THEY WILL KNOW THAT WE ARE CHRISTIANS. Introduction: A. Hymn: They ll Know We Are Christians By Our Love. (Slide #2) Verse 1: We are one in the Spirit, we are one in the Lord We are one in the Spirit, we are one in the Lord, And we pray that all unity may one day be restored. And they ll know we are Christians Yes they ll know we are Christians by our love. (Slide #3) Verse 2: We will walk with each other, we will walk hand in hand. We will walk with each other, we will walk hand in hand. And together we ll spread the news that God is in our land: And they ll know we are Christians Yes they ll know we are Christians by our love. (Slide #4) Verse 3: We will work with each other, we will work side by side. We will work with each other, we will work side by side. And we ll guard each man s dignity, and save each man s pride. And they ll know we are Christians Yes they ll know we are Christians by our love. (Slide #5) Verse 4: All praise to the Father, from whom all things come, And all praise to Christ Jesus, His only Son, And all praise to the Spirit who makes us one. 1
And they ll know we are Christians Yes they ll know we are Christians by our love. Words and Music by: Peter Scholtes B. What A PRIVILEGE To Be A Christian! 1. We are bought with a price -- the pure, powerful Blood of Jesus Christ! 2. Christian -- one who BELONGS to Christ! 3. As Christians we want to honor of precious Savior; we want to show our appreciation for WHO He is and for WHAT He has done for us. C. As Those Who Truly Love Jesus And Want To Show Our Appreciation For Him, We Want To Live Before The World So They Will Know That We Are Christians! D. Question: How Do We Show That We Are Christians? I. (Slide #6) Love! A. (Slide #7) John 13:34,35 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. 35 By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another. B. I Jn. 4:21 And this commandment we have from Him: that he who loves God must love his brother also. C. Live So That Love For Your Brethren Is Easily Recognized! 1. Rom. 12:10 Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another; 2. We must have genuine love for each other. 3. Let those outside of Christ see our love, empathy, respect, and patience with each other. 4. Let them see our faith, our comradeship, our fellowship, and the tie that binds our hearts in Jesus. D. Heb. 13:1 Let brotherly love continue. 2
II. (Slide #8) Life! A. (Slide #9) Be A Light To The World -- A Light For Christ, A Light For Godliness, A Light For Righteousness! 1. Mt. 5:14-16 You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. 16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven. 2. I Thess. 5:5 You are all sons of light and sons of the day. We are not of the night nor of darkness. 3. Eph. 5:8-10 For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light 9 (for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth), 10 finding out what is acceptable to the Lord. 4. (Slide #10) Don t Let Satan Blow It Out! Don t Let Anyone Else Blow It Out! Don t Turn Your Light Off Yourself! B. (Slide #11) Gal. 5:22-24 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. 24 And those who are Christ s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. C. Phil. 2:14,15 Do all things without complaining and disputing, 15 that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, D. I Pet. 3:15,16 But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear; 16 having a good conscience, that when they defame you as evildoers, those who revile your good conduct in Christ may be ashamed. E. Js. 1:27 Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world. 3
III. (Slide #12) Lingo! A. Solomon Contrasts The Speech Of The Righteous And Of The Wicked! 1. Pr. 10:11 The mouth of the righteous is a well of life, But violence covers the mouth of the wicked. 2. Pr. 13:3 He who guards his mouth preserves his life, But he who opens wide his lips shall have destruction. 3. Pr. 15:1 A soft answer turns away wrath, But a harsh word stirs up anger. B. Ps. 34:13 Keep your tongue from evil, And your lips from speaking deceit. C. N.T. Guidance For Christians: 1. Eph. 4:25 Therefore, putting away lying, Let each one of you speak truth with his neighbor, for we are members of one another. 2. Eph. 4:29 Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers. 3. Eph. 4:31 Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice. D. I Pet. 3:10 For He who would love life And see good days, Let him refrain his tongue from evil, And his lips from speaking deceit. E. (Slide #13) Our Tongues Can Be Used For Words Of Mass Destruction! 1. Js. 3:8,9 With it we bless our God and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in the similitude of God. 10 Out of the same mouth proceed blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be so. 2. Pr. 18:6,7 A fool s lips enter into contention, And his mouth calls for blows. 7 A fool s mouth is his destruction, And his lips are the snare of his soul. IV. (Slide #14) Loyalty! A. To Christ Be Loyal And Be True! B. Loyal In Obedience! 1. Jn. 15:14 You are My friends if you do whatever I command you. 2. Having an obedient heart! 4
3. I Pet. 1:14 as obedient children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts, as in your ignorance; C. Faithful To Him Throughout Life! 1. I Cor. 15:58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord. 2. Rev. 2:10 Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life. V. (Slide #15) How Serious Are These Traits? A. ( ) If You Are Not Exhibiting LOVE: 1. I Jn. 2:11 But he who hates his brother is in darkness and walks in darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes. 2. I Jn. 4:20 If someone says, I love God, and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen? B. ( ) If You Are Not Living A Christian LIFE: I Jn. 2:15 Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. C. ( ) If You Are Not Cautious And Godly In Your LINGO: Js. 1:26 If anyone among you thinks he is religious, and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this one's religion is useless. D. ( ) If You Are Not Exhibiting LOYALTY: 1. Jn. 15:4 Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. 2. II Pet. 3:17 You therefore, beloved, since you know this beforehand, beware lest you also fall from your own steadfastness, being led away with the error of the wicked; 3. Rev. 2:4 Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love. Church at Ephesus. 5
(Slide #16) Conclusion: A. What A BLESSING To Be A Christian! B. Live So That Brethren And Those In The World Can See It -- They Will Know That We Are Christians! 6