29 And now, Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness, 30 while you stretch out your hand to heal, and signs and wonders are performed through the name of your holy servant Jesus.” 31 And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness.
ACTS 4:5-31
DO IT SCARED.
Boldness (parresia): freedom in speaking, unreservedness in speech. Free and fearless confidence, cheerful courage, assurance
BOLDNESS IS INHERITED, NOT INHERENT
13 Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished.
ACTS 4:13
By all outward measures, Christianity – the movement of the followers of Jesus – was very weak at this early point.
They were few in number.
They were inexperienced in leadership.
They were commanded to not fight back; they were not militant.
They were opposed by institutions that had existed for hundreds of years.
DAVID GUZIK
13 Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished. And they recognized that they had been with Jesus.
ACTS 4:13
“Unlearned and ignorant” - that is, these men hadn’t been to a theological seminary. But the Sanhedrin noted that they had been with Jesus. How wonderful to have a life that somehow or other calls attention to Jesus.
J. Vernon McGee
“Let me ask you, how many atheists are now in this house? Perhaps not a single one of you would accept the title, and yet, if you live from Monday morning to Saturday night in the same way as you would live if there were no God, you are a practical atheist.”
Charles Spurgeon
“The chief duty of the Christian is to make their hearts glad in the Lord.”
George Muller
I have seen You
I've beheld Your glory
And I am ruined
For there is none to compare
Jeremy Riddle (Psalm 63)
BOLDNESS IS GIVEN TO THOSE RESISTING THE STATUS QUO, NOT TO THOSE IN IT
Status Quo: the existing state of affairs
8 And the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and he pursued the children of Israel, and the children of Israel went out with boldness.
Exodus 14:8
The idea behind the Hebrew words with boldness (ruwn yad) includes the idea of rebellion against authority. The rebellious nature of Israel was good when it was against Pharaoh and all it stood for; it was bad when it was against the LORD, Moses, and all they stood for. The trouble with most rebels is that they rebel against the wrong things.
David Guzik
“It made me a little envious at that moment. And since then, that I didn’t have that foundation as an atheist, or some sort of higher purpose or something. Cause in the face of that inexplicable tragedy I’m kind of flailing.”
Nick Wright
BOLDNESS CHANGES THE WORLD
“Make ten men feel like a hundred.”
Cassian Andor
