Video Transcript: Lesson 7 - Exploring Further

Welcome to this session of Christian basics as we explore further in Lesson Seven, on  Christian living, the writer of this material is Dr. Ed Roels. And I'm David Feddes. Presenting  Dr. Roels, his thoughts and adding a few thoughts and my own question one, since we are  saved by grace, and not by our works, what difference does it make how we live? Well, there  are several things that are important to remember in this regard. If we're truly saved, we will  want to live in a way that honors and glorifies our Savior. If we're careless about the way we  live, we clearly demonstrate that Christ does not really live within us. And if Christ does not  live within us, we are not truly saved. God has saved us not only for our own benefit, but also  so that we may live for His glory, and be a blessing to others. It's not just about me, when I get saved, it's about him. And it's about the others who can be blessed through me. Ephesians  2:10, tells us that God has prepared good works for us to do. And in gratitude, humility and  thankfulness. We will sincerely want to do these works. If we're not living in a way that honors  God and blesses others, our lives will have a negative impact, rather than a positive one, do  you want to be part of the problem or part of the solution. Most of us don't just want to be  saved from the evil things we've done and the punishment for them. We actually want to be  people who are like Jesus and make a positive difference in the world. And so we don't just  say, Oh, I'm forgiven, I'm saved. It's all by grace. Now I can do what I please, we want to be  different people, we want to be making a difference for the Kingdom. And there will be a  judgement day in which God will call us to give an account for all that we have done. Those  who have sincerely sought to please God will be richly rewarded for the things they have  done in the name and in the power of the Lord Jesus. Those who have not honored and  served the Lord will find that their works were totally worthless. And in the light of the fact that  someday we're going to be standing at the judgment seat of Christ, we want the things we do  now to be worthy of Him. If we're believers, the work we do will be evidence on that day that  we truly did belong to Him. If we're unbelievers, our wickedness will be evidence on that day  that we really never were saved, and Christ did not live in us. And there are some believers  who are, who will make it into glory, who will be accepted by God, but who will have spent too  much of their time and their resources and their life, squandering it on themselves yet, and  they will suffer loss. That's what I Corinthians 3 talks about. It says, Be careful how you build,  because there are some who are going to be saved, but there'll be saved as through fire, as  though they got out of the house with their own skin, but they weren't able to take hardly  anything with them. If you're saved, and you're truly saved, but for some reason, you're very  stunted or immature or foolish, and not very obedient in your lifestyle, then you might make it  out of the fire, it says, but you really are not going to get nearly the rewards that you would  have, as if you had served the Lord gladly and obediently in this life. Question 2, if we do not  give up everything for Jesus, does that mean we're not really Christians? Not necessarily. In  some places, Christians do give up everything or almost everything for the sake of Jesus,  because they live in an area where Christians are persecuted for their faith. So they may be  attacked, they may lose their job, their possessions may be taken away, their family may  abandon them, they may even be killed, they may literally lose everything. Other believers  though, live in areas and under circumstances where the practice of their faith actually results  in greater material benefit. People trust them to be honest, hardworking, dependable, and  competent, and reward them for their integrity. Sometimes you live in a just society, a  prosperous society, and honest, hardworking people get richer, because they're serving the  Lord Jesus, and they're living an upright life and people know that they can be counted on so  people like that. They seem to give up very little for the sake of Jesus. Now, are these people  less honorable, less faithful, less Christian, than other believers whose lives are so very  difficult? The key to answering this question would seem to be the willingness of the  willingness that is the willingness of people to give up anything and everything that would 

stand in the way of living as a believer who honors Christ and everything. Some people may  be willing to give up many things for Christ but Jesus doesn't call on them to do so. And their  circumstances don't force them to do so. But inwardly they are devoted to Christ. First of all,  above everything else, and others, really must pay a very high price. All believers should  

evaluate their lives to make sure that they are using all their gifts and abilities and  possessions in the service of Christ without focusing too much on material things or personal  benefits. We Should All Be careful not to judge others too quickly. Without knowing their  hearts and motives, we might look at somebody else and say, Oh, he's got a lot of money. He  hasn't given up what he should for Christ, when in fact, they may be using their money very  wisely, giving in ways that you never dreamed of and using their great wealth to bless others,  or they may be selfish, but you had better not judge anybody else to quickly. But listen very  carefully to what God says to you. Having riches is not wrong for a Christian, but the love of  money is clearly a source of many evils in our world. So not all Christians have to literally give up everything. Some do. Others give up far less, but they are still called on to offer a living  sacrifice. If you've been blessed with health, use that good health to serve the Lord. If you're  blessed with a family, with a with a wonderful spouse and children, and you're not going  through the loss of loved ones because of your faith, but your family is flourishing. Because  you belong to Jesus, well, then make your family a ministry to others and of honor to God. If  you have great wealth, don't feel terribly guilty, that you're receiving many good things from  God, just realize why you're receiving them, and then use your wealth to bless others, and to  help them out. And so we can offer ourselves and all that we have as living sacrifices. And  sometimes we need to offer them as sacrifices where we lose them or where we even lie to  them. Question three, if others cannot see in our daily walk that we are truly followers of  Christ, does that mean that we probably are not true Christians, no matter what we say or  believe? Well, in most situations, a true believer will demonstrate his faith by his life if he  doesn't, there is probably something wrong in his life. There may be times of course, when  believers are very careful about what they say and do since they know others are watching  them in order to find grounds for punishing them or persecuting them. So there may be cases  where you're not advertising really widely that you're a Christian, because you're in a country  where people hunt Christians, or where your family members will instantly turn against you.  And so you might be living in an upright way that honors Jesus, but you're being quite  cautious about how you share your faith and who you share it with. So it doesn't mean that  you're not a true Christian, necessarily, just because you're being very careful in the manner  in which you communicate your faith to others. These believers do not deny their faith or live  a careless or thoughtless life. They simply do not have the freedom that Christians and other  lands have to speak about Jesus or the Bible or their faith. They still will speak about Jesus in the Bible and their faith, but only in very carefully chosen times. All believers should also  remember, however, that there may be some people who are looking at them to see whether  their Christian faith really does make a meaningful difference in their lives if it doesn't. The  non believers who are watching them may not want to have anything to do with Christianity.  Let's face it, not all of us live in circumstances where we would face intense persecution or  great loss. Because we're living in upright life. We may just be living centrally because we're  not devoted to the Lord as fully as we ought to be. And it's not out of fear of losing anything.  It's a lack of love and obedience to Christ. And that can really turn some people off. However,  if believers quietly and consistently demonstrate the love, genuine concern for others,  patience, holiness, thoughtfulness, consistency, and other positive virtues, people who are  carefully watching them may well want to learn more about their faith and the God they  worship. We should never be ashamed of our faith. But we should also be wise as we seek to live out our faith in a way that most honors and pleases God and also blesses others. And 

there are some great passages in the Bible to give further wisdom and guidance in this  question for what does Paul teach about Christian love in I Corinthians 13. Although the Bible  discusses Christian love in various places, I Corinthians 13 is one of the most important  passages in the entire Bible on the subject of love. You can learn much from this chapter by  reading it, memorizing it, and meditating on the following questions. One do most Christians  exhibit the kind of love described in this chapter two, how does a person acquire this kind of  love? Is this something we have to work out? Or do we simply pray and ask God for it?  Maybe a little both where we pray for that kind of love but then we act upon the power that  God gives us three can we learn from others how to acquire and exhibit Christian love, look at the lives of some people who are believers whom you admire, and learn the secret of how  God works, his love in their lives for what should we do if we're members of a church, which is definitely not known for its Christian love. Jesus says, people will know you're my disciples, if  you love one another. What if a church has its doctrines pretty well straight. But there seems  not to be act of love for one another. Well, that that presents a tough circumstance. And one  thing maybe we can do is start being more loving ourselves, and to speak quietly with some  people in the leadership about the lack of love we see and to be praying for a greater  outpouring of love on God's people. Five Should Christians show the kind of love discussed in this chapter only to other Christians? Should they exercise I Corinthians 13, only in relation to  other believers? Or should they show love also to those who are not Christians, and may  even hate or oppress them? I think it's pretty clear from the Bible, that we're called to love,  even our enemies, and those outside the church and to be patient and kind, and not rejoice in evil, but rejoice in the truth when we're dealing with other people. That great chapter says if I  speak in the tongues of men and of angels and have not love I'm only a resounding gong, or  a clanging cymbal, if I have the gift of faith, and can fathom all prophecies, and if I have all  knowledge and faith, to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give all I  possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gained nothing. So that's how important Christ like love, the very love of the Holy Spirit is flowing through us.  And as we show that to our enemies, as well as to our fellow believers, that God is honored  and so keep examining your own love in light of these questions. And in light of that great love chapter of the Bible says when all else has failed faith, hope and love will continue. Christians sometimes bicker about this or that aspect of knowledge, or this or that idea about the gift of  tongues. I Corinthians 13 talks about that and says up tongues are gonna pass away.  Knowledge we only know a little bit we only see through a mirror dimly. Only then will we see  face to face. But three things remain faith and hope and love and the greatest of these is love. So let us devote ourselves to a life of love in the Holy Spirit. Question five, what's meant by  worldliness? Is it possible to be a worldly Christian? Well, worldliness can be described as  thinking and living according to the standards, goals and desires of people who do not know  Christ as Lord and Savior. If that description is correct, then it's really not possible to be a  worldly Christian, if you're just completely worldly, probably means you're not a Christian  because the definition is that you're living according to the standards, goals and desires of  people who don't know Christ. It's regrettably true, however, that some believers seem to live  as close to the world as they can, without losing their faith. And most believers seem to be  tempted at least once in a while to enjoy worldly pleasures instead of doing what's most  pleasing to God, and most beneficial for their personal and spiritual lives. sincere Christians  should always seek to live as close to Christ as they can, learning and doing what is most  pleasing to Him and seeking to honor him in all the choices they make. Though believers  should not be worldly in a negative sense. Christians should definitely be concerned about  demonstrating the Lordship of Jesus in every area of their lives. They should not focus only  on so called spiritual things, but they should also seek to show the importance of their 

Christian faith in the world of business, government work, recreation, leisure industry, the arts  and every other area of human activity. That is not negative worldliness, to be involved in  transforming things of this world to become better. The Bible speaks of the world in two very  different senses. First, positively, sometimes the world just means God's beloved earth God  so loved the world, God created the world. The world is God's beloved earth. There's also a  negative sense negatively sometimes the world means anti God, culture and society  dominated by non Christian powers. So Chris, Christians should seek to claim for Christ every element of the world, understood positively as various aspects of life on God's beloved earth,  without being contaminated by the world understood negatively as anti God culture,  expressed in those practices and activities, that dishonor the one who is truly Lord of all. And  so it's not worldly, to be involved in business. It's not worldly in a negative way to be involved  in the arts. It's part of our calling, but it is worldly, to go by the standards of the fallen world  and have a society which rejects Christ. Six, will the Lord continue to forgive us even if we  can admit the same sins over and over again? Thankfully, yes, God's mercy and grace are far greater than our failures and sins. In fact, God tells us to forgive one another. And Jesus said  to His followers, if someone sins against you seven times in a day and seven times comes to  you and says, I repent, forgive him. In another passage, Jesus said, we must forgive 70 times seven, what others do to us. And all of this forgiving, he says, is in light of God's vastly greater forgiveness of us. Now, if God expects us to forgive others, over and over and over again, it is because God is willing to forgive us over and over and over again, when we confess our sins  to Him. However, we should never take our sins lightly, or think that it doesn't matter very  much, whether we keep sinning or not, again, think of the sins that are committed against  you. If you forgive somebody, when they hurt you. It's great that you forgive them. But does  that mean their sin didn't matter? Now, it matters a lot, and it hurt you. And God is grieved by  our sins. And our sins also reduce the effectiveness of our witness, and reduce the joy of our  salvation. So sin, even if it gets forgiven, is a very serious thing in grieving God and  weakening the light that comes from our lives. If there are certain sins or weaknesses that  continually gain a victory over us. We should not only pray earnestly to the Lord for  deliverance, but we should also seek the help of mature Christians to help us gain a victory  over them. Many believers find that it's very helpful to have one or more mature Christians to  whom they are regularly accountable for how they are living, particularly in those areas where they are spiritually and morally weak. Let's say you have a weakness for pornography. It's  very helpful to have somebody else whom you talk to about that, and who holds you  accountable and asks you, how have you been doing lately? Let's say you have a weakness  for alcohol, and you were perhaps an alcoholic or were enslaved to alcohol. And even after  your conversion, there's a tremendous pull and an ongoing tug to go back. It's helpful to have  someone or several someone's who support you. That's why some people find great help and Alcoholics Anonymous, but where many Christians find help just in having somebody who  supports and says, How are you doing, if you have a chronic battle with anger, or with worry,  it's so helpful to have somebody else to just talk to who can listen to you who can encourage  you can sometimes maybe scold you a little bit, but help keep you on track. Don't just try to do it all by yourself. And don't even try to adjust with you and Jesus, Jesus is enough. But  remember, Jesus body is the church. He works not just in your own heart, though he does.  But he also works through the people he puts in your life. And so if there are certain sins or  weaknesses, that you keep repeating over and over again, it's great to know God does  forgive you again and again and again when you confess. But it's also important to seek ways to less and less commit those sins and more and more, Grow in the grace and the knowledge of Jesus Christ. Question seven, what does I Peter 3:8-9 teach us about living a Christian  life? Well, Peter urges us to live in harmony with one another with other believers, and to love 

them as brothers and sisters in Christ. We should be sensitive to the needs of others, and  compassionate and humble as we deal with them. We should also be careful not to repay evil  for evil, but to bless those who curse us or insult us or treat us unkindly. Living as God wants  us to live will not only bring a blessing to others, but it will also result in blessing for ourselves. Now, it's certainly easier to write these things than to practice them. Peter at one stage in his  life didn't follow these teachings himself. When he was in the Garden of Gethsemane on the  night before Jesus went to the cross. Peter impetuously took out his sword and cut off the ear  of one of the men who had come to arrest Jesus, when he may have tried to do more than  just cut off his ear. All of us have to make a very special effort to be patient and  compassionate and humble. As we deal with others. It's not always our first reaction. Peter  wisely points to Jesus rather than to himself when looking for a good example. In I Peter 2:20- 23 we read, if when you do good and suffer for you endure, this is a gracious thing in the sight of God. For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps. When he was reviled, He did not revile in  return. When he suffered, he's not threatened, but continued in trusting himself to him who  judges justly. In I Peter 2:12, Peter wrote, keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable  so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify  God. On the day of visitation, people may talk bad about you, but after a while their talk rings  hollow because they can see that you do good deeds, and that you live a different God  glorifying life. Question Eight. What are some of the things the Bible teaches about money  and possessions. But God knows that we all need certain things such as food, water, clothing, and shelter in order to live a normal life God created us. God is the one who gave us bodies  in the first place, and he knows we have bodily needs. In his kindness. He provides rain from  heaven, crops in their season, food, water, and many other things to fill our hearts with joy. In  addition, God often makes it possible for some people to acquire possessions far beyond  what they actually need for daily living. Already in the Old Testament, for example, many of  God's faithful followers were blessed with great wealth. Abraham, Isaac, Jacob Job, David,  Solomon, these men had vast wealth. The problem is not having great possessions, but how  we looked upon them, and how we use them. If we trust in our wealth, to keep us safe, then  we're trusting it instead of God. If we use it only for our own selfish pleasure, then we're not  using it for God's honor, and for others, so it matters, how we look on our wealth, and how we  use it. Some people feel that their personal worth is determined by the money or possessions  they have. Others begin to take their blessings for granted. They may feel that they deserve  their wealth, because of their personal skills, or all the hard work they've done. Deuteronomy  8 talks about that it says, When God brings you into a good land, and you become wealthy,  you may be tempted to say, my power, and the strength of my hands have gained me this  wealth. But remember that it is the Lord your God, who gives you the ability to produce wealth without the ability, and without the opportunity, you would have nothing. Who gave you that  ability, who gave you that opportunity? It was God. And so it is very foolish to say, Oh, I  deserve everything I've earned. Yeah, you may have worked hard, and God even blessed you with the drive to do that hard work. But God gave it all so that you would use it for His glory,  and to bless other people. Now, still, other people feel that they can just spend their money as they please, unless it clearly and directly violates one of God's explicit command, you say,  Well, I'm not spending my money to hire somebody to kill my enemies. And I'm not spending  my money on drugs and alcohol. I'm not spending it on anything that is directly wrong, so I  can spend it anyway, I please after that, not quite. God gives money for a purpose. And it's  not just the purpose of avoiding bad stuff. It's for the purpose of doing and accomplishing  good stuff. The Bible teaches us that all things ultimately belong to God. And that we are  simply temporary stewards of the possessions we have. Remember Jesus parable, Jesus 

Parable of the Talents, where he gives something to three different people. And then they  either invest that and use it or not, and just bury it, and then hand it back at the end. And  Jesus has harsh words to say, for those who don't use what they've been entrusted, and then  give it all back here, they just gave back what they were given but the ones who use well what they were entrusted with Jesus's well done good and faithful servant, Come and share your  masters happiness. So everything we have really belongs to God. He loans it to us for a  while, so that we can make good use of it for His glory and for the benefit of his kingdom. And  then at Judgment Day, he brings it out calls for it all back again. in Old Testament times,  God's people were commanded to give up least 1/10 of all their possessions to the Lord. And  often they were required to give more. Now in the New Testament believers aren't explicitly  commanded to give 1/10 of their earnings to the Lord. But they're clearly taught that they  should give generously, thoughtfully and freely. And there's even a hint maybe the tithing isn't  a bad idea. For example, Jesus said to the Pharisees, now you tithe the very carefully and  count out very carefully so that you give exactly 1/10th, but you neglect mercy and justice in  the greater matters of the law. And the Jesus says, you should have paid attention to mercy  and justice without neglecting the tithing. So he, he actually says, you know, the tithing, that  was a good thing, but there were bigger things you should have been concerned about. So  tithing isn't explicitly ordered in the New Testament, but it is still commanded and, and often  Greater Giving is encouraged. Believers may certainly enjoy the blessings God gives them.  They should also recognize everything they have comes from the Lord, and is to be used in  ways that most pleased and honor him in which also bless others in his name. When people  give generously and freely and joyfully to others, especially to fellow believers, not only are  others blessed, but God is also glorified. That's taught again and again, since our spiritual  blessings are much greater after the coming of Christ than they were in Old Testament times,  our giving should also be greater when possible. We live in a time when God has lavished on  us many greater blessings than the Old Testament saints receive. According to II Corinthians  9:7, God loves a cheerful giver. Believers therefore should be known for their generous, joyful, thoughtful giving, and should never be satisfied with giving as little as they can, oh, I've given  what I know, I have to now the rest is Mine, mine mine. No, that's, that's not the attitude of the spirit filled person. We're looking for opportunities to bless others. Question Nine, why should  we witness to others about our faith? And what should we do in situations where friends or  family members absolutely do not want to hear about Jesus, we should witnessed others  about our faith because Jesus wants us to and even commands us to do so. And there are  many places in the Scripture that indicate this. However, we should also witness because we  want to, Jesus orders us to. But we also want to when you know something wonderful when  you've been blessed with something great, and you know, others could benefit from them.  From it, you want to tell them, and Jesus is the best gift of all. So it's not just that we have  orders to tell others, we have good news. And good news is something we want to share.  Remember that story in the Old Testament, perhaps if you've read in the Book of Kings,  where there was a city that was surrounded and under siege, and people were starving in a  few were even starting to eat their own children, it was so bad. And then God sent a terrible  sound into the enemy army where they thought that mercenary enemy soldiers were  attacking. And so that whole enemy army just fled, and left but the people trapped inside the  town still thought they were trapped and surrounded. There were a few lepers who had this  terrible disease, and were kind of outcasts. Anyway. They said to each other, well, let's just go out and surrender. If they kill us, then at least it's over with. If they don't kill us, then we'll get  some food, and we can go on living. So they go out. And when they get out to the enemy  camp, there's nobody there. But they left all their food and all the good stuff behind. And so  these guys start eating and eating because they're they've been starving inside that famished 

town. And as they're sitting there burping and full of food, they look at each other and say,  This isn't right. This is a day of good news. And we've got to get back to the city and tell  people about it. Well, that's how it is with the good news of Jesus Christ, there's a world  starving for him. There's a world that needs him so desperately that needs the bread of life.  And here, when you feast it on it, do you really want to leave others starving? Yes, we have  Jesus's command to do it. But we also want to share the bread of life. If we do not have a  desire to share our faith with others, that may indicate one that we do not highly value our  faith, or two, that we believe others do not need to hear about Jesus, or three, that we believe our testimony will have little or no positive results or four, that we're afraid of the reactions of  those with whom we share our faith. Now, none of these four possibilities should keep us from witnessing to others. Though there may be specific times or situations when it's not wise or  desirable to talk to others about Jesus. Sometimes the moment isn't right. For example, a new convert should be wise in choosing the best time and situation in which to witness the family  member or friends or others who might be shocked and grieved and angry when they learned  that a trusted friend or loved one has left the cherished faith of the family. So you don't just  come up to somebody, and what you regard is tremendous good news, they may at first at  least hear as terribly bad news. So be sensitive in the way that you communicate your faith  with those who might be most troubled by your conversion. And also be aware that there are  people who are enemies of the faith and who just don't want to listen, Jesus told His followers not to throw their pearls before pigs, lest they trample them under foot and turn and attack  you, you can be trying to share the good news with people who aren't ready to hear it. And  they will not hear they'll just get angrier and angrier and defile the gospel and maybe even  attack you. And when you get a sense that that's what they're going to do. That's not the  moment to be sharing the gospel wisdom. Now, when faced with uncertainty about the best  time and way to witness to somebody else about Jesus, it's important to pray earnestly, that  God will open up the right opportunity for us to share our faith, when our testimony is most  likely to have a positive, rather than a negative impact. When giving our testimony, we should  also be very careful not to unnecessarily say negative things about other faiths, or about  persons who hold those fates. At one point when the Apostle Paul was arrested for spreading  the gospel, he said, Well, we haven't been saying bad things about other faiths or robbing  temples or doing anything like that. We're just telling the truth about the one true God and  inviting people to follow it. You don't have to go around necessarily bashing other people's  convictions, or what others are doing, even if those other convictions are anti Christian, and  downright false. Our main calling is simply to present the truth of Jesus, and not attack every  other notion under the sun. Rather humbly, but clearly, we should testify about the things  which God has done for us and the joy we found in loving and serving Him. We should of  course, also be prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the  hope that's in you. But as Peter writes, We should do this with gentleness and respect, having a good conscience so that when you're slandered those who revile your good behavior in  Christ may be put to shame. So again, a big part of your witness is simply your good  behavior. And then out of that good behavior comes gentleness and respect and a good  conscience and a readiness when the moment is right. To explain this is who Jesus is, is, this  is what he's done for me. And I want you to know Him to question 10. How would you respond to someone who believes that Christianity takes all the fun and joy out of life? Well, you can  think about that and how you might answer it yourself. Here's what Dr. Roels says, sometimes becoming a Christian does involve giving up some things people formerly enjoyed. They must give up things that are sinful, and against God's will. Also, they might miss some of the good  times they had with friends before they were converted. And the reference here is to  genuinely good times which a person gave up because he or she no longer wanted to be 

identified with a certain group of people. There may be times where you had a good time, and then it was maybe even good, clean fun, but you find that hanging with a certain crowd really  drags you down, and you can't hang with that crowd anymore, and you miss some of the  things that you did together. Some may lose good jobs, because their conscience no longer  permits them to do some of the things they were required to do in their work situations. Others might lose the loving relationship they had with their families and friends if those families and  friends are not Christians, or even anti Christian. Still others might spend more time in  studying the Bible, helping others and pursuing other good things related to their new faith.  And therefore they don't have the time they used to have to pursue some of the things they  enjoy doing. Now they enjoy the Bible. They enjoy helping others but there are other things  they also enjoyed that they don't have as much time to do anymore. However, those who  have genuinely experienced the love and grace of God in new and wonderful ways will be  able to testify that what they've given up doesn't begin to compare with the things they've  gained. They have found genuine joy, inner peace and contentment in the present and hope  for the future, which they never had before. Because they've been born anew by the Holy  Spirit, and have been washed clean in the blood of Christ. They are new persons who have  something more wonderful and more valuable than anything they have given up. in New  Testament times. Some believers were persecuted because of their faith, but they counted it a privilege to suffer for the one who gave his life for their salvation. The apostle Paul considered all the valuable things of his previous life to be rubbish compared with the new life he found in Jesus. When people truly find new joy and peace and serving Christ, others will soon notice  that. So it should not be too difficult for them to demonstrate even without too many words,  that their new life provides far more genuine joy and delight than anything they experienced in their life without Christ. It's also important however, for believers to be honest, and realistic. In  their testimonies, Jesus urged people to count the costs of following him. Paul clearly suffered much more after he became a Christian than he did before he became a Christian. And he  definitely did not minimize the hardships or difficulties he experienced. He talked about those  many painful things he went through. However, anyone who knew Paul knew that his new life  in spite of these hardships, was definitely a grateful life of joy, peace, Thanksgiving, and  praise. One of the greatest stories in the Bible about this is when the Apostle Paul and his  partner Silas, were beaten, were whipped, and were clamped in stocks and put in a dungeon  for preaching the gospel and for driving out a demon. And while they were there, the Bible  says, they were singing hymns to God, around midnight, instead of griping, complaining and  saying, Oh, we've got it so rough. They were singing hymns to God and rejoicing in him. And  the Bible says the other prisoners were listening. Well, I'll bet they were listening, when you  have people who've been beat within an inch of their lives, who are still so full of joy, that  they're singing that makes other people listen. And so when an earthquake shook that jail,  and the jailer himself thought the prisoners had escaped, was about to kill himself, but then  saw that Paul and Silas and others were still there, he said, What must I do to be saved? And  the answer was, Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved you and your whole  household. You see how joy even in the midst of suffering, open the way for sharing the  gospel, and bringing salvation to others. And in a sense, that's a picture of the whole Christian life. It's a life that sometimes has its hardships that has, its beatings, where you're knocked  down where you're hurt, where people are against you. But it's a life where God puts inside  you a joy that nothing can take away and it just comes out of you and you want to sing, and  other people notice and they want to know Christ too. So in your Christian living, be ready to  suffer, be ready to sing. Be ready to tell people believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and you too,  will be saved you and your household