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Jumpstarter 8 of 10

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Encounter Messages  /  When Theology Became More Important Than Lifestyle  /  Discussion Questions
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Question 8
An early Christian answered pagans who mocked Christian writing by saying, "We don't speak great things. We live them." If your habits, decisions and daily conduct were the only evidence of your faith, what would they say about what you actually believe?
Another way to ask: An early Christian told mocking pagans, "We don't speak great things. We live them." If your daily life were the only proof of your faith, what would it show you really believe?

Direct Answer

The message directs us to examine daily life first, because it presents this saying as a summary of primitive Christianity. It offers no personal checklist, so each person must honestly apply the saying to his or her own habits.

Support from the Message

- In a literary drama, a pagan mocks the New Testament and Christian writings for their poor Greek, and the Christian answers by pointing to how Christians live. - David Bercot says this response summed up primitive Christianity. - He says Jesus talked a lot about fruit and wants to see it in our lives. - He notes that the Sermon on the Mount gives us a lot about how to live. - He says Jesus taught love less by words than by His own life and by dying for us.

Discussion Follow-up

Which habit or decision from this past week best shows what you actually believe? What is one area where your speech about the faith runs ahead of your living?

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