Have you ever felt afraid to share your faith? Maybe there’s a friend at school who is not a Christian, and you want to share the gospel, but you have been choosing not to because you are scared of what they may think of you, or you worry if you will be able to answer their questions or comebacks. After all, these are real fears, but the good news is that we serve a real God who wants to help you overcome these fears and who promises to give you His strength and honor your obedience.
Even Jesus’ very own disciples, who walked with him, ate with him, and watched Him perform miracles in front of their own eyes, were afraid. In fact, before Jesus went back to Heaven after being resurrected from the grave, Jesus’ disciples were fearful. They didn’t want Jesus to leave them. They didn’t feel equipped to share their faith. But, in that moment, Jesus did something amazing: In Acts 1:8, He promised them that He would be with them and that He would give them His power through the Holy Spirit. They did not have to fear because He would be with them and would strengthen them; the same is true for you today. Just as He promised the disciples that He would give them His Holy Spirit and strength, as a Christian, you have His Holy Spirit with you to give you strength.
Now, this strength does not mean that sharing your faith will be easy, but it does mean Jesus will use your obedience for His glory. Let’s look at two examples of people in the Bible who had the courage to share their faith. In both cases, God’s people were obedient, and in each case, God rewarded their faith; it just looked different.
First, let’s look at Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. You may have heard of them from the story of the fiery furnace. Well, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were a group of teenagers who chose to worship God even when this worship came with a cost. In Daniel 3, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon throws Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego into a fiery furnace because they refused to bow down and worship his golden idol. However, because the fire did not burn them and instead an angel of the Lord appeared in the fire with them, King Nebuchadnezzar came to faith in God and issued a decree against those who sought to harm worshippers of the very God he was persecuting. Because three friends decided to stand firm in their faith, God showed up in a mighty way and honored their obedience by protecting their lives and changing the heart of King Nebuchadnezzar.
Next, let’s look at the story of Stephen, who was the first Christian martyr, meaning that he was killed for his faith. Like Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the Old Testament, Stephen was also bold in sharing his faith, even if it meant he would suffer consequences. In fact, in Acts 7:54-8:1, Stephen gets stoned to death for his faith, but the Holy Spirit was with him and gave him courage, and others could see that Stephen was “full of the Holy Spirit.” This did not mean that God saved Stephen and prevented people from throwing stones at him, but it did mean that Stephen entered eternity with Jesus, and his boldness of faith had a ripple effect on other believers. Rather than being fearful of persecution, many believers chose to take courage and stand for their faith because they were inspired by the faith of Stephen.
In both the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and the stoning of Stephen, we see a God who provided His strength through His Holy Spirit and who rewards obedience. He promises to do the same for you, too. Even when you are afraid, you can share your faith because you have the power of the Holy Spirit with you and a God who always honors obedience.
Written by Megan Jewell