Gary W. Summers
The most effective way to change people is from the inside out. Jesus came to this world when it was full of corruption. He did not gather an army of saints to fight the ungodly Romans. He did not lead a protest march against the local taverns. He did not circulate petitions against capital punishment. What He did do was to call people’s attention to the distinction between sin and righteousness. He condemned the former as corruption (Mat. 15:18-20) and promoted the latter as something that man can attain (6:33).
He taught about things that would make people happy (the beatitudes). He taught the Gospel (salvation from sin) and the principles of the kingdom. He defined sin as something more than the actual committing of an act; He taught that the source of the problem begins in the heart (5:21-22). Likewise, although adultery is wrong, the Lord identified it as something that begins with lust in the heart (5:27-28). He taught the truth about marriage (5:31-32; 19:3-9). He taught that patience should be exercised even against one’s enemies (5:38-48). Furthermore, Jesus taught that a person’s religion should be genuine—not for show, not to impress others (6:1-18).
Followers of God must exercise true faith in Him (7:7-11) and live by Christian principles (7:12)—not just talk about them. Living by faith does not mean just having an appearance of righteousness, bestowing generous gifts to God or to the poor, or even doing many wonderful works (7:21-23). Those who would please God must consistently do His will in all phases of life (at home, among others at work or school, in the community, and in recreation).
In other words, there is no part of a Christian’s life where God can be left out, ignored, or forgotten. All who call Jesus Lord must submit to Him in every aspect of their lives. This is the only way to stand on a solid foundation (7:24-27). What is the answer to the world’s problems? The obvious answer is Jesus, but how can we, the disciples and followers of Christ, change the world?
(1) It begins with making certain that we, as individual Christians are pure in heart, righteous, and totally devoted to pleasing God. How can we have any effect on others if we are obviously flawed? Christians cannot be light and at the same time dabble in darkness. If we are to have the proper impact on the world, we need to be above reproach. It is difficult to pull someone up to a higher level if we are standing on the same spot. Jesus offered salvation from the sins that enslave mankind. The Christian then, must know the Word to be able to live it and communicate it to others (cf. 1 Pet. 3:15).
(2) Christians must realize that our task is not to talk people into being more moral or to create a better world. No adequate foundation has been laid if we begin there. Our goal is to save souls from sin, which results in people being more moral. God was so concerned about sin and its effects on people that He sent Jesus to die for those sins, thus making salvation available to all (John 3:16). Sin is a spiritual problem, and it has a spiritual solution. We must show people that their sins have condemned them before God (Rom. 6:23). When people understand that their sins can be forgiven, that fellowship with God can be restored, that He will care for them and provide for them, that Jesus will be their good shepherd, and that He will grant to the faithful eternal life, then they may be willing to give up the temporary pleasures of sin for an abundant life here and the eternal joys of heaven.
(3) In other words, Christians must be evangelistic, as our brethren in the first century were. Even when scattered throughout the world because of persecution, members of the church “went everywhere preaching the word” (Acts 8:4). Why did they have such conviction? They were taught by the apostles (2:42);they knew Christian doctrine and were sound in the faith. They were convinced that only those who were Christians could be saved and that everyone who was not a Christian was lost. Does today’s church have that same perception? It is still true.
(4) We must pray for the non-Christian—that he will not be blinded by Satan (2 Cor. 4:3-4) but rather be receptive to the truth (2 The. 2:10).
(5) We must be patient. People must be persuaded with love, kindness, and truth. They must know us well enough to know that we ourselves are convicted and that we genuinely care about their spiritual condition.
When Christians are submissive in their attitude toward God (Eph. 5:23) and evangelistic in their outlook, more who are lost in sin will desire salvation. When people obey the Gospel and live the Christian life, the world becomes a better place. The more Christians there are, the more positive influence there is in the world and the easier it is to obtain support for public morality. We cannot start by pursuing the desired end. The world will not be changed by a direct appeal made to it to be moral. Why should it? People are infatuated by sin. Only by enabling people to see the consequences of sin can we lead them to salvation. Attempted shortcuts do not work. We must reach people with the Gospel one at a time. The more people who are reached, the better the world will become. As with the pursuit of happiness, the desired result only comes by doing what God commanded in the first place. We all need to learn this invaluable lesson. Trust God and obey Him; seek His will, and the other things will take care of themselves.
