The believers of Peter’s day, changed by God’s grace, faced inevitable accusations from the world around them. In response, Peter urged them to defend themselves not by arguing for their position but by living honorable lives. In his message “Honorable Conduct,” Alistair Begg helps us to see why it’s our behavior, not a method or a movement, that God often uses to open doors for us to share the Gospel message:
What Peter is speaking about here is not simply moral uprightness but a radical discipline, and on the basis … of this: number one, our heavenly citizenship; number two, our concern for the well-being of our souls; and, number three, on account of the influence for good that we may bring to bear upon those who oppose us. …
On one occasion, Plato was told that a certain man had been making slanderous charges against him. Plato’s response: “I will live in such a way that no one will ever believe what he says.” That’s conduct. And this is directly tied here to the fact that there is a day of visitation that is coming—that they may see your good deeds and actually give glory to God when things are wrapped up.
Now, as we think about this, and particularly in terms of the desire that each of us has to try and become better in expressing these things, there are plenty of books—plenty of books available—to teach us how to live our lives in a kind of 1 Peter 3:15 approach, so that we would live our lives in such a way that people would ask a question as to what we believed. And you get a book, and it says, “If you do this and do that and have coffee here and coffee there…” And it’s all very fine. But actually, the strongest missionary force in the world is a Christ-filled, grace-centered, attractive life. A Christ-filled, grace-centered, attractive life.
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