As a Christian going to church for over 40 years I have heard many wonderful sermons on topics ranging from salvation and sin to forgiveness and prophecy. These sermons have inspired me, made me study the Bible more, and drawn me closer to Jesus. I have heard many gifted pastors over the years that clearly have been filled with the Holy Spirit. And while most Christians don’t have the gift to preach and teach from the pulpit, have you ever realized that all believers, in reality, preach sermons every day by the life that they live!
Charles Spurgeon, one of the greatest orators of all time, once remarked: “A holy life is in itself a wonderful power, and will make up for many deficiencies; it is in fact the best sermon a man can ever deliver.”1 Imagine, Spurgeon, one of the greatest preachers ever, likened living a holy life, to the best sermons he ever delivered! Most people will never read the Bible, but they will read you and me. And when we truly lead a holy life, in some small way, they will be seeing Jesus reflexed by our walk and talk.
When we give to the poor and help the disabled we are preaching the type of love Jesus would want us to manifest. When someone slanders or harms us and we are willing to forgive them, we are sharing what real forgiveness is all about. When we don’t gossip, don’t curse, and don’t get angry, once again we are acting like Jesus. And when we refuse to lie or cheat and truly love our neighbors, even when they act unloving, we demonstrate many of the aspects of the golden rule.
My friends, every day we preach sermons based on our behavior around those we interact with. And when we live a truly holy life many people will often be attracted to us and want to know what makes us so different. And it’s during these times we can share the message of the gospel with them. And when our lives line up with the teaching of Jesus, the impact of our “living sermon” is often more powerful than many of the sermons we hear from the pulpit.
Christian, living a holy life is, in the words of Spurgeon, “the best sermon a man can ever deliver.” So often, we wish we could have the gift of preaching, not realizing, that we do, not from sharing a message from the pulpit, but by how we live our lives outside of the church. Never forget that for many people the only Bible they will ever read is you, and how you live, and that often will be a truly anointed sermon!
1 A holy life is in itself a wonderful power, and will make…