Acts 4:13 NLT. [13] The members of the council were amazed when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, for they could see that they were ordinary men with no special training in the Scriptures. They also recognized them as men who had been with Jesus.
When Peter and John were brought before the Sanhedrin after healing the lame man, they didn’t cower in fear of their national leaders. They didn’t compromise their stance on who Jesus is. They stood before those important, powerful men and boldly proclaimed that Jesus is Messiah.
An encounter with Jesus will bring an uncommon boldness into our lives. When we fully accept Jesus as our own Messiah, then our faith and commitment to His cause will not waver in the face of opposition. People who are completely committed to Jesus do not sugar coat their words when speaking of repenting of sins and asking for forgiveness.
Can you remember how great you felt when you first asked Jesus to come into your heart? Did you want everyone you knew to have that same experience of freedom from guilt? Were you willing to talk to anyone about Jesus?
Listen to what the apostle Paul wrote to the disciples of Jesus in Philippi:
Philippians 1:20 NLT. [20] For I fully expect and hope that I will never be ashamed, but that I will continue to be bold for Christ, as I have been in the past. And I trust that my life will bring honor to Christ, whether I live or die.
Paul had stood before kings and rulers of his own nation and of other countries and had been questioned by them about his faith in Jesus. He felt compelled to tell everyone with whom he came into contact about how Jesus had changed his life. He spoke to them about righteousness and Christ’s teachings. He defended his faith with boldness.
Our lives need continual boldness, too. And that boldness can be just as strong today as it was the day we were first forgiven. We must not allow the fire burning in our hearts to turn to embers that only glow, instead of burn brightly.
Allow me a moment to explain why our boldness needs to be kept strong. Listen to
1 John 4:17 NLT. [17] And as we live in God, our love grows more perfect. So we will not be afraid on the day of judgment, but we can face him with confidence because we live like Jesus here in this world.
Our boldness will turn into confidence when we have to face judgment for how we have lived. Our boldness and confidence in Jesus that motivates us to fulfill the great commission of sharing our faith is the same boldness and confidence in Jesus we will need when He returns to judge the world.
We cannot afford to be ashamed of the good news about Jesus, because that good news is the power of God unto salvation. We cannot allow ourselves to become complacent disciples of Jesus, because, if we do, we may not be able to hear Him say, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”
Our boldness in being witnesses for Jesus is what the world needs to see. Why would anyone want to become a disciple of Jesus if His followers don’t display confidence in what He achieved when He conquered death, hell and the grave? Would you want to give your life to any god who does not inspire his followers to be bold about him?
You may be thinking that your personality doesn’t display much boldness. You may be thinking that you don’t know that you have ever been bold before, or if you could become bolder than you are right now for Jesus. You might even be thinking, “How can I be the Peter and John kind of bold?”
Here’s how you can be bolder: Ask For Boldness. It’s okay to ask God to help us be more bold in our witnessing about Jesus. In fact, asking for more boldness is scriptural. Listen to Acts 4:29-31 KJVS. [29] And now, Lord, behold their threatenings: and grant unto your servants, that with all boldness they may speak your word, [30] By stretching forth your hand to heal; and that signs and wonders may be done by the name of your holy child Jesus. [31] And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spoke the word of God with boldness.
This scene in the lives of the early disciples occurred right after they were persecuted for telling the Sanhedrin that Jesus is Messiah. They had been warned by people who had the authority to keep them from going back into the temple to worship to stop talking about Jesus being the Messiah. And here they are, asking God to give them the boldness they need to keep doing just that.
We live in a society that is being controlled by the powers of spiritual darkness, and those powers are trying to suppress and completely do away with everything Christian in this world, not just in this country. Canada has already made it a crime to call sexual perversion a sin. Disciples of Jesus are killed because of their faith daily in Africa and the Middle East in areas controlled by Islamic extremists. Several cities in this country have made street preaching illegal. People have been threatened with arrest for having Bible studies in their homes from officials in zoning boards who say they are creating a church in a residential zone. The list could go on and on.
Are we as followers of Jesus going to cower in the face of national persecution, or are we going to ask God for more boldness? Are we going to live as complacent, compliant disciples who never ruffle anyone’s feathers or offend people by talking about Jesus, or are we going to witness to them with the kind of confidence Peter and John had?
Are we going to fulfill the great commission, or are we going to quietly fail our Lord and Savior by keeping our mouths shut and coming to worship services so we can get a blessing? Do we really believe folks need to know there’s a heaven to gain and a hell to shun?
If we do, in fact, believe we are to fulfill the great commission and tell others how to achieve heaven and avoid hell, then we are going to need boldness. The way we get that boldness is to have an encounter with Jesus. The way to have boldness is to ask for it. Then use it when the Holy Spirit gives you the chance to be bold.
An encounter with Jesus will bring an uncommon boldness into our lives.
