Be Bold!
Why is that we are not more often courageous in our witness for Jesus?
A lot of reasons.
One reason (perhaps the biggest) is that we may be afraid—afraid we don’t know enough.
If we start to share our faith in Christ and someone asks us a question, we’re like,
“ah, I got nothing, I don’t know.”
Or we’re afraid they’re going to sabotage us with that top tier jeopardy type question that they don’t even know the answer to. Something like…
‘Hmm…well, what do you think of molecular biology within the human body and the ramifications of extreme climate change on the physical makeup of the human race?’
What?
Another reason—we’re afraid we’ll offend people. Especially in this PC culture where it seems like just breathing offends some people! we don’t want to be pushy, we don’t wanna be that type of a Christian.
In my opinion if you get to the root of it, almost every excuse we have–at the root of it is fear. We’re afraid we won’t know enough. We’re afraid we’ll look silly. We’re afraid that we won’t get it right.
We’re afraid.
We’re behind locked doors (like the disciples after Jesus was crucified and buried), We’re afraid of the P.C. police. We’re behind locked doors afraid of the intellectual fact checkers who don’t even believe in facts!
I totally and completely understand this. Just because I’m a preacher doesn’t mean I wake up every day and my Bible hovers over my desk and I glow in the dark with supernatural glory to be courageous in all that I do. I totally get it. In fact years ago
I started another blog to reach out to skeptics. For years I kept learning of more and more holes in atheism and anti-god sciences and really thought angry people just needed to hear truth. But nearly EVERY discussion went right to Saul Alinskys Rules for Radicals—when in doubt, just ridicule your opponent. I tried, I really did, but no sooner would I point out the obvious then they would move on to aliens or macro verses micro evolution. Me? I just wanted to direct them to the creator of all things—Jesus. So, for a while—this went round and round like some sort of junior high dance. And the whole thing became so discouraging—like an endless game of Wack a Mole. All because I lost site of the mission—which was not to debate evolution—but to point them to Jesus. So I would get more and more afraid that the mother of all questions was going to be asked and I would be caught flat footed. But again, I wasn’t called in Acts 1:8 to argue science—I was called to share the good news. Sadly, fear, at least at some level–kept me from it.
Why is it that we’re not more courageous in spirit? For most of it’s because we’re so often afraid. But I wanna show you in one just one verse of scripture, one event, one moment, how those same fearful disciples were transformed from being timid and afraid to being courageous and bold. One event and one marker moment.
Verse 19 of John chapter 20, this is so exciting…
“That Sunday evening, the disciples were meeting behind locked doors because they were afraid of the Jewish leaders. Suddenly, suddenly Jesus,the man who died three days earlier, the man who was put into a tomb, Jesus, was standing there among you! I love what he said. “Peace be with you.”
“I’m back.” And all of the sudden these guys went from being selfish, being timid, being afraid, being self centered, to courageous, courageous and evangelistic in all that they did. These guys, who were in one moment, hiding behind locked doors, the next moment were out preaching courageously.
Peter, the biggest coward who caved into a little girl in a courtyard just outside of the room where Jesus was being questioned and beaten said “I don’t know who Jesus is.” Peter is now out preaching in front of all these people, “repent and be baptized for the forgiveness of your sin.” You couldn’t shut this guy up now if you tried! And the religious leaders arrested them, put ’em in jail and they’re still preaching the way, even when they’re being put in prison. Then the high priest says, “You healed this guy. By what power and in what name did you do this?” And here we see Peter, the guy who was hiding, the guy who just earlier denied Christ,
“…filled with the Holy Spirit, the text says, said to them, “Rulers and elders of our people, “are we being questioned today “because we’ve done a good deed for a crippled man? “Do you want to know how he was healed? “Let me clearly state to all of you “and to all the people of Israel,” watch his courage,“that he was healed by the powerful name “of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, “the man you crucified but whom God raised from the dead.”
What was he doing?
Because the tomb was empty, because Christ was risen, because he defeated death, hell and the grave, the very man who was timid in spirit was now courageous and bold because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Do you really believe?
Then know this–the Bible tells us that the same power that raised Jesus from the dead is available to all God’s followers to live a courageous and victorious life!
It’s your move!