Be Ready to Give An Answer for Your Faith

1 Peter 3:15-16

This is a tough one to talk about. When I started this blog, I started with the idea that Christianity in the workplace had to be about more than just proselytizing. I think when many people think about any religion in the workplace, negative stereotypes of "Bible-bangers" come to mind, people who distract from the process of "work" in order to convince coworkers to become Christians. And I think Christianity in the workplace is much more than that.

However, it has to include that as well. 1 Peter 3 says to be ready to give an answer for your faith. The Greek word there includes the same connotations that accompany a company's defense in the face of a PR attack. You are giving a defense of why you believe what you believe. I don't think that means cramming it down coworkers' throats. But it does mean that, if someone asks you what you believe, you are ready to share. I remember talking with a coworker from another faith one time. He shared a great deal about his religion, and then asked what Christians believe about a particular subject. I knew what I'd been taught. I knew what I thought the Bible said about that subject. But I admit that I really stammered when it came to explaining it. I took a very politically correct stand rather than explaining what I believed. And that coworker, a new convert to a non-Christian faith, continued to mover further away from Christ. We never know when those opportunities will come, so Peter tells us to be always ready.

But there's another aspect to this idea of a defense of our faith. Peter explains that this should never be a shouting match. Our answers should be filled with "gentleness and respect." Very rarely will shouting persuade anyone. As you talk with others, even when they are not respectful, respond with tact.