A song popular some years ago Started out, “Me and my shadow, strolling down the avenue.” This points to an undeniable fact: no man can escape his shadow.
A truth of far deeper significance that applies to all men but particularly to Christians is that each of us casts a shadow of influence on other lives, either for good or for evil. The Psalmist expresses the gravity of this thought in a prayer, “Let not those who hope in thee be put to shame through me, O Lord GOD of hosts; let not those who seek thee be brought to dishonor through me, O God of Israel” (Ps. 69:6, RSV).
Our Lord himself uttered the warning: “Temptations to sin are sure to come; but woe to him by whom they come! It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were cast into the sea, than that he should cause one of these little ones to sin” (Luke 17:1, 2).
Christians can be woefully careless in this matter of example and by their carelessness contribute to the downfall of others.
The believers in Corinth were confronted with the problem of pagan rites involving the placing of food before idols. This food was then often sold in the market, and a controversy soon arose over whether Christians should buy or eat such meat. Paul went on to tell them that eating meat had no significance one way or the other, but that the effect of a careless attitude could be disastrous for a weak Christian. He concluded, “Therefore, if food is a cause of my brother’s falling, I will never eat meat, lest I cause my brother to fall” (1 Cor. 8:13).
How many today are willing to take Paul’s position? I fear that many of us, convinced of our own freedom and of the rightness of our behavior within that freedom, forget that “none of us lives to himself, and none of us dies to himself” (Rom. 14:7). We live in the presence of God, who sees and knows all. We also have about us a host of persons—some of whom we do not even know, perhaps—who look to us to set an example.
Paul speaks of this in forceful terms: “Then let us no more pass judgment on one another, but rather decide never to put a stumbling-block or hindrance in the way of a brother.… Do not let what you eat cause the ruin of one for whom Christ died.… Do not, for the sake of food, destroy the work of God.… Happy is he who has no reason to judge himself for what he approves” (Rom. 14:13, 15, 20, 22).
For us to set some sort of example is as inevitable as for light to produce a shadow. A good example is a reflection of the indwelling Christ. A good example glorifies Christ; a bad one shows the triumph of self (and Satan) in our lives.
Furthermore, the Christian’s example has both a positive and a negative aspect, produced by what we do and by what we do not do, by what we say and by what we refrain from saying.
Sinful acts can “cause the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme,” as David’s adultery did. How tragic when those who bear the name Christian are guilty of thus demeaning the name of Christ and hindering his cause. The Christian’s outward behavior should reflect resources beyond himself, and standards pleasing to God rather than the world.
Few would deny that the growth of juvenile delinquency in our day is mainly due to the bad example, in word and deed, set by so many adults. Christians are not without blame. Often they so conform their behavior to that of the world that it can be said that their salt has lost its savor and their light its power.
Setting a bad example by carelessness or thoughtlessness is common, even among Christians. Questionable jokes that suggest some uncleanness, witty remarks that show an irreverent attitude, careless behavior that implies evil—all these things take their toll of our moral influence. Paul’s admonition, “Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewal of your mind” (Rom. 12:2a) bears directly on the example the Christian sets before others.
How easy, too, to harm our influence by fits of temper, hasty words, unworthy deeds! All about us unbelievers are walking in spiritual darkness. It is tragic indeed when Christians, who should reflect the light of the living Christ to all around, only deepen the darkness by careless behavior that hides the light of Christ within. Many unbelievers have no interest in the doctrines or principles of Christianity, but they are uncomfortably keen-sighted about the practices of professing Christians.
The answer to the question of our example to others is not to be found in some pietistic set of rules. It is a matter of living in the conscious presence of the Lord, trying to please him in word, thought, and deed. This inevitably reflects itself in our example to others. The Apostle Paul advises, “Abstain from all appearance of evil” (1 Thess. 5:22, KJV). This means simply: if there is a question or even a suggestion of evil, avoid it.
This is not negative Christianity. A Christian should certainly live a life consistent with his profession. Inevitably some will sneer, and occasionally some will persecute. One of our privileges as Christians is to accept the offense of the Cross.
No man ever set a more consistent example of righteousness than the Prophet Daniel. When a plot was hatched to discredit him with the king, his enemies said, “We shall not find any ground for complaint against this Daniel unless we find it in connection with the law of his God” (Dan. 6:5). Then, when it was decreed that for thirty days no petition was to be made to anyone other than the king, Daniel went to his house and “prayed and gave thanks before God, as he had done previously” (Dan. 5:10b). This he did three times a day before an open window, knowing that his enemies would see and accuse him. What an example to all who would be faithful to the heavenly vision, regardless of the apparent consequences!
It has been said that people judge far more by what they see than what they hear. Certainly the influence of the Christian rests in large measure on his behavior. Pious words may come easy, but true Christian character produces upright living that people see. Such an example brings glory to God.
Christian character, the source of a good example, is a matter of day-to-day living, judging things and events in the light of God’s laws and holiness and patterning one’s behavior accordingly. It involves looking beyond the immediate to the eternal, but with the realization that those around us are also looking—not at God, but at the things in us that either honor or dishonor him.
Only as Christ lives in us can we be a good influence. The shadow of our example falls behind us, affecting for good or ill all touched by it.
For good or for ill? That is the question.
