OUR ACTIONS SPEAK LOUDER THAN OUR WORDS

PROCLAMATION

“What do you think?  There was a man who had two sons.  He went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work today in the vineyard.’  ‘I will not,’ he answered, but later he changed his mind and went.  Then the father went to the other son and said the same thing.  He answered, ‘I will, sir,’ but he did not go.  Which of the two did what his father wanted?”  Matthew 21:28-29 (NIV)

EXPLANATION

These words are from the gospel, the good news regarding Jesus, The Christ, which were spoken by Christ according to the Apostle Matthew.  As Jesus and His disciples approached Jerusalem, they stopped in the town of Bethphage on the Mount of Olives.  Jesus sent two of his disciples to find a donkey and her young colt and bring them to Him. (Matthew 21:1-7)  Jesus sat on the donkey and her colt and rode them into town.  A very large crowd had followed them, and the people placed their cloaks and palm leaves on the road in front of them as they went into town.  As they went, the people shouted “Hosanna!” (Matthew 21:7-9)  When they entered Jerusalem, Jesus went to the temple and drove out the money changers and the sellers of doves. (Matthew 21:10-13)  The blind and the lame came to Him while He was in the temple and He healed them.  When the chief priests and the teachers of the law heard the shouts and saw the things that He did, they were displeased. (Matthew 21:14-15)  He taught the people the parable of the Two Sons (Matthew 21:28-32) and the parable of The Tenants. (Matthew 21:33-40)  Then He quoted the Scriptures to them regarding the stone which the builders rejected becoming the cornerstone. (Psalm 118:22 and Matthew 21:42)

APPLICATION

“Our actions speak louder than our words.”  People frequently say one thing and then do another.  In this case it is better to say, “I will not” and then do it, than to say, “I will do it” and then don’t.  Here the rebel is brought to repentance and becomes the servant, while the formal one who agreed grows hard-hearted and rebels.  Unfortunately, many people today are like the second son, they join the church and observe religious rituals, but they are not Christ-like.  Our  words count but our behavior is more important.  It is better to stand up for, and to do that which is right.  Don’t be like one in the fickle crowd, who are shouting “Hosanna!” one day, (Matthew 21:9) and then the next week are shouting “Crucify Him!” (Matthew 27:22-23)  We will be judged by the words that we speak, (Matthew 12:36) but we will be rewarded or punished by our works. (2 Corinthians 11:15 and Revelation 22:12)

FAITH IN GOD MUST BE ACCOMPANIED BY ACTION

Proclamation:

“What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds?  Can such faith save them?  Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food.  If one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace, keep warm and well fed,’ but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it?  In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action is dead.”  James 2:14-17 (NIV)

Explanation:

These words were written by James, the half brother of Jesus, The Christ, (Galatians 1:19) under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God, to the Jewish believers who were scattered after the crucifixion of Christ. (James 1:1)  He wrote to them to encourage them to keep the faith in the face of all types of trials (James 1:2-4) but he told them that faith without works is dead and useless.  He said that a person is considered righteous by what he does and not by his faith alone. (James 2:24)  Then he said, “As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.” (James 2:26)

Application: 

It is not enough to believe that there is a God.  It is good to believe in God, but if you believe in Him and do not follow Him, obey His Word, and live by His teaching, then your belief had accomplished nothing.  The devil and his demons know and believe that there is a God but they don’t follow Him. (James 2:19)  We must exercise our faith and put it to work.  It is by our deeds that we will be blessed. (James 1:25)  If all we do is say that we believe in Christ, but our actions do not go along with our words, then our words are not true.  Our actions speak louder than our words.  If we profess to believe in Christ but continue to live in sin as we did before our profession without changing our lives, then our professed belief is basically counterfeit.  We are not saved by our works, (Ephesians 2:9-10) but our works demonstrate our salvation and the indwelling of The Holy Spirit of God as evidenced by the fruit of The Spirit. (Galatians 5:22-23)  

BE DOERS OF THE WORD OF GOD AND NOT JUST HEARERS

Proclamation:

“My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to anger, because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires … Do not merely listen to The Word, and so deceive yourselves.  Do what it says … not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it, they will be blessed in what they do.”  James 1:19-25 (NIV)

Explanation:

These words were written by James, the half brother of Jesus, The Christ, (Galatians 1:19) under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God, to the converted Jewish believers of the early church who were scattered after the crucifixion of Christ (James 1:1) to encourage them to keep the faith in the face of all types of trials. (James 1:2-4)  He told them to pray, and to believe and not doubt that their prayers would be answered. (James 1:6-8)  He also told them that blessed is the man who perseveres under trials for he will be rewarded. (James 1:12)  James ends this first chapter by urging them to be quick to listen and slow to speak.  Then he tells them that they should not be just hearers of The Word of God but also doers of The Word.  They will be blessed for that which they do.  

Application:

Unfortunately, most of the people in the world today do not read The Bible.  They watch and “read” the people of God.  Therefore, James encouraged all believers to be living examples of The Word of God.  The apostle Paul expressed the same thought in his letter to the believers in Corinth. (2 Corinthians 3:2-3)  We need to understand that our actions will speak louder than our words, so we cannot just read and talk about The Word of God; we have to also live it.  We have to “walk the walk” and walk God’s way.  It is the behavior of believers that will have the most profound effect on the world.  It is for the behavior of believers that special blessing will be received.

WE NEED TO BE A GOOD EXAMPLE OF CHRISTIAN BEHAVIOR

Proclamation:

“And so you became a model to all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia.  The Lord’s message rang out from you not only in Macedonia and Achaia, your faith in God has become known everywhere …”  1 Thessalonians 1:7-8 (NIV)

Explanation:

These words were written in a letter by the apostle Paul, under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God, to the believers in the church at Thessalonica.  In this first chapter, Paul praised them for their efforts in the name of The Lord and he thanked God for them in his prayers. (1 Thessalonians 1:2-3)  They were believers who developed a deep conviction and were empowered by The Holy Spirit of God. (1 Thessalonians 1:4-5)  They became a model for all believers.

Application:

It is not just preachers who should spread The Word of God, all believers also have the potential to do so because of the indwelling of The Holy Spirit.  All believers can be models of Christ-like behavior for the world to see, and all can share The Word of God with those unbelievers that they encounter.  Our faith in God and our love for God should cause us to want to share Him with others.  We just need to recognize that to the world, our actions speak much louder than our words.  We need to exhibit Christ-like behavior if our message is to be effective.  The change in our behavior from our previous sinful ways will speak for itself.

ARE YOUR WORDS AND YOUR WORKS CONSISTENT

Proclamation:

"They profess that they know God; but in works they deny Him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate."  Titus 1:16 (KJV)

Explanation:

These words were written by the Apostle Paul under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God to Titus, a young preacher of the gospel.  Paul wanted to warn him that all people are not who they say that they are.  There were false teachers among the congregation. (Titus 1:10-11)  There are also those who profess to know Christ but their actions suggest otherwise.

Application:

A lot of people call themselves 'Christians', but their actions suggest that they are not.  We live as if we don't believe what we say.  What are we as 'Christians' teaching the world by our actions?  By posing as Christians, where our practice does not match our profession, we disqualify ourselves from any good work for Christ.  Eventually, the 'works,' of those who claim to know The Lord with their 'words,' will betray them and reveal that they are actually unbelievers.  If our 'words' and our 'works' are inconsistent, then we are not true believers in Jesus Christ.  If we are Christian, then we ought to talk like one, act like one, and love like one.  Talk alone is cheap.  "Our actions speak louder than our words." (Unknown)  To say one thing, and then to act in such a way which is the exact opposite, is to deny what you say.  None of us is perfect, we are all sinners but some of us are saved by the grace of God.  More often than not, our works should be consistent with our words.  To say that we are Christian, and to never act like one, is to deny that Christ is in our lives.  If we are truly Christian, then our behavior should exhibit the fruit of The Holy Spirit.  Our belief in the right doctrine leads to the right behavior.

WE ARE KNOWN BY THE FRUIT WE PRODUCE

Proclamation:

"No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit.  Each tree is recognized by its own fruit.  People do not pick figs from thorn bushes, or grapes from briers."  Luke 6:43-44 (NIV)

Explanation:

Luke, the physician traveling companion of the Apostle Paul, recorded these words which Jesus spoke in His Sermon on the Mount to His disciples, and to the large crowd which had gathered around them, good trees do not bear bad fruit, and bad trees do not bear good fruit.  The fruit which is produced is determined by the tree type.

Application:

In this case humans are like trees, you can determine the type of person that they are by the type of fruit which they produce. (Jeremiah 17:10 and Matthew 7:17-19)  Good people do good things and produce good fruit.  Evil people will not do good and the fruit which they produce will not be good.  We will get a much better picture of a person by examining the fruit which they produce.  It will be more accurate to determine if a person is good by looking at the fruit which they produce rather than by listening to the words that they speak.  What we do is more representative of who we really are than what we say.  Our actions, and our fruit, speak louder for us than our words.