view. That common ground that will open their ears to your words as you share Jesus.