While our team was in India June 10-19, we were very stimulated by the sights and the sounds and the smells of this unique culture. One of the sights I will never forget was the abundance of temples and statues that we glimpsed as we motored around the city and countryside. Hindus have hundreds of gods and these gods are venerated by statues and small-to-large temples everywhere. The temples and the statues were quite colorful and the statues themselves were often very unusual. We saw a figure with what looked like a sheet draped over his head and body--kind of like a member of the Ku Klux Klan. We saw another figure with multiple snakes coiling out of his body--and the list goes on. Even the politicians had statues of themselves positioned in urban areas as a means of soliciting votes. It was difficult at times to distinguish between the statue of a politician and that of a Hindu god. I guess that only goes to show that what is true of American politicians is also true of Indian politicians--they can sometimes become confused and think they are god-like. Lord, spare us from politicians, and people, like that.
The sight of all of these idols and temples reminded me of a Scripture passage out of the book of Acts, a passage of Scripture that I shared in one of the churches I preached in while in India. In Acts 17, beginning in verse 16, the Apostle Paul describes his visit to the venerable ancient city of Athens, seat of classical learning and Greek philosophy. While there, Paul was distressed to see that the city was full of idols. Interestingly, however, Paul did not communicate any disgust or disappointment over this situation to the people of Athens. Listen to how the Apostle addressed his hearers in this great Greek city. "Men 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. Now what you worship as something unknown I am going to proclaim to you." (verses 22-23) The Athenians were so afraid of insulting a particular god that they even created an idol for any god they had inadvertently overlooked in their worship.The lesson to be learned from Paul's approach to the Athenians is that it is important to find the best in people even when they are very much in the wrong spiritually. Paul could have condemned these people for their incessant idolatry; instead, he chose to compliment them on their religiosity. How receptive are those with whom we attempt to share the love of Christ when we speak in a judgmental way toward them? Not very! Paul creatively took a real negative and turned it into a positive that he could then use as a launching pad to tell the Greeks about the one true God, Jesus Christ. He even used one of their own idols as a segway to sharing the gospel. Is it possible that we could identify some of the idols worshiped in American culture and use those idols as talking point to lead to sharing our faith? If we are creative and dependent upon the Holy Spirit, I think so. And the people to whom we are speaking will respond to the compassion we show them rather than the condemnation we might be tempted to show.
There were Hindus gathered outside of every church we visited in India, wanting to hear what these white people had to say. Many of the churches had loudspeakers mounted in such a fashion that the whole village could hear what we were saying even if they weren't inside the actual structure of the church. God loves each and every one of these people; he isn't mad at them because they don't believe in Him and His Word. We, therefore, should never be tempted to anger toward those who disagree with us spiritually. Rather, let's pray that the Lord will show us creative ways to tell them about Jesus in a manner that affirms our respect for them and their value in the eyes of the Lord. I am convinced that this approach is the way that we can honor the Lord as we relate to people of other faiths.
There were Hindus and plenty of temples in Fiji, and it's hard to believe that the Hindus choose a god from their local convience store and worship them not having any full understanding. I found myself sharing the gospel with my brother and as he tried to elaborate on what he believed, throwing out the word 'Hinduism' and 'reincarnation,' I got pretty frustrated just trying to explain and let him know about hinduism, and clarifying for him what it meant to be a Christian and to bare a cross necklace. And there were plenty of times witnessing where I would get so anxious about the Truth that I would ask the Holy Spirit to 'quiet this person's soul so they may listen.'
Its about being patient. Listening to people. Gaining respect without arguing or putting down. But to be encouraging to others yet knowing that there is only one truth. It may take time for people to listen, but all we have is time. We are but a small piece in God's plan. We should take this example from Paul and encourage God's people. In God's plan. In God's timing.
