Thread: Can your Lifestyle, Behavior and Conduct Lead a Person to Christ??
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Can your Lifestyle, Behavior and Conduct Lead a Person to Christ??
Posted : 25 Jul, 2011 07:32 PM
Can your conversation and lifestyle, behavior and conduct lead a backslider back to Christ, or lead a person to Christ???
These qualities are very important, However:
I Peter 1:23,24: "You have been born again:rolleyes:, not by perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring Word of God. For all men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the Word of the Lord stands forever. And this is the Word that was preached to you."
John 17:17: Jesus commands, "Sanctify them by the truth; your Word is Truth."
John 14:23: Jesus says, "If anyone loves Me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him and We will come to him and make Our Home with him!":applause::angel:
Romans 10:17: "Faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the Word of Christ!"
Matthew 28:19-20: Jesus says, "Go and make disciples of all nations... teaching them to **OBEY EVERYTHING** I have commanded you!!":applause::angel::rolleyes:
Can your Lifestyle, Behavior and Conduct Lead a Person to Christ??
Posted : 25 Jul, 2011 08:11 PM
NO.
The word of God, hearing the word of God, that is enough of it, leads one to Christ...The best we can do in this life is influence others..with regard to conduct, behavior, lifestyle...that is a "reflection" of the Christ within us at best, the "witness"...
When an unbeliever confesses with their mouth the Lord Jesus and believes God raised him from the dead, it is God that determines by himself that that unbeliever has done it with his/her heart, that is the heart is the inner most depth of the human soul....the soul is both " breath life" and free will.
Can your Lifestyle, Behavior and Conduct Lead a Person to Christ??
Posted : 25 Jul, 2011 10:28 PM
Your lifestyle can provide opportunities to lead others to Christ. It can definitely lead backsliders back to fellowship with God. People are always watching you. When you react to the trials of life with a positive attitude...with the joy that only Christ can provide, it will make people curious of you.
I have worked in some high stress environments. People have asked me how I can smile through some of the situations...I have the opportunity to share the peace and joy I know rough my personal relationship with Christ.
We can also have a negative affect if we respond to situations in a not so Christ-like manner. People will see us as hypocrites...they won't want what we have!
It still takes God's Word; however, the Word can be through a tract or your witnessing. Many people have been saved through a tract...just by leaving them at a restaurant, bus station, etc.
Can your Lifestyle, Behavior and Conduct Lead a Person to Christ??
Posted : 26 Jul, 2011 02:15 AM
Very good spirutal insight Teahc, and welcome to the forum!:applause::glow:
This is NOT about how a person receive Chirst or salvation, this is about winning souls for Chirst through witnessing ABOUT CHIRST through our conversation, conduct and behavior as Christians, and our conversation, conduct and behavior great influence in leading others to Chirst. As we are to be as Christ in our character which is our witness of Christ living on the insideof us.
And if Christ is living on the inside of us, than it will and should show forth in our conversation, our conduct and our behavior as a testimony and witness.:glow::angel:
Can your Lifestyle, Behavior and Conduct Lead a Person to Christ??
Posted : 26 Jul, 2011 05:01 AM
We can influence others by our lifestyle, behavior and conduct. Whether is leads someone to Christ, we don't always know the answer, the effect is not always evident.
We plant a seed, it gets water and G-d causes it to grow. Man looks at the outside appearance, but G-d sees the heart.
I believe over the years, G-d has placed me in difficult working situations, to display his power to others, which at times is a silent witness. I have also verbally witnessed, and been ridiculed because of it. We don't know what effect we have on others, but I know Christ in us has a ripple effect on others and as we submit to G-d, the enemy must flee.
Can your Lifestyle, Behavior and Conduct Lead a Person to Christ??
Posted : 26 Jul, 2011 06:48 AM
Jesus commands us to teach God's saints to OBEY EVERYTHING I have commanded in the Great Commission. And everything would also include all of the approximately 400 NT commands which would also include all of the NT Commands in Acts to Revelation.
2 Timothy 3:16 & 2 Timothy 4:2: "All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work...PREACH THE WORD; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage--with great patience and careful instruction."
I Corinthians 3:6-9: Paul said, "I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God makes things grow. The man who plants and the man who waters have one purpose, and each will be *REWARDED* according to his own labor. For we are God's fellow workers!"
Daniel 12:3: "Those who impart wisdom will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars for ever and ever."
Revelation 22:12: Jesus says, "Behold, I am coming soon! My {**unseen**}*REWARD*is with Me, and I will give to everyone according to what he has done!"
2 Corinthians 5:9,10: "So we make it our goal to please Him..For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him {**UNSEEN REWARDS & TREASURES**} for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad!"
Matthew 16:27: Jesus says, For the Son of Man is going to come in His **FATHER'S GLORY WITH HIS ANGELS**{See Matt 24:30-31;25:31-40}, and **THEN**{NOT NOW} He will *REWARD*{**THE UNSEEN REWARD**} each person according to what he has done,":applause::angel::peace:
Unfortunately the vast majority of the evangelical churches today got to church 3 times a week are told to live a good moral life as a witness to their neighbors but are given no clues on how to witness with God's Word as the early church saints who witnessed every day with the hope of countless eternal rewards for faithful and loving service. The church is very good at teaching that once saved always saved and teach the Satanic doctrine that if you accept Jesus as your Savior you will immediately inherit ALL the eternal rewards but God forbid that you should take time to witness with God's Word or to suffer ridicule and persecution while you are witnessing.
Can your Lifestyle, Behavior and Conduct Lead a Person to Christ??
Posted : 26 Jul, 2011 08:02 AM
Colossians 4:6: Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders, make the *MOST* of every opportunity. Let your conversation be **ALWAYS full of grace**, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone. {With the sword of the Spirit which is always God's Word}
Can your Lifestyle, Behavior and Conduct Lead a Person to Christ??
Posted : 26 Jul, 2011 09:22 AM
There are many ways you can PREACH THE WORD that you will never hear about in the churches:
You can buy inexpensive paperback New Testaments at the International Bible Society to give out to friends and neighbors and those you witness to.
You can buy beautiful 2" stick on letters at the Home Depot (About $2.29 for 56 letters 3 E's etc}. These letters you can put on your car without hurting the finish and it is completely legal except that you can not put these letters on your front windshield {Except on top 4"} or on your front 2 side windows. On my car I have over 20 passages from God's Word using about 1,000 letters. In over 16 years with 5 different cars over 3 million people have read God's Word on my Jesus Cars.
I go to an intersection by Sea World near Orlando with my Jesus car. I stop at a long red traffic light in the middle lane and 7-9 cars can then view the animal figurines {Mini Noah's Ark} or read God's Word. Then I make a U-turn and come back to the same red traffic light to change the clientele. In this way about 700 people in 3 hours can view the beautiful animal display or read God's Word. Since many of the cars are going to Sea World and are full of kids and cameras the Jesus Car is photographed {Including God's Word}about 100 times a day. To see the many smiles and thumbs up is priceless! There are about 20 passages of Scripture on the Jesus Car such as "Do all things in love"{I Cor 16:14} "Love as Jesus loves you." "Read God's Word daily"{ Acts 17:11} "Then do what it says!" {James 1:22}
You can witness in flea markets and in most malls with beautiful tracts or New Testaments. My method is to bring 2 evangelical friendly parakeets :angel::angel:on my wrist. I place 1 or 2 of the parakeets on a parents wrist who has children and they will then share them with their children. These parakeets give kisses and free manicures and the children love to play with them. Then I exchange the birds with beautiful children's tracts. On the weekends you can usually give out about 50 children's tracts every hour.
Can your Lifestyle, Behavior and Conduct Lead a Person to Christ??
Posted : 26 Jul, 2011 12:04 PM
The New Testament is filled with verses addressing lifestyle evangelism. �I've selected a few from the King James Version: the word conversation in these passages refer to lifestyle...way of life.
Ephesians 2:3 "Among whom also we all had our conversations in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others."
Ephesians 4:22 "That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts."
2 Corinthians 5:17 "Therefore if any man be in Christ he is a new creature, old things are passed away, behold all things become new."
Phillippians 1:27 "Only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ: that whether I come and see you or else be absent, I may hear of your affairs, that ye stand fast in one spirit with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel."
James 3:13 "Who is a wise man and ensued with knowledge among you? Let him shewing out of a good conversation his works with meekness of wisdom."
1 Peter 1:15 "But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation."
1 Peter 2:12 "Having your conversation honest among the Gentiles: that, whereas they speak against you as evildoers, they may by your good works, which they shall behold, glorify God in the day of visitation."
1 Peter 3:1 "Likewise, ye wives, be in subjection to your own husbands; that, if any obey not the word, they may also without the words be won by the conversation of the wives."
I attend one of those churches that teaches eternal salvation as the "...gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." Romans 6:23b. My church as many others like it throughout the world teach and provide a wide variety of witnessing opportunities. �We bring in 100-200 youth on church buses...which means we witness/visit with hundreds every week. �We have a soul winners program that teaches the basics of witnessing and provides hands on experience. Our food pantry provides plenty of opportunities to witness. �Our nursing home/ shut in ministries reach others. �Our addiction program brings in a wide variety and our jail/rescue mission ministries reach many who would otherwise be unreachable. And my church isn't one of those mega churches...just mega hearts for the lost.
We are all called to be witnesses but not all called to witness the same. �Just as we have different roles and responsibilities in the church, we have different abilities and expectations from God in our witnessing. �For some, leaving a tract is all the ability they have. �For others, they can walk up to anyone anywhere and lay out the Gospel. �Many missionaries spend years on the mission field with little fruit to show for their efforts.
Another good reference is Romans 12 - this chapter refers to how Christians should live. I keep striving to live up to this standard but fall short. Thankfully my God is forgiving and helps me to do better the next time.
