First-time visitor came up to me after church last night and said, ‘I have a question, but I hope it’s not offensive.’ Okay… ‘Why would you say that all people are sinners?’ He was relieved that his question was welcome, not offensive. Guy thought he was going to offend me by not agreeing completely with the message I had just preached.
This is an interesting phenomenon when working in a place where most people have never been to church before. Many people assume – for logical reasons – that church services are attended exclusively by people who subscribe to the Christian faith. So they fear questions or doubts might be unwelcome strangers to a Christian church service.
I’ve seen this keep lots of people I’ve invited from coming to church for the first time. They don’t have a spot in their brain for ‘someone who attends a Christian church service but does not yet believe on Christ.’ If they go, that would mean they were seriously interested in the faith, or ready to submit to the teachings of the church.
I understand that this certainly happens in more ‘churched’ countries as well, but it is definitely more common in a place where the average person’s never been to church before. I think the challenge for churches here is to 1) somehow let people know that they’re welcome to come check out church without joining up, and 2) make it clear at every church service that questions are welcomed and even encouraged.
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The Gospel in China 
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