Would people believe you are a Christian by the way you act? I know that we tell people that we are Christians, but what if someone were to follow you around for a day, a week, or even a month and they had access to your whole life, would they know that you are believer in Christ? Would they believe you if you told them that you worship God?
They would full have access to all your social media accounts, also get to watch everything you are watching and listen to every single one of your conversations. After that they would get to decide based on the way you lived your life. Would they see that the Bible is making a difference in your life and you are desiring to follow it as your plumb line?
I know some of you are thinking, ‘well that is sure judgmental of her to ask and doesn’t she know that no one is perfect.’ I am not saying that you needed to handle everything perfectly or that you were not be allowed to sin.
On the contrary, we are told that we will sin and that is why we need Christ. His blood was shed not just for the moment we came to faith but for every other minute after that, for the sins that we were yet to commit. It is what we do after we sin that shows our desire for God or for the flesh.
Are you a believer in word or in word and deeds?
I know my life is not perfect. I homeschool my children so I am with them all the time and they can give you a good report on what I am like on an average day. There are some days they would say that mommy did get upset or frustrated at us, but I hope those are outshined by the moments I do stop and confess to them and to God and repent for how I treated them or what I said.
I hope they would remember that in my sin I came and repented and hopefully every day I am changing more and more to look more like Christ. Believers are called to a perfect standard, yet God knowing we could not keep that standard, God sent his Son to die on the cross for us. Only Christ can live that perfect/sinless life.
I look at when the disciples asked, ‘how many times should we forgive someone?’. In the book of Matthew, chapter 18 verse 22 Jesus answered, “I say to you, not seven times but seventy-seven times.” Jesus knew that we were going to need to forgive people many times for what they do to us, but I look at that and thank God that He has forgiven me once and for all, as sometimes it takes me a long time to learn the lesson and I’m grateful he commands those believers around me to forgive me that many times.
Faith without deeds is dead!
So again, I ask the question would people know you are believer on the way you conduct your life? Our lives are to be transformed. The old is gone and new has come. James tells us in the book of James chapter 2, verse 18 that, "You have faith and I have works; show me your faith without the works, and I will show you my faith by my works." Just saying you go to church or read the Bible or pray is not applying it to your life. We are to try and deny our flesh and pick up our cross daily.
I guess I am being convicted as I scroll through Facebook and hear the conversations that confessing believers have in the public, and I wonder if people would think we are Christ followers or are we just haters.
Are we just throwing words out there to retaliate? Are we using tactics that are not acceptable and are sinful? Are we putting on a display like the Pharisees, who boasted ‘Look at me I am praying now, or I am reading my Bible or look I am such a good Christian that goes to church.’
The True Judge
While there is no human on earth, not even your spouse, who will follow you around 24/7 to tell you if you are living out what you are saying, I want to remind you that Christ is always present. Jesus sees all, knows all and knows our hearts. In Matthew chapter 7, verse 21, Jesus tells us that, “Not everyone who says to me, “Lord, Lord will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father…”