Graft: Using a public office, job, or position of trust to dishonestly steal or gain money (like taking bribes, kickbacks, or misusing public funds).Pull: Having personal connections or "influence" with people in power who can give you special advantages, jobs, or business contracts that others cannot get fairly.
"For none of us lives to himself..." (Romans 14:7)
Every person is an influencer. For good or for bad.
Whether you realize it or not, your life is constantly preaching a sermon. Your words teach. Your attitudes spread. Your habits are contagious. Your character leaves fingerprints on everyone you meet. Some influence thousands, others influence only a few, but no one influences no one.
The question is not, "Do I have influence?"
The question is, "Whose kingdom is my influence advancing?"
Is it pointing people to Christ or to myself.. or elsewhere?
Is it encouraging holiness or trying to normalize spiritual compromise?
Is it strengthening faith or weakening convictions? Is it helping to build up the Church or tearing it down. Whose kingdom is it building up?
When I became a Christian at age 18, I was godsmacked and amazed to realize that God would forgive a party-animal surfer like me, that He would change me and that He had a good plan for my life. In fact, his plan for me is better than the plan I had for myself.
But when it came to God actually using me for His purposes, I wondered what I could bring to the table. I've never been some great comedian or great academic. I wasn’t a musician. And I wasn’t even close to being an orator.
I was just a 18-year-old kid and Dana Point with not a whole lot to offer to God.
Remember the boy in the New Testament story of the Feeding of the Five Thousand. He wanted to help and so did I. I still do.
The boy had a few barley loaves and a couple of fish, yet Jesus multiplied them.
We all have a part to play. big or small and the important part is that we each do our part in obedience to what the Lord directs us to do.
The thought that God could use me amazed me, actually.
In Costa Mesa, I heard from my pastors Chuck Smith, Randy Ziegler (He's the one who witnessed to me on the beach), and Greg Laurie that I should be out caring and sharing in that order.. telling other people about Jesus Christ.
I was a baby Christian and wanted to live the life first .. but maybe I could live it until it at the same time?
I thought I’d give it a go. I saw another surfer named Brad about my age sitting on the beach at South Creek, and I thought he has always been a nice guy. We worked at a restaurant for a period of time together.
So I walked up to him calm and trying to be confident.. I engaged him in a conversation about the Bible and who that whole book points to - Jesus. Did I use a lot of versus or a long testimony story? Nope. I’m sure I made a mess of how it's supposed to be done, but much to my shock and delight, he said yes when I asked her if she would like to accept Christ into her life.
Afterward I thought and prayed, “Lord, I want to pray, trust You, and do this some more. Please use me.”
Yes, Lord, I want You to help me to even pray better and do this wisely.. more.
Yes, I wanted God to use me in other ways too.
I'm not totally sure at all about how much God has used me, but I can confidently say that the greatest joy I know, next to being a Christian following the Lord, is being used by God. What a ginormous privilege it is.
In the book of Ezekiel, chapter 22, God said, “I looked for someone who might rebuild the wall of righteousness that guards the land. I searched for someone to stand in the gap in the wall so I wouldn’t have to destroy the land, but I found no one” (verse 30 NLT).
Think about that. I believe God is still looking for people to use. He’s looking and saying, “Is there someone I could use, someone who could stand in the gap? Is there someone who could speak up for Me, who would not be embarrassed or afraid? Is there someone who would just take a little bit of risk and let Me speak through them?”
Back in the day, a young man named Dwight Lyman Moody was working in a shoe store. Yes, he was a shoe clerk. His coworker shared the gospel with him, and as a result Moody became a born-again believer. Then one day someone said to him, “The world has yet to see what God will do with a man fully consecrated to Him.”
Moody thought By the grace of God, I want to become that person.. “By the Holy Spirit in me I’ll be that man.”
So he went from selling soles to being used by Jesus to save souls. Yes, God used D. L. Moody powerfully to touch thousands, even millions, of people.
And God is still looking for a man or a woman He could work through who is fully committed to Him.
Everyone has a pulpit so to speak, wherever they are. That pulpit, so to speak, is the platform before the people we influence. It might be the people we run into when we get our morning coffee or the people around us at work. It’s people in our families and in our neighborhoods. That’s our platform, our pulpit. God can use you as a full-time minister as he calls some people to become or as a tent maker minister as he calls others to become. He saves us, cleans us up, and He reshapes us for His world-changing purpose. He has a specific plan for you, so you need to pray specifically. You are a meaningful specific in Christ, not a wandering generality.
Influence Is a Stewardship from God
Every opportunity, every relationship, every conversation, every position of leadership, every gift, every talent, every dollar, every platform, every friendship, and every moment of life is entrusted to us by God.
None of it ultimately belongs to us.
We are stewards, not owners.
Jesus taught that one day every servant will stand before the Master and give an account (Matthew 25:14-30; Luke 12:42-48). Our influence is one of those sacred trusts.
Influence is never given so that we may build our own kingdom.
It is given so we may build Christ's Kingdom.
John the Baptist expressed the heart every believer should have:
"He must increase, but I must decrease." (John 3:30)
That is God's philosophy of influence.
The world says, "Build your own platform for you."
Jesus says, "Take up your cross."
The world says, "Promote yourself for your own sake."
Jesus says, "Deny yourself."
The world says, "Gain followers after You primarily."
Jesus says, "Follow Me."
You and I can't go wrong if we keep living the life in the Spirit and pointing people to Christ. We want everyone to repent, believe and join Jesus in His great eternal Cause.
Influence Without the Fear of God .. It Can Become Dangerous
Influence itself is neither good nor evil.
Its value depends upon the heart that exercises it.
Throughout Scripture we see people who used influence for selfish ambition and others who used it for God's glory.
Joseph used his influence to preserve precious life.
Daniel used his influence to honor God before pagan kings.
Esther used her influence to save her people.
Nehemiah used his influence to rebuild what had been broken.
Paul used his influence to preach Christ across the Roman Empire.
Yet Pharaoh used influence to oppress.
Jezebel used influence to spread her beloved idolatry.
Judas used influence to betray Christ.
Diotrephes "loved to be first" and abused his position within the church (3 John 9-10).
The fear of the Lord is what keeps influence from becoming manipulation.
Without reverence for God, influence becomes a tool for pride, power, control, greed, and self-promotion.
With the fear of God, influence becomes humble service.
We Are Living Epistles
Long before people read our Bible, they read our lives.
Paul wrote,
"You are our letter...known and read by everyone." (2 Corinthians 3:2-3)
Our neighbors are reading us.
Our families are reading us.
Our coworkers are reading us.
Our churches are reading us.
Our children are reading us.
The question is: What Gospel are they seeing?
Do they see Christ's patience?
His purity?
His compassion?
His humility?
His truth?
Or do they simply see another religious person living like everyone else?
Is Jesus Living His Life Through You?
Christianity is not merely trying harder.
It is Christ living His life through surrendered people.
Paul testified,
"It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me." (Galatians 2:20)
Jesus never intended believers merely to imitate Him in human strength.
He came to live in His people through the Holy Spirit.
The Christian life is supernatural.
When we walk in the Spirit (Galatians 5:16-26), His fruit begins to appear naturally: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.
That fruit becomes one of the greatest influences any believer can have upon a watching world.
The Bible Changes People—and Changed Societies
God's Word has never returned empty.
Isaiah declared,
"So shall my word be...it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose." (Isaiah 55:10-11)
Throughout history, wherever Scripture has been believed and obeyed, lives have been transformed.
Families have been restored.
Hospitals have been founded.
Schools established.
Slavery challenged.
The poor cared for.
The unborn defended.
Missionaries sent.
Churches planted.
Communities changed.
Yet the Bible's primary mission has never been merely to reform cultures.
It transforms hearts.
Changed hearts produce changed homes.
Changed homes strengthen churches.
Healthy churches become lights within communities.
Communities influenced by godly people often experience greater justice, compassion, honesty, and stability.
The gospel works from the inside out.
Our Mission Is His Great Commission
Ancient Israel was uniquely established by God as a covenant nation under His direct rule.
The New Testament never commands the Church to recreate Israel's civil government.
Instead, believers are instructed to respect governing authorities (Romans 13:1-7), pray for leaders (1 Timothy 2:1-4), obey lawful authority, and live peaceful, godly lives.
At the same time, Christians should never abandon their responsibility to speak truth, defend righteousness, pursue justice, and seek the welfare of their communities.
We influence society not by coercion but by conviction.
Not merely through political power but through transformed lives.
Not first by changing laws but by proclaiming the gospel that changes hearts.
People need Christ even more than they need better government.
Salt and Light
Jesus called His followers "the salt of the earth" and "the light of the world" (Matthew 5:13-16).
Salt preserves.
Light exposes darkness.
Neither accomplishes its purpose by hiding.
Christians are called to enter every sphere of society—as faithful workers, parents, business owners, teachers, neighbors, public servants, and church members—bringing the character of Christ wherever God places them.
Our influence should make dishonesty less acceptable.
Our kindness should soften bitterness.
Our integrity should expose corruption.
Our compassion should reveal God's heart.
Our truthfulness should point people to Christ.
Influence That Lasts Forever
Many people spend their lives building reputations that disappear with time.
Jesus calls us to invest in eternal things.
Influence measured by social media fades.
Influence measured by heaven lasts forever.
The greatest leaders are not those who accumulate the most followers.
They are those who faithfully point the most people to Jesus.
The greatest influence is not popularity.
It is Christlikeness.
A Final Challenge
Someone is becoming more like you every day.
Your children.
Your grandchildren.
Your friends.
Your coworkers.
Your church family.
Your neighbors.
The question is not whether you are influencing them.
You already are.
The question is whether your influence is making it easier for them to see Jesus.
So live under the fear of God.
Walk in the power of the Holy Spirit.
Fill your mind with God's Word.
Love people sincerely.
Serve without seeking applause.
Speak the truth with grace for decisions. Jesus alone can save people.
Use every opportunity God gives you to exalt Jesus and win souls to Him—not to make your own name great—but to make much of Jesus Christ. KnowGod.org
May our lives be so full of Christ that when people remember us, they remember Him.
The Bible never teaches that Christians should seek influence as an end in itself, or for self. Rather, we seek Christ, and to positively influence People towards him. This influence is to be the byproduct of a holy life empowered by the Holy Spirit.
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