Not Ashamed of the Gospel
Paul maintained that our spoken confession about Christ is vital. The world around us needs to know whose side we’re on and that we belong to Jesus. Our friends and neighbors need to know about what God has done through Jesus, just as we once did. Paul said in Romans 1:16 that he was “not ashamed of the gospel of Christ” because he knew that “it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first” and also for the non-Jew.
The Gospel or Good News is about Jesus’ death on the cross and how it is able to reconcile those who put their faith in Him to God the Father. As people understand what Christ has accomplished they are brought into a new relationship with God the Father. This is not something that God did just for Jewish people – this truth applies to all people from every nation, tribe and tongue. That’s what makes it good news worth sharing!
However, it is not always easy to share the truth about Christ with others. Most people want to be accepted; but Paul understood that we cannot truly live for Christ if we are afraid of what people think about us. Some of us live in dangerous circumstances and it takes real courage to share Christ with another person when our very lives may be risked in doing so. Paul often found himself in that situation too, and yet even that could not persuade him to be silent!
Unfortunately, people’s reasons for not sharing Christ with others are not always related to real peril. Many of us, though we could share the good news, remain silent because we fear ridicule or rejection. I am sad to say that I once fell into that trap too.
My husband and I were invited to a special function at my son’s college. The other parents at our table talked about their high-powered jobs and I found myself praying “Lord, please don’t let them ask me what I do.” They were all scientists working in complex fields and I knew they would look at me with contempt because I was a Bible Teacher!
How foolish I was! Instead of seeing myself as a representative of the Almighty, Living God I was ashamed of the Gospel! No sooner than I had prayed that prayer however, God in His mercy allowed them to ask me the very question I had been dreading! “So what do you do?”
Trying to escape the inevitable, I merely told them that I was a teacher, but God wasn’t letting me off that easily! “Oh, how wonderful!” they said, “What do you teach?” Finally, without any way out, I had to tell them the truth that I was a Bible Teacher. They reacted just as I expected they would and didn’t talk to us again throughout the evening; but that didn’t bother me nearly as much as my hesitation to confess Christ did.
That night I resolved that I would never again be ashamed of Jesus. He is King of Kings and Lord of Lords. I have the amazing privilege of being one who brings His message of hope to others and that is one of the most important jobs in this world! It is not something I should be ashamed of! It is not something I should try to hide!
People may reject you and they may think you a fool to have faith, but do not be ashamed of the Gospel for it is the very power of God bringing salvation to all who believe!
May God bless you
Michele
