Blameless Reputation

Verse of the Day: Daniel 6:4 So the governors and satraps sought to find some charge against Daniel concerning the kingdom; but they could find no charge or fault, because he was faithful; nor was there any error or fault found in him.

Not sure if anyone has noticed yet, but we live in a dark world. We live amongst people who do what is wrong, and wicked, before God and call it right. They despise the things of God, and anyone who holds to, and tries to live in accordance to, God’s truth (Ps 37:12; 32). Among these people we are called to be salt and light (Matt 5:13-16). We are called to represent Jesus, and do that without bringing shame to Him or the Gospel message. How are we doing with that? What is our reputation before a lost and dying world? Do we stand out because we live a life set apart from the world’s ways or do we just blend in, fearing that we might offend someone or to avoid persecution? What kinds of conversations do we involve ourselves in? Do we say and do things that dishonor the Name of Jesus? Does our attitude toward others look exactly like the world’s way of behaving towards others or are we being loving, kind, patient, and always ready to be available to be used by God to be a blessing? What is our work ethic like? Daniel was a great example of someone whose reputation was untarnished, because his behavior and lifestyle mirrored what he believed. The Word of God tells us, in Proverbs 22:1, that a good name and favor with both God and man is better than great riches, gold or silver; for God can do much more with our good reputation, for the cause of Christ, than we could ever do with any amount of riches we gain in this world. Yet, too many Christians put more effort into gaining riches than they do keeping their reputation unblemished. I speak of those that often go to work late, look to leave early, spend more time playing on their phone or other device, than they do actually working, and spend the day complaining and gossiping amongst unbelievers. These are the same people who then announce loudly and proudly that they are followers of Jesus and are the first to criticize and judge those around them that are cussing and doing whatever it is that an unsaved person will do, such as lie, steal, and live immorally. The end result is that no one will listen to them when they attempt to share the Gospel with them, and will just seem like hypocrites who are judging others while behaving the same way. Now, I am not speaking of the person who occasionally loses their temper or occasionally does something that they should not do (being the exception and not the rule). None of us are perfect, and sometimes we stumble. I am referring to the person who is like clockwork in their behavior that dishonors the faith. This was not so with Daniel. What happened to him so many years ago still happens today. When we truly live for the Lord and He begins to lift us up and promote us, there will be those who will be jealous and will seek to bring us down. Regardless of what they do or how much they scheme, we, as God’s children, should not be giving them ammunition to use against us. Instead, our reputation should be as such that they have to lie and use great deception in their attempt to bring us down. 1 Peter 2:12; 3:16 tells us that our lifestyle (reputation) should be honest before the unsaved so that when they speak evil of us the end result will be their shame and God’s glory. Let them have to make a false accusation against us as their only recourse in trying to malign our good name. Jesus set the example for us as they could find no one to make an accusation against him, except for false witnesses (Matt 26:59-60). The bottom line is that we are ambassadors for Christ, and must be careful to maintain a reputation that honors God at home, at play, and at work. Yes, we will be persecuted when we refuse to fit in, but we can live a godly and morally pure life without having the same mean-spirited attitude that the world has. We can maintain who we are in Christ, trusting that He will promote us in His time, even in the midst of persecution. I have lived through this experience, and can testify that God is good, will fight for us, and promote us in a way that we could never expect. I will close with this: a while back a person who worked for me made a false accusation against me. Two of my managers took it upon themselves to accept the accusation as truth and proceeded to put together a false report about the accusation because one of the managers was insecure, due to the reputation I had with the people above them. The end result was that I was unjustly terminated from my position with the company I worked for. The person who made the accusation was given my supervisory position, and it seemed that they had been victorious in what they thought they accomplished. On the day they fired me, I shook both my managers’ hands and smiled at them as I departed. A few months later I found other employment with a different company and was hired based on my reputation with my previous employers, and it was discovered during the hiring process that the managers from my previous job had lied in their investigation and refused to provide their report to my current employer, during my background investigation. I later found out that the person who was given my position was overwhelmed with the responsibility and basically falling apart, and the manager that terminated me, was later terminated and had to take a lesser position with another company, with much less pay. In the end, the Lord provided me with a better job, higher pay, and less stress. When we take care to guard who we are in Christ (Titus 2:8), and trust Him to take care of us (1 Peter 5:6-7), even when others wrong us, we cannot lose (Rom 12:19). Let us today, and always be careful to keep a good name for the glory of God.

A good reputation alone will not get us into Heaven. Only Jesus can. Let us trust His Good Name, by calling upon Him and asking Him to give us eternal life. Once we have Him, He promises never to leave us nor forsake us (Heb 13:5-6), and will be our Helper. Call on Him today, by faith, repenting, and confessing your sins (Rom 6:23; 10:13).