Sincerity: How NOT to be a Bible-Thumping, Judgemental, Arrogant, person of faith and still stand for Truth

Being a leader in our faith is one of the most delicate balances we strive for; being humble enough to learn and strong enough to stand for what God’s Word shows to be Truth. People everywhere are searching for something real, authentic, & meaningful and a key ingredient in sharing this Truth with them is SINCERITY.  What does this look like? 1 Thessalonians 2:1-8 helps us begin to understand the important factors of sharing the Truth of the Gospel with sincerity. 

1.       MOTIVE: Vs 3 : We are not trying to trick people or argue them into believing.  Our job as believers is not to hound people or even to tear down their thoughts and beliefs in order to back them into a corner.  Our job is to share the gospel, answer honest questions honestly and clearly and then let the Holy Spirit do His job to bring them to belief in Christ. Our goal is not to “win”, show others to be wrong, or make ourselves look like good people.  We are all broken apart from Christ.

2.       IDENTITY: vs 4: we are God’s children approved by Him, we do not need to defend ourselves, His opinion is the one that matters.  People will often misunderstand and misrepresent your character for their own purposes, or for the excuse of ignoring the Truth we claim.  If our goal is to please them, we will lose sight of our task all together.  If our goal is to please the Lord and Him only, we will #1 find ourselves giving less and less ammunition to those who would use our flaws against us as we become more Christ-like, #2 remain confident in our place as God’s children despite our imperfections.  Sincerity is seen when we remember that we aren’t perfect, but we are His, and our imperfections do not lessen His Truth.

3.       COMPASSION: vs 5-8: we show sincerity through caring for others.  Many doors have been opened, when it is seen that we are bringing the bread of salvation rather than the poison of condemnation.  Rather than claiming our superiority through condescending pride, or our great knowledge through carefully crafted arguments, we must seek to care for those around us in WHATEVER way possible and wait for the time when the Lord speaks softly to our hearts that the moment is right.

Let’s strive this week for MOTIVE, IDENTITY, and COMPASSION grounded in the Truth so that the Truth may be revealed through us.