Three Ways to Earn The Respect of Your Non-christian Friends

In my forty years on planet earth, I have witnessed a subtle shift in the way our country views the world. When I was a child, the average resident of the United States viewed the world through a Christian lens; even if they didn’t consider themselves a Christian. People of faith were respected and admired by their peers. It was recognized by nearly everyone that there was an intrinsic value to being a Christian. That has all changed. People in the United States now see the world through the eyes of a skeptic. Faith is openly doubted and even mocked. At best, value is found in the person who considers himself a spiritual seeker; however, anyone who has the audacity to claim they have found the truth is immediately labeled as close-minded and short-sided.

I have news for you Christians – much of the shift in our country’s world view is our own fault. The Christian perspective has lost ground over the past two decades because we have failed to practice what we preach. Here are three ways we can turn things around:

1. Talk less and Pray more:  I must admit that this one took me a long time to learn. It seems as if we Christians feel the need to weigh in on every issue. Too often, we do so without concern for how it reflects upon our faith and our Savior. We launch into tirades and spout “Christian-ese” at everyone and anyone we deem is a sinner. The Bible teaches that we all have different spiritual gifts; not everyone is gifted to confront worldly sin in a Godly manner – in fact, it is safe to assume that most of us should just shut up and get on our knees! When we fail to pray we are showing a disturbing lack of confidence in our God. It has been my experience that even non-Christians respect prayer – and once they realize you are praying to a God who actively listens and responds accordingly, they may reconsider their walk with Christ.
2. Read the Bible: I have lost count of how many times I have seen Christians misquote or misrepresent Scriptures. If we are going to deliver the Word into our community, we should know what we are talking about! Enroll in a Sunday School class. Attend a Bible preaching, Bible teaching church. Study it in your homes and in your church so that you can be confident you are representing it well amongst your non-Christian friends. The Bible teaches that you should be ready at all times to offer a defense for the faith others see in you – are you ready?
3. Deal With Your Own Sin First: Many of us are so busy pointing out the sin in the world that we don’t stop to deal with the sin in our own lives. You can rest assured that once you announce to your friends that you are a Christian they will take notice of your behavior. Do you cuss? Deal with it. Lust? Deal with it. Whatever sin your embrace; deal with it. Failing to repent for your own sins before you convict those around you is a sure fire way to lose the respect of your non-Christian friends.

It is time that we Christians take inventory of ourselves. If we are going to take Christ’s great commission seriously and make disciples of those around us, we need to model genuine, heartfelt discipleship in our own lives.