We live in a world intent on rejecting Christ; rejecting the notion that there is a God of love and justice in heaven; rejecting this fanciful idea that He’d do anything so dramatic as to send His Son into this world, to die for us on a cross so that our sins might be forgiven, and to rise again to give us the gift of eternal life.
Oh, in part, Jesus may still be tolerated, but not obeyed. For many, cultural Christianity has emerged as a safe alternative to biblical discipleship. Truth has been redefined, even by the church. Faith has been sidelined for comfort. The gospel has been rebranded while, all the while, persecution intensifies.
And so, in response, some (many?) have perfected the art of nodding politely to Jesus while nailing the door shut in His face; wanting His comfort, not His cross; His blessings, not His Lordship. We’ve traded the narrow road for the wide one, repackaging Him into a benign mascot for our worldly ambitions.
With all that going on … many have become ashamed of the real Jesus, of the power He offers us for our lives to be transformed, of the truth that our eternity lies in His hands. They’ve become timid in telling others of Him, in light of their own, watered-down faith.
And yet, amidst not dissimilar circumstances back in the 1st Century AD, the Apostle Paul writes this:
Romans 1:16 I am not ashamed of the gospel; it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who has faith, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. (NRSV)
Friend, that’s God’s clarion call to you and to me to live out a fearless faith amidst a world intent on dismissing Jesus as irrelevant or foolish. Don’t be ashamed of Jesus.
That’s God’s Word. Fresh … for you … today.
