“Jesus said, ‘If you hold to My teaching, you are really My disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.'” – John 8:31-32, NIV
Are you struggling to share your faith with skeptics? Learn practical ways to reach hearts—no matter how tough the questions get. Some conversations can change everything—especially when we understand the two types of skeptics and what it means about the readiness of their hearts. Today, we’ll talk about an example of a dishonest skeptic. Stay tuned next week for more on how to converse with honest skeptics.
Weekly Challenge:
Try having a genuine conversation with someone who holds different beliefs. Listen closely, ask questions with genuine curiosity, and focus on understanding their perspective—rather than convincing them. Notice how your approach changes when you seek to connect first.
For those who prefer to read instead of watch, you’ll also find the video transcript below.
Video Transcript:
What I’m going to be sharing with you this morning is techniques on how to share with people who are struggling with understanding who God is and so on and so forth.
Now, there are two different types of skeptics:
- The honest skeptic
- The dishonest skeptic
An honest skeptic, if you prove it to them, jumps in headfirst. A dishonest skeptic, it doesn’t matter if you prove it to them—they’re going to the next question. Many of us have come across those types of people.
One time, I was in a room with a bunch of youth pastors up in Michigan. It was a big conference with about 1,500 students. I was talking to the youth pastor, having a great meeting, teaching them some stuff. Then, one of the top youth pastors in the conference came in with this kid who had grunge hair, spiked all the way back, painted purple, and piercings all over his body. I mean, it was intense.
They said, “Can you help this guy?” I said, “Sure. What’s the problem?” He replied, “He’s an atheist.”
I said, “Let me see what kind of atheist he is first.” I had a pencil in my hand. I said, “I could prove to you that this is a pencil.”
The kid leans back in his seat and says, “I don’t think you can prove anything to me.”
I stood up and started walking out of the room. I had the door open and was halfway out when the youth pastor said, “Where are you going?”
I turned around and said, “I can’t help him.”
He asked, “Why not?” I said, “What do you think this is?”
The youth pastor replied, “It’s a pencil.”
Everyone in the room: pencil, pencil, pencil, pencil, pencil, pencil.
The kid had stepped outside of the parameters we call reality. “He’s insane. I can’t help him. I can’t prove anything; he’s insane.”
I started walking out the door, and the kid said, “All right, it’s a pencil.”
Twenty minutes later, the kid was sobbing and gave his life to Christ.