The One Step Program
In this article, Pastor Darren Stott explains what separates Christianity from every other religion. While most religions teach that people must reach God through effort, morality, discipline, and spiritual achievement, the gospel tells a completely different story: God reached us first through Jesus Christ. Drawing from Romans 10 and Ephesians 2, Pastor Darren shows that salvation is not earned but received as a gift of grace. He also challenges believers to remember that the seed of the gospel must be planted if there is to be a harvest, reminding readers that the message of Christianity is not about climbing a ladder to God—but receiving the rescue He has already provided.
What Separates Christianity From Every Other Religion
Every religion has a staircase.
Some are made of discipline.
Some are made of rituals.
Some are made of morality, enlightenment, or spiritual achievement.
But they all share the same architecture.
Climb.
Climb higher.
Climb better.
Climb longer than everyone else.
If you climb well enough, maybe—just maybe—you’ll reach God.
Christianity doesn’t build a staircase.
It tells the story of a rescue.
The Problem With Ladders
Religion assumes something about the human condition.
It assumes you’re capable of climbing.
Maybe you slipped.
Maybe you lost your footing.
Maybe you need a little improvement.
But with the right effort, the right practices, and the right discipline, you can make your way upward.
Religion says:
You reach God.
Through effort.
Through morality.
Through discipline.
Through spiritual achievement.
In that system, salvation is earned.
The ladder belongs to you.
The Gospel Starts Somewhere Else
The gospel begins with a much less flattering diagnosis.
Not injured.
Not confused.
Dead.
Paul writes in Ephesians 2:
“And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked…”
Dead people don’t climb.
Dead people don’t improve themselves.
Dead people need something far more dramatic.
They need resurrection.
And that’s exactly what the gospel announces.
“But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us… even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved.” (Ephesians 2:4–5)
Religion says climb.
The gospel says God came down.
The One Step Program
This is where Christianity becomes radically different from every other belief system.
The step isn’t climb.
The step is receive.
Paul explains it clearly:
“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God.” (Ephesians 2:8)
A gift.
Not a wage.
Not a reward.
Not the final step of a long climb.
A gift is something you don’t earn.
A gift is something you receive.
Why This Matters for Evangelism
Sometimes Christians do many beautiful things.
They pray for people.
They heal the sick.
They offer prophetic encouragement.
They take risks to show God’s love.
And all of that matters.
But sometimes there’s no harvest.
Why?
Because you can’t harvest if you never planted the seed.
The seed is the gospel.
The water is the presence of God.
The harvest is the ask.
Paul writes in Romans 10:
“How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard?”
Without the seed of the gospel, there is nothing to harvest.
People don’t just need an encounter.
They need the message.
The Message
The message of Christianity isn’t advice.
It’s news.
News that:
Salvation is not about your goodness; it’s about God’s grace.
Forgiveness is not about what you deserve; it’s about the gift God gives.
Religion says achieve.
The gospel says receive.
And that single step changes everything.
Because when the gift is received, the climb is over.
The rescue has already happened.
Stop Chasing People. Be A Lighthouse.
In this blog, Pastor Darren Stott reframes evangelism through a powerful metaphor: Christians are not called to chase people like rescuers in boats, but to shine like lighthouses in a storm.
God is already at work in people’s lives. Our role is simply to enter the story God is already writing and help others recognize the hope found in Jesus.
Rather than forcing conversations or winning arguments, believers are invited to live visibly with the light of Christ—offering simple moments of courage, kindness, and prayer that illuminate the good news.
Matthew 5:16 - “In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”
Evangelism has a branding problem.
Say the word and people imagine scripts, pressure, awkward conversations at the worst possible moment. It feels like chasing people who aren’t interested.
But the original idea wasn’t like that at all.
Evangelism simply means announcing good news.
Somewhere along the way we turned it into chasing ships.
But lighthouses don’t chase ships.
They don’t get in boats.
They don’t argue with captains.
They don’t shout into the wind.
They stand where they are and shine.
And when the storm comes, ships look for the light.
That’s closer to what sharing your faith actually is.
Most people aren’t resisting God.
Most people are navigating fog.
They’re tired. Confused. Carrying shame they don’t know how to name. Fighting battles they don’t have language for. They know something is wrong, but they can’t see the rocks yet.
So they keep sailing.
And sometimes they keep crashing.
Christians often think their job is to rescue the ship.
It isn’t.
You’re not the Coast Guard.
You’re the lighthouse keeper.
Your job is simpler than you think.
Keep the light on.
That might look like kindness when someone expects indifference.
It might look like courage in a conversation that suddenly matters more than you expected.
It might look like asking a question that opens a door.
It might even look like praying for someone when you feel slightly ridiculous doing it.
The light doesn’t have to be complicated.
It just has to be visible.
Jesus understood this.
He rarely chased crowds. Instead, he stepped into moments that were already unfolding.
A well in the middle of the day.
A tree along a road.
A fishing boat.
A dinner table.
People thought they were running errands.
But heaven had scheduled an interruption.
The woman at the well came for water.
Jesus showed her thirst.
And suddenly the story changed.
That’s the quiet secret about sharing your faith.
You’re not starting the story.
You’re entering one.
God is already at work in the lives of the people around you. Long before you arrive. Long before you say a word.
They’re asking questions.
Feeling restless.
Running into walls they don’t understand.
Your role isn’t to start the story.
Your role is to help them read the chapter they’re already in.
Christians worry about being awkward.
But people in storms don’t complain about lighthouses.
When the waves are high and the fog is thick, obvious light is welcome.
You can explain the lighthouse.
Or you can turn it on.
Jesus almost always chose the second option.
He healed people.
He forgave people.
He delivered people.
He saw people.
And suddenly the explanation made sense.
Because the gospel isn’t just information.
It’s illumination.
Isaiah had a moment like this.
He encountered God. Saw holiness. Felt his own brokenness. And then he heard a question.
Whom shall I send?
Not who is qualified.
Not who has perfect theology.
Just who will go.
Isaiah answered the way lighthouse keepers always do.
Here I am.
Send me.
You don’t need to save the ocean.
Just keep the light on.
One conversation.
One prayer.
One interruption you stop resisting.
Because somewhere nearby someone is sailing through fog.
And they don’t need a speech.
They need light.