Persuasion is a laudable skill that has fallen on hard times. It has fallen on hard times for two reasons. First, there is a prevalent notion in our society that anything and everything is equally acceptable to do or to believe. In the minds of many, there are no hard and fast truths; no better or worse ways to live. So, to persuade someone of something is tantamount to coercion or manipulation. In fact, I have heard people use persuasion as nearly synonymous (which it is not) with coercion. Persuasion is taught as a desirable skill in debate, logic and oratory classes. It is to convince someone through use of a logical argument. It requires a hefty fee in colleges to take these classes. Coercion is to “force” someone to think or behave in a certain way. These two could not be more distant from one another. The first requires convincing and use of sound reasoning. The second simply requires power.
Second, persuasion has fallen on hard times because the thinking of many people in our culture is muddy and unclear as well as inconsistent and sometimes incomprehensible. Marlene and I cringed while sitting in an airport not too long ago, listening to an enthusiastic young Christian man, who had no “inside voice” and was apparently constrained to use his “outside voice,” explain his faith in God to another in the boarding area. There were dozens of us listening to the conversation. He had an obvious love for Jesus. And, he had obviously read some compelling books or attending some compelling classes that caused him to want to share what he had learned. For thirty minutes he proceeded to offer every thought that had meandered through his mind over the previous months. The thoughts were in no specific order and they were incomprehensible for the most part without even the smallest thread linking the thoughts. He spoke with conviction and passion. His enthusiasm was clear to all of us. He simply lacked the ability to say anything that made sense. His heart was in the right place. His communication was like a Picasso. My point is not to criticize the earnestness of the young man or to question his integrity or valued experience but to point out the indispensible necessity to make sense.
We already live in a world where the art of persuasion is in tough shape. The ones who seem most serious about it are atheists, cult members, moral revisionists and politicians. It should be something that every Christian takes seriously. But, to some Christians it is either a dirty word or an arcane ancient practice. Either way, whatever some are selling, most people aren’t buying. However, this is precisely the most overlooked quality among the many qualities that John the Baptist prophetically possessed. The angel of the Lord spoke to Zechariah, John’s father, and said several things. Most memorable among the angel’s message about John’s personal life qualities were his abstinence of liquor throughout life and his prenatal filling with the Holy Spirit. Most notable among his accomplished activities were his role in turning Israel around and bringing the hearts of fathers and children back together. What is most often neglected, regarding his activities was the unique persuasiveness that he prophetically needed to possess to accomplish his assigned tasks. In the NLT, Luke 1:17 concludes: “he will cause those who are rebellious to accept the wisdom of the godly.” He apparently succeeded (Matthew 3:5-6). People came from all over to hear him and ended up believing something that might not have been the intended reason for their trip.
Oddly, the same is true with Jesus. What drew people to him many times was less about a miracle and more about teaching that had authority all over it (Matthew 7:29; Luke 4:32). It shouldn’t surprise us that the book of Romans has been a text in law schools for the same reason. Paul was most noted, not for his miracles, but for his teaching and logic. The religious leaders thought they could stultify Peter and John. But, found that impossible due to the sound reasoning and convincing works of these unschooled men.
The pattern that runs through the New Testament from John the Baptist to Jesus and on to the disciples is that they had the ability to persuade others of something perhaps foreign to their audience. And it escapes me why that would, in the minds of some, be a bad thing today. I have heard some suggest that we should not persuade, but just tell our own story. Since that is not the only primary way that the good news has been shared throughout the pages of scripture, I don’t see why it would be today.
Those of us who have personally experienced the salvation of Jesus Christ do not need persuasion to believe in God. We are already convinced. It makes sense. Living a life in the Spirit is what shapes us and makes us who we are. But, there are many who are looking for reasonable reasons to believe. Sadly, they often find mind-numbing, either incomprehensibly complex or ridiculously simplistic explanations that either fail to answer any questions or only answer questions that no one is asking. If the angel of the Lord would take the time to suggest that John the Baptist’s second greatest contribution (the first was introducing Jesus to the world, the second was preparing the world for that introduction) would be to help rearrange the thinking of his contemporaries, I think that high value would still remain today.
My prayer for those in the church is that they would learn the truth and think through their own experience in ways that are sensibly persuasive. I would hope that more disciples become more prepared and practiced in sharing the sound truths of the gospel (2 Timothy 2:15). As wonderfully enthusiastic as the young man in the airport was about his faith, he was equally incoherent and ineffective in representing the truth to which we are called. It was a waste of a good outside voice. I would hope that his enthusiasm would be matched a million times over by those who are able to give a reasonable case for the hope that they hold dear (1 Peter 1:15) and in a way (verse 16) that is considerate of the person listening. What a sweet and needed combination in this world. Don't be shy. Persuade on!