Reading an encounter between Jesus and someone: learning to approach
If you want to learn to talk about Jesus, look at how Jesus talked to people. The Gospels contain about ten detailed encounters: a woman at a well, a tax collector, a blind man, a religious leader who came by night. This quest invites you to read one and to observe his way of approaching someone.
What it looks like in your day
Here are a few encounters to read:
- The Samaritan woman (John 4:1-42): he begins with a simple "Give me to drink."
- Zacchaeus (Luke 19:1-10): he calls him by name and invites himself to his house.
- Nicodemus (John 3:1-21): a conversation by night, without pressure.
- Bartimaeus (Mark 10:46-52): he stops and asks a question.
- The disciples on the road to Emmaus (Luke 24:13-35): he walks with them and listens.
Read the encounter, then ask yourself four questions:
- How does Jesus approach the person? Through a need, a gesture, a question?
- What does he listen to? How does he react to what they say?
- What does he offer them? A truth, a forgiveness, an invitation, time?
- How is the person transformed? Immediately or gradually?
Then write one sentence: "What I take from the way Jesus approaches this person: ..."
If you are in a hurry, read only ten verses of an encounter. If you are a beginner, start with Zacchaeus, a short and lively story. If you are shy at the idea of talking about your faith, this reading shows you that you can begin without a speech.
What the Bible says
The encounter with the Samaritan woman begins with the simplest thing in the world:
“There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith unto her, Give me to drink. (For his disciples were gone away unto the city to buy meat.) Then saith the woman of Samaria unto him, How is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria? for the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans. Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water.”
Jesus doesn't begin with a lesson: he asks for a favor. He shows himself vulnerable, he is thirsty. And little by little, the conversation moves toward what really matters. In the story of Zacchaeus, what overwhelms the man is being called by name, before any demand (Luke 19:5-6). And Jesus sums up his mission in one sentence:
“For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.”
"To seek and to save that which was lost": the verb "seek" speaks of initiative, perseverance, closeness.
Pitfalls to avoid
Imitating to the letter. Jesus knows people's hearts, which we cannot. We cannot say to someone: "You have had five husbands." Learn from his attitude (listening, respect, patience), not from his powers.
Forgetting the context. Each encounter is unique. There is no universal method. Jesus adapts his way to each person.
Looking for a technique. These accounts are not a four-step evangelism manual. They reveal a heart: that of someone who loves before convincing.
Reducing it to a moral model. Jesus is not only an example: he is the Savior. When you read, let yourself also be met by him, not just learn to resemble him.
Missing the details. In these accounts, small gestures count: he sits down, he looks up, he asks. Notice them.
Today, choose an encounter. Read it, spot three things Jesus does, and pray to learn to approach someone as he does.