In our fourth membership vow we declare we will live in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Thus we look more like Jesus and display his grace. Philippians 1:27-30
Conduct yourselves worthy of the gospel of Christ. We need this verse—this command. Perhaps there has never been a period in history when those who call themselves Christians have lives so much like those in the world and demonstrated so little of the high calling of the Christian faith. We must resist this in the only way we can resist it—in the way we live our lives. We are called by Christ and must live out that calling.
If we do not conduct ourselves in a manner worthy of the Gospel of Christ, perhaps we are not really followers of Jesus. We may delude ourselves into thinking that we are bound for heaven when we are not. Perhaps we have said yes to Jesus with our lips but not with our hearts or our lives. Jonathan Edwards, the great preacher of the revival of the Great Awakening, had a famous sermon entitled, "Sinners in Zion Tenderly Warned." It was a warning to those who attended church but had not really given their hearts to Jesus. It was an invitation to come to Jesus as Savior and Lord. If they needed such a message then, surely we need it more.
When we conduct ourselves worthy of the gospel of Christ, God works through us. God wants to minister to others through you. What an amazing thing that is. But unless his Spirit is moving in your heart and life, you will not have the power you need for this to happen. When our lives are focused on our own selves, rather than on Jesus, we do not have the power of Christ moving through us. Is your mind being renewed in the Word of God every day? Then it will move in the power of the Spirit. Is our conduct worthy of our calling? Then the power of the Spirit moves through us.
Unless we conduct ourselves worthy of the gospel of Christ, the honor of Christ suffers. We are the messengers of Christ and people may reject the message because of us. We know of high profile ministers who fall into gross sin and the honor of Christ is besmirched. Churches feloniously mismanage money, and people reject the message. Christians can be uncaring and unloving in the things they say and do to others. People respond, "If that is the way Christians act, I want no part of Christianity and Christ." Dear Christians, we are a sermon someone is hearing. If we do not conduct ourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel, people will get the wrong message about Christ.
How do we know what it means to conduct ourselves worthy of the gospel of Jesus Christ? The Word of God, which is contained in the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, is the only rule to tell us how to conduct ourselves worthy of the gospel. It teaches us what we are to believe concerning God, and what duty God requires of us. Let’s look at a couple of things that this passage says for us to do.
V 27: Whether I come and see you, or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in one spirit. One of the ways we (plural, as a church) are to conduct our lives in a manner worthy of the gospel is by standing firm together. Christians are to stand together. In the church, that means when one hurts, all feel it. When one succeeds, all rejoice. We work together. Our various ministries do not duplicate, but rather compliment each other. We show love one to another. We are on the same team.
V 27 goes on to say contending as one man for the faith of the gospel, without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you. We are to stand, as an army with a mission. Contend for the gospel. Press on. Don’t be afraid of by those who oppose the gospel of grace. We are in a fight. Make no mistake. Our weapons are not physical weapons. We do not fight the way the world fights. We fight by contending for the faith. We fight by spreading abroad the love of God in Christ. We fight by loving our enemies.
Let our faith in Jesus be genuine. Let us live our lives with genuine faith as a central part of our lives. There will be those who hear the slightest hint of something about Jesus and cry foul. "Don’t try to cram your religion down my throat." Respond in love, but don’t be frightened and don’t be deterred. And don’t let that person cram his secular religion down your throat.
The truth is this. If people see the genuine love of Jesus coming from us and living in us, their hearts will soften to the gospel. People are desperate to see and know genuine love. We have it in Christ. Ours is a shallow age. We crave something deep and solid. Ours is an age that has chased material things only to be disappointed and still feel empty. When people see the genuine love of Christ, their hearts will be coaxed to listen to the claims of Jesus, in God’s timing. We must be faithful to show it, in word and in deed.
Pastor John Howard Dawson, 5-13-01