What’s Your Reputation Like?

“So that ye were ensamples to all that believe in Macedonia and Achaia. For from you sounded out the word of the Lord not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place your faith to God-ward is spread abroad; so that we need not to speak any thing.” – (1 Thessalonians 1:7-8)

What do people think of when they here your name? What do they think of when they hear the name of our church? Notice what it says in the above verses about the reputation of the Church at  Thessalonica. They were examples to all the believers of Macedonia and Achaia, which are both part of the Grecian Peninsula. Then it goes on to say that their reputation went beyond their immediate area, and spread abroad to “every place”. I am not in agreement with those who would say that the gospel should not be audibly spoken to those around us, only lived; but it seems that these Thessalonians, not only spoke the gospel with their mouths, they communicated their faith with their lives also. So much so that they were famous for their faith throughout the world.

What kind of reputation do you and I have. I am not suggesting that we should strive for some kind of notoriety among fellow believers, but I do think that we should be concerned that our lives are consistent with what we believe. Our words as well as our actions should communicate to those around us that we are indeed followers of Christ. I want our faith to be known in our community as a church that loves the Lord in sincerity, and believes and follows the Bible literally. Again, I am not seeking the accolades of men, but I do want the world to know that there are churches out there that are real.

Jesus said that we are to shine the light of the gospel to the world around us. It seems that this church in our passage today did just that. I hope that our church will have that same testimony.

One more thing. Did you notice what the caption says on the picture above. One foolish act can ruin an otherwise good reputation. Some mistakes that we make will take a long time to recover from, and unfortunately, some we will never recover from completely. I am not trying to condemn those who have made mistakes in the past here as much as I am trying to admonish and encourage those who have yet to blow it. Nobody is perfect, but the less skeletons we accumulate in our closets the better testimonies we will have. Keep your reputation in tact. Christ is glorified when we live out our faith in sincerity and purity, without hypocricy.