By Ben Quine
**This article is part of a series written by Ben Quine that takes us through the whole of Scripture to discover what God has to say about how we as believers in Jesus Christ should conduct ourselves both inside the church and outside in our public and private lives. You will discover that the Word of God has much to say about our conduct.

As we saw in the previous article, the lives and actions of the Old Testament heroes of faith tend to shock the sensibilities of believers today. This is one reason why most people don’t ever read the biblical books written by the prophets — God’s judgements seem too severe, and the language feels too harsh for modern readers. Since our role models from the New Testament lived in a time of grace, with Christ’s love as the example for godly conduct, were their experiences marked by an increase in gentleness and serenity? Are Christians today to avoid conflict in our new aim of winning people to salvation?

Let’s look at the major characters exemplifying godly conduct in the New Testament…

Truly, I say to you, among those born of women there has arisen no one greater than John the Baptist… (Matthew 11:11)

This is a high commendation from Jesus for John the Baptist.

But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, [John] said to them, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruit in keeping with repentance. (Matthew 3:7-8)

John the Baptist did not mince words — like the prophets of the Old Testament, he clearly told the religious leaders of his day that they were wicked and needed to repent.

For it was Herod who had sent and seized John and bound him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip's wife, because he had married her. For John had been saying to Herod, “It is not lawful for you to have your brother's wife.” And Herodias had a grudge against him and wanted to put him to death… But an opportunity came when Herod on his birthday gave a banquet… when Herodias's daughter came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his guests. And the king said to the girl, “Ask me for whatever you wish, and I will give it to you.” […And the girl] asked, saying, “I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter.” …And immediately the king sent an executioner with orders to bring John's head. He went and beheaded him in the prison and brought his head on a platter and gave it to the girl, and the girl gave it to her mother. (Mark 6:17-28)

John boldly held up the standard of right and wrong to the authorities of his day, and like Daniel and Joseph, he experienced earthly consequences.

The king’s brother’s wife was so intolerant of God’s moral law that she sought every opportunity to murder John simply for repeating God’s principles. Eventually, she succeeded.

In the first two articles in this series, we witnessed Paul’s radical dedication to teaching the whole counsel of God, even though it was highly offensive to many who heard it. We saw that because he refused to change his approach to make it more palatable, he experienced intense persecution. The world did not approve of Paul, but God blessed his ministry.

And what they said pleased the whole gathering, and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolaus, a proselyte of Antioch… And Stephen, full of grace and power, was doing great wonders and signs among the people. (Acts 6:5, 8)

Stephen is another hero of the New Testament. He was a humble leader who served others magnificently. 

Then some… rose up and disputed with Stephen. But they could not withstand the wisdom and the Spirit with which he was speaking. Then they secretly instigated men who said, “We have heard him speak blasphemous words against Moses and God.” And they stirred up the people and the elders and the scribes, and they came upon him and seized him and brought him before the council, and they set up false witnesses… (Acts 6:9-13)

Stephen was teaching the truth of the Gospel, serving food to widows in minority communities, and doing great miracles of healing. But because those who opposed the Gospel hate the truth, they conspired to have him arrested based on false charges and false witnesses. Stephen refused to let their false charges go unanswered. In his defense in court, he obliterated them one by one, proving that, in fact, it was his accusers who were guilty. He closed his incredible statement with this doozy:

You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit. As your fathers did, so do you. Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? And they killed those who announced beforehand the coming of the Righteous One, whom you have now betrayed and murdered, you who received the law as delivered by angels and did not keep it.” (Acts 7:51-53)

Those in attendance were filled with rage when they heard Stephen’s highly-insulting words. 

Now when they heard these things they were enraged, and they ground their teeth at him. But he, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. And he said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.” (Acts 7:54-56)

Pay careful attention here: prompted by the Holy Spirit, what did Stephen say to those he had just offended? Did he apologize for what he had said? Stephen knew they were upset, and yet he doubled-down and said the most offensive thing he could have possibly said at that moment: “I see Jesus Christ in his rightful place as the reigning King in heaven.” They killed Stephen for this declaration.

Let’s look at a few often-ignored portions of the ministry of Jesus:

From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” (Matthew 4:17)

It is easy to miss this, but Jesus’ teaching is filled with calls to repentance (“repent” means “turn around”, or turn away from evil). John the Baptist had prepared the way, and after John was killed, Jesus taught the same message. Also like the prophets before him, Jesus at times used harsh language:

And he answered, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.” (Matthew 15:26)

At that very hour some Pharisees came and said to him, “Get away from here, for Herod wants to kill you.” And he said to them, “Go and tell that fox, ‘Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I finish my course.’” (Luke 13:31-32)

If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him! (Matthew 7:11)

You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies. (John 8:44)

But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut the kingdom of heaven in people’s faces. For you neither enter yourselves nor allow those who would enter to go in… Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘If anyone swears by the temple, it is nothing, but if anyone swears by the gold of the temple, he is bound by his oath.’ You blind fools! For which is greater, the gold or the temple that has made the gold sacred? …You serpents, you brood of vipers, how are you to escape being sentenced to hell? (Matthew 23:13, 16-17, 33)

Consider a few more examples:

• Jesus frequently chose to heal people on the Sabbath, even though he knew it would infuriate the scribes and the Pharisees (Luke 6:9-11). 

• After one particularly fine roasting of the Pharisees, Jesus was told by a lawyer standing nearby that Christ’s words made him feel insulted, as well. But instead of apologizing for being offensive, Jesus doubled-down and directly pointed out the sin of the lawyers (Luke 11:37-54).

• When he saw how people were desecrating His Father’s House (the Temple), Jesus was “consumed by zeal.” He used a whip — a whip he made himself — to physically drive out those who were sinning against his Father and harming God’s people (John 2:13-17).

Why did Christ Jesus act this way? Why was his language frequently harsh towards those around him? It was because, like the Old Testament prophets, Jesus loves people and longs for them to repent. He knew that sin leads to a life of death, but repentance and forgiveness bring true spiritual life. 

When he went ashore he saw a great crowd, and he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. And he began to teach them many things. (Mark 6:34)

Jesus is frequently described in the Gospels as being moved by compassion. But his compassion never existed in a vacuum. Rather, it always prompted him to action, animating him to help those around him. He met both their immediate physical needs, and also taught them the truth about salvation, morality, and God’s principles for life. He wanted them to come to him, to believe, and to be saved from death (John 6).

Jesus Christ is the most controversial person in human history because his teaching, his actions, and his mission are all highly offensive to the enemies of God. That is what motivated his enemies to crucify him and to martyr his apostles. 

Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul. Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation. (I Peter 2:11-12)

If you are a child of God, then you are an alien and a stranger on this earth. All of us are called to conduct ourselves uprightly — but the world will still hate us, speak evil against us, and falsely call us evildoers. But don’t be discouraged! We are part of a great continuity of believers through the ages — a great cloud of witnesses that have gone before us, and whose stories have been written down to encourage us! Take a few minutes right now and read Hebrews Chapter 11.

Our Biblical role models are bound together by a common faith, a faith that was richer than just intellectual belief. It wasn’t the sort of faith that sat around waiting for God to do something, but rather was inherently bound up with action. 

“By faith Abraham obeyed…” (Hebrews 11:8)

It was a faith visible through obedience. Very costly obedience…

Others suffered mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were killed with the sword. They went about in skins of sheep and goats, destitute, afflicted, mistreated— of whom the world was not worthy—wandering about in deserts and mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth. (Hebrews 11:36-38)

It is humbling to consider the examples of these great men and women of faith. Though they too were sinners, they boldly obeyed God in the face of impossible odds, or the threat of opposition, suffering, and death. 

The three qualities of godly conduct exemplified in this chapter are faith, obedience, and boldness. Just like these heroes of old, our calling today as children of God is to be faithful, bold, and obedient.

For some this will mean becoming a missionary, pastor, or Bible translator; some will start a business so they can create jobs, invest, and show charity; some will work for Biblical principles to be implemented in society, join law enforcement, or run for public office. The key is faithful, bold obedience to God’s calling on your life. 

As believers today, we should not desire conflict, especially with our Christian brothers and sisters. But if those men and women who lived the most godly lives in history experienced opposition, hate, and persecution, even from their brethren, we should be prepared to face it as well (Ezekiel 14:20, Matthew 5:11-12). God will commend you for living a godly life. He will not be ashamed to call you His son or daughter — He will be proud of you.

Hebrews 12:1-3 perfectly summarizes our calling: to fix our eyes on Jesus (faithfulness) and run with perseverance the race marked out for us (obedience), in spite of the opposition from the world (boldness). This is the wellspring of godly conduct, the source of true, abundant living. We must follow this course of wisdom, regardless of the response from the world. 

All the Law and the prophets depend on our love of God and love for our neighbor (Matthew 22:37-40). Implementing godly conduct will rest on a biblical understanding of truth and love — and that’s what we’ll cover in the following articles.