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So, I got this DM from an evangelical Christian. I’m going to share my answer in a thread because I actually get this question fairly regularly and I think it’s worth discussing. 🧵

First of all, I am a Christian because I choose to be. It should always be a choice. I believe in Jesus Christ as the Way to live, the Truth of who God is and what humanity is called to be, and the Life that brings it all together. He is a way of being fully human, revealing the image of God.

I’m not against “promoting my faith” at all. I am against the way so many Christians do it. I see faith as a well that I draw water from. I am more than happy to tell others who are thirsty and who ask “where to find water” about this well. That, I believe, is Jesus' expectation of his followers.

He does not ask us to bottle the water, slap a price tag on it, and develop an aggressive marketing campaign to convince others to purchase our product. “You have received freely, give freely” he said. “If they do not receive you, shake the dust from your feet and move on” he also said.

As a Christian and as an ordained minister, I am called to be a shepherd, not a salesman. True faith is a lighthouse, not a neon billboard; it draws people through consistency and warmth; it doesn’t scream through a megaphone. It attracts through magnetism. It doesn’t compel through force.

If a religion is only worth "bothering" with for aggressive self-promotion, it’s a product, not faith. You aren't sharing the free gift of grace; you're just accumulating points for a Heaven Club Card. If your audience has to be “captive” to hear your preaching, then you aren’t preaching freedom.

True evangelism asks "what do I have that I can I give to meet your stated need?” not "how can I use your need to get something from you?" (your conversion, membership, money). Grace is a gift. It must be freely offered and freely received. It can’t be forced. Otherwise it isn’t grace but grift.

If you have to legislate faith through political force, or compel people with guilt, shame, or fear—are you not admitting that Christ and his Gospel are not compelling enough on their own? The drive for dominance turned the Great Commission into colonialism and God’s kingdom into a human empire.

Jesus didn’t ask us to be powerful or successful. HE would provide the power and grant the success. All he asked us to be was to faithful - which means to be as he was: loving, merciful, humble, forgiving and of service to others.

Finally as an aside, I really dislike the term "man of the cloth." It's outdated, with most people, including those who use it, not understanding what it means. More importantly, it excludes thousands of faithful women who are clergy and my colleagues. Thank you for asking the question.