Do People Know You’ve Been With Jesus?

February 2024

   What are you known for or what is your reputation?  Everyone is known for something.  In my interactions with young people, I am addressed as “Coach” because I have been a 7th and 8th grade coach (12- to 14-year-old students) for over 25 years in football.  Non-youth individuals will often call me that religious guy that was the leader of the local youth ministry or now, the one who goes on trips a lot to Africa and Asia.  

   What we are known for is so often tied into what we do and obviously what people see in us.  Due to that, how do your friends know that you have been with Jesus?  

   That question comes from Acts 4:1-22, specifically verse 13, “When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished, and they took note that these men had been with Jesus.”  In whatever ways Peter and John were behaving and talking, people knew that these two guys had spent time hanging around with Jesus.  

   That could have come from people remembering seeing Peter and John with Jesus, but also in how they behaved and handles themselves.  

   Their communication pointed people to Jesus.  So often people, including Christians, are trying to impress others by what they know or whose name they can drop into a conversation, revealing how important they are.  

   Peter and John were unschooled, not sophisticated in speech or etiquette but you knew where their allegiance and faith were.  If I asked your friends about you, would they say you are a believer in Jesus because of how you lived your life?

   If we have to wear a Christian slogan T-shirt to indicate that we are Christians, there is something wrong in the way we live our lives (not the fact we wear the shirt).  St. Francis of Assisi has been given the notoriety of sharing this principle of always share the Gospel and when necessary, use words.  How do people know we have been with Jesus?

   The first step is making sure you have placed your faith and trust in Jesus to forgive you of your sins.  Secondly, sit at Jesus’ feet, meaning spend time and nurturing your relationship with Jesus.  Spend time with Him through reading the Bible.  Memorize, meditate, discuss the Bible with other growing Christians, learn from them.  Experience your faith through listening to and talking with God, serve others, perform acts of loving kindness and forgiveness Let people know that Jesus is alive and desires to be a part of their lives.  

   Being with Jesus gives you understanding and insight, wisdom that can challenge people.  This is not book knowledge; it is being obedient and experiencing life, sitting at His feet and going through life together.  Allow the Holy Spirit to control all areas of your life, developing the fruit of the Spirit in you (Galatians 5:22-23).

   Cultivate and develop relationships with people.  Get to know them.  Listen to them.  Experience life with them.  In your conversations, attitudes and behaviors, share nuggets of Bible truth and tell them that you go to church, read your Bible and that you spend time with Jesus.  Then, when the opportunities come (and they will come), share what it means to be and how to become a Christian.  Answer questions about your faith and when asked a question you do not know the answer to, share you do not know and try to find the answer.  

   As Christians, we have a responsibility to live our lives before others so that they will see what our relationship with Jesus means to us.  Keep asking how do people know that I have been with Jesus?  If people cannot see that you are different because of your faith in Jesus, evaluate where you are at with Jesus and obediently change what needs to be changed.  

Email: WildMinistries@gmail.com