To Encourage You

2 Corinthians 6:3-4,6 “We put no obstacle in anyone’s way, so that no fault may be found with our ministry,  but as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: . . .by purity, knowledge, patience, kindness, the Holy Spirit, genuine love; by truthful speech, and the power of God”

You’ve heard the expression “He walks the talk.”  It’s the very opposite of being a hypocrite.  And it’s essential to getting a hearing as Christians if our desire is to share the gospel with others that God has placed in our life.  That’s Paul’s message in the verses above.  He begins by talking about how he worked hard and endured hard things to share God’s truth.  I shared those verses yesterday.  But then Paul gives a list of character traits that should adorn the life of anyone who hopes to be used of God to spread the awesome truth of the gospel.  In short, our walk should match our talk.  As we are told in 1 Corinthians 13, “If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.” In other words, while we might be someone who goes all out to share the gospel; although we may give all kinds of money, time, and energy to serving others; and although we may be powerfully gifted in many ways, be it music ministry, preaching, giving wise counsel, etc., if we aren’t living a life of love, all those efforts will be for naught in the end.

You see, motives can get clouded if we don’t watch out. We can do things to bring recognition to ourselves, to impress people, or for some other personal advantage, and while it might not seem so obvious to us in our self-absorption, it will surely be evident to others.  Paul tells us that a life of purity is essential.  Sharing the gospel while living a life at odds with what it commands is a waste of time. 

Knowledge is important, i.e., the knowledge of God that comes from spending time with Him in His Word and in prayer because we are motivated to do so by our love for Him. Then there are the qualities of patience (which in the verse above means patience with people), and kindness towards people that are critical to getting a hearing with them.  Argumentativeness with others because we think we know so much more than them or because we think our views are “right” does little to convince anyone to see things in a new way.  All this must proceed from the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives Whose presence will be evident when such spiritual fruit is seen in us.  And then genuine love, love that is evident in the way we act and speak towards others (and about them), is so fundamental to any attempt to convince another person that God is love.  Then Paul lists truthfulness, which is such a critical thing.  How can anyone believe that the gospel is true, if we lie about other things we talk about? 

It is in such things that the power of God works in and through our lives. It’s when the messenger walks the talk that God can powerfully work through His Word – in spite of our own weaknesses and lack. 

May God help us who are believers to truly walk our talk, for it’s in this way that our lives will speak as loudly as our words about the love of God and thereby open the way for the gospel to be actually heard by those to whom we speak.