Preaching Without Words

If you had to walk into a room and stay completely silent about your faith, would anyone still know you belong to Jesus? That’s the uncomfortable, clarifying question we sit with as Sister Deb Osborne unpacks “You Are The Storm” and the idea of preaching without words. Using Matthew 5:16, we talk about the difference between talking about the light and actually being a light, because people aren’t only listening to what Christians say. They’re watching what we do.

We explore the Bible’s picture of believers as a living letter others can “read” and how that shows up in real life: the way we treat people who can’t help us, the way we speak when someone isn’t around, and the way we act when things don’t go our way. We also dig into why your response to trouble is its own sermon, from everyday disappointments to the deep hurt that forces you to choose forgiveness. The goal isn’t perfection; it’s surrender and obedience, because even repentance can point people to Christ.

Then we get practical and personal about private life. Who are we when there’s no microphone, no church crowd, and no one to impress? We share how God places people in our path and how simple acts like a kind word, a moment of prayer, or patient grace can become powerful Christian witness and everyday evangelism.

If this message challenges you, pass it to someone who needs encouragement, subscribe for more Bible-centered teaching, and leave a review so more listeners can find the show. What does your life preach this week?

Transcript

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Welcome And How To Connect

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But I woke up this morning with mama. I woke up this morning with mama.

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You're listening to Bible talk with Sister Deb Osborne. If you'd like to give thanks to all the supporters and listeners of the show, hey, go visit our website at H O R421 Show.bussprout.com. Always keep us in your prayers as we spread the gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. And if you'd like to contact Sister Deb, you can email her at Osborne Deborah K at gmail.com. That's O S B O R N E D E B R A K at gmail.com. And if you'd like to support the show, you can support it through PayPal slash H-O-R-421. Or you go through our website at h-or-421 show.busb.com. Now I give you your Bible talk, your host, Sister Debosbury.

You Are The Sermon

SPEAKER_01 1:11

Praise the Lord, praise the Lord. Wow, it's awesome to be back in the studio today, spreading the word of God. Spreading the word of God. It's what it's all about. Getting the gospel out there, right? Amen. Well, so today I hope I have something here that will make you think. Uh, because putting it the way that I'm putting this made me think. So just know that I always am talking to myself too. I don't never, never not put myself in there. So when I tell you I'm talking to somebody today, I'm talking to me too. So anyway, um, this is I've titled this You Are the Storm. And I've subtitled Preaching Without Words. Preaching Without Words. And my scripture that I got today is Matthew 5, verse 16. And it said, Let not let your shine, let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works. So let me ask you a question. What if you walked into a room and you weren't allowed to say one word about Jesus? You couldn't tell anybody that you were a Christian. You walk into a room of, let's say, 50 people, you couldn't tell anybody you were a Christian, you couldn't quote a Bible verse, you couldn't say that you go to church, you couldn't tell them that you pray, you couldn't tell them that you love Jesus, you couldn't ask them to go to church. Nothing. You could not say nothing to let them know that you were a Christian. Would they still know? And I'm not talking about maybe 50 people that know you, just 50 people at random. Would they still know? Would they see something different about you and the way you carry yourself? Would they see something different in the way that you treat people? Would they see a piece in you that maybe everybody else in the room's falling apart? Would they see forgiveness? Would they see love? My friends, would they see Christ in you? Listen, I I I'm a firm believer and and that there comes a time and point when our mouths have to be quiet and our lives should start speaking. Now you can preach from a pulpit, you you can preach a sermon behind a microphone, you can preach a sermon on a podcast. But there is another sermon each and every day that you preach. You preach, you preach it with your life. And I can show you, I can probably tell you, trust me on this. Someone is listening to it, and someone is reading it, and someone is watching it. So you are the sermon, is what this is about tonight. You are the sermon. And what I want to get through to you are people is watching and reading your life. Every day, every step you take, everywhere you go, you are a sermon. And people are watching you. They're reading

Let Your Light Shine

SPEAKER_01 4:55

your story, they're reading your letter, they're watching it all play out. You know? The apostle Paul said, he said something very powerful in 2 Corinthians chapter 3, verse 2. He was talking to the church of Corinth, right? He says, Ye are our epistle, written in our hearts, known and read of all men. Now we all know an epistle, epistle, the definition, I believe, is a letter. And Paul was saying, really, in essence, Paul was saying, your life can be a letter that others read. He really said, he really probably should have really said it, your life is a letter that others will read because they will. Now just think about this. You may never know who around you is watching you. Someone may be watching you to watching how you treat a person that maybe can't do nothing for you. Someone may be watching you and how you talk about people when they're not around. Somebody may be watching you at whether Christianity changes, maybe your Christianity changes when things don't go your way. And they may never tell you that they're watching you, but you can believe they're out there. But they're watching and they're reading. But your life is preaching something, and that's what this message is about today. Your life is preaching something. And the question that I want you to keep in your mind is what are you preaching? Listen, my friend, you know, a life lived in love and kindness and obedience to Christ is the loudest, most effective sermon that a person can share with someone watching. If you look at it like this, we are Bibles. You're a Bible. Many people around you, in your neighborhood, in your family, uh, on each side of you, people that you meet every day in your life, they may never set foot in a church or open the pages of scripture. Instead, they're gonna read it through you. They're gonna read the gospel and they're gonna see the gospel through you, through your daily actions. They'll watch your patience in trials. They're gonna watch how you treat others, they're gonna watch your response in frustration, in your honesty, Lord, in your business, how you do things, if you extend forgiveness when wronged, how you show compassion during your neighbor's crisis or anybody's crisis, you are being watched. And people are watching that. Amen. People are watching that every single day, everywhere you go. Now, Matthew 5 and verse 15 or 16, it says, Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works. See, Jesus didn't say, tell everybody how bright your light is. He didn't say get up on a building and go on and brag about your light and how bright it is. He said, let it shine before men. And there is a difference between talking about the light and actually being a light. See, it's easy to step back and say, hey, we I love Jesus. But do we live like we do? It's easy to say, I love my brothers and sisters in Christ and my brothers and sisters. But what happens when somebody gets on your last nerve? What happens? It's easy to say I'm a Christian, but does your life agree with that confession? Because people, I need you to understand this, and I'm gonna probably say it over a few times. The world doesn't just listen to what we say. They are watching everything that we do. So, friends, our actions, one point I'm trying to get across is our actions speak. Everything we say, every action, you've heard that old saying, every action has a reaction. Our actions speak, and people are watching. James 1 and 22 says, Be ye doers of the word and not hearers only. So see, it's one thing to hear the word of God. It's one thing to hear God's words, but it's another thing to live them. You know what I'm saying? And if I tell you today that Jesus teaches me to forgive, but I don't forgive, what am I preaching? If I tell you that Jesus teaches me to love my enemies, but I spend my days hating people, what am I preaching? Amen. See, our lives have to match our message. And when we come before people with the message of the gospel and the message of love and forgiveness and loving everybody and treating everybody, our message has to match our lives. If I tell you that God's faithful, but every time trouble comes my way, I act like God's abandoned me, what am I preaching to people? Am I shining my light? See, people don't, like I said, they don't just listen to what we're saying because they are watching what we're doing.

When Storms Test Your Faith

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And and another point that I want to get across is your response to trouble is a sermon period on its own. Your response and the response that you have, the actions that you have in times of trouble is a sermon in itself. Anybody can praise God when everything's going well. Anyone can say, well, God is good when everything's going their way. But see, what happens when the storm comes? What happens when you're disappointed and when you're hurting? I tell you, I had someone very near and dear to me a few months ago to just break my heart and hurt my feelings so bad. I was trying to help them, and they they just they hurt me really bad. But see, I had to, I had to forgive. I don't hold any harbor, anything in my heart. I've forgiven them. And I would help them today, and I would do things for them, and I pray for them on a daily basis. I have to show forgiveness. You know? When I'm disappointed and when I'm hurt, I have to show that sermon that's coming out of me at that time. I could have stood right there in that person's face and I could have uh screamed and argued and quarreled right back with them, but I didn't. And I hold no harbor, nothing in in my heart for against them. So see, when anybody anybody can say God is good when everything's going their way. But what happens when you're disappointed? What happens when you're hurting? And the thing about it is this is when your sermon gets really interesting. Amen. Because people, like I said, aren't just watching you. They're not just watching how you worship worship when the sun's shining. They're watching what happens when the storm clouds roll in. That's when they're watching you. That's when they're watching for your reaction. That's when your sermon has to match your life. Now there was two guys in the Bible, their name was Paul and Silas. They were beaten and thrown into prison. Their circumstances was not very good at all. Their backs were bleeding, their feet was in stocks. But what did their sermon do? What did their sermon show at midnight? They pray and they sang praises to God. And you see what happened? They were free. That was a sermon. They had to let their sermon show. And my friends, how you treat people is also a sermon. You know? And sometimes our greatest ministry isn't standing in front of a hundred of people. It's not standing in front of seventy-five or a hundred people. Sometimes it's standing right in front of the person right in front of you. Sometimes it's how did you treat the waitress that maybe was a little slow today? Maybe it's how did you treat the cashier that might have got a thing or two wrong? How do you treat the person who made the mistakes? How do you treat the person that disagrees with you? The person's at hurting. That is your sermon. And Jesus said Jesus said in John 13, 35, He said, By this shall all men know that you are my disciples if ye love one another. If ye love one to another. You see, we're supposed to show that love in our sermon every day in our lives. That love is supposed to be recognizable. They should be able to see something in us. And let me tell somebody today. Somebody needs to hear this today. Your forgiveness can also preach a sermon. And there's going to be times in your life when your most powerful thing that you can do is forgive. I learned that. Not because of whatever happened to you was okay. Not because of what they done to you was was okay, that that's what they should have done. Not because of whoever done it to you deserves to be forgiven. Not because of all of that, but because you were forgiven. See, I was forgiven. That's why I forgive what was done to me. I was forgiven. And it was never brought back up. And I forgive. And that's how it should be. Because sometimes there is people standing back watching to see whether this Jesus that we talk about, they're watching us to see whether this Jesus that we go on and on about, whether he's real enough to change the way that we forgive others who've hurt us. They're watching. Trust me. And see, when people see you forgive, then they see Jesus in you. My friends, that's preaching without words. And that's what this is about today. Preaching without words.

Private Life And Real Discipleship

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And friends, your life is a sermon even when nobody's watching. Your life is a sermon. And this is probably one of the hardest parts. And because it's easy, it's easy to look Christian when nobody everybody's watching. It's easy to walk down the road and look Christian, isn't it? But the question is, think about this. Ask yourself, who are you when nobody sees you? Who are you at home? Who are you when you're angry? Who are you when nobody nobody would ever know some of the things that you've done or what you've said or done? Who are you then? I want to tell you what, if you drive down the bypass beside of me in my car and somebody cuts me off, you know what? You're probably going to see me throw my hands up in the air. Now I used to be really bad on road rage. I'm the Lord has helped me with it. Now I just throw my hands up like, wow. I may even holler, what are you doing? You know? Not as bad as I used to. See, who are you when there's no microphone? When there's no church? When you don't have an audience? Who are you when it's just you and God? What is your sermon then? You know what I'm saying? See, the real test of our Christianity isn't just what we do in public. It's who we are in private. It's the things that we say and do in private. It's the things we do at home in private. Are we watching things that we shouldn't be watching? Are we getting on the phone and saying things we shouldn't be saying? Are we taking our time out to be and spend time with our Lord? Are we doing the things in private that we are supposed to be doing? Just like showing and having our sermon when we're out here in the public. Now some of you may be thinking, Wow, I'm not good enough to be a sermon. I'm not good enough to be an example. But listen to me, people. God never needed you to be perfect. He never asked you to be perfect. He just needs you to be surrendered. He just needs you to be obedient. Because you're going to make mistakes. You're going to stumble. There's going to be days that you're you're not going to get it right. We all have those days. But see, when you fall, you get back up. When you fail, you repent. When you mess up, you make it right. And when God corrects you, you listen.

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Because even your repentance can preach.

SPEAKER_01 19:46

Even your repentance can preach. I hope somebody's listening to this today. Because people, you know what? You may be the sermon that God sends before someone even hears the preacher. Just think about that. Think about that. Before somebody even walks into a church, they may encounter you on the way there. They may stop at uh the gas station or the grocery store or somewhere. They may encounter you before they get there. Before they even open a Bible, they may encounter you. Before they even hear a sermon about Jesus, they may see Jesus in you. Friends, we have to preach without words. Because you are a sermon. Amen. We can't just tell people about Jesus. We need to show them Jesus. They should see Jesus in our sermon every day, every walk, every hour, whether we go to or fro, they should see Jesus in our sermon. Amen.

Everyday Encounters As Ministry

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I'm gonna tell you, I was um walking in Food City a couple of months ago. I went to lunch with a friend, and we were sitting over there having lunch, and a lady, God always shows me people in my peripheral vision, and I know I can't take my eye off of these people. And a lady walked by, and the Lord took my peripheral vision right to this lady. And I knew in my heart I've got to go find her. And so when we got ready to leave, I walked, we were walking toward the front, my friend and I, and I looked down the aisle and there stood the lady. And I told my friend, I said, you know, uh, will you hold my keys? I said, I need to go right here for a minute. She knew what I was gonna do. And I carry these little Jesuses with me, and I give them out uh places when the Lord lays it on my heart. And I walked up to this lady, don't want to Who she was. And I asked her, I said, ma'am, excuse me, ma'am, I said, Can I, can I give you something? And I handed her a little Jesus. And she looked at me, and this is what she said. She said, How did you know? I looked at her like, you know, she said, How did you know I needed encouragement today? How did you know I needed this? And she, you know, held up the little Jesus. And I said, just kind of looked up. She said, because my husband is trying, he's supposed to, he he needs some a certain a certain type of medicine. He said, and I've been, she said, and I've been praying all day that God would let us get this medicine. And I've been so worried about it. You could tell she had been worried. I said, Well, you know what, ma'am? Let's me and you talk to the Lord about it. And this woman hugged me and she threw her arms around me. And you know what? She threw her arms around my neck, and I and I and my ears, my mouth is right there to her ear. And I proceeded to talk to the Lord about this lady and her request. I began to hold the Lord, hold this woman and her husband and her whole family up before the Lord right there in Food City. And she just held on to me tight. And I talked to God for her. And when we got done, I told her, I said, the Lord heard you. He heard you. I know he did. I felt it. The Lord wouldn't have had me there doing that thing right there if he hadn't heard her. And I walked away. And you know, people sometimes, sometimes people encounter you. And that's what I mean by you are a sermon. Because God puts people in our paths. God puts people in our paths because they need encouragement. They need just a nice word. Maybe they need just a little prayer. Maybe they need just you to just sit and listen or just say, hey, you know what? I'm praying for you. For some reason or another, God put these people in your path. And that's what I mean by you are the sermon. So don't just tell people about Jesus. You got to show him. You got to show Jesus to people. Because we absolutely do need to preach the word of God and our gospel with our mouths. We need to tell people about Jesus. We need to proclaim the truth of God's words. But friends, our words have to have evidence behind them. Amen. Our words have to have evidence. If you tell somebody, Jesus has cleansed me and changed me, there should be evidence. If you tell people Jesus gave me peace, then you should have peace in you. If you tell somebody Jesus teaches forgiveness, then there you should have forgiveness in you. Listen to me today, brothers and sisters. Don't just tell people what Jesus can do. Let them see what He's done for you.

SPEAKER_02 25:12

Let them see what Jesus has done.

SPEAKER_01 25:16

Preach without words. You're the sermon. I want you to say that. Think that over and over and over in your head. So today I want to tell you this. I want you to look in the mirror and ask yourself, what does your sermon say? Don't look at others around you. Don't look at your preacher. Don't look at the church down the road. Look at yourself. What sermon are you preaching? Because there is people watching it. There is people reading it. There's people listening. So, friends, tomorrow, before you leave your house in the morning, remember this. You are carrying a sermon with you. You may never stand behind a pulpit. You may never preach to a crowd. But trust me, when you walk out your door, your life becomes a message. You're carrying a sermon with you. Somebody will read it, somebody will watch it, and trust me, somebody will remember it. And maybe, just maybe, God will use your life to point somebody to Jesus Christ. So, friends, make your sermon count. Let your kindness preach. Let your forgiveness preach. Let your faith preach. Your love, your testimony, your life. Let it preach. Let them see Jesus. Let them see Jesus in you. And at the end of the day, the greatest sermon that you may ever preach at all may be one that you never even had to say a word to deliver it. You are the sermon. You need to make sure that your life and your message points people to Jesus.

SPEAKER_02 27:23

You are the sermon.

SPEAKER_01 27:27

You carry it with you every single day. Every day of the week. Every hour. Every person you come into contact with.

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I hope this has blessed you as much as it's blessed me to bring it to you.

SPEAKER_01 27:52

People remember you need to keep preaching Jesus with your words, but also with your life.

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Praise the Lord. People are watching your life. Let them see Jesus in you.

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I'm going to end with a

Prayer And Final Charge

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prayer. Father God in heaven, we thank you for your presence in our life. We thank you, God, for letting us be the vessels of the gospel. And we ask you, Lord, to please help us to remember the people that are watching our lives. Help us to not just be Christians with our mouths only, but in the way we live. When we're hurt, when we're angry, help us to show grace. When we're walking through storms, help our faith to speak louder than our fear. Lord, we ask you to let our families, our friends, strangers, we ask you to let them see you in us. Each and everybody here in me today, Lord. We don't only not just want to talk about you. We want our lives to testify of you, Lord. Lord, let our lives preach Jesus even when our mouths are silent. We ask you to let this let this message go to the hearts and the ears that need to hear it. Let them open up their hearts and their minds and hear this. I ask these and all things in Jesus' name. Amen and amen.

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