Walk Wisely!

Colossians 4:5 - Walk Wisely!

Paul is teaching. That’s what teachers do. He has told us how to live holy lives, how to live with our families, how to have good employer/employee relationships, and how to pray – at least what we need to pray for. Now he tells us how to relate to the lost people in our world. I think that very often Christians forget what it’s like to be lost, and that makes it very difficult to understand what lost people need. Sometimes, it makes us indifferent to their needs. But Paul says that the first thing we must do is to pray for open doors to share the gospel. I will admit that this is not usually the first thing I pray for every day, but at some point during the day I do ask God to give me an opportunity to witness for Him. The problem is that many times He provides the opportunity, and we ignore it – or reject it – because we are busy or afraid or just don’t care. And that, my friends, is sin. In all reality, we do not have a political problem in the United States of America. We have a sin problem, and the sin problem is the church’s problem. We will not resolve the issues that plague our country until we Christians get right with God. But I digress. First, we pray for opportunities, then we ask for God to give us the right words to say. I know that many Christians fear trying to witness because they are afraid they will say something that will drive people farther away from Christ, but the reality is that if we will simply share the good news of Christ’s love, the Holy Spirit will take care of the rest.

Finally, Paul says that we are to live a life that will draw them to Christ. At least that is how I understand this verse. In Paul’s culture and language, often the phrase “to walk” means “to live our lives.” So in this verse, he tells us to walk in wisdom toward those who are outside the Kingdom. What does that mean? We are to act wisely. We are to do the right things because time is short. This apostle felt so strongly that Jesus could return at any moment that an urgency had developed within his heart. Every moment of every day had to be used for God’s glory – for bringing people to Christ. While Paul never told us to use any means necessary to get people saved, he did say that he becomes all things to all people in order to reach some. Here is the meaning: he changed his methods – never the message – so that he could relate to lost people. And in light of that urgency, we need to live holy, happy lives that will draw people to Christ. We need to speak with grace, and let our words be seasoned with salt. More on that tomorrow!