(1 Thessalonians 2:4)
When we’re
not a monolithic club to be courted and manipulated by those seeking not our
God but only our vote (in other words, anytime other than a presidential
election year), few outside the faith give much credence to Christians. In
fact, truth be told, in greater society it’s rather an embarrassment to be a
Christian. Add the label evangelical
or the term born again, and most of
our contemporaries consider us out of step at best and intolerant at worst.
I can’t
count the times I’ve been on a plane or train en route to a speaking engagement when my seatmate has struck up a
conversation.
“Where are
you heading?”
“I’m the
speaker at a conference in Dallas (or San Diego or Denver or whatever venue).”
“Oh, I hate
public speaking. What do you talk about?”
“I’m also an
author, and I’m talking from one of my books.”
“People tell
me I should write a book. I’ll do it some day! Yes I will. By the way, what do
you write about?”
Now is the
moment I feared would come. What do I say?
Everything I
write centers around Jesus Christ and how He is not only relevant but
absolutely essential to life on this planet and safe passage into heaven. As
Paul would tell the Thessalonian Christians, that’s the message with which we
believers in Christ are entrusted. Notice another key phrase in the opening
Scripture verse. “Approved by God.” God has vetted us and equipped us to
represent the message. We have received His stamp of approval to carry the
life-changing message.
When you put
it that way … There really is no way to explain what I do and leave Christ out
of the discussion. (Actually, whether we work in secular or religious
occupations, there’s no way to explain who we are and leave Christ out of the
discussion.)
But then
there’s that rule about avoiding politics and religion in polite society. And
there’s the real possibility that the word Christian
will shut down the connection we were building and slam the door on warm
conversation for the remainder of the journey.
So, will I
mumble with my head down hoping my companion will just drop the issue? Will I appear
to be ashamed of the gospel that brings me life and could bring it to my
companion, too? Or will I take my chances and speak clearly, “not as pleasing
men, but God”?
I know what
the apostle Paul’s answer would be. In fact, the way the good news of Jesus
reached those Thessalonians was a testament to how bold Paul was to speak the
gospel without apology. The greater population of Thessalonica was so hostile
to the message that the group of believers there had to sneak Paul and his
preaching companion Silas out of the city under the cover of night. (For that harrowing
story, Acts 17 is a must-read!)
And yet,
later Paul was able to write to the church in that city and to say with the
utmost truthfulness that he spoke “the message” with “full conviction” (1
Thessalonians 1:5) among them.
The
challenge for us is to speak with full conviction and then to live out the
truth in a winsome way among our contemporaries. There, too, Paul and Silas had
no reason to be ashamed. In fact, he mentioned to the believers that they knew “what
kind of men we proved to be among you.” Then he commended them for following
his example by becoming imitators of the Lord. He knew this because from them
the gospel was going out and touching the surrounding culture (1: 8).
See, it’s
really not about us. It’s about the message sounding across the world. The
message that’s entrusted to us. The message we’re approved by God to carry. He
entrusted it to many generations before us. And in each generation, there were
those who were unashamed to claim the name of Christ, even to the point of
facing death or torture.
The opportunity may come to us in a checkout line or a commuter seat, on a park bench or at a sporting venue, in a hospital elevator or at the graveside of a friend. The choice will stand before us—if not today, then certainly tomorrow. In that moment of decision, will I—will you—be unashamed to speak the Truth with full conviction—not as pleasing men, but God?
Blessings and prayers,
Julie
© 2016, Julie-Allyson Ieron. All rights reserved. For reprint permission, email: orders@joymediaservices.com
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