Tuesday, January 11th, 2022

The popularity of Christianity has ebbed and flowed since Jesus' time, and those who faithfully root their lives to their relationship with Jesus have ebbed and flowed in popularity as well. The world today routinely belittles the Biblical teaching of scripture and even more so belittles placing Jesus as the first and important thing in our lives. The pushback, when we venture outside of our churches and circles of believing friends can be fierce and overwhelming. It can also be dejecting to see all that ails this world and its leaders refuse to acknowledge the God who rules it, instead calculating new strategies to gain power for themselves. When we step back and look at the world through the eyes of God, and consider it in an eternal perspective rather than a fleeting, the only wisdom and the only saving this world has ever known is that which is written in the Bible. Paul knew this, and opened his letter to the Romans by saying, "For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile. For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed—a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.” If we seek wisdom, it can only be found in understanding the righteousness of God. If we seek salvation, it can only be found in the grace of Jesus Christ. So, it stands to reason that if we seek to bring wisdom or any kind of help to the world, it must be rooted faithfully in Scripture, bringing God's wisdom and Jesus' grace to bear. Today, if you struggle with feeling embarrassed in sharing of the Gospel or speaking about Jesus in public, take courage in the fact that nothing good, and of God, will come to those in your path without it.

"For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile. For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed—a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.” - Romans 1:16-17 NIV