Put them in mind to be subject to principalities and powers, to obey magistrates, to be ready to every good work, To speak evil of no man, to be no brawlers, but gentle, shewing all meekness unto all men. – Titus 3:1-2
If you are a born-again Christian, washed under the blood, then you should know that the most important thing in our life is to get the gospel out to the world. People need to hear that salvation exists. Those around us need to understand that they can know 100 percent that they are on their way to heaven – and it is not about religion!
The issue, as been mentioned before, is that there are different ways to get the message across. Some Christians have their favorite methods; some “go with the flow.” I am more of a “go with the flow,” meaning that it depends on who I am talking to and what spirit they display towards me. If they are a tougher case, it takes more finagling to get the Gospel in the conversation.
The best way that can coincide with other methods? Through holy living. Now I know that the word “holy” scares people, but it shouldn’t. What does holy mean? It means to live a life for God separated from sin. It doesn’t mean we are perfect, or even close. It does mean we are reading God’s Word, working to grow and live by His ways, and staying away from things we know are sinful and wicked. As I am sure we have all heard: we are not sinless, but we sin less as we grow in our walks!
Titus 3:1-2 gives us a pretty clear idea of what holy living is:
• Put them in mind to be subject to principalities and powers, to obey magistrates, – We are to be obedient to the authority in our life – even if we don’t like them or agree with them (as long as they don’t ask us to sin against God).
• To be ready to every good work, – We are to be ready to do good works unto the Lord. To me, this doesn’t merely mean in ministry; it means we need to be ready to do well in every task we do. People are watching, and we need to display a Christ-like spirit. Accuse me of reading too far into this if you like, but it is important that we never be the complainers at work. We should always be the exhorters and encouragers! We should be some of the hardest workers!
• To speak evil of no man, – We should speak kindly of others (including those who speak wrong of us). We should stay away from the rings of gossip and tale bearing that go on all around us. We should stay away from spreading lies concerning others. We should never speak ill of mankind even when they “started it.”
• Be no brawlers, but gentle, shewing all meekness unto all men – We should be gentle towards everyone. We shouldn’t be picking fights and creating a stir amongst others, but we should be the calming factor in a situation of hostility.
All of these factors make us a strong witness for Christ.
One thing that is easy to forget is that we were once lost. There lay a time in our past when we were on our way to hell and doing the same things that others are doing. We need to remember that and hold compassion for those who need Christ, not judge them. When we cast judgment and lack compassion, we can’t witness effectively.
For we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another. But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared, Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour; That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life. – Titus 3:3-7
Want to win someone to Christ? Show them Christ through you. Kindness goes a whole lot further than words can. If you are sharing the plan of salvation, but you hold a coldness toward that person, nothing will be reaped but failure. Human beings have an instinct of when people care and don’t care. They tend to respond much more fruitfully when they sense the person sincerely cares about what happens to them. The thing is that you can’t fake caring. You need to truly humble your heart and find that compassion that Jesus felt for every single one of us as He died on the cross! We can only do this by maintaining a close walk with the Lord ourselves!
Let’s get out there and show a lost and dying world that there IS hope, there IS salvation . . . and there are people who really love them!
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