QUESTION:
How should courting couples behave to reflect God's Elect?
ANSWER:
“Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity.” [I Timothy 4:12]
“Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness.” [II Peter 3:11]
“What kind of men and women... Oh, my, my time's gone. What kind of men and women should we be? What kind of a person should we be? How will--should we conduct ourselves, ladies and gentlemen? How ought we to act in this present day? We ought to be real up and going Christians. We should stand out boldly for the testimony of the Lord Jesus. Do you believe that?” [Workings Of The Holy Spirit, Prince Albert SK 56-0816]
“What kind of people should we be, Holy-Ghost filled, though we are, pilgrims and strangers. How ought we to conduct our lives and selves, not like the rest of the world, but separate ourselves from the things of the world. Keep our chin up, as it was, because there's one thing we know: We are sons and daughters of the King. Now, a king's daughter doesn't act immorally, and she doesn't dress that way. She represents herself to the public in her dignity, because she's a king's daughter. Amen. So there's a man when he is the king's son... There's the way back to the Azusa Street experience: Conduct ourselves as sons and daughters of God, not dress like the world, act like the world, and talk like the world, stay home on Wednesday night to see the--all these programs and so forth that Hollywood's putting on. We have nothing to do with Hollywood. We are born again Pentecostal experience. Hollywood has its place of entertainment. We have our place of entertainment. Theirs is in the world and ours is in Christ. But we can't pattern after them; let's pattern after Christ, and act like Him and love Him.” [Lamb And The Dove, Los Angeles CA 56-0917]
“What ought a Christian to do then? We're pilgrims and strangers, but our Father is a King. How ought we to act and live in this present world? Not like this world, not to be drove around, and sign a ticket we'll come to church, and--and we'll try our best to do this, and we'll go to the next prayer meeting. Brother, sister, we should conduct ourselves like sons and daughters of God.” [Impersonation Of Christianity, Lima OH 57-0127A]
“The deer as he thirsts for the water brook, so my soul thirsts after Thee, O God." Just take a drink from there. You'll never have to hear another sermon on morals, how to dress, and how to act, and how to conduct yourself. Oh, brother, my Father is rich with houses and land. He holds the wealth of this world in His hands. Of rubies, and diamonds, and silver, and gold, His coffers are full. He has riches untold. If that would make an African Negro slave, realizing his that his father is a king, that he could throw out his chest as a slave, what ought it to do to a borned again man and woman? It ought to make you act like a daughter of God and a son of God.
And if you've ever tasted and become a child of God, I'm sure you'll do it. You'll conduct yourself as sons and daughters of the King. Think of it while we pray. Let us bow our heads just a minute.” [Thirsting For Life, Indianapolis IN 57-0613]
“Oh, we Christians, though alienated from the world, and we are heaven-bound subjects of the Lord Jesus, we should conduct ourselves as sons and daughters of God. Pride keeps us from doing it. We're afraid somebody will say something against us. When the spirit blesses, many are ashamed to say "Amen." There is many who in their office work, the Lord Jesus could have healed them of diseases, and they're afraid to testify to the glory of God because of pride. Many are afraid to stand and say, "I have received Christ as my personal Saviour and been filled with the Holy Spirit.": ashamed. Oh, I love that little old song we used to sing years ago, down in the ridge country. "I'll take the way with the Lord's despised few. I've started in with Jesus and I'm going through, not ashamed of the Gospel. Paul said, "It's the power of God." Pride, oh, what a great thing that is.” [Door To The Heart, Chicago IL 58-0112E]
“What ought we to do? How should we act? How should we conduct ourselves? As sons and daughters of the King, we should dress, act, live, talk, testify like sons and daughters of God. Though we an alien, we're in a strange land amongst the dying world, but yet we're sons and daughters of the King, Jehovah God. We ought to agree with His Word. We ought to say "Amen" to His Spirit. We ought to unite ourselves together as brethren and as sisters and conduct ourselves as king's sons and daughters.” [United Under One Head, Middletown OH 58-0326]
“Oh, what ought we to be as sons and daughters of God? How ought we to conduct ourselves in this present world of sin and slavery? Our characters and our conduct should be the highest to keep the moral of the rest of them moving, because we are aliens, and we are strangers and pilgrims, but our Father is the King. Oh, He's rich with houses and lands. He holdeth the wealth of the world in His hand. Oh, I'm so glad to be a son of that King. (29) You might be as pure as a lily to your husband, or to your boyfriend, but when you put on clothes like that and walk out on the street, if a sinner looks at you and lusts after you, the Bible said that he has committed adultery with you in his heart. And at the judgment bar, you're going to answer for committing adultery, because you presented yourself to him like that. Jesus said that. Whose guilty, the sinner or you? You are. He's a hog and a pig by nature. He's never been converted. But if he answers for committing adultery, who did he commit it with? Whosoever, sinner or saint, looks upon a woman to lust after her, has committed adultery with her in his heart already. Think of it. "Oh," you say, "Brother Branham, that's the only kind of clothes they make." They still got sewing machines. There's no excuse for that. You know that's right. Does that act like a daughter of the King? "Well," you say, "The rest of them do." But you're different. You're an alien. You ought to conduct yourself like the daughter of the King.” [Life, Everett MA 58-0512]
Bible References: : I Timothy 4:12; II Peter 3:11
[Answer provided by Bro. Ken Andes, Minister, Lynden, Washington]