Evangelism at the Dawn of Narnia
Sharing our faith is really an invitation to live out a royal identity.
In The Magician’s Nephew, a seemingly random set of circumstances pulls an unsuspecting London cabby into a newly created world.
Despite going from the cobblestone city streets to a new, lush world with animals literally bursting from the grassy plains, the cabby takes it all in stride. He maintains his cool and comforts the others who have also been caught up in this magical adventure.
As readers, we see the cabby as a hardworking blue-collar man who admits he doesn’t have much education, but we know he’s a good and kind man by the way he treats his horse and those around him.
Aslan, the lion who sang this world into existence, begins to talk with the cabby and asks how he likes this new world. Much like the cabby, readers may wonder what exactly is going on. And, we may be as shocked as he is when Aslan declares to him and his wife: “You are to be the first king and queen of Narnia.”
But as Aslan asks more questions of the cabby, readers realize he is the perfect man for the role. His entire life has been preparing him. He only needed the right person to call him and give him the opportunity to live out his identity.
In a sense, this is the Christian call of evangelism. As God’s ambassadors, we are inviting people to discover and live in their true identity as children of our Creator King.
This can help us keep a better perspective on sharing our faith, since more than 2 in 5 U.S. Christians (42%) say sharing with a non-Christian how to become a Christian is scary, according to a Lifeway Research study.
We may imagine the worst possible responses from those we may share with. We may think they could violently reject us or, at the very least, think about how weird we are.
It can seem a difficult task to call someone to change all they’ve understood about life and after. This may be why around half of Christians (52%) believe encouraging someone to change their religious beliefs is offensive and disrespectful.
But Aslan led the cabby to change his beliefs. It wasn’t offensive. In fact, it was the most uplifting thing that could ever be done.
Frank was living a hard life as a cabby, but his true calling was to be a king. While he may not have felt qualified, who would want to turn down kingship to remain a cabby?
The Great Commission that Jesus left with His disciples is the call to help people step into their true, royal purpose. That’s something everyone, regardless of their religious persuasion, is seeking.
Even among the non-religious, many acknowledge a yearning for purpose. Most religiously unaffiliated Americans (55%) believe there is an ultimate purpose and plan for every person’s life, according to a Lifeway Research study. And almost 3 in 5 (58%) say finding that deeper purpose for themselves is a major priority in their lives.
Additionally, 2 in 3 (65%) believe there is a fullness to life that transcends the ordinary. Slightly more say there is a source of wholeness in life that they want to find (68%) and that there must be something more to life than what they’ve found so far (69%).
Like Frank, they do not realize their royal calling. Evangelism begins with pointing them to that calling.
That’s not all evangelism entails. Even when Aslan spoke to Frank, he told him about the sacrificial leadership he must practice as king.
Evangelism begins with the truth that we aren’t living out our calling and identity because of our own sinful choices. But it doesn’t stay there. It gives us resurrection hope and the shocking truth of who we are.
As Frank drove his cab across the streets of London, he had no idea he was born to be a king. As God brings people into our path, many have no idea they were born as children of the King.
They may not all respond to their true identity as immediately as Frank did, but evangelism gives us the privilege of delivering this good news to as many as will listen.
As Aslan tells the newly crowned Frank, “Be just and merciful and brave. The blessing is upon you.”
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Amen to that, brother!