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HONEST EVANGELISM
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 15
1 Thessalonians 2:3-5

Psalm 12:1-5

 

“…not of deceit,

nor of uncleanness, nor in guile.”

 

HONEST EVANGELISM
 
Paul sincerely declared that his ministry among the Thessalonians was “not of deceit, nor of uncleanness (moral impurity), nor in guile (trickery, subtilty).” Which begs the question – why would he have to make such a defence? Is there such a thing as exhortations done through lies and for sinful reasons?
 
Sadly, the answer is yes. Because of man’s sin, not everyone who claims to witness for the Lord does it out of a pure heart’s desire. There are many who have ulterior motives in doing what they do. Their purpose is not to serve for Jesus’ sake, but to benefit self.
 
That was the accusation that was levelled against Paul. When Paul wrote those words in 1 Thessalonians 2:3-5, it was a defence that he had to make against some detractors of his ministry who accused him of having self-seeking ulterior motives. According to them, Paul had allegedly used flattering words to guise his greed, and was a deceitful man who was establishing churches only to profit himself.
 
While we know that that is certainly not what Paul was doing, there are those who would be guilty of such. There are many so-called evangelists today who build churches and try to attract people to come just to satisfy their pride and greed. There are corrupt pastors who preach a health-and-wealth gospel to justify their luxurious lifestyles and exorbitant salaries.  Many would also employ various worldly methods to trick, coerce or cajole people to come into their churches to boost their numbers.
 
God is our witness. He alone knows our hearts and knows if we are indeed sincere and honest in our service to Him. We must be careful to ensure that we conduct ourselves entirely above board in all our evangelistic efforts. We must do things honestly in the sight of all men, for to do otherwise will do far more harm than good to the cause of Christ.
 
THOUGHT: What would an unbeliever think of a dishonest evangelist?
PRAYER: Father, may my heart and motives always be pure as I seek to witness for Thee.

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