incarnational evangelism

We do not follow in the footsteps of Jesus if
we develop a ghetto mentality, if we withdraw
from the world into our evangelical
monasteries (though we do not call them
that, and they have no walls)... What we
are called to is not “arm’s length evangelism,”
but “incarnational evangelism.”
This means that we have to listen before
we speak, for, “if one gives answer before
he hears, it is his folly and shame”
(Proverbs 18:13). We have to struggle to
enter the other person’s thought world,
however alien it may be to our own... We
have to respect his integrity as a person,
and his convictions, however contrary they
may seem to us to be. In a word, we must
feel the pain of his alienation and weep
the tears of his lostness, just as
Jesus wept over the blind folly
of Jerusalem’s impenitence.

quote 2: There was no aloofness about Jesus. He
never kept his distance, even from sinners.
He did not share the Pharisees’ false fear
of contamination. He fraternized with
dropouts and was criticized for it. “This
man receives sinners and eats with them,”
people scoffed. “Friend of swindlers and
sinners, that’s what he is,” they sneered.
They hoped to ruin his reputation by this
whispering campaign, but they succeeded
only in enhancing it. The nickname they
thought dishonorable was one of supreme
honor. If Jesus were not the friend of sinners,
he could be no friend of mine—or
yours. So he touched untouchable lepers
and allowed prostitutes to touch him. He
shrank from nobody. He offered friendship,
understanding, acceptance, love.
--both of these are from John Stott's essay: "The LORD Christ is a Missionary Christ"