A number of years ago I visited a church member who was serving time in the county jail. I had never been to this facility before, so I was not sure what to expect. I identified myself to the guard at the front desk. As I waited in the holding room, I heard a familiar voice yelling from inside the jail, “That’s my pastor! That’s my pastor! My pastor is here to see me!” He wasn’t ashamed of me or his faith.
Peter and John were not ashamed of being associated with Jesus Christ. In Acts 4, the religious leaders were upset with the preaching of Peter and John regarding Jesus. They threw them into jail and the following day brought them before the Sanhedrin, the supreme court of the Jewish people. They asked the apostles, “By what power or what name did you do this?” (v. 7). Peter, being filled with the Holy Spirit, explains that it is “by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed” (v. 10).
The Sanhedrin dismissed the apostles while they discussed the case. Then they called them back and commanded them to no longer speak or teach in the name of Jesus. Both Peter and John responded, “Which is right in God’s eyes: to listen to you, or to him? You be the judges! As for us, we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard” (vv. 19–20). Finally, they let them go.
It can be so easy to keep quiet or acquiesce to the pressure to keep our faith to ourselves. God has not called us to be obnoxious, but He does prompt us to share our faith at inconvenient times. Don’t mistake one for the other.
Go Deeper
When was the last time you missed an opportunity to share your faith? What can you do to make sure you are ready?
Pray with Us
God, please forgive us for the times we fail to speak as Your witness. Give us the courage and boldness to share our faith unashamedly with anyone who asks.
Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.Acts 4:12
