Before Jesus ascended to the heavens to take His place at our Father’s right hand, He commanded His disciples (which includes us, centuries later) to go out into the world and "preach the good news to all creation” (Mark 16:15).
But we don’t. We’re numb to the Great Commission (Matthew 28:19-20) and tight-lipped towards those who really need to hear about our encounters with Him. We don’t want to share because that makes us easy targets for the doubters to criticize and berate our proclamations. When attacked, we feel as if we need to retaliate with counterarguments. But we don’t have to.
We weren't called to defend our God.
To preach means to publicly proclaim, to announce. It doesn't mean to argue or to defend. Jesus asked us to simply share the good news so everyone can know they are no longer condemned by their sins. They have been washed clean by His blood, which allows them to come freely to the Father’s throne and be accepted with arms wide open.
The good news sounds too good to be true. I can hear the unbelievers shouting out with distrust. I don’t blame people for their skepticism. Christians, the followers of Christ, the people who say that God is love, don’t have the best track record in portraying that truth. We can be hypocritical. We can be arrogant. We can be unforgiving. We can be the opposite of everything we claim our God to be. But what they don’t understand and I pray you caught the revelation that even on our best days, when God’s grace and His glory shine brightly through us, we are but shadows of the one true King.
“Hypocrisy does not undermine the credibility of the Christian faith.” Corey Widmer
And that’s why God doesn't need prosecutors, defenders or judges. God isn't on trial. He called us to be witnesses, to be lights for this very dark world. Besides, God has enough evidence to back Himself up (His Word). He can definitely defend Himself.
In 1 Samuel 5, the Philistines, after capturing the ark of God from the Israelites, placed it in their god’s (Dagon) temple. The next day, the Philistines found the statue of Dagon faced down on the floor in front of the ark of the Lord. They placed the statue upright again, but the next morning they found Dagon in the same position with its head and hands cut off. God proceeded to afflict them with so much trouble; the Philistines were desperate to return the ark back to the Israelites with a guilt offering.
As you can see, God doesn't need your best defense, your best argument. Nothing can stand against our God. Anything counterfeit, anything not of Him, falls at His feet, broken and useless.
What He needs is your obedience. He needs you to share your story of the good things He’s done for you. And don’t worry: no one can negate your experiences. No one can dispute your past. Even if you meet opposition, you need to remember that someone out there, who’s going through a similar situation God just delivered you from, needs to hear there’s a way out of the darkness; dawn will break with a new promise after a night full of tears (Psalm 126:5-6).
Even if your voice shakes, speak. Don’t hide His goodness. Don’t keep the good news to yourself. Speak out and share because your words, your experiences, can be a seed in someone else’s life. In God’s timing it will bloom into a new testimony and new praise.
Speak and share that seed.
Guest Author, Regine Darius is a recent graduate of University of Miami and has plans to pursue her Masters in Creative Writing at California Institute of the Arts this fall. She blogs regularly at http://msmprettylipssealed.blogspot.com/ and has plans to become an author one day. Right now, she is learning to enjoy the ride God laid out for her and to trust Him with all her heart, mind and soul.
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