I've recently become involved in discipling a new convert who has almost no church foundation. It has really been a stretch for me to begin at an elementary enough level to really give him the foundations he needs to take off on his spiritual journey. Many of our church jargon has no meaning to those outside the church. Some of them are even alarming to the unindoctrinated. Telling someone to come to the cross and be washed in the blood of the lamb seems like so much jibberish to someone who has never learned the significance of the cross, or the imagery of the perfect sacrificial atonement for our sins.
It causes me to think before I say anything and I wonder if he has sufficient background to understand what I am telling him. Where do I start? If I quote from the Bible, does he understand that the Bible is the infallible Word of God? Or does he think of it as only an ancient book of wisdom similar to other ancient writings?
Does he have an adequate concept of sin and his need of a savior? He has made a commitment to Christ so I know the Holy Spirit is moving in his life. (See all of the Christian phrases I used?)
I'm looking forward to progressing on this path. We should all be thinking, "How can I make something with eternal consequences easily explainable?
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