“Now I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that what has happened to me has actually served to advance the gospel. As a result, it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ. And because of my chains, most of the brothers and sisters have become confident in the Lord and dare all the more to proclaim the gospel without fear.” Paul in Philippians 1:12-14
These are the words of the Apostle Paul to his friends in the ancient church in Philippi, Greece. They were written two millennia ago yet they ring TRUE for today’s topic. In fact, I’m here to tell you that I’VE DONE IT AGAIN and I tell you all about it in my new video at pastoraj.com. In case you haven’t guessed, I put up MORE BILLBOARDS in my community! That’s right. And it’s my hope that my courage will inspire you in the same way Paul’s actions FIRED UP the early church. That’s what he said to the Philippian church: “Because of my chains, most of the brothers and sisters have become confident in the Lord and dare all the more to proclaim the gospel without fear” (v14). I mean seriously, do you realize Paul (and all of the Apostles) pushed so hard into culture that they regularly did jailtime!? It’s honestly enough to make me wonder what on earth we’re doing wrong today. It may also explain WHY it so often seems like we’re losing the culture war. It’s like we’ve given up. It’s like we’re so worried about offending some random person we’ll never meet that we end up preaching some watered-down, powderpuff version of the gospel with a VERY lowercase “g”. But the early church was SO BOLD! And their example lit other believers ON FIRE! That’s what my billboard campaigns are all about. I’m pushing into the public square with messages like this: “EVOLUTION IS A LIE: TEACH CREATION SCIENCE IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS.” Yes, it sounds crazy. But I admit I’ve completely LOST MY MIND for Jesus and I’m inviting you to do the same. Be BOLD in your schools. Be BOLD in your jobs, your communities, your churches and on social media. You should even be BOLD in your family. Billboards may not be your thing but you can be bold in your own way for Jesus. Most importantly DO NOT FEAR. Push the cultural envelope and push back the darkness. God will protect you and give SUCCESS to you cause so that TOGETHER we can CHANGE THE WORLD for Christ!!
Application:
Does it surprise you that the early church frequently went to jail? How does this example contrast with our modern Christian experience?
How does the example of the early church inspire you to do something BOLD for Jesus in your world? What will this step cost you?
Watch my new videos “Oops, I Did It Again! More Billboards!” AND “Evolution Is a Lie” at pastoraj.com and decide to do something BOLD for Jesus today!
