Immaturity to maturity (Hebrews 5:11-6:3)

7/19/2010 CMC Sunday message

My youngest girl started to take the baby steps; I think in about a month, she will be walking; very soon, we will be chasing after her running away from us.  But, before she can confidently walk, there will be a lot of practice of walking while holding daddy’s and mommy’s hands as well as her older sister’s hands.  I also fully expect that she will fall down more than she has ever done now that she is learning to walk. The wobbly, unbalanced, overly dramatic movements of her body, her wide and awkward gait for better balance, they are all part her learning curve towards maturity in walking. When she gets into her groove, you see fire in her eyes. She won’t settle for crawling; she starts to squeal as though trying to communicate to us to come down to her level and to hold her hands so she can practice walking. It is really funny how she doesn’t get tired of keep trying the same thing over and over again. It really is beautiful thing to watch a child mature.

As Christians, growing, maturing process needs to be a natural part of what it means to be Christians. It ought to evoke a sense of beauty and awe as we watch each other take the steps and run towards growth.

But, unfortunately, for too long, our growth has been stunted. We had been on a spiritual autopilot mode, doing the same thing without much purpose, without getting our hearts, our passion involved, simply living off of yesterday’s spiritual growth, just getting by…

But, God has jolted us out of the autopilot mode for the last year. He has brought the perfect storm to our church and we had to disengage the autopilot mode.

I would compare what we have gone through as a church for the last year as what happened in the movie, The Incredible. Do you remember how Elastigirl had to disengage the autopilot because her plane carrying her children Dash and Violet was about to be shot down by the missiles?  Do you remember the mayhem, the panic?

Not too long ago, the family’s objective was to blend into the rest of the world. They have gone underground. Elastigirl was just a mom trying desperately to hold her family together, Dash was a little boy who just wanted to run as fast he could, Violet was a shy and insecure girl, and Mr. Incredible was miserable, bored out of his mind, constantly day dreaming of what he could be doing. But, their vanilla flavor life as usual came apart when Mr. Incredible answered the call to the life of adventure.

There are quite the similarities between us and the story line. They were jolted out of the comfortable, anonymous, risk free, bland vanilla flavor life into the life of adventure. They were without soul, without passion, but the crises awakened them to the life of mission, the life with purpose.

We no longer have the comfortable suburban church building to hold our services. Now, it takes much more sweat and time just to setup to meet together, but only to take down everything. We no longer can lean on our parents’ generation to take care of us. We cannot any longer hide behind the pretension that everything is okay; no, we have to deal with our fear and fog factors head on. We are out of our comfort zone; we are now in an uncharted and risky territory. But, what we have now that we didn’t have before is that we are on adventure together, we are on a mission together. We lost our passion and soul, but now we see something, perhaps dimly, but still we see our hearts, our souls engaging. God is awakening us to the life of adventure.

That’s what we see in Hebrews 5 and 6. The writer was trying to awaken the Christians out of the immaturity into the maturity, risk free life to the life of adventure to fulfill God’s mission.

Hebrews 5:11-14 explains their immaturity, their stunted growth. Verse 11 says they were slow to learn. It means they became dull and unresponsive to the word of God. It means they had neglected to hear from God’s word and they had stopped believing in his word. They stopped dreaming their lives in God’s promise, in what God can do through them.

And, because they stopped dreaming the life of adventure with God, they saw no leaders emerging out of them; no one was burdened with God’s mission; no one was burdened to teach others to commit to God’s mission; and, because their hearts were not into the mission of God, they were spiritually insensitive and dull; they were unable to choose truly good life instead, life was all about them. Because their souls were not awakened to the mission of God, they could only think of what’s in it for them.

Babies requiring milk requires high maintenance. They are helpless unless someone else feeds them, changes their dirty diapers, and helps them to even sleep. New Christians are like babies that take milk. But, it becomes a weird thing when the grownups still suck down a Sippy cup with milk in it and act like helpless babies needing constant help and attention; instead, maturity should drive them to rigorous training to become contributing members of their society.

Hebrews 6:1-3 continues the same theme, but now focuses on maturity. Maturity means leaving the elementary teachings about Christ and go onto maturity. What were the elementary teachings about Christ? It involved repentance, faith, baptism, laying on of the hands, resurrection, eternal judgment. I don’t think the writer is saying these are no longer important matters for Christians and they don’t need them any more in their lives.

A commentator explains it like this. As a child we learn alphabet and phonics. But, it is not enough for a child to know how to recite alphabets and know their sounds. The knowledge of alphabets and phonics become the building block to the next level of growth. It opens the door for a child to read simple children’s books, but soon a child will be able to read C. S. Lewis’s Narnia series, be able to read the Bible.^[i]

The basic fundamental knowledge and beliefs of Christianity need to produce in us the life of righteousness, the life of vigorous training to discern good from evil, the life of diligence instead of laziness according to Hebrews 6:11-12.

Movement from immaturity to maturity is about moving away from seeking what’s in it for you to what’s in it for God and for others; it is about moving away from your own mission to God’s mission; it is about moving away from what you want to see in your life to what God wants to see in your life and through your life. Immaturity to maturity is about moving away from simply possessing Jesus Christ, claiming him for ourselves to sharing Jesus, proclaiming Jesus.

Have we become people who suck up the knowledge about Jesus Christ, but never bother sharing Christ with anyone? William Fay has phrase for such phenomenon in his book Sharing Jesus without Fear. He calls it spiritual constipation.

• The number one solution to immaturity is put sharing Jesus with non-believers as your top priority; as long as you put sharing Jesus as an option, you will remain a immature Christian who never take any kind of risk for Jesus, who cannot handle being rejection for him, who will continue to deny Jesus with your silence about him.
• Embracing the call to maturity also means you and I share Jesus with each other. We need to live out his gospel, his good news with each other. Jesus said that the world will know that he has sent us by the way we love one another in his love. I got some soul searching to do and you have some soul searching to do in regard to the state of our relationships. We’ve got to step up our effort to love and care for each other.

Sharing Jesus with non-believers, sharing Jesus with each other is what maturity looks like. Is there such thing as a healthy Christian who doesn’t share Jesus Christ? Is there such thing as a successful Christian who doesn’t obey the mandate to share Jesus? Can you be a mature Christian if you read the Bible, if you pray, if you come to church, if you go to life groups/small groups, but you don’t share Jesus?  No, without actively sharing Jesus with others, it is only an illusion to think that we can become healthy, growing, maturing Christian. 

Here is a story about a group of tourists visiting a picturesque village. They walked by an old man sitting beside a fence. In a rather patronizing way, one tourist asked, "Were any great person born in this village?" The old man replied, "Nope, only babies."

We were all born as babies requiring milk, but we are not babies any more, are we? We had to learn alphabets, but we can read great books now, can’t we? For years, having spent a lot of time listening to sermons, reading the Bible, praying, and somehow, have we convinced ourselves we are spiritual healthy? But, are we really healthy? Or, have we simply reduced Jesus as our little savior who exits to make us happy, make us feel good about ourselves? Can we be healthy and mature Christians if we don’t share with others about Jesus our Savior, who went to the cross to be killed in order to give himself for us and for the world?

What practical steps can you take towards maturity?  How can you grow in sharing Jesus with others. 

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^[i] Adeyemo, T. (2006). Africa Bible commentary (1523). Nairobi, Kenya; Grand Rapids, MI.: WordAlive Publishers; Zondervan.

Seven Characteristics of Highly Evangelistic Christians

By Thomas S. Rainer, President and CEO of Lifeway Christian Resources (3/29/2010)


1. They are people of prayer. They realize that only God can convict and convert, and they are totally dependent upon Him in prayer. Most of the highly evangelistic Christians spend at least an hour in prayer each day.

2. They have a theology that compels them to evangelize. They believe in the urgency of the gospel message. They believe that Christ is the only way of salvation. They believe that anyone without Christ is doomed for a literal hell.

3. They are people who spend time in the Word. The more time they spend in the Bible, the more likely they are to see the lostness of humanity and the love of God in Christ to save those who are lost.

4. They are compassionate people. Their hearts break for those who don’t have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. They have learned to love the world by becoming more like Christ who has the greatest love for the world.

5. They love the communities where God has placed them. They are immersed in the culture because they desire for the light of Christ to shine through them in their communities.

6. They are intentional about evangelism. They pray for opportunities to share the gospel. They look for those opportunities. And they see many so-called casual encounters as appointments set by God.

7. They are accountable to someone for their evangelistic activities. They know that many good activities can replace Great Commission activities if they are not careful. Good can replace the best. So they make certain that someone holds them accountable each week, either formally or informally, for their evangelistic efforts.
The “Secret” of Evangelistic Churches

The secret is really no secret at all. Ultimately, evangelistic churches see more persons become Christians through the passionate efforts of highly evangelistic Christians. More than any programs. More than any church events. More than anything else, we are the instruments God has chosen to use.

Sometimes we ask the question "What is my church doing to become more evangelistic?" But the better question is "What am I doing to become more evangelistic?"

Charles H. Spurgeon was right. We need more soul winners.

We need more highly evangelistic Christians.

Proud to be his messenger (2 Timothy 4:1-22)

Cornerstone Mission Church, Sunday Sermon

Here is the image involving the disqualification of Apolo Anton Ohno on Friday’s 500 m finals short track competition. He was disqualified for pushing Canada’s Francois-Louis Tremblay into the padded boards. He later won bronze medal in men’s 5000 meter relay to make it total of eight medals.

He said this about the disqualification… “I kept waiting and waiting and on the last corner, I ran up on the Canadian guy… I put my hand up so I wouldn’t run into him. There was just no space to move up.” “You know, it’s the head Canadian referee out there and there were two Canadians in the race.” He was implying that the judges were somehow favoring Canadian player and unfairly ruling the case against him.

Well, last Friday on that track, whatever Ohno thought happened didn’t matter. What really mattered was what the referees saw and judged. People can argue over it, but at the end of the race, the final call came not from Ohno, but from the judges.

Judging from how Paul used to illustrate spiritual journey with the sports theme, I bet he would have loved watching the Winter Olympic. To Paul, finishing the race was very important to him. The most important thing about finishing the race was the opinion of the righteous Judge. Paul says in 4:1 that it will be the Son of God, Christ Jesus, who will be the righteous Judge who is going to judge the living and the dead. And, sitting in his prison cell, there was genuine happiness about the way he ran the race… “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” No disqualification here… He looked forward to the moment when the righteous Judge would award him on that day, the crown of righteousness for finishing the race well.

Paul said in verse 6, “the time has come for my departure.” He meant the moment of execution. Looking back at his life and looking ahead for his impending execution, and his eternal life, Paul wanted nothing more than Timothy, his spiritual son to run the race and to finish the race without disqualification. So, he wrote his final words to Timothy. That’s what we have it here in the last chapter of 2 Timothy. Would Timothy finish the race, run the race without being disqualified, would Timothy preach the word even though it would cost him?

• Are you proud to be his messenger?

One day, without any exception, we will all face the righteous Judge who is going to account the quality of our lives. Paul knew that the Judge will disqualify many for not finishing the race, not running the race at all, for cheating.

So, Paul gives this solemn charge to Timothy, “Preach the word.” Perhaps, when you hear the word “Preach,” the immediate image that comes to your mind is the ordained clergyman like me standing in his pulpit on Sundays preaching. When Timothy heard the charge to preach, this isn’t exactly the kind of image that came up in Timothy’s mind. Rather, the original Greek word evoked in Timothy’s mind an image of the imperial herald; as the spokesman of the emperor, the Imperial herald proclaimed with authority on behalf of the emperor; and it was understood that the message delivered by the imperial herald was to be accepted and be carried out without delay.^[i]

To preach the word is to be King, Jesus’ messenger. This preaching the word, proclaiming and announcing the King’s message requires a sense of pride. Are we proud of the message contained in the word of God? Are we proud of Jesus Christ? Are we convinced that the world needs to hear what the King of the universe has to say to them? Are we so convinced that our non-believing friends, families, coworkers, neighbors, colleagues need to hear the message from Jesus?

Let me share you few accounts of men and women from the first three centuries. These are stories of those who were proud of Jesus Christ and his word and proved their pride in the message of Jesus with their lives.

Ignatius of Antioch was one of the earliest post-New Testament martyr. He was the second/or third bishop of Antioch arrested for atheism, denying the roman gods. Upon his arrest Christians tried hard to free him. But, to those who tried to free him he wrote, “I fear your kindness, which may harm me… You may be able to achieve what you plan. But if you pay no heed to my request it will be very difficult for me to attain unto God.” What was that he desired to attain unto God? He said, “Now I begin to be a disciple… Let fire and cross, flocks of beasts, broken bones, dismemberment… come upon me, so long as I attain to Jesus Christ.”

Polycarp was a bishop of Smyrna. He was arrested at the age of 86 for his message of the gospel. Before the local proconsul, Satius Quadratus Polycarp was threatened to be thrown to wild beasts, to be burned at the stake… To this Polycarp responded by saying while the proconsul’s fire lasts but a little while, the fires of judgment cannot be quenched. And, he concluded, “But why do you delay? Come, do what you will.” So, the soldiers grabbed him to nail him to a stake. Polycarp stopped them and demanded, “Leave me as I am. For he who grants me to endure the fire will enable me also to remain on the pyre unmoved, without the security you desire from nails.”

Perpetua… a Christian noblewoman at the turn of the third century lived with her husband, her son, her servant, Felicitas in Carthage of North Africa. Emperor Septimius Severus was determined to cripple Christianity so he focus on North Africa. She was arrested as she and four other prepared for baptism. All she had to do to be free was to deny that she was a Christian. On her trial, Perpetua’s father who was a pagan intervened by carrying Perpetua’s son in his arms and burst into the room and begged Perpetua, “Perform the sacrifice. Have pity on your baby!” And, the governor, Hilarianus chided her, “Have pity on your father’s gray head; have pity on your infant son. Offer the sacrifice for the welfare of the emperor.” To this Perpetua replied, “I will not.” “Are you a Christian then?” asked the governor. “Yes I am,” Perpetua replied. She and others were sent into the area floor to be devoured by the beats and be slayed by the sword.

Timothy lived in the time the cost of believing in the message and the cost of proclaiming the message confidently and proudly was huge; Paul was the living example of how costly it was to preach the word in the pagan world.

Paul experienced rejection from the people who rejected and opposed the gospel message, but he also experience rejection even from well-meaning Christians when they deserted him at his first defense in Rome (4:16).

Yet, we see Paul unfazed, so confident and proud and faithful witness to God’s message. He had his head in all situations, always sober, clear-minded, he endured hardship, and he discharged all the duties of his ministry that is he fulfilled his ministry. We see no fear as death stared at him. Death was simply the time for his departure (4:6) into present of Christ whom he longed to see (4:8).

How was this possible? I believe it was because Paul was proud to be the messenger of Christ? Are you proud to be his messenger?

• Are you ready?

How do you know if you are really proud of Jesus? How do you know when people are proud of something? They show it by their enthusiasm. Don’t they?

Mark my words… in short months, you are going to see people walking into your favorite coffee shops and café with their brand new IPad. Eyes will turn and people will talk.

Have you met parents who cannot stop talking about their little children? I might be one of them. I don’t normally update my Facebook. But, when I do, you bet it has something to do with my girls. Latest update on my Facebook reads… “My 4 yr old girl asked me, “Can God juggle?” My answer, “Well… I think God can juggle!” LOL. How would you answer her?” Guess what… I got zero responses… I thought it was so cute how Audrey thought about God and wanted to share it with the world. But, the world doesn’t seem to get excited about it. But, guess what… the next time I share something on Facebook, I bet it is going to be something about my girls…

When people get genuine excited about something, they tend to be spontaneous instead of calculating to find the exact moment to display their excitement. Imagine what would it be like to be so genuine excited about Jesus Christ and we start talking about him spontaneously? Paul had this uncontainable excitement, enthusiasm and conviction in the message of Jesus Christ that, even in the most hostile environment, he managed to share the message of Christ.

I don’t know about you, but I have this tendency to wait for the right “even” divine moment to share the gospel message with someone. To this Paul says, “No, you don’t wait for the right or perfect moment to share. You don’t wait for the opportune time. You don’t wait until when people beg you to share the gospel. You share because you are proud of Jesus. You share because you are convinced that people need Jesus; it just they don’t know it yet. You share because you know that there will be a day when everyone will have to stand before the righteous Judge and all must give account for their lives. You share because you want to expose the lies of Satan, expose the wrongs, and encourage and cheer for that which is right.

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^[i] Kenneth S. Wuest, Wuest's Word Studies from the Greek New Testament : For the English Reader (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1997).

Fight for boldness (Acts 28)

Cornerstone Mission Church, Sunday Sermon January 25, 2009

Lately, one of the things that I see God doing in my heart is to awaken inside of me the heart of warrior who will fight for what matter. Give me the cause to live and to die for, give me the courage, the boldness to live out the right cause, and that is what I am made for, for the greater cause beyond me that can explain my purpose in life. The natural out flow has been framing everything in terms of fighting, contending for things that really matter. So, I ask these days these questions; how can I fight for my marriage, how can I fight for my girls, how can I fight for the God given purpose, how can I fight for purity and integrity, how can I fight to become the kind of shepherd God has called me to be, how can I fight for you? These are the questions that I’ve been asking a lot these days. And, I can honestly tell you that as I frame my life in terms of fighting for the greater cause that is worth giving my life for, I feel alive. And, that greater cause to live and to die for is none other than the gospel, the good news of Jesus Christ.

So, when I prepared for a message from Acts 28, it only makes sense that God highlighted word “boldly” from Acts 28:31; “Boldly and without hindrance he preached the kingdom of God and taught about the Lord Jesus Christ.”

“Boldly” parrhsia means to possess freedom to say all in the face of oppositions at times requiring fearlessness and frankness… It also speaks to confidence and joyfulness.[1]

Am I going to be led by this boldness to stand for the greater cause even though it may mean risking greatly? Or, am I going to hide behind my fears in a safe buffer zone with no risk cowardly? I choose to fight for boldness. How about you? I pray that you too will want fight with me for boldness to live out all encompassing cause of Jesus Christ, to live out his good news, his gospel and to declare it boldly.

1. Fight for boldness for you are born into a world at war.

I always knew that Paul was about preaching the kingdom of God and teaching others about Jesus Christ. That is the one cause that Paul was willing to gladly lay down his life. It is this passion, zeal that consumed him to travel all across Asia, and all the way to Rome to battle against the hostile crowds who wanted nothing but to put him to death, to endure shipwrecks, prisons, hunger… to endure them all because he viewed his life in the context of war, as a man with the mission, to rescue people from ferocious and even silent fire that unless he acted would kill them. Paul understood that unless the kingdom of God and Jesus Christ reigns, the devil would remain as the slave-master of the world. 1 Peter 5:8 says, “the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” Paul knew that unless he acted boldly to advance God’s kingdom through sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ, the devil would devour people. So, what you see in Paul is the sense of urgency to share the gospel because he knew he was born into a world at war.

John Eldredge says in his book, Wild At Heart, this about man. “Man is not born into a sitcom or a soap opera; he is born into a world at war. This is not Home Improvement; it’s Saving Private Ryan.”[2] The difference between them is that only one lives and dies for the cause that is greater than him in the context of war. It is in times of war that you find out who is bold or coward, who is wired to choose life of sacrifice for the greater cause or wired to live for himself and herself in self-engrossment.

To frame it with words from Jude 23, to “snatch others from the fire and save them,” to understand the context of life as fire that rages to destroy everything in its path, but to understand my calling as the one who is equipped to go into the raging fire to rescue those who would otherwise perish.

“Courage is almost a contradiction in terms: it means a strong desire to live taking the form of readiness to die"[3] said G. K. Chesterton. The only time such courage, boldness that can propel you to readiness to die is when you are fighting for the cause that is greater than yourself. It is when you come to understand that you are made to engage in war, in fire that seeks to destroy people that you realize your need for boldness.

It is when I understood that my marriage was under fire, at a war that I began to understand that my calling was to fight for marriage with the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. So, I’ve been fighting for my marriage; Lyn’s been fighting for our marriage; we’ve been fighting for our marriage with the gospel of Jesus Christ. We’ve been fighting for our marriage with some of your help in babysitting so that we can go out for weekly dates to fuel our love. The good news that saves me and saves Lyn can save our marriage as well. When I came to the realization that my marriage was under attack from within and from outside, God gave me this heart not to give up, but to fight for marriage as he intends. So, Lyn and I have been seeking godly counsel to fight for our marriage. We’ve been fortified by some of your prayers and practical helps.

When I heard my Mikayla telling me, “I don’t like you. You scare me,” because I yelled at her demanding obedience, I knew that I was engaged in a war. Am I going to discipline with anger that would crush the spirit of my girl and harden her heart or am I going to discipline with firm love that would touch her heart for change? It is much harder to cultivate joyful obedience in tender hearts than to demand obedience from my girls. That’s what the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ does for me and for you; it cultivates joyful obedience to God our Father out of love for him for we know we are loved by God; God sent his One and only Son to die for us, to forgive us, to give us new life, to live no longer in disconnection from our Creator, but to live as his sons and daughters in Jesus Christ. So, the line of engagement is clear now. I know that I am at war to cultivate tender hearts that would yield to joyful obedience in my girls. My fight is not only to be a good father to my girls, but to reflect the Fatherhood of our God, it is to reflect the love of God so they would yield their lives to God and live in joyful obedience to him.

The world wants us to shut us up, keep it quite, to keep it to ourselves, the gospel of Jesus Christ that has changed us so radically. We are at war with ourselves for wanting to keep it quite in fears of being known, being identified with Jesus Christ in the public, wanting not to offend the political correctness that is intolerant to the message of the absolute, Jesus Christ who is the way, the life and the truth.

Do you know you are born into a world at war? Do you know that you are called to go into fire to deliver the gospel so to rescue your friends, your classmates, your co-workers, your neighbors? And, if you are married, do you know that you are called to fight for your marriage, for your children with the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ? And, if you are dating, do you know that you are called to fight for purity?

It is when you and I understand that we are born into a world at war we realize that we need the heart of the Lion of Judah, our Lord Jesus Christ, the heart of boldness that will enable you and me to live and to die for his good news.

2. Fight for boldness born out of prayer.

Through the scripture, one thing that comes very clear to me is that boldness is something that I need to ask God to supply me constantly.

As I learn to recognize that I live in a world at war and that unless I fight to bring the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ to all aspects of my life that I am going to loose the war, I realize I need boldness that will trump fears within me, fears of men and fears of unknown inherent in taking risks. And, I realize that boldness isn’t something I acquire it for good, but I require constant supply of fresh boldness from the Lord.

In Acts 4, you read a story about Peter and John how they were harassed by the Jews for preaching that salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under have given to men by which we must be saved (Acts 4:12). When Peter and John were released from these Jews who opposed them, the believers got together with them and prayed. Acts 4:31 says, “After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And, they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.” Here is that same word used in Acts 28, “boldly.”

When Paul wrote his letter to the Christians in Ephesus, he asked for their prayer. Ephesians 6:19-20 reads, “Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make know the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.”

For two years, Paul was chained up on his wrist to Romans guards, who rotated every four hours go guard him. Being chained to Roman guards for the unsubstantiated and false charges against him by the zealous Jews of Jerusalem, he could’ve gone down the road of self-pity, “woe-me” type of resentment.

Instead of giving into this destructive mindset about his circumstance, he identified himself as a privileged and important ambassador working to represent Jesus Christ. His chain, his Roman guards didn’t define him as a criminal. His identity was defined as an ambassador of Jesus Christ. And, being secured in this identity in Jesus Christ, he could speak boldly, or translated here as fearlessly.

And, where did he get his boldness from? Paul didn’t think boldness, fearlessness as something he acquired for good, instead of in need of fresh supply of boldness. So, was his prayer request to the Ephesians to be able to open his mouth and to fearlessly make known the gospel with words given to him by God.

Acts 9:7, you read about Barnabas vouching for Paul for having preached fearlessly in the name of Jesus. Acts 13:46, you see Paul and Barnabas answering the Jews of Pisidian Antioch boldly. Acts 14:3, you read Paul and Barnabas speaking boldly for the Lord in Iconium. Acts 18:26, you see Paul’s speaking boldly in the synagogue where Priscilla and Aquila heard him and also speaking boldly in the synagogue in Ephesus (Acts 19:8). Acts 26:26, you see Paul speaking to Agrippa freely.

Fearlessly, boldly, freely they are all the same word that speaks to “strong desire to live taking the form of readiness to die” because they were backed by prayers of saints.

3. Fight for boldness begins with boldness to come to God

Ephesians 3:12 says, “In him and through faint in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence.” Here freedom translates the same Greek word translated as boldly in other passage. Paul is saying this to us today. To be bold to fight for the cause that is greater than you, the gospel of cause of Jesus Christ, you must possess the boldness to come to God and talk to him freely. When you are able to talk to God boldly, freely about your heart, then you gain confidence and this confidence then gives birth to the boldness to speak about what God has done for you, what God is doing for you now and what God will do for you in the future. If you don’t have the freedom to speak to God, to tell him all that’s in your heart, you can forget about being bold for Jesus’ cause.[4]

And, the way you are going to experience the freedom, boldness to talk to God about everything is when you find yourself in Jesus Christ, through faith in him. If you don’t know Jesus Christ as your King, your Savior, your Lord, the one died for you and raised from the dead to save you from the power of sin, from the power of death, from the power of the devil, you will not be able to have the boldness to talk to God.

As believers, we have boldness and freedom to talk to God because Jesus covers us with his blood over our sins, our guilty conscious. In Christ, we are God’s children. And, as children, we are given the privilege to approach God.

A same thought is expressed in Hebrews 4:16, “Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.” Here boldness is translated as confidence. This is echoed again in Hebrews 10:19, “brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body…”

The same thought runs through in 1 John 3:21, “Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God and receive from him anything we ask, because we obey his commands and do what pleases him.” Here, confidence, boldness is directly linked to having clear conscience, without being guilt-ridden or conscience-stricken. Without clear conscience, we will flee from the presence of the Lord. So, again if you don’t know Jesus as your King who died for you and raised from the dead, you will not be able to come to have freedom to talk to God. Through Jesus Christ, you can have relationship with God. And, when you have relationship with God, you can talk freely. And, with this freedom to talk to God, you are also given the freedom to ask anything of him. Of course, you cannot miss the qualification that you are to ask anything of your Father in Jesus Christ, meaning you ask in one accord with what Jesus wants to accomplish in your life.

4. Conclusion.

Hebrews 10:35, “So do not throw away your confidence (that is boldness); it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised.” Hebrew 10:32-34 says in the past, Christians stood their ground in a great contest in the face of suffering, publicly being exposed to insult and persecution, standing by those who were being persecuted and in prison, even thought it meant accepting confiscation of their property because they had better and lasting possessions.

Yet, in spite of the public oppositions, they continued to gather publicly not giving up meeting together to encourage one another (Hebrews 10:25). This sums up the attitude of confidence, boldness God desires to give us, to publicly identify ourselves to the body of Christ, to the truth of the gospel, to bear witness to the reality of Jesus Christ in our lives even though it might mean facing oppositions, persecutions and even death.

But, if you know that you live in a world at war, and acquire boldness through prayer because you know you can boldly and freely talk to God in Jesus, it only makes sense not to throw away your confidence.

Let’s fight for boldness!

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[1] The New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology: Volume 2. 735. Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, © 1967, 1969, 1971.

[2] John Eldredge, Wild at Heart, Nelson, 2001, p. 51.

[3] Gilbert K. Chesterton, Gilbert K. Chesterton. Qtd. in Instant Quotation Dictionary, p. 73.

[4] Wood, Skevington A. “E. Grace and Apostleship (3:1-13)” In The Expositor's Bible Commentary: Volume 11. 48. Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, © 1978.