BELIEVER BOLDNESS bounced quickly to my mind this morning when I considered what messages need to be delivered on SPIRITUAL DISCIPLINE before the calendar tosses January back and brings February forward. That thought came to me after realizing how many Christians seem to have locked away their BELIEVER BOLDNESS.
I want to address this reality here by using my FIRST-HAND experience to draw on. Living with BELIEVER BOLDNESS is a life-long challenge for all of us. Maybe YOU have locked away your BELIEVER BOLDNESS.
Everyone wants to be bold, right? Of course. ESPECIALLY Christians. We want to live with the bravery of Paul and Peter and, of course, JESUS. But the most common approach to that end is TRANSACTIONAL BOLDNESS—summoning the strength to act boldly in a specific way for a specific situation.
BELIEVER BOLDNESS is not a part of our personality. An introverted Christian can be BOLD in a situation that would muzzle an extroverted believer. WHY? Because BELIEVER BOLDNESS is powered by the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 3:12).
It’s neither an option nor a guarantee. I love this fact because it demands that we pray for BELIEVER BOLDNESS when we need it in our life. It will never be automatic.
BELIEVER BOLDNESS is being brave enough to say and do what is right no matter the circumstances or the consequences. It shows up in us when we believe that God has promised through his blood shed on Calvary to protect, bless, and sanctify us.
BELIEVER BRAVERY is what fuels a Christian’s life on earth. Living without it is disrespecting and dishonoring Christ. Here’s how Martin Luther put it:
If I profess with the loudest voice and clearest exposition every portion of the truth of God except precisely that little point which the world and the devil are at that moment attacking, I am not confessing Christ, however boldly I may be professing Christ. (Standing Firm: “Reclaiming Christian Faith in Times of Controversy” 1996.)
BELIEVER BOLDNESS is what God wants his children to exhibit in two ways:
ONE–TRUST: “Therefore, since we have such a hope, we are very bold.” 2 Corinthians 3:12.
TWO–STRENGTH: “Wait for the Lord; be strong and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!” Psalm 27:14
I want to live with BELIEVER BOLDNESS every day. That’s why I ask God help me see that it will not come under my own power trying to be brave. To give me the strength to BOLDLY step out of my comfort zone and into the darkness for those who live in the shadows so that they may see in me, the perfect Light of Christ.
WHAT ABOUT YOU?
I want to live and speak more boldly for Jesus. What about you? If you were tested today for your level of BELIEVER BOLDNESS, how would you score?
“Pray for me that God will give me a message when I am ready to speak, so that I may speak boldly and make known the gospel’s secret…Pray that I may be bold in speaking about the gospel as I should.” Ephesians 6:19–20
“They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak the word of God with boldness.” Acts 4:31
“Let your light shine before others; that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in Heaven.” Matthew 5:14-16
