Once you can follow a good example it is more likely you can be a good example. The question is, what do you feel is being a good example? Is it being nice, being kind, being generous? That is not what Christ was interested in while he was on the earth, and it is not what he is interested in today. In the following scriptures, Christ was talking to the heads of the synagogue (the religious leaders of the time).
“O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things?for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.”
“A good man out of the good treasures of the heart bringeth forth good things; and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things.”
“But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment.”
“For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.”
“For whosoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven the same is my brother, and sister, and mother.” Matthew 12:34-37, 50
In other words, just like when your Dad asks you to do something, the Heavenly Father gives you tasks to do on the earth and you should listen. It is not what you do outside for other men to see that is important; what is more important is what God sees in your heart. Spoiler alert – God can see your heart no matter if you are saved or not, but looking back at following examples (Part I), you will only be able to hear Him thru communication with the Holy Spirit inside of you, and the pathway of communication has been cleared off with prayer. So, number one, you have to have been saved for communication and, number two, your communication line with the Father needs to be free from debris. (Evil thoughts, filthy communication out of your mouth, etc.)
Something else that Christ hates is hypocritical thinking.
“Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven.”
“Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.”
“But when thou doest alms, let not thy right hand know what they left hand doeth:”
“That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly.”
“And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.”
“But when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.”
“But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.” Matthew 6:1-7
I am stopping there, but continue on and read the rest of Matthew 6. Christ wants intimate communication with you, just like your earthly father likes to talk to you. (Have you noticed that communication was usually better when you and your Dad were on speaking terms?) In the same way, keep the communication lines open with the Lord. Do not do things to be seen of men, the things you do – do for the love of Christ.
Remember, in part I, how we were saying Paul was a good example to follow? Well, once you separate yourself unto God and the things of God you will begin to be a good example, not only to your children and your grandchildren, you will be an example for others to follow. On your journey to doing this, be like Paul – know that you are not what you want others to follow, you want others to follow Christ, so be an example of Christ in the way you live.
“He must increase, but I must decrease.” John 3:30
Strive to be more Christ-like, so that this world, which is growing darker by the day, can see the bright light of Christ through you.
AE
and continuing…
We are all examples for someone. Whether we like it or not someone somewhere is watching us, and often they are emulating us. No one will realize this more than a parent. An observant parent will realize that their actions are constantly being watched, especially by young children. They are continually saying things that the parent has said, or doing things the parent has done. A loving parent will seek to be the best person that they can be so that the child will be emulating someone who is worthy of following. A smart parent will realize that no matter how hard they try they will never be a good person because even at our best as humans we are still sinners in need of a Saviour. A wise parent will point their child to the one who is truly worth following!
We shouldn’t only point others to Christ with our words (although we should still tell them). We must also realize that if someone is following after us and copying what we do, then we need to be doing things that are worthy of following. Are we spending our days following Christ so that they too can realize what it looks like to follow Christ, or are we just going to church on Sundays then coming home to live how we please the rest of the week? Don’t be a “do as I say, not as I do” person. Do what is right so that you are teaching other to also do what is right.
I’ve often heard the quote, “your walk talks and your talk talks, but your walk talks louder than your talk talks.” There is so much truth to this! I can tell my child to read their Bible, and work really hard to build that habit in them, but they will internalize it and understand the purpose of it when they see Mom and Dad reading their Bibles, and walking in close fellowship with Christ.
I Timothy 4:12 Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity.
I challenge everyone who reads this to do a study on the word [example] in the Bible. It goes into detail about all Jesus did to be an example for us. It talks about the things we need to do in order to be an example to other Christians as well as to unbelievers. It’s powerful and convicting, and it will be something I continue to think about and study long after this is written and shared. I hope it will be a study that helps many of us to follow more closely the path of our Saviour!
GA
Voice of the Introverts 