A True Image

Acts 16:16-24

“The whole city is in an uproar because of these Jews!” they shouted to the city officials. “They are teaching customs that are illegal for us Romans to practice.” (Acts 16:20-21)

AN INTERESTING SUBTHEME throughout the book of Acts is misperceptions nonbelievers had about Christians—that Christians believed Jesus would destroy the Temple (Acts 6:14), or that they were rebelling against Caesar (Acts 17:7), or that one of their most prominent leaders was taking Greeks into the inner courts of the Temple to defile it (Acts 21:28). Christians were said elsewhere to have orgies and partake in cannibalism (misunderstandings about the Lord’s Supper) and to be disruptive to the public peace. Of course, negative perceptions are not limited to New Testament times; they have continued throughout history and are widespread today. Sometimes Christians do things to earn negative reputations, but sometimes those reputations are wild distortions. Our image has passed through all sorts of unfriendly hands and come out twisted.

One of your jobs in this life is to enhance the reputation of Christians wherever you go. Whether your strengths are intellectual, relational, character-related, artistic, financial, physical, or some combination of these assets, you have an opportunity and even a responsibility to use them well and defy stereotypes. If you think you’ve already blown your reputation through past mistakes, you’re actually in a great position to demonstrate humility and the power of redemption and restoration now. Whatever your situation, the people you encounter need to see some semblance of Jesus clothed in flesh and blood. You have an opportunity to show them that with the gifts, faith, and attitudes he has given you.

Don’t strive and strain to force the issue, and don’t feel responsible for other people’s impressions of Christians. Some people will choose to have a bias against people of faith, regardless of what you do. But for those who have been fed a false impression—or even a true but negative one—you can make a difference. Live with wisdom, power, and love, with lots of grace and understanding added in, and make it clear that the image that is often presented to the world does not look like the image of God in you.

{Jesus, you are the exact image of God, and I want to be the exact image of you—as much as my personality and gifts can reflect you. Let your reputation be enhanced in me. Amen.