5 Conduct yourselves with wisdom toward outsiders, making the most of the opportunity. 6 Let your speech always be with grace, as though seasoned with salt, so that you will know how you should respond to each person. Colossians 4:5–6
Especially these days, “outsiders” have preconceived notions about Christians. We are often characterized as narrow-minded zealots, wishing to force our beliefs down the throats of the masses. Paul conducts a brief seminar here on how to dispel these mischaracterizations. We aren’t trying to take over the world, but we do work for someone who loves it, and who intends to rule it, when the time comes.
Let it not be lost on us that we are to make the most of every interaction with the world. Jesus did. Of all people, we should put God’s grace on display in what we say and do. We are the salt that causes God’s grace to be more flavorful.
“You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt has become tasteless, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled under foot by men.” Matthew 5:13
When the world comes in contact with us, something positive should happen. After all, we are “other worldly.”
13 For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. Colossians 1:13–14
But we must not get our hopes up too high, as we must only look as far as how the world responded to Jesus. Nevertheless, Paul said in his letter to the Romans, “if possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men.” Romans 12:18
An encounter with the lost should never be discounted. In fact, it should be made the most of, or more accurately from the original language, “redeemed.” In this context, exagorazo is used to refer to “buying out,” or grabbing up all that remains on display, with a seasonal context.
Jesus said to those who understood the mystery of the kingdom of God that a different communication approach would be necessary with those who don’t. To them he spoke in parables. (Matthew 13:13) Certainly, our interactions with the world are opportunities that require wisdom. We may not be capable of spinning a compelling tale with deep meaning, but we can draw attention to things of which only God is capable.
For example, we could remark about the fantastic sunrise, or timely receipt of much needed rain, or the coolness in the air after days of torrid heat, followed by “God is good.” These are icebreakers in the context of the reality of the glory of God. In other words, it’s alright to talk about the weather. We are the ones with a window in on its Creator. Still, we should be aware that the world has a problem seeing goodness.
A lot of sports calculate a player’s plus/minus rating to determine performance. By whatever calculus is used, did the good outweigh the bad? We want to come away from every encounter with “outsiders” with a positive score. How well did we use our wisdom and grace to demonstrate the love of Christ? Has a foundation been laid, the field been tilled, the ice been broken, a seed been planted?
There are certainly nice people out there without the Lord, but as the past few years have revealed, they are few and far between. We should take advantage of the space being created for us to showcase the love of Christ. We are now the “sore thumbs.”
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