Are you a Christian? These four simple words strung together have the ability to make my heart rate speed up and mind race. Why is it that my first response to that question is to concoct an answer that will gain the most approval from my audience? It boils down to being ashamed of the gospel. So often we wonder what others will think of us if we label ourselves as Christians, will they think I'm a prude, will they think I'm Mr. Perfect, will they still want to be my friend? When I hear that question, my mind automatically thinks of all the mistakes I've made in my life and if the person I'm with knows of any of them. I often wonder if I'm worthy enough to call myself a Christian publicly, I feel as though I'm defacing the Christian image to friends if I label myself as so. But this is entirely the wrong attitude.
The Apostle Paul is a perfect testimony of the fact that nobody is beyond the saving grace of the Lord and God can use anybody to further His kingdom. In the Book of Acts, we learn that the Apostle Paul is actually born by the name Saul. Saul was known for his relentless persecution of Christians. I mean this guy would literally stone people to death for sharing the gospel. Acts 8:3 states, “He began ravaging the church, entering house after house, and dragging off men and women, he would put them in prison.” Great story short, Saul encountered Jesus on the road to Damascus, became blinded, was healed by the Holy Spirit later on, and was known as Paul from then on. After Paul had prayed and accepted the Holy Spirit, Paul was on fire for the Lord, meaning he was preaching and building churches all across the world in order to share the gospel. Now you can imagine the people of this time were a little skeptical of Paul, I mean I would be too, this guy was imprisoning Christians a few days ago, and now he's trying to convert people to Christianity. That being said, Paul didn't let the judgement of others hinder his affection towards the Lord and the passion he had for sharing the gospel. Paul spent time in Jail for sharing the gospel, yet he still was content in Christ and looked at the opportunity to share the gospel within the Jail as God's plan (Philippians 4:12).
My point is, never let your past mistakes impede your courage to stand up for what you believe in. There will always be stages in your life where you are surrounded by people to impress; whether that be high school, college, work, community, etc. These people will come and go in your life before you know it, but Christ is forever and will never demand to be impressed. My prayer for you is that you will be proud of the One who died for you and will be eager to share the gospel with those around you. You do not have to be fearless, just don't let fear stop you. Romans 1:16 states "For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes."
