“Only let your conduct be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of your affairs, that you stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel,” Philippians 1:27 (NKJV)

There is one thing that seems to be a constant throughout our life and that is our conduct. From an early age, we are taught how to conduct ourselves in private, but most certainly in public. I remember my report cards having a place for me to be graded for my conduct. I wasn’t worried too much about the study part, but I was a little concerned about the conduct grade.

In the passage above, the apostle Paul declares that the good news of Christ in our life carries with it an expectation of good conduct. When He speaks to the church, He implies that their conduct is measured by how they stand fast in one spirit as they strive together for the faith of the gospel. A church is expected to be unified as it lives out its faith before the world.

As a Christian, when we declare our faith to the world, we immediately place ourselves under a new standard of conduct. We are expected to conduct ourselves in a godly manner and above all express love to others. The Christian life is different from any so called religion in this world. The purpose of the church is to live out the gospel before a lost world. We do that through our unified, steadfast, cooperative work for the Lord.

Is your conduct worthy of the gospel, and does your conduct follow the example Jesus demanded of us? I’m not perfect, but I have concerns about the conduct of people who declare to the world that they identify as a Christian, but they engage in language, ideas, decisions, and lifestyles that are hypocritical, or two-faced, and obviously unchristian. Christian brothers and sisters, it is high time that we repent from ungodliness in our thoughts and intentions, and give ourselves as a living sacrifice for Christ. We must die to our self and our desires and be the light that shines in a dark world.

Am I judging? Yes, and I am asking each of you, myself included, as publicly declared Christians to judge your thoughts, intentions, and actions by the standards of holy and righteous living that Jesus demands from each of us. So, rethink your thoughts. If what you do and say does not glorify God, give a good testimony of your faith, or show people what a true Christian is really like, then stop calling yourself a Christian until you can do so. Otherwise, you are only letting the world of people who know you that you are no different than an unbeliever, and you have a greater desire to fit in with the anti-christian worldview instead of a Biblical, Christian world view. We as Christians and the church have work to do…so get on with it.