Paul’s Instructions

by Hugh DeLong

Paul includes many instructions on living as a disciple. Some we tend to emphasize more than others, but they are all inspired by God. I find the most difficult ones to follow are the ones that don’t fit my personality or abilities. I know I am not alone in this, for most of us tend to gravitate towards the instructions (commands?) that are easiest for us to follow.

For example, Colossians 4:5-6: “Conduct yourselves with wisdom toward outsiders, making the most of the opportunity. Let your speech always be with grace, as though seasoned with salt, so that you will know how you should respond to each person.”

In our exuberance to spread the gospel, we can easily become overbearing and even insulting. Such pushes us to begin using ‘carnal weapons’ – insults, threats, intimidation, etc. We find that going down this path often closes doors of communication rather than causing people to want to follow Jesus.

What does your speech sound like to your ‘opponents’? How gracious are the words that you use? Maybe you can detect why this is often one of the more difficult characteristics of discipleship to actually follow. This is particularly true on any social media platform. When we have no real face-to-face encounter with the people we are communicating with, it becomes easier to lose any graciousness. Just read the comment section on almost any post anywhere on the internet and see how ungracious the responses are.