Seeker, Skeptic, Scoffer, Scorner
A few minutes before dinnertime, I answered the phone. “Shalom.”
“Yeah, so what do you think about…?”
No “hello.” No “how are you?”
“Oh hi, Doc.” I see the resigned look on my wife’s face. I’m going to be on the phone awhile….
It’s 1977 and Lori and I are still relative newbies: in our second year of marriage and still adjusting to our first field of service, Miami/Miami Beach, Florida. Finding Jewish people who didn’t yet believe in Jesus but were willing to discuss Him was a challenge. So, when a Jewish man called me to ask questions, I was delighted.
In his first call he introduced himself as “Doc Brown” and said he was interested in discussing religion. I was eager to dialogue about biblical truth. This would be a great opportunity for presenting the love of Messiah – and he was calling me!
And call me he did – at least weekly, usually around suppertime. And the calls weren’t short. Doc had a wide range of interests. He asked my opinion of televangelists he watched. When something negative about a church or pastor was in the news, he’d bring it up. When I’d try to weave the gospel into the conversation, he’d listen for a moment then find a way to deflect to another subject.
I was frustrated we didn’t seem to be making progress toward Doc discerning his need of a Savior. Lori was frustrated I was spending time listening to this guy pontificate on whatever topic he brought up. “Why does he always call when dinner is ready? I think you’re his hobby.”
“But he keeps calling… and he doesn’t know the Lord. And we’ve got people praying for his salvation.”
So, when Doc Brown called again, I prayed this might be the conversation that would open his eyes to the need of a Savior. But as usual, it turned into a harangue about what was wrong with the world, religion, and Christianity in particular.
One evening, I determined to confront his cavalier attitude. “Doc, I know you don’t yet believe this, but one day you’re going to meet Jesus face to face and acknowledge that He is the Son of God. ‘Every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of the Father.’”
“Yeah, well, when I see Jesus I’m going to tell him, ‘Kiss my feet.’”
I was horrified. The truth became abundantly clear: Doc was not a seeker of truth; he was a scoffer.
I needed wise counsel. I made an appointment with my pastor, Burge Troxel, and poured out my frustration. “This guy named Doc Brown keeps calling me to talk. I really care for this man’s soul but I see no progress with the gospel. Despite my many hours invested in listening, dialoguing, and praying, Doc remains indifferent at best and rejecting at worst. Lori is frustrated and says I’m his hobby.”
Burge listened. Soon, he interjected: “His name is not Doc Brown.”
I was confused. “What do you mean? That’s how he introduced himself.”
“His name is not Doc Brown; it’s *Marvin Asherman.”
“How do you know that?”
“Because I’ve met him. He called me some months ago and said he wanted to talk. I told him I’d be glad to talk with him, but in person, not on the phone. So, we met. He works over at the pharmacy; he’s not a doctor. And he’s not interested in believing in Jesus. He’s wasting your time."
I was dumbfounded. “Doc had called my pastor? Who else is he calling? He’s not a doctor? His name isn’t even ‘Brown’? I’ve been wasting all this time…?”
I didn’t wait for “Doc’s” next call. Lori had a prescription that needed a refill. I drove to the pharmacy, stepped up to the counter, and read the name on the license certificate: Marvin Asherman.
I asked the late-middle-aged man behind the counter, “Is Marvin here?”
“Who’s asking?”
I recognized the voice immediately. I didn’t say a word, just handed him the prescription. He read Lori’s name and his face and demeanor instantly changed. “Hello, Wes. Just a minute.”
He didn’t ask, “How did you find me?” He just efficiently filled the prescription, took my payment, turned, and walked away.
Marvin never called me again. The fun had been removed from his hobby once his true identity was revealed. We continued to pray the Lord would remove the spiritual blinders from his eyes and turn him into a genuine seeker of truth.
Over the years, we’ve encountered individuals in various stages of their spiritual journey. Categorizing people has its own set of challenges; only God truly knows the thoughts and intents of the heart. Our purpose is not to judge, but to discern how best to respond to each. Here is a comparative overview of four types of people and their responses to biblical truth, beginning with core motivation and identifying markers:
Comparative Overview of Responses to Biblical Truth
| Category | Core Motivation | Markers |
|---|---|---|
| Seeker | Genuine desire for understanding & transformation | Asks deep, sincere questions; listens humbly & responds to truth |
| Skeptic | Requires evidence, logical consistency | Withholds belief until convincing proof or "touchable" evidence is provided |
| Scoffer | Cynical or performative rejection of gospel truth | Uses ridicule, sarcasm, and parody to make the truth look absurd |
| Scorner | Repudiates & actively opposes gospel truth | Arrogant sense of moral or intellectual superiority; attacks in social media, at worst engages in violence |
Now let’s examine the key differences in each category and look at examples in Scripture:
| Category | Key Difference | Biblical Examples |
|---|---|---|
| Seeker | Seeks truth for the sake of following it | Nicodemus: John 3 Ethiopian eunuch: Acts 8 |
| Skeptic | Willing to believe, but requires a high threshold of verification | Samaritan woman: John 4 Thomas: John 20 |
| Scoffer | Attacks the validity of the message to avoid accountability | Unrepentant thief: Luke 23 Roman soldiers: Matthew 27 |
| Scorner | Demeans the messenger by physical or verbal contempt; exchanges truth for lies | Pharisees: Matthew 12 Saul of Tarsus: Acts 9 |
Wouldn’t we love it if God placed a green dot on the foreheads of seekers, a yellow dot for a skeptic, an orange dot on a scoffer, and of course a blinking red dot for scorners so we could avoid them? But then, we wouldn’t be operating in the manner or spirit of our Savior, would we? Jesus encountered the entire spectrum of humanity and spoke the truth in love – and sometimes rebuked with great passion.
We recognize minds and hearts can be changed as the Holy Spirit draws people to the truth. Nicodemus accompanied Joseph of Arimathea to claim the body of Jesus from the cross and see to His proper burial. The Ethiopian eunuch was reading Isaiah 53 when Philip approached this seeker for truth.
Jesus overcame cultural and religious barriers to reach the skeptical Samaritan woman before she could consider the reality that the Messiah stood in front of her. “Doubting Thomas” demanded proof of Jesus’ physical resurrection. But Jesus didn’t reject His disciple; He offered for Thomas to touch the wounds in His hands and side. “My Lord and my God!” was the response of the now-believing disciple.
In the crucifixion narrative we see clear examples of scoffers. The Roman soldiers dressed Jesus in a robe and crown of thorns and mocked him as a fake king. The thieves to his left and right sneeringly told Him to save Himself and them if He was Messiah. Scripture records the repentance of one thief who acknowledged Yeshua’s true identity, evidence that even to the last breath there is hope for life everlasting through genuine faith.
As to the Jewish religious leaders, the book of Acts tells us “a great many of the priests became obedient to the faith” (Acts 6:7). Others of the Pharisees became Yeshua-followers as noted in Acts 15:5. Doubtless they were included in the “myriads” among those “zealous for the law” (Acts 21:20) who had placed their faith in Messiah Jesus.
Perhaps the most noted example of a scorner was Saul, who doubtless was convinced he was pleasing God as he persecuted early followers of the Way. His remarkable encounter with the risen Lord on the road to Damascus transformed him into the Apostle Paul. Thus, we may have hope that even “red dot” opponents of the gospel may come to a knowledge of the truth and genuine repentance and faith.
These four categories – seeker, skeptic, scoffer, and scorner – are broad (and shifting), not all-inclusive. Most people will fit one of the four at a given time, but not everyone – and it's not always easy to discern at first contact. When we can meet a person face to face, that certainly helps, but some people are masters of covering up their true heart motivations.
It's always best to ask the Lord, "How would you have me love (this person) with Your love?" We can also learn from how Yeshua responded to various individuals. He definitely invested the greatest amount of time in the 12 disciples – and one was Judas who ultimately betrayed Him, which Yeshua certainly anticipated would happen.
So, we trust the sovereignty of God at all times as we learn from our mistakes, lovingly continue to proclaim biblical truth, and trust Him that His Word will not return void. We are not responsible for the soil (rocky or good), only to sow the seed.
May the Lord grant us wisdom each day to discern the spiritual needs and conditions of those we encounter. May we be filled with His Spirit so that the fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control will be evidenced. May our speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt as we give an answer for the hope within us. May we rejoice in the harvest He alone is reaping to the eternal praise of His great name.
Written by Wes Taber, Life in Messiah Global Ambassador
*denotes pseudonymIn what ways has God used questions, doubts, or even resistance in my own journey of faith?
Do I tend to label people too quickly, or do I take time to listen before discerning where they are spiritually?
Who in my life might be a “Seeker” that I should intentionally invest more time in right now? If you are looking for help in discerning where people are on their spiritual journey, we recommend you read Randy Newman’s Questioning Evangelism.