In 2 Timothy 1:7-8 I read, “The Holy Spirit, God's gift, does not want you to be afraid of people, but to be wise and strong, and to love them and enjoy being with them. If you will stir up this inner power, you will never be afraid to tell others about our Lord.” (TLB)
Over the last few days, I’ve looked at some of the reasons I can be confident when sharing my faith. Remember, I don’t have to know all the answers, because Jesus does.
And, I have to learn to be a good listener so I can find the key to someone’s heart and lead them to Jesus.
Here’s something else I need to remember: I’m not alone when I share my hope in Christ. God is with me. And his Spirit is working in that other person’s heart while I’m talking.
The Bible says, “The Holy Spirit, God's gift, does not want you to be afraid of people, but to be wise and strong, and to love them and enjoy being with them. If you will stir up this inner power, you will never be afraid to tell others about our Lord” (2 Timothy 1:7-8 TLB).
I’ll never need to be afraid to tell others about the Lord, when I realize the Holy Spirit’s power and God’s truth are in me. That should give me a lot of confidence!
Another Bible passage to help me share my faith is Luke 21:13-15: “This will be your chance to tell about your faith. Don’t worry about what you will say to defend yourselves. I will give you the wisdom to know what to say” (CEV).
It’s common to get anticipatory fear. Thinking, “I don’t know what to say to that person at the office, on the soccer field, or in my neighborhood.” But God says to me, “I will tell you what to say when you need it.”
What an amazing promise! I may not feel ready or equipped to share the gospel, but the truth is, I have everything I need in God’s presence and power in me.
In summary, I may not know all the answers, but Jesus does. I have to learn to be a good listener so I can find the key to someone’s heart and lead them to Him. And, I’m not alone when I share my hope in Christ. God says he’ll be with me. Meanwhile his Spirit is working in that other person’s heart while I’m talking. The Holy Spirit does not want me to be afraid of people, but to be wise and strong, and to love them and enjoy being with them. If I can stir up this inner power, I'll never be afraid to tell others about our Lord”. So, when I realize the Holy Spirit’s power and God’s truth are in me I should be filled with confidence! His Word reminds me, “This will be your chance to tell you about your faith. Don’t worry about what you will say to defend yourselves. I will give you the wisdom to know what to say”. It’s common to get anticipatory fear. But God says to me, “I will tell you what to say when you need it.” What an amazing promise! I may not feel ready or equipped to share the gospel, but the truth is, I have everything I need in God’s presence and power within me.
In this chapter, Paul urged Timothy to be bold. If I allow people to intimidate me, I neutralize my effectiveness for God. The power of the Holy Spirit can help me overcome my fear of what some might say or do to me so that I can continue to do God's work. Paul mentions three characteristics of the effective Christian leader: power, love and self-discipline. These are available to me because the Holy Spirit lives in me. Follow his lead each day so that my life will more fully exhibit these characteristics. In this time of mounting persecution, Timothy may have been afraid to continue preaching the Good News. His fears were based on fact because believers were being arrested and executed. Paul told Timothy to expect suffering, Timothy, like Paul, would be jailed for preaching the Good News. But Paul promised Timothy that God would give him strength and that he would be ready when it was his turn to suffer. Even when there is no persecution, sharing my faith in Christ can be difficult. Fortunately, myself, like Paul and Timothy, can rely on the Holy Spirit to give me courage. Don't be ashamed to testify of my personal faith in Jesus Christ.
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