We want people to listen, but they want to see.
Matthew 15:30-31 “Great crowds came to him, bringing the lame, the blind, the crippled, the mute and many others, and laid them at his feet; and he healed them. The people were amazed when they saw the mute speaking, the crippled made well, the lame walking and the blind seeing. And they praised the God of Israel.”
The blind, lame, crippled, mute, etc. were brought to Jesus and He healed them. We then read that the people were amazed when they ‘saw’ what was happening and the bottom line was: “and they praised the God of Israel.”
Isn’t this a problem that we have today? We want people to listen, but they want to see. “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” John 1:14
Jesus did not come with just words, but with power and the people saw that what He said was real. They saw His glory. We see this truth coming out with the Apostle Paul: “…because our gospel came to you not simply with words, but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and with deep conviction. You know how we lived among you for your sake.” 1 Thessalonians 1:5
It is not just about the miracles, but about how we live. If we are in Christ we are new creatures. Does our daily life manifest this? My wife and I lived for ten years on Operation Mobilization ships Logos and Doulos. In that time, we had thousands of pastors in our pastors’ conferences. One thing that I noticed was the difference between the pastors living in the cities and pastors in the villages. I had people to tell me that the spiritual life of pastors living in the villages was more real than those living in the city. Why? Because those living in the city lived away from their congregations, but those in the villages lived with the people and the people could see if the pastor ‘walked the walk’ or not. In the villages, the congregation was able to see how the pastor lived, how he treated his wife, his children, people around him and when he got up to preach on Sunday morning that his message had to be congruent with what they saw, and if was not, he lost credibility.
So, what people need to see first is the reality of what we are talking about in our own life. Do they see spiritual reality in us? Do our words and walk go together?
When the disciples of John the Baptist came to Jesus asking if He was the One, what did Jesus say? He said: go back and tell John what you see, not what you hear. Not that hearing is not important, but like I said we want people to listen, but they want to see – so what do they see?
We need to SEE. What do people see in us? Do they see Christ? Or do they see something that is phony?
One thing that we need to understand is that we have freedom, but we are to be careful and make sure that we do not use our freedom for the flesh or to be a stumbling block to a weaker brother.
I appreciate the technology that we have today, being able to communicate. I wish I would have had this 56 years ago, when I started out in the ministry, but being as helpful as it is, we see that Satan can use it to do harm. The same fire that can cook your meals, heat your home if not used wisely can also burn your house down. So, it is with this new technology and the avenues that we have to communicate.
Peter admonishes us to “live in harmony with one another; be sympathetic, love as brothers, be compassionate and humble. Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing. For, ‘Whoever would love life and see good days must keep his tongue from evil and his lips from deceitful speech.’” 1 Peter 3:8-10
Let our lives speak! Let our lights shine, first in our own homes and then to the outside world.