“I would rather see a sermon preached than hear one any day.” “What you are doing speaks so loud that I cannot hear what you are saying.” “Your religion is what you do when the sermon is over.” Are you familiar with sayings such as these? I have seen and heard the point of these sayings in a variety of ways and they have made me consider what I am saying or doing on more than one occasion. The point being made is that no matter the message, the messenger is what we really pay attention to. This is easily seen regarding people in visible positions of authority or responsibility (especially in the Church), but what about the average member sitting in the congregation—does this saying apply to you? You bet it does. To borrow from Roger Ailes, you are the message.

Roger Ailes spent his life in broadcasting and journalism and, among other things, was media advisor to presidents Ronald Reagan and George Bush. He wrote a book he titled You Are the Message, in which he makes the primary point that unless our public presentation is based on who we are and the values we hold, we will not truly succeed at whatever we are attempting to do. Mr. Ailes goes on to state in his book that it only takes seven seconds for someone to make an impression of another person (that can be a scary statement), but that if we are living our message, seven seconds is all the time we need.

I hope you can see the spiritual application in Mr. Ailes point—you are the message for God’s way of life. As Christ said, we are to “shine before men that they may see your good [actions] and glorify your Father” (Matthew 5:16).  It is true that not everyone will have a responsibility like speaking during Sabbath services, and not everyone may be ordained or have a title in some church responsibility. Whatever our roles or responsibilities at church may be, the fact is that more people will observe us outside of that venue and make an assessment of God’s way of life based on what we do on a daily basis. The apostle Paul wrote to Timothy regarding this point of personal example, in 1 Timothy 4:12, when he wrote, “Be an example of the believers, in word, in conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity.”

In fact, religions or religious denominations that are growing in number are doing so more out of the community they create than the doctrine they teach. This was true even in our past in the 1970s and 1980s—more individuals became members because of the example of current members than from any television effort, booklets read or any other media outlet. Those things are important, but people will not stay in any organization that says one thing and then does something else. We read in Titus 2:7 that we are to “in all things show [ourselves] a pattern as the model of good works: in Godly instruction, purity of living, fairness and genuineness.”

We need to remember our example to the world, but also our example to each other. In fact, in Hebrews 10:24, we are told to incite one another to love and good works.

What kind of sermon do we preach through our actions? What picture of God do others have from not only hearing what we have to say concerning God’s way of life, but even more importantly what they see us doing? What is our message?