If People Like You, They Will Listen to You

CURRENT TEACHING SERIES The Keys to a Blessed Life

If People Like You, They Will Listen to You By Rick Warren — Oct 20, 2015 “Believers shouldn’t curse anyone or be quarrelsome, but they should be gentle and show courtesy to everyone.” (Titus 3:2 GW) Gentleness is a witness to unbelievers. They’re watching you all the time to see if you are any different when you’re under stress. When you respond to pressure with gentleness, it is an incredible testimony to the world. The Bible says in Titus 3:2, “Believers shouldn’t curse anyone or be quarrelsome, but they should be gentle and show courtesy to everyone” (GW). If you claim to be a follower of Jesus, you are not allowed to speak evil of anyone. You are not allowed to be quarrelsome. Instead you must be gentle with everybody, and you must show courtesy to everybody. Does that mean even people of a different political party? Yes. God gave me the gift of evangelism, which means I spend most of my time when I’m not at Saddleback Church speaking to people I totally disagree with. But I believe that you cannot win your enemies to Christ; you can only win your friends. People aren’t going to trust Jesus until they trust you first. People usually don’t ask me if the Bible is credible. They want to see that I am credible. Do I live with integrity? Am I gentle? Am I loving? Am I compassionate? If people like what they see, they will listen to what you say. Here’s the thing: If you actually obey Titus 3:2, you’re going to be criticized by other Christians. They’re going to say you’re compromising. I know this from experience. When I say I have friends who are Muslims or atheists or gay or Democrats or Republicans, they say, “How could you do that?” And they accuse me of compromising. Treating other people with respect does not mean you have to compromise what you believe. Being nice to liberal people does not make you a liberal. Being nice to a conservative person does not make you conservative. Nobody gets it right all the time. I have friends who are Republicans. I have friends who are Democrats. I’m for my friends. Why? Because there’s something more important than politics: Do they know Jesus? “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect” (1 Peter 3:15b NIV). PLAY today’s audio teaching from Pastor Rick >> Talk It Over How are you intentionally making friends from all walks of life so that you can talk to them about Jesus? Why do you think gentleness stands out so much in today’s world? What do you need to do to be better prepared to “give an answer to everyone who asks you to give a reason for the hope that you have”? Today’s Scripture “As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.” (Isaiah 55:10–11, NIV) SHARE WITH YOUR FRIENDS Living in the Rain Rain is symbolic of God’s blessing, favor and refreshing. His Word is like rain that causes us to flourish and blossom in every area. Scripture says we should live like a well-watered garden, vibrant and growing. We should live under a cloud of God’s blessing. How do we do that? In the natural, a cloud is formed when moisture vapors rise up from the earth into the atmosphere. Eventually, the moisture is so abundant that the rain begins to fall. In the same way, your praise is like the invisible vapors that rise up to heaven and form a cloud. Eventually, your praise will activate an outpouring of God’s blessing, favor and provision in your life. Do you feel like you are in a dry season? Begin to praise and thank God that He is bringing you through to a place of refreshing. Magnify and bless Him for His goodness in your life. As you turn up your praise, God will turn up the rain, and you will experience His abundant outpouring in every area of your life! A Prayer for Today “Father, today I choose to bless and honor You. Thank You for this day. Thank You for giving me life. Thank You for making me new. Thank You for saving me and filling me with Your peace and joy. Rain on me today in Jesus’ name. Amen.”