Visible Faith
-Our lives are on display. This is true of all who calls themselves Christ followers or Christians. Since our lives are on display, we need to be sure that people can see Jesus, not just us. People won’t stay interested very long if they just see me. But if they can see Jesus then I know I am doing what God has called me to do – know Him and make Him known.
-I hope you understand that we don’t do spiritual things just to be seen. Jesus condemned this approach to prayer and giving in the Pharisees. So pride must not be what is behind our visible faith. Pride will weaken our faith because it causes us to focus on ourselves instead of on God. Nevertheless, part of God’s plan is to have other people see your life so that they might catch a glimpse of Him. Just like Jesus said in Matthew 5:16 “…Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.” The 2 verses before that are worth reading as well: “14 You are the light of the world-- like a city on a mountain, glowing in the night for all to see. 15 Don't hide your light under a basket! Instead, put it on a stand and let it shine for all.” Matthew 5:14-15
-So, if I could put the main thought of this message into one simple sentence, it would be this: We need to make sure our faith is visible and real!
-How do we do that?
-Let’s look at several visible signs of faith from the Bible.
I. Actions that Make our Faith Visible (James 2:18) (How we act)
James 2:18 …I will show you my faith by what I do.
A. Love one another
John 13:35 35 By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."
B. Do what Jesus did – believe for miracles!
-John 14:12 12 I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.
-Acts 3:16 16 By faith in the name of Jesus, this man whom you see and know was made strong. It is Jesus' name and the faith that comes through him that has given this complete healing to him, as you can all see.
C. Bring people to Jesus
-Matthew 9:2 2 Some men brought to him a paralytic, lying on a mat. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, "Take heart, son; your sins are forgiven."
-Acts 11:24 24 He [Barnabas] was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith, and a great number of people were brought to the Lord.
D. Show Hospitality
-3 John 1:5 (Msg) Dear friend, when you extend hospitality to Christian brothers and sisters, even when they are strangers, you make the faith visible.
E. Do Good and Help the Poor
-Acts 9:36 In Joppa there was a disciple named Tabitha who was always doing good and helping the poor.
-Faith in action is often visible by God’s design (loving one another, working miracles, healing, people coming to the Lord, showing hospitality and generosity, etc.). It is hard to pick only a few actions to illustrate visible faith. In reality, it is our entire life that either reflects a visible faith or perhaps sometimes confuses the issue. Here are a few other actions that make our faith visible: Our obedience to God and His word; the way we worship, pray, and connect with God (if we are genuine and wholehearted, people will see); the way we share our faith in lifestyle and in what we say; what we talk about with others (does the conversation ever lead to Jesus?); and, the earthly sacrifices we are willing to make for Jesus.
-Well, let’s move from actions to attitudes that lead toward a visible faith. Some overlap with actions, but if we allow the Holy Spirit to shape our attitudes with God’s grace, then our actions will be affected as well.
II. Attitudes that Make our Faith Visible (How we think & feel)
-Albert Einstein said: "Weakness of attitude becomes weakness of character."
-“God is more pleased with the quiet attention of a sincere servant than the noisy service of a sour one.... What matters more than the type of service is the "heart (motive)" behind the service. A bad attitude spoils the gift we leave on the altar for God.” (Max lucado....He Still moves stones)
A. Fruit of the Holy Spirit - love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, and self-control. Galatians 5:22-23
B. Love – 1 Corinthians 13 describes the attitude of love: 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
C. Respect - 1 Peter 3:1-2 Wives, in the same way be submissive to your husbands so that, if any of them do not believe the word, they may be won over without words by the behavior of their wives, 2 when they see the purity and reverence of your lives.
-When we respect people as valuable individuals who were made in God’s image, we are showing respect for God as well. To despise someone made in God’s image might bring us awful close to despising the One who made them.
D. Thankfulness – 2 things to avoid: 1) Taking blessings for granted, as if you had them coming; this is being ungrateful and self-centered; 2) Complaining – never being content with what you have or with where God has you. That doesn’t mean you have to settle for life as it comes. There are many times when God wants to use us to make a positive difference in a situation. But if we have filled our spirits with negativity and complaining, others will have a hard time seeing Jesus in us. Jesus wasn’t a whiner!
1 Thessalonians 5:18 “In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”
III. Character that Makes our Faith Visible (How we live)
-Someone said that character is what makes you do the right thing even when no one is looking ... or when no one will find out about it. Character is who you are on the inside. Character motivates us to do the things we do and will affect the way we think about life. It helps us determine what is acceptable and what is not acceptable.
-Good character can be built within us, but we do need God’s help to build it.
-Character appears to be synonymous with our nature, though some may disagree. Here’s a question to think about. Will good character get you into heaven? No. Responding to God’s grace is what brings His forgiveness and qualifies us for heaven. When that happens I believe that there is a huge transformation in our character as God cleanses us and washes the sin away from our life (2 Cor. 5:17). However, our character is not made perfect. We are made perfect in standing, but there is still a lot of character transformation yet to come.
-So, the lack of “good character” may not keep you out of heaven, but another important question to ask is, “Will it hinder others from making heaven?” If we are lacking in good character, what kind of picture of Jesus will other people see? If our life choices reflect selfishness, occasional dishonesty, impurity, immorality, hatred or rage or disregard for others, our faith will be very hard to identify. Jesus will be hard to identify as people look at our lives.
-Part of the fruit or evidence of the Holy Spirit living in us is goodness. As we begin to do life with God, His goodness rubs off on us as we are being conformed to the image of Jesus (Romans 8:29). And as we are changed from one degree of glory to the next, people will begin to see what Jesus is really like as we become more and more like Him!
-So how’s the visibility of your faith? Is it partially cloudy? Are there patches of fog? Is your faith obscured by some of the choices you are making on a daily basis? Are you letting your light shine or are you hiding it with actions, attitudes, or character that make it hard for people to see Jesus in you?
-I’m not here to scold you, but to challenge you and encourage you to be the man or woman God has called you to be! Your life is on display before God and man. So ask yourself, “What does it look like?” and “How can it be better?” “Lord, how can my faith become more visible so people can see You in me?” Perhaps the next step towards a visible and viable faith is repentance. Confess sins and failures to God. Return to Him and He will return to you. God knows where you need to go from here. Ask Him what your next step should be. He is faithful and will guide you if you listen to Him.
