But when Paul perceived that the one part were Sadducees, and the other Pharisees, he cried out in the council, Men and brethren, I am a Pharisee, the son of a Pharisee: of the hope and resurrection of the dead I am called in question. Acts 23:6
One of the missionaries in Central America was giving a report on the work, including the different types of people who he encountered. He found it almost impossible to raise any interest in the Gospel among people with no religious affiliation, and it was totally impossible to witness to people who had come under the influence of the cults, or who were members of various Protestant denominations. Most of these people were openly antagonistic to the truth of the Scriptures. The easiest people to approach, he found, were people who were at least partially active in the Roman Catholic faith. These people, he found, had a measure of understanding about God, had a reverential fear of God, and had an appreciation for the Bible. By approaching these people on the basis of what he shared with them, he was able to witness to them of the truth. He had much error to refute concerning the RC doctrine and practices, but at least he had a toehold that he could work with when presenting the Gospel to them. This is what Paul used as he encountered the angry Jewish mob in Jerusalem in today’s text. It is also a wise method of dealing with people we want to reach with the Gospel.
Although he had left behind his religious ties to the Pharisees in Jerusalem, Paul could still relate to some of the things that they believed. Unlike the Sadducees, the Pharisees – and Paul – believed in the resurrection from the dead and in the reality of the human spirit. As he made his declaration, Paul greatly reduced the animosity that the Pharisees in the crowd had against him. As a result, the crowd was split and the chief captain stepped in to make sure that Paul was safe. The Pharisees no longer had any issue with Paul, because they could relate with some of the things that he believed. When we speak with people around us about the Gospel, we will find many of them have false views of God and the Scriptures. But in many of them, we will be able to find some common ground. And like Paul we should be able to use that common ground to testify for our Lord.
If we try hard enough, there are probably areas in which we can find common ground with almost everybody. With the religious people, we share a desire to please God. With sceptics, we share a disgust with religion and with hypocrites. With the atheists and the scorners, well, I am not sure about that one but we might find something. Whatever the case, we are people with many of the same problems and concerns and experiences as so many others. And God intends that we use those things to be a witness for Him.
Sometimes, we are driven to stay away from some people because they are so different from ourselves. But God wishes that we should approach them with the Gospel, because we are – or were – so much like them in more ways than we realize. -Jim MacIntosh