An impossible task

Evangelism is hard. As missionaries, we have the challenging task of proclaiming the gospel to a lost nation.

I have been working in Japan as a missionary for seven years, and it still terrifies me every time I share God’s Word with people. The God of the Bible is so contrary to Japanese thinking and so foreign to their worldview. They are taught evolution from a young age. They view religion as irrational and contradictory to science. Traditional Japanese religions, with their belief in eight million gods, are deeply entrenched in their traditions and community life, especially in rural areas. There is much suspicion towards non-Japanese religions due to the impact of cults. The barriers are countless. No wonder sharing the gospel often feels like pushing against an immovable wall.

I have been meeting with three non-Christian friends to practise English and to read the Bible every other week. Even though I am a missionary and I love spending time with my friends, I confess that I dread the Bible time. I dread the polite silences—“I don’t know what to say. It all seems unreal”—the subtle ridicule in the tone of their voice which seems to suggest, “Are you really in your right mind to believe all this stuff?” and their outright dismissals—“This is no different to the Japanese mythologies.” I am constantly tempted to be ashamed of what I believe in.

One evening, we were discussing the story of Noah.

I typically begin discussion with the question, “What did you think of the story? Do you have any questions?”

By then, these friends were quite comfortable in expressing their views, and it did not take long before there was a lively and heated discussion.

“Well, to be honest, I feel that God was a bit harsh and unreasonable to destroy everyone and everything.”

“Yeah, what about the innocent babies?”

“And the animals. What wrong had they done?”

“And didn’t God create everything including human beings? (We had recently read about creation.) How is this any different to parents killing their children because they had disobeyed or didn’t meet their expectations?”

As I listened, many thoughts and counterarguments began to churn in my mind. My instinct was to argue back, present my case, and insist on the credibility of my view. Instead, I replied, “Sure. I can see your point.” It was all I could do to keep a check on myself and to acknowledge their opinions.

At one point during the discussion, Yumi paused and asked, “What do you think? Actually, I’m curious to know what you think about it as a Christian.”

The three of them looked at me.

I was caught off guard. My heartbeat quickened as I offered a quick prayer: Lord, give me the words to say. I took a deep breath, then proceeded to explain my view with faltering words.

“Well, as we read previously, I believe that God made everything, including us. He rules over the world and gives us life and all that we need. Consequently, he deserves our respect and obedience.” I paused to see their response. They were expressionless, so I continued, “When we don’t acknowledge him as God or obey him, we deserve his punishment. In fact, if God had completely destroyed everything, he would have done right, and we could not have complained.”

Proclaiming the gospel is not merely a matter of transmitting words (although that is important). There is so much going on beneath the surface. It is a clash of worldviews. It is an attack on human independence and idolatry of self. It is an invasion into satanic forces and rule. No wonder we are met by so much resistance. And we must also deal with our own pride and inadequacies.

After responding to Yumi’s question, I paused. I had no idea how much of it they had understood.

“I get it.”

Yumi’s response caught me by surprise.

“Now I understand that your response and interpretation is different to ours because your view of God is different. For us Japanese, God is not involved in our everyday life. We might pay a visit to the temple once or twice a year. Otherwise, we just turn to our gods when we are desperate for help. But for you, God is a great and an absolute being. And he is relevant to your everyday life.”

I breathed out in amazement, thinking, Wow. She’s hit the nail on the head. Yumi could not have understood as much had it not been revealed by the Spirit.

As missionaries, we have an impossible task, but we have a God and Saviour for whom nothing is impossible. As Paul wrote, “Not that we are competent in ourselves . . . but our competence comes from God” (2 Cor. 3:5 NIV).

God has promised that as his Word goes out, it will accomplish the purpose for which he sent it (Is. 55:11). Even though we may fail, God’s Word does not. The seeds of the gospel will bear fruit in time—whether people are saved or not, whether conversion takes five, ten, or fifty years. That is not for us to say.

We are nothing more than broken vessels, but God in his mercy has chosen to reveal the glorious gospel of his perfect son through our brokenness, therefore we do not lose heart.

“What I really appreciate about you is that you listen and acknowledge views that are different to yours,” Yumi said. I felt ashamed. Even during that evening, I could think of multiple times I failed to listen, spoke too quickly, and tried to insist on sharing my views with them. I was humbled and praised God that he had used me despite my pride and inadequacies.

Photo by Mirei Kondō