Gentleness Shows That You Love Jesus

[Gentleness Shows That You Love Jesus]( Current Teaching Series [Life's Healing Choices]( [Listen to Today's Broadcast]( [Gentleness Shows That You Love Jesus]( By Rick Warren — 08/01/2021 [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Pinterest]( [Email]( “Believers shouldn’t curse anyone or be quarrelsome, but they should be gentle and show courtesy to everyone." Titus 3:2 (GW) Your gentleness is a witness to unbelievers. They’re watching you all the time to see if you are any different when you’re under stress. When you respond to pressure with gentleness, it’s an incredible testimony to the world. The Bible says in Titus 3:2, “Believers shouldn’t curse anyone or be quarrelsome, but they should be gentle and show courtesy to everyone” (GW). If you claim to be a follower of Jesus, you are not allowed to speak evil of anyone. You are not allowed to be quarrelsome. Instead, you must be gentle with and show courtesy to everyone. Does that mean even people of a different political party? Yes. God gave me the gift of evangelism, so when I’m not at Saddleback Church, I’m spending most of my time speaking with people I totally disagree with. That’s because I believe you cannot win your enemies to Christ; you can only win your friends. People aren’t going to trust Jesus until they trust you. People usually don’t ask me if the Bible is credible. They want to see that I am credible. Do I live with integrity? Am I gentle? Am I loving? Am I compassionate? If people like what they see in you, they will listen to what you say. Here’s the thing: If you obey Titus 3:2, you’re going to be criticized by other Christians. They’re going to say you’re compromising. I know this from experience. When I say I have friends who are Muslims, Jewish, or atheists, they say, “How could you do that?” And they accuse me of compromising. Treating other people with respect does not mean you have to compromise what you believe. I have friends who don’t agree with me and friends who don’t believe what I believe. Because there’s something more important to focus on: Do they know Jesus? A great verse to live by is 1 Peter 3:15: “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect” (NIV). [PLAY today’s audio teaching from Pastor Rick >>]( Talk It Over - How do you intentionally make friends from all walks of life so that you can talk to them about Jesus? - Why do you think gentleness stands out so much in today’s world? - What do you need to do to be better “prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give a reason for the hope that you have” (1 Peter 3:15 NIV)? The post [Gentleness Shows That You Love Jesus]( appeared first on [Pastor Rick's Daily Hope](. 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[LEARN MORE]( [Series Summary]( Message 1: The Reality Choice Message 2: The Hope Your Need for Change Message 3: Letting Go and Letting God Message 4: The Housecleaning Choice Message 5: The Transformation Choice Message 6: The Relationship Choice Message 7: The Growth Choice Message 8: The Sharing Choice Message 9: What Destroys Relationships and What Builds Them Message 10: There's No Recovery Without Prayer [PLAY TODAY'S BROADCAST]( Pastor Rick Warren [Facebook]( [Instagram]( [Linkedin]( Enjoy today's devotional? Listen to Pastor Rick’s daily audio teaching at [PastorRick.com]( Did someone forward this devotional to you? [Subscribe to Pastor Rick Warren's Daily Devotional.]( As the founding pastor of Saddleback Church with his wife Kay, Dr. Rick Warren leads a 30,000-member congregation in California with campuses in major cities around the world. As an author, his book [The Purpose Driven Life]( is one of the best-selling nonfiction books in publishing history. It has been translated into 74 languages and sold more than 50 million copies in all formats. His book [The Purpose Driven Church]( was named one of the 100 Christian books that changed the century. Rick also founded [The PEACE Plan]( to address five global issues—spiritual emptiness, self-serving leadership, poverty, disease, and illiteracy—through the power of ordinary people in the local church. You can listen to Pastor Rick’s Daily Hope, his daily 25-minute audio teaching, and sign up for his free daily devotionals at [PastorRick.com](. © 2021 by Rick Warren. All rights reserved. Used by permission. You can unsubscribe by clicking the link below. Sent to: {EMAIL} [Unsubscribe]( Pastor Rick's Daily Hope, 23182 Arroyo Vista, Rancho Santa Margarita, CA 92688, United States