“Stand up, stand up for Jesus,stand in his strength alone;the arm of flesh will fail you,ye dare not trust your own.Put on the gospel armor,each piece put on with prayer;where duty calls or danger,be never wanting there.”George Duffield, 1858
As I sat down to write this newsletter, I couldn’t get the words of that popular old hymn, “Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus,” out of my head. I grew up in a small church where I learned many classic hymns by heart, but I think this was one of my favorites. I loved the easy, catchy melody, but I also loved the bold call to simply “stand up for Jesus” with the promise that “from vict’ry unto vict’ry, His army He shall lead.” While He does call me to stand up for my faith and to take a strong stance against the Enemy, it is ultimately His strength alone that promises victory in the battle. I think we all need the reminder from verse three that I began with, to “put on the gospel armor, each piece put on with prayer.” It is not by our strength or ability that we can stand up for objective truth, but by the power of the One who is leading the way.
Today I wanted to walk through some small yet practical ways we can be bold in proclaiming the full gospel truth of the Bible in our daily lives. This is especially important for us to consider since we live in a world that is very hostile to objective truth. But I just want to first make it very clear that we are completely reliant on the Lord to grow in our ability to share His truth, and we’re reliant on Him to work in the hearts of those around us. I also want to make it clear that what I’m going to talk about are things I need to grow in too, and I hope sharing it with others will encourage me to really take a stand where the Lord has placed me. These aren’t earth-shattering, brand new ideas of how to live boldly—but I hope they’re simple encouragements to my heart and yours to make Truth known.
One of the ways I want to grow is by giving thanks to God more publicly. So what does that have to do with being bold in our faith or standing up for truth? Well, it’s so easy to complain about anything and everything. It’s one of those sinful habits we can all fall prey to, no matter how strong or mature in our faith we may be. I used to excuse it with wanting to fit into the conversations of my peers or coworkers. If someone else was complaining, and I just agreed with them, it’s not really that sinful, right? But God tells us to:
Do everything without grumbling or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.” Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky as you hold firmly to the word of life…Philippians 2:14-16a
Here, Paul says we’re to do everything without grumbling, which is a synonym for “complaining.” He also tells us why we shouldn’t complain—so that we’ll shine like stars among “a wicked and crooked generation.” Every command God has given us is for a reason, either for His glory or our good or both. When we choose to not complain, even when everyone around us is, it makes us stand out. This is a simple and easy way to proclaim God’s truth, because not only does His Word tell us to not complain, it also tells us to “give thanks in all circumstances” (1 Thessalonians 5:17). If instead of complaining we sought to give thanks in all things, that would really make us stand out. Sure, it might annoy people. It might make us seem like “goody two shoes” to some. But if that means we’re obeying God and standing out from the world, why should we care what others’ reactions will be? We should want people to think we’re different and hopefully to ask why.
Giving thanks instead of complaining is a practice that seems simple and obvious, but it can be pretty difficult. If you’re like me, you may have established ways of communicating with friends and coworkers that don’t revolve around giving thanks. But I really believe this is an easy first step in being bolder in our Christian faith. I pray during this coming week of Christmas and New Year’s you can find a way to give thanks and “let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:16).
The next area I want to grow in to make myself stand out from the world around me is by not laughing at unrighteous things. Please hear me out on this one, and don’t think that that automatically sounds pious or self-righteous. I have found that I too often laugh at the things of the world, either to fit into a conversation or because I truly do think something is funny. However, laughing at crude jokes or at someone else’s faults could actually affect our witness as Christ followers. I’m not saying it’s bad to watch all comedians or funny YouTube videos, but do you ever find yourself laughing at what everyone else is without first stopping to think about what it is that seems so funny? I think God created us to have a sense of humor, and I love finding jokes or comedians that don’t come off as crude or offensive. But if what is being laughed about is something inappropriate, immoral, or degrading, it’s not worth laughing at.
But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God’s holy people. Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving. Ephesians 5:3-4
I know I personally need to stop and think more frequently about whether the jokes I’m taking part in are truly proper “for God’s holy people.” I find it interesting that in Ephesians 5 and in many other places throughout the Bible, “thanksgiving” or giving thanks, is given as the alternative action for many sins, including complaining, improper speech, and even anxiety. I am thankful for a God who doesn’t give us just a list of things we shouldn’t do, but that He also tells us what we can replace those sins with. I pray that you and I both grow in evaluating the humor we participate in as we seek to be a light to those around us.
Another way I want to grow in being bold, is by talking about prayer more. I want to be more intentional with asking people “How can I be praying for you?” in normal conversation. I also want to make sure and let people know I’ve been praying for them whenever I actually have been. I want to get better at asking in the moment of someone complaining or lamenting about issues in life to stop and say, “Can I pray for you about that?” or “I’ll make sure to write that down and pray for you.” I want to make it clear to the people around me that I believe in a God who is good, in control, and working in our lives.
This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him.1 John 5:14-15
Talking more about prayer and the power of prayer I think is critical to growing in boldness in our faith, because we can share that we have a God who hears, listens, and acts. So many people today say they “pray,” but they don’t necessarily mean to God. I want the people around me to see that the God I pray to cares and moves, and that He’s worth calling out to.
Finally, I want to exhort you (and myself) to not avoid confrontation or hard topics of conversation. For me, often in the workplace or at family gatherings it seems easier to just be quiet than to voice my opinion about divisive, political, or cultural topics. Since I know my Christian worldview is different than some of the people around me, I don’t want to sound like I’m trying to start an argument by sharing what I believe. But why should I be afraid of someone taking offense at what I have to say about an issue if what I’m trying to say portrays God and His Word accurately? I really pray that I can grow in confidently sharing my opinion (if it’s based on God’s Word) in the discussions that I find myself in or around. I want to grow in this because I want to obey God’s commands and for others to see the love of Jesus in me.
We know that we have come to know him if we keep his commands. Whoever says, “I know him,” but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in that person. But if anyone obeys his word, love for God is truly made complete in them. This is how we know we are in him: Whoever claims to live in him must live as Jesus did.1 John 2:3-6
I want to live like Jesus did and speak truth boldly like He did. And that doesn’t mean looking to start arguments or pick fights. I want to be more like Him in knowing when I should speak up rather than just stay silent. As silly as it is, I need to keep reminding myself that the “worst” that could happen in this world because of what I choose to say does not change the outcome of my eternity. And the words I choose to speak today could help impact someone else’s.
I pray that today’s conversation encourages you to take small steps to be bolder about your faith in the coming weeks. This is not an exhaustive list of ways to grow, and it definitely just scratches the surface of how to be bold in our Christian walk. This has helped me think through ways I want to change and grow, and it’s what I pray for you too. In my next post in this series, I want to talk about pursuing unity as believers and what truths we should base that unity on as we try to stand out and be bold in our faith. I’ll also offer more ways we can seek to help each other be bold in our faiths. Until then, thank you for listening to Speaking Truth and I hope you have a very merry Christmas. Feel free to share this series with anyone you think might be interested in listening or reading. God bless!
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