"And [Jesus] spoke a parable to them: "Can the blind lead the blind? Will they not both fall into the ditch?"" - Luke 6:39
Leaders lead the people to where they are going. If they are going to where God wants them, they'll likely lead people there too. On the other hand, if they're going somewhere they shouldn't be, chances are their followers will also end up going somewhere they shouldn't go too.
That said, we must be careful not to become blind guides. We must be careful that we will never lead others to a ditch. We must be very careful never to lead others into a place where they shouldn't be: a place where they will not know God.
Did you know that we Christians can become blind guides who lead others out of the faith? While some people who left the church remain Christian, others abandon the faith entirely and when we dig into the reason, we find that it was because the faithful aren't really faithful.
Friends, I am writing this article to help all of us, including myself, be reminded of the things we shouldn't be doing as Christians who represent Christ both in name and in lifestyle. 2 Corinthians 5:20 tells us,
"Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ's behalf, be reconciled to God."
Since we are Christ's ambassadors, let us strive to live a life that shows His character to all men.
Here are some ways Christians can mislead others to go out of the faith:
1) When we live a compromising lifestyle of sin
Christ lived a sinless life. Christians should then strive to live a life without sin. We are capable of doing it, because the same Spirit that empowered Christ to live a sinless life lives in us as well (see Luke 4:14; 2 Corinthians 5:21; 1 Corinthians 6:19).
When younger Christians and non-Christians see confessed Christians live a lifestyle of sin, they will simply follow suit. "Jesus probably doesn't care if I sin," they might think, "after all, that Christian keeps sinning too."
2) When we choose to have lukewarm love for Christ
Jesus doesn't like lukewarm love for Him. He said in Revelation 3:15-16,
"I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth."
A lukewarm love for Christ has no vigor. It has no passion and lacks compassion. It is self-centered and has no care for others - not even Christ. Lukewarm Christians really don't love Christ, and even non-Christians can see that in our lives.
3) When we prioritize the temporal more than the eternal
Christians who are worldly neglect the eternal. When we focus our eyes, hearts, and attention on things that are temporal, we naturally neglect the eternal. We neglect the things of God because we're so preoccupied with the things of the world. 1 John 2:15-16 commands us,
"Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world."
If we look, sound, and feel like the world, what makes us different from the world? We can't boast of Christ's work in our lives and dive deep into the things that He redeemed us from. James 4:4 tells us,
"Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God."
We must choose to prioritize God. When we don't, what makes us think that the people we lead and teach will prioritize Him?
