Shifting The Curve

What is the goal of Christians living in a fallen world? Jesus called us to make disciples and I believe that means intentionally helping people grow closer and closer to the image of Christ. For the zealous hater of Christians that may mean helping him hate a little less violently. For the devout saint it may mean encouraging her in her walk with her Lord. As C.S. Lewis said, our encounters aren’t neutral. Either we are pushing them toward a more loving relationship with other people and with God or we are pushing them toward self-interest, avarice and Satan. The choice is pretty clear cut.

Transformational business tries to move people closer to God. We do that through our relationships with employees, customers, suppliers, service people and everyone we encounter every day. Business is built on relationships with human beings. And human beings are curious. They watch and they think and then they draw conclusions. If our lives are given over to the kingdom of Jesus then when people work with us and watch us they’ll see something appealing. And that moves them closer to Jesus.

Imagine a simple bell curve that has a scale along the bottom (X axis) that moves from antagonistic to the Gospel on the far left toward mature, Christ-likeness on the far right and someone who’s right at the point of choosing to follow Jesus at the centre, or Zero. Now plot the number of people in the local society along the side (Y axis). If you were to draw this graph in most European countries you’d find a bell curve shifted somewhat to the left, reflecting that the majority are not Christians, but are not really antagonistic to the gospel. Mostly just not interested. In America’s Bible Belt you might find the same curve shifted slightly to the right, reflecting a society that has a lot of people who at least call themselves believing Christians.

I’m afraid in Turkey you would find a curve that is severely shifted to the left with just a small bit of the tail crossing the Zero point in the centre. This reflects the historic antipathy the society here has toward Christians. The vast majority have a negative view of Christians and only a small percentage would be interested in learning anything more about Jesus. Of the majority ethnic Turkish population, only 0.005% have become Christians. Statistically, the number is insignificant. We just passed the third anniversary of the murders of the Protestant Christians in Malatya and in January we remembered the killing of Armenian journalist Hrant Dink. These are painful reminders of just how far to the left our curve is skewed in this country.

Our goal is to shift the curve. We want to see those who are antagonistic become less antagonistic. We want to see those who are warm to the idea of Jesus come to the point of making a decision to follow him. And we want to see those who have made that decision grow in their faith and character, so that society is blessed by their presence. That’s what transformation is really about: shifting the curve.

In a country like Turkey direct verbal proclamation and evangelism can be effective for a small part of society. It’s important to try to find them and internet, radio and television are providing some great means to help open minded people hear the good news. For the vast majority of the population, however, direct proclamation is seen as propaganda and is negative. It hardens them. In fact, it can have the effect of shifting the curve the wrong way! This is why business is such a powerful tool for positive transformation. It allows faithful followers of Jesus to live among people. It allows people’s natural curiosity to work. Our employees gossip about us. Our suppliers share stories. Our customers learn to respect our values. They see honesty and integrity and most people respond positively. And then, over time, the curve shifts just a little. Then a little more. And we start to sense that things aren’t frozen forever. Even in Turkey, the light can shine.

In 2 Corinthians Paul says we reflect the glory of Jesus and that we do it with unveiled faces. I think this is a call to live in the world, among those who hate us and to live there unashamed of who we are - in all of our daily endeavours we are followers of Jesus. We reflect the Lord’s glory through our lives when we live sacrificial and loving lives. And this is the testimony that opens people to transformation by God’s spirit. So get out there and take your veils off – and watch the curve shift!