--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Be sure that you first preach by the way…" description: "\"Be sure that you first preach by the way you live. If you do not, people will notice that you say one thing, but live otherwise, and your words will br..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/839/anonymous-1_cynical_be-sure-that-you-first-preach-by-the-way_1736255.jpg" --- # Be sure that you first preach by the way you live. If you… ![“Be sure that you first preach by the way you live. If you do not, people will notice that you say one thing, but live otherwise, and your words will bring only cynical laughter and a derisive shake of the head.” quote by Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/839/anonymous-1_cynical_be-sure-that-you-first-preach-by-the-way_1736255.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/839/anonymous-1_cynical_be-sure-that-you-first-preach-by-the-way_1736255.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/839/anonymous-1_cynical_be-sure-that-you-first-preach-by-the-way_1736255.jpg) > “Be sure that you first preach by the way you live. If you do not, people will notice that you say one thing, but live otherwise, and your words will bring only cynical laughter and a derisive shake of the head.” [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Actions must align with words; hypocrisy invites ridicule and disbelief. **In simple terms:** Walk the talk, not just talk. Key Takeaway Live consistently with your values. Themes integrity authenticity leadership Mood thoughtful serious Type motivational ethical When to use this quote - public speaking - personal relationships - teaching - leadership roles Key Concepts cognitive dissonance social perception Questions to Reflect On - What habits reveal your true values? - How can you model integrity daily? A Different Perspective Changing behavior is hard; people may resist critique. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cynical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cynical/) [Laughter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/laughter/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Saint](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/saint/) ## Related quotes > [Always preach in such a way that if the people listening do not come to hate their sin, they will instead hate you](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther/always-preach-in-such-a-way-that-if-the-people-listening-do-not-come/) [Martin Luther](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther/) > [“Preach the way of God in the best manner because the forced establishment of religion will cause people to distance themselves from him.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamaran-ihsan-salih/preach-the-way-of-god-in-the-best-manner-because-the-forced/) [Kamaran Ihsan Salih](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamaran-ihsan-salih/) > [“Many preach that do this way, do that way, have faith, speak the truth, have patience. These are all results (effects). How can results…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dada-bhagwan/many-preach-that-do-this-way-do-that-way-have-faith-speak-the-truth/) [Dada Bhagwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dada-bhagwan/) > [If a certain person in your life is making you feel more negative than positive, more cynical than open, more of a worse person…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-a-certain-person-in-your-life-is-making-you-feel-more-negative/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [For myself, I find I become less cynical rather than more--remembering my own sins and follies; and realize that men's hearts are not often…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/for-myself-i-find-i-become-less-cynical-rather-than-more-remembering/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [They speak very well of you". - "They speak very well of everybody." - "That so bad?" - "Yes. It means you can´t trust…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/they-speak-very-well-of-you-they-speak-very-well-of-everybody-that-so/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The rich are not born sceptical or cynical. They are made that way by events, circumstances.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-rich-are-not-born-sceptical-or-cynical-they-are-made-that-way-by/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Smile first thing in the morning. Get it over with.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/smile-first-thing-in-the-morning-get-it-over-with/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [What I'm trying to do is deliver results, not promises; results, not vision; results, not concepts. The world is cynical about IBM's promises.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/what-i-m-trying-to-do-is-deliver-results-not-promises-results-not/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Watching you walk out of my life does not make me bitter or cynical about love. But rather makes me realize that if I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/watching-you-walk-out-of-my-life-does-not-make-me-bitter-or-cynical/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Love is the fart Of every heart It pains the man when 'tis kept close, And others doth offend, when 'tis let loose.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/love-is-the-fart-of-every-heart-it-pains-the-man-when-tis-kept-close/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“John Stuart Mill declared that tyranny makes men cynical. He did not know that a Republic makes them silent.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/john-stuart-mill-declared-that-tyranny-makes-men-cynical-he-did-not/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It’s too bad that stupidity isn’t painful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-s-too-bad-that-stupidity-isn-t-painful/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [He was one of those guys that think they're being a pansy if they don't break around forty of your fingers when they shake…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/he-was-one-of-those-guys-that-think-they-re-being-a-pansy-if-they-don/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I'm such a fitness freak that I eat so plain, it's gross. I have oatmeal in the morning and then I have chicken breasts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-m-such-a-fitness-freak-that-i-eat-so-plain-it-s-gross-i-have/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Anonymous > [And a tear rolled down her cheek, as she said goodbye; because she's walking away, and she's never looking back](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/and-a-tear-rolled-down-her-cheek-as-she-said-goodbye-because-she-s/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You'll seldom experience regret for anything that you've done. It is what you haven't done that will torment you. The message, therefore, is clear.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-ll-seldom-experience-regret-for-anything-that-you-ve-done-it-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Scrabble - The game is available in Braille. That’s a nice fact. This makes me feel better about humanity for some reason. I can’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/scrabble-the-game-is-available-in-braille-that-s-a-nice-fact-this/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Everyone needs someone to love, and I choose you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/everyone-needs-someone-to-love-and-i-choose-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“THIS tale of my sore-troubled life I write,    To thank the God of nature, who conveyed    My soul to me, and with such care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-tale-of-my-sore-troubled-life-i-write-to-thank-the-god-of-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Put on my J's and dance the whole night away Im naughty by nature like Im hip-hop hooray With my hands in the sky,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/put-on-my-j-s-and-dance-the-whole-night-away-im-naughty-by-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Me.. I have been through a lot, but I still manage to have a smile on my face. Im not worried about the past…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/me-i-have-been-through-a-lot-but-i-still-manage-to-have-a-smile-on-my/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Distance is a test of love. many will fail for those who can't withstand it, but for those who can, theres only one answer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/distance-is-a-test-of-love-many-will-fail-for-those-who-can-t/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Im sorry I ever tried...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/im-sorry-i-ever-tried/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Being betrayed by the one you love is the worst feeling in the world...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/being-betrayed-by-the-one-you-love-is-the-worst-feeling-in-the-world/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Let children support their parents or be imprisoned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/let-children-support-their-parents-or-be-imprisoned/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The only person I've ever purposely caused pain here is myself...By simply sharing, caring too much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-only-person-i-ve-ever-purposely-caused-pain-here-is-myself-by/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Start a business, not a startup”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/start-a-business-not-a-startup/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The truth is, of course, that the curtness of the Ten Commandments is an evidence, not of the gloom and narrowness of a religion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-truth-is-of-course-that-the-curtness-of-the-ten-commandments-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Explore all 162,899 Anonymous quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More Cynical quotes > [Broken by hardships, disappointments and tragedy, people can become discouraged and cynical. But lives can also be mended. Put back together well, they won't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-goodier/broken-by-hardships-disappointments-and-tragedy-people-can-become/) [Steve Goodier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-goodier/) > [“Writers whose thoughts are expressed with clarity and precision are assumed by readers to be superficial. Where the meaning is obscured, then readers give…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/writers-whose-thoughts-are-expressed-with-clarity-and-precision-are/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [I would say most comedians have a very cynical worldview of the way the world can work. It's almost like if you didn't, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-quinn/i-would-say-most-comedians-have-a-very-cynical-worldview-of-the-way/) [Colin Quinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-quinn/) > [Sure, I’m dramatic and sloppily semi-cynical and semi-sentimental. But, in leisure years I could grow and choose my way. Now I am living on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-plath/sure-i-m-dramatic-and-sloppily-semi-cynical-and-semi-sentimental-but/) [Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/) > [We're so immaturely cynical as a culture. We're not wise enough to look at an institution like marriage and to really things about what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jordan-peterson/we-re-so-immaturely-cynical-as-a-culture-we-re-not-wise-enough-to/) [Jordan Peterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jordan-peterson/) > [I'm not cynical.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-schlessinger/i-m-not-cynical/) [Laura Schlessinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-schlessinger/) > [A well governed people are generally a people who do not think much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-siegfried/a-well-governed-people-are-generally-a-people-who-do-not-think-much/) Andre Siegfried > [I love writers who are insightful enough to be cynical but choose not to be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-d-mclaren/i-love-writers-who-are-insightful-enough-to-be-cynical-but-choose-not/) [Brian D. McLaren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-d-mclaren/) > [It is a very cynical, skeptical, foolish person that suggests Israel does not need a peace process to have a growing economy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-quest/it-is-a-very-cynical-skeptical-foolish-person-that-suggests-israel/) [Richard Quest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-quest/) > [Songwriters might write cynical, world-wise lyrics and constantly talk about money, but most of us are downright naive when it comes to business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willie-nelson/songwriters-might-write-cynical-world-wise-lyrics-and-constantly-talk/) [Willie Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willie-nelson/) > [No one more cynical than an idealist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanith-lee/no-one-more-cynical-than-an-idealist/) [Tanith Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanith-lee/) > [I've actually always wanted to write like a one-person show that was sort of a romantic comedy - a show that was kind of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-birbiglia/i-ve-actually-always-wanted-to-write-like-a-one-person-show-that-was/) [Mike Birbiglia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-birbiglia/) > [“That's what I've never been able to get about religion: that charmless combination of altruism and insanity. Give me a cynical, self-interested bastard any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-carey/that-s-what-i-ve-never-been-able-to-get-about-religion-that-charmless/) [Mike Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-carey/) > [As the rain falls and the sun shines, they grow, grow, grow; minds so open, they go through life aware and accepting, seeing light…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cecelia-ahern/as-the-rain-falls-and-the-sun-shines-they-grow-grow-grow-minds-so/) [Cecelia Ahern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cecelia-ahern/) > [One of the weirdest things that happened to artists and art criticism was this moment when everyone got cynical and stopped believing in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kehinde-wiley/one-of-the-weirdest-things-that-happened-to-artists-and-art-criticism/) [Kehinde Wiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kehinde-wiley/) [Browse all 968 Cynical quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cynical/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Be sure that you first preach by the way you live. If you do not, people will notice that you say one thing, but live otherwise, and your words will bring only cynical laughter and a derisive shake of the head.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Anonymous" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/be-sure-that-you-first-preach-by-the-way-you-live-if-you-do-not/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Cynical" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/be-sure-that-you-first-preach-by-the-way-you-live-if-you-do-not/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/839/anonymous-1_cynical_be-sure-that-you-first-preach-by-the-way_1736255.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/839/anonymous-1_cynical_be-sure-that-you-first-preach-by-the-way_1736255.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/839/anonymous-1_cynical_be-sure-that-you-first-preach-by-the-way_1736255.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Be sure that you first preach by the way you live. If you do not, people will notice that you say one thing…” — Anonymous", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Anonymous", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Be sure that you first preach...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/be-sure-that-you-first-preach-by-the-way-you-live-if-you-do-not/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/be-sure-that-you-first-preach-by-the-way-you-live-if-you-do-not/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```