That they may see…

Yesterday, while sitting and eating with my family, two verses came to mind about how we are to live as followers of Jesus Christ. As we seek to speak into another person’s life, we must remember the context of our words. For sure, we need to speak what is true, right, holy, and fitting. Our words are incredibly important. However, we cannot miss the context of our words. We must equally reflect on the sense “that they may see…” too.

That They May See…

Here are the two verses about which I pondered:

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven. (Matthew 5:16)

Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul, having your conduct honorable among the Gentiles, that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may, by your good works which they observe, glorify God in the day of visitation. (1 Peter 2:11-12)

At the heart of both these passages includes three ideas: 1) That they may see or observe, 2) By your good works, and 3) Glorify God.

Let’s consider each idea briefly:

• That they may see or observe
  We must consider how those who do not follow Jesus can see or observe us as we live out our faith on a daily basis. My guess is that this must include places like our home, our neighborhoods, our workplaces, our schools, our towns/cities, and those places we go to conduct business, vacation, or receive services of one type or another. In other words, in everything we do, as we do those things, we should do them in a way that those who do not know Jesus can see or observe us.

• By your good works
  As they observe us, what should they observe? Our good works. In other words, we should do good. What does this look like? It looks like we go about our day, our business, and our lives doing good. We do good when we live in a Christ-honoring way. When what we do honors God, we are doing good works. As we reach out to others, show kindness, speak truth in love, listen well, and everything else. In fact, Peter includes when we say no to our flesh. Questions that are important include: how do you respond to poor customer service? to an unkind neighbor? to someone’s sin against you? How about when things do not go your way? when you don’t get what you want? or when someone else does something you do not prefer, agree with, or appreciate? How do you handle when someone sins? In each and all these times, as well as everything else in life, we are to demonstrate good works.
• Glorify God, your Father
  The hope is that as we live a life that honors God, those around us are influenced toward Jesus Christ. Now, we understand that the only way someone will be saved is through hearing the Word of God. Faith only comes by hearing the Word of God. In some instances, we will be the one who shares it. In other instances, it will be someone else who gets to share the Word. But regardless, the Word of God is what converts another person’s heart through the work of the Holy Spirit. We cannot afford to be silent while we simply live good lives. Yet, we cannot maximize speaking over living either. In other words, we must do both. But, in doing both, people will see much more than they hear. Therefore, we must live a God-glorifying, Christ-exalting, Holy Spirit-empowered life while taking opportunities to speak whenever we can.

Implications for me and you

How are these two verses and three ideas helpful to us? They serve as a reminder of living and speaking in ways that help others better follow Jesus Christ. Let me suggest three places where I have heard about Christians doing a poor job along the way. I’m sure you have your own list in your life as well.

• Tips on Sundays
  I have heard many food industry folks say how much they hate to work on Sundays because of the “church” crowd. They’ve talked about poor tips, maybe a Gospel tract with little or no tip at all, rude behavior, and impatience. Although, on other days, unbelievers may do the same things, it should not be so for those of us who follow Jesus.
• Social Media Use
  I have heard unbelievers respond very poorly to what Christians post on social media. To be honest, over the years (I started Facebook I think in 2013), I have not gotten it right always. However, I am doing my best to bring all my social media use in all its formats under the constant awareness of these principles.
• Bad Customer Service
  I have also heard those who do not follow Jesus say, “If that is the way Christians act, I do not want to have any part of it.” Why? Because for $5.00 or $10.00 or $1,000, a Christian loses his or her testimony. How do you respond when you do not get good customer service? Do you respond in such a way that is consistent or inconsistent with these verses? Are people drawn to Jesus Christ?

These are just three examples of what could probably be hundreds. I only use these three because I have heard those who we want to glorify God in the future day of judgment say something bad about Jesus or the Gospel after having interacted with someone who claims loyalty to Jesus.

How can you apply this?

May God helps us all as we seek to live in ways that they may see…

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