I have told the glad news of deliverance in the great congregation; behold, I have not restrained lips, as you know, O Lord. I have not hidden Your deliverance within my heart; I have spoken of Your faithfulness and Your salvation; I have not concealed your steadfast love and your faithfulness from the great congregation.
Psalms 40:9-10
When we accept Christ, we are supposed to tell it to the world. One way to do this is through baptism. But what about after that? Have you ever stopped and wondered about “after acceptance and baptism?” I have often wondered about it myself. We are supposed to show the great congregation, which is not just the church but the world as well, that we have accepted Jesus as our Lord and Savior. We are not supposed to hide Him away within our hearts, as many today would like us to. We are charged to spread the good news about Jesus and the eternal message of hope and love He brings to us. In today’s world, it is often a fight to share the message and show our faith. But, it does not necessarily mean showing our faith verbally.
In 1st Timothy, Paul writes to his young colleague Timothy on how to fight the good fight of faith:
But as for you, O man of God, flee these things. Pursue righteousness, Godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness. Fight the good fight of faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.
1 Timothy 6:11-12
Paul writes that, to show the world that you are a child of God, we (just like Timothy), should pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, and gentleness. We are to be Christ-like in our actions. Verbal communication about our love for Christ are not enough. We must also show it in our actions as well. Christ loves us, and He loves everybody in this world. Jesus knows that He is not going to be accepted by all. He even warned His disciples that His followers would be persecuted because of Him. But Jesus still expects us to act Christ-like even during persecution. Jesus expects us to be like Him—no matter the time or the place. We are not to conceal Him at anytime.
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Dear Lord, You are my Savior. You are my Lord. I accept You in this time of persecution and peril. Please be with me as I share Your message and Your love with those around me. In Jesus name.
Amen.
About laurapattillo
I’ve really been thinking about this a lot lately. It has really been bothering me that I am not allowed to share the good news at work (public schools). We are called to teach our children in the ways of the lord and build our house on Jesus Christ the solid rock, and yet I’m helping build houses on the strength of knowledge as it resides outside Jesus. On top of this, my research area and pedagogical philosophy of constructivism really harbors ideas that many use to push students away from Christ and was even developed by those who pushed against Christianity. This in itself does not make constructivism evil, just as a brick being thrown a window does not make the brick evil. This has really made me consider the idea of home school and responsibility I have to my children especially.
Basil, there are so many ways of showing Jesus to the world, other than our words. Our actions prove so much more than our words do! Just as Laura mentioned above, just showing the world righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, and gentleness, is so powerful! Showing the world how we don’t fall away from God during times of trials; how we show agape love toward those undeserving, and more. There is so much we can do as Christians!!!
Thanks for your reply. I’ve lived that way for the last 9 years. I’ve come to realize however that I believe we can’t silence the name of Jesus and expect people to know we are Christians. I just look like any other “good” person. By doing this we are teaching that morals are apart from God and can be constructed and decided upon apart from him (our society). Through discussions with non-Christians recently, I believe ideas that good people still go to heaven, moral acceptableness, etc. stem from us separating knowledge about Christ from academic knowledge. I believe what you are saying is correct for me keeping my job and conforming to man’s law; however, at what point does God’s law trump man’s law? Just been a lot of thought recently at what Laura is discussing and my situation.
I agree Laura. My plan is to do what I can right now, but remember my job is the livelihood for my family. I’m also thankful for my move recently to the school in our area, because kids can match a face from church to my actions at school. Maybe this will give students an opportunity for discussion in their own social groups.
That is all that I can do right now too. My husband and I are our family’s livelihood. If my husband could just get out of his position now and move into a position fitting his highest degree, we might be able to consider it. But until that happens, we can’t. We both have to work. You know my kids. They have familiar faces (teachers) that they know at school. Also, there are kids in the same grade that we go to church with that are in the same grade. We live in a great community where many of the people we know attend church with us. We are blessed in this sense. I hope that with us and all the influence that they can get from people at church that they see everyday will help us to give them the foundation they need to have a fulfilling life and not get led astray from the beliefs that we are using to raise them.
Awesome devotion today, Laura. I loved the section where you said, “Paul writes that, to show the world that you are a child of God, we (just like Timothy), should pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, and gentleness. We are to be Christ-like in our actions. Verbal communication about our love for Christ are not enough. We must also show it in our actions as well.” Great reminder!!
Basil, it is for those exact reasons plus others that I wish I could homeschool, but because of decisions I have made in the past that is not possible. I can only hope that we give our kids enough of a foundation at home in order to keep them on the right path when they are away from us.
laura, i just LOVE those verses of this psalm! thank you for sharing your heart of passion to be Christ-like and that others (especially the unsaved) would KNOW it! <3
Laura, sometimes I go back to devotionals I’ve missed reading during the week so that’s why I’m so “late” responding to yours. Thank you for your words today.
I’ve been thinking a lot lately about how I share God’s Good News with others. I’m not an “evangelist” so I don’t approach people on the street with a lot of words “leading them to repentance.” But I do try to live my life in righteousness and love so others will see Christ in me and be touched enough to want to know Him. I believe I need to balance the admonishments of these two verses so that I’m living out the Word, and ready to speak the Word at all times.
Thank you again.