“If someone accused you of being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you?”
Have you considered the evidence you give to others that you are a Christian? I am not talking about how many scriptures you can quote, how many Christian songs you know, church attendance on Sunday, big bible, cross around your neck, or Jesus bumper sticker.
Rather, I’m talking about your inward character, which speaks louder about your faith than any of the above.
I believe at least three pieces of evidence should exist that others can use to convict you of being a Christian:
1. Spiritual fruit: The bible says: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law (Galatians 5:22-23).”
When you see someone who claims to follow Jesus Christ, you should see change, specifically spiritual growth (fruit) in them. You should see them becoming more loving, joyful, peaceful, etc over time as they fellowship with the Lord daily. It doesn’t mean that they don’t have problems, but they have quiet confidence that the Lord is leading and guiding them through.
To me, the hard part of the Christian walk is not “getting to God.” He makes it easy to have a personal relationship with Him through declaring Jesus as your savior. The hard part is allowing the nature of Christ to live in you so that your daily walk with Him is evident to others!
2. Obedience to God’s word: Jesus said in John 14:23: “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.”
I don’t know about you, but I want to make a comfortable home for the God that lives in me! I don’t want to grieve Him with actions that are contrary to His word. The good news is that whenever I do or say something that I know is not pleasing to God, I know it immediately by a disquieting in my Spirit.
I hate that feeling – with a passion. And I immediately have to get it right. One time, I got a speeding ticket (my weakness, pray for me) but the court date was set on a day that Mike and I were scheduled to start our vacation. I called the clerk to see if I could get it re-scheduled. She told me that the only way I could re-schedule for a vacation is if I had already made the hotel arrangements and they couldn’t be changed.
I told her that I had. But it was a bald-faced LIE!
The minute I hung up the phone, I had a sick feeling in my stomach. It was awful. As much as I hated to call the clerk back, humble myself, and tell her that I lied, I hated the feeling of lying before my Lord even more.
So, I called her back. I apologized and told her the truth. She was surprised to say the least – so much so that she offered to change the court date anyway. I thanked her, but told her no – we will keep the original date and I would change our vacation plans. My conscious was clear and my Spirit was peaceful again.
Sometimes being a Christian is hard. It is an awesome responsibility to know that God’s name is on you and that you represent Him to the world. Once other people know that you are a Christian, they watch you to judge the nature of the God you serve.
Is your behavior a true reflection of God’s excellency?
It grieves me to know that sometimes, my behavior is not. And yet, I have hope. God’s grace is upon me and I recently got a new definition of it from my Sunday school lesson: “Grace: God’s divine unmerited, undeserved influence upon our hearts.” Another definition of grace is “A God-given power.”
These two definitions tell me that as a Christian, I have Godly wisdom and Godly power to walk worthy of my calling as a daughter of the most High King.
With that in mind, I strive to increase the evidence that I am a disciple of Christ every day, even in the actions that others can’t see. I know that the things done privately have a way of showing up publically. I aim for my private actions and public image to be one.
3. The love you show. I think this one is self explanatory. John 13:35 says, “By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”
My prayer is that every person we know CAN convict each of us as Christians and that every day, the evidence against us gets stronger!
One more thing about the speeding: Whenever I travel down the road where I tend to speed, I’ve started using cruise control on my car. Prayer plus Practicality Equals Power!
Be healed, in Jesus’ Name!
Kimberly Taylor
Author, Take Back Your Temple eBook
www.takebackyourtemple.com
P.S. Over 1,700 people downloaded my mini bible study guide for women, Abiding Love, during the free promotion day a couple of months ago. Thank you! Since then, I’ve published two more mini guides: Courageous Heart and Outrageous Joy.
If you want to know more about how women of the bible had the courage to change their lives and express joy in what God did for them, then I highly recommend you check out these guides. You will be encouraged: