May 12, 2021
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I was teaching my son to drive, I think. There were some pretty thrill-packed moments as he learned to drive. And there was a strange byproduct taking place as he learned to drive. My driving improved! Yes, and it needed it! See, we were living in the New York area. And when you're there, traffic tends to make you a little more careless about the right way to drive; the way you learn how to drive; the way the book says you ought to drive might be two different things when your survival is at stake, which it almost is constantly there.
Now, where I lived, driving was a challenge in itself. But nevertheless, I was always conscious of this pair of eyes watching me from the back seat, and I began to notice what I was doing when I was behind the wheel. This impressionable teenage boy wanted to know how his Dad was handling the wheel. He watched how I kept the speed limit, how I changed lanes, and how I approached cars from the rear, if I was tailgating. I was making an impression on my son, and frankly, I drove more carefully; the way I should drive all along.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "You Drive Better When You're Being Watched."
Our word for today from the Word of God is that simple familiar statement in 2 Corinthians 5:20. Maybe someone needs to be reminded of it today. It says, "We are Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making His appeal through us." Now, it doesn't say we should be Christ's ambassadors, it says we are. You may say, "I don't want to be an ambassador." Well you are; it's just a fact.
In many countries the ambassador is the only thing people know about our country. They assume that America is like that ambassador who is an American, right? They may think America is a great place, and they may think America is a selfish place depending on what they think of the ambassador.
The sobering reality of your everyday life as a Christian is that people are sizing you up. They're seeing whether Jesus Christ is living through you; if this is a Jesus they would want. You say, "Well, I don't like that responsibility." You've got it! You can't get out of it. You hold the reputation of Jesus Christ in the way you live. Just like I was being watched as a driver by my son, you're always being watched in the way you drive your life.
You know what? My son watching me made me a better driver. You and I need to know how important our daily actions are, because someone needs to see the person of Jesus Christ in you. Sometimes we feel like, "Well, it doesn't matter if I do this." Oh, it does. It matters that you go out of your way to tell the truth. It matters that you reach out to that person who's down. It matters that you do try to keep your temper, that you keep your language clean.
You know, most people who ever come to Christ do it because of a Christian they know. Most people who never come to Christ - it's because of a Christian they know. It might be time to focus on one person that you want to take to heaven with you. When you do that, you realize that that person's eyes are on you and they have been on you.
But now you begin to base your actions on being Christ's ambassador; the face, the hands, the voice of Jesus in their life. Suddenly someone's depending on you, whether they know it or not. Their eternity may depend on how faithfully you follow Christ. And suddenly you see your faith as never before. You need God's Word now for daily strength to keep your life right; to keep your life an accurate, worthy representation of what Jesus is like.
What an incentive to know that you are Christ's ambassador, to give Him a good reputation in everything you say and everything you do. You base your whole life on Him now. If you're going to live out-of-bounds, remember you're Christ's ambassador.
His reputation is tied into everything you do, and you always drive better when you're being watched. You know what? You are.