Decision Making as a Christian

First, let’s address the elephant In the room, WE are human beings and we will and have sinned!

Now that we have that out of the way, let’s get to the topic. As Christians our just service to the Lord is to, not only in our heart, be different from the world, but for the world to see that separation in us.

Believe it or not, it's not only God and other Christians that have expectations of us to make Godly decisions, but the lost expects us to show that we are who we say we are, in our decision-making, in our actions, and in our communication with them.

We have to be in this world, but we are not supposed to be OF the world. In other words, we are not supposed to act like worldly people; we are supposed to behave as Godly people. 

These lost folks need to see God through us, and if they do they inevitably will begin to ask questions, opening a door for us to share the good news of our Risen Savior!

Yes, I said the lost expects us to appear to them as Christ-like people, so we must conduct ourselves as Christ-like as possible.  

So many that have said they were Christians never showed it to the lost, this is why Christians are often thought of so poorly. 

Did Jesus walk up and start condemning the woman that was going to be stoned, and telling her she was sinning, how she was sinning and acting as if He was somehow better than her?

No, and He is the only one ever that could have done so. Instead Jesus walked close to her and said “let ye that hath not sinned cast the first stone” and wrote something in the sand. To the woman, He said "go and sin no more”. There wasn’t any browbeating or haughty attitude from Him, only kindness and love.

Humbleness, or humility, is the first trait that should be seen in a Christian, and then love. We have a directive, a commandment from Christ Jesus that applies to all Christians.

Matthew 28:19

Go ye therefore and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.

To do this, or to even get the opportunity to have people listen, we have to make sure we are prepared—by knowing and understanding the Word of God, by seeking opportunity to share God’s Word, by being humble so that people want to talk to us, and by not starting out our presence condemning people because we see them sinning. Scripture says we must pluck the log from our own eye before we try and remove the splinter from our neighbor’s eye.

This section may very well anger some but here goes, I would rather be in a room full of sinners than in the presence of one haughty Christian! Piety should be shown in presence (I live my life differently) and not just spoken in words.

What I am trying to convey is, I do not want to be thought of as “holier than thou” but as a sinner transformed by Grace! I say this to my dear Christian Brother often, “But by the Grace of God, go I”.

Some of you were saved early in life, but others, like me, were saved much later in life. I don’t know if that means I had much more time to sin before I was saved or not, but I was saved by grace just as everyone else! Scripture says, “For all have sinned and fall short of the Glory of God”!

Something that seems very difficult for most to grasp is this, the Bible teaches that no sin is greater than another! That understanding is what I believe to be the reason no one cast a stone at the harlot.

Scripture also says, “None are righteous, no, not one!” If you are saved then you were saved by the same Grace that saved every other redeemed person—every other redeemed person! None is better than another, no matter their past.

We, as fleshly people, categorize sin, but God does not! “All have sinned!” There is only one place in Scripture that speaks of a sin that will not be forgiven and you can find that in the book of Matthew. (I’ll let you read it for yourself.) I hope we all understand that none are better than another.

Your background doesn’t matter, your social status doesn’t matter, nor does the amount of sin in your life matter. Just one sin was enough for condemnation and one redemption enough to save us from it!  The Blood of Jesus Christ was enough to save all that believe and repent, and if that doesn’t happen, one sin was enough for judgment at the Great White Throne with a sentence of eternal torment! One sin!

This is why we, as Christians, should always be humble and compassionate. We were not saved because we deserved it; we were saved by the Love of Christ by His Grace in His sacrifice.

Back to decision-making, the first step necessarily must be to gain control of our thoughts. How, you ask? Well, I can only speak for myself, but when I begin to have thoughts that would be against the will of God I tell myself, “No, I’m not going there. I don’t want my mind filled with trash but with the Word of GOD!” Then I pray and contemplate the Word. We can gain control of our thoughts.

Now that I have covered the tough part of this topic, there are a couple of things I wish to impart. We must have a working knowledge of God’s Word and understanding thereof. We cannot make decisions that would be pleasing to the Lord if we don’t have a firm understanding of who the Lord is and what His expectations of us are.

This only comes by reading the Bible, contemplating the Scripture, and prayer! Then, and only then, can we make good decisions as Christian people. Those that do not approach this Christian life with the goal of pleasing God, have missed the mark!

The sure thing in all this is that there will be times we fail and times we sin. We cannot let these become stumbling blocks or stopping points in our walk and service to God, but instead, let them become times of growth and learning that we may get better and more refined in our service.

Don’t get discouraged, just catch everything quickly and make the necessary changes, always seeking a new opportunity.

We, as Christians, owe the Lord everything, and I believe we should act like it, and conduct ourselves so that the lost are able to see Jesus in us and want what we have—Eternal Life!

I pray that this writing will give us pause in thought, that we might through obedience reach more people and change some preconceived ideas about Christian followers. May the Lord bless you and keep you in all your efforts.

Amen

Kenneth Kellar
A Man Called by God to Teach and Disciple