Now as they observed the confidence of Peter and John and understood that they were uneducated and untrained men, they were amazed, and began to recognize them as having been with Jesus.
— Acts 4:13 —
D. P. | Middle East
Uneducated fishermen, standing firm before the powerful religious leaders who had killed Christ, proclaiming the gospel with boldness––this is fearlessness! What a shock to the rulers! Who did these men think they were? The word used for “confidence” references a state of boldness or fearlessness. Are we proclaiming the amazing, life-changing truth of the gospel? Despite danger? Despite hardship? Despite rejection? The rulers were amazed by the courage and clarity of these two fishermen. Did these men not know that as rulers they had the power to deliver a death sentence? What drove these men to such amazing fearlessness? Early on a Sunday morning, Fatima walks out the door of her one-room living space in the poorest Muslim neighborhood of her country. All her family and neighbors are Muslim, but she is going to church. As people ask her where she is going on a Sunday morning, her simple reply is, “I’m going to learn about Jesus. Do you want to come?” Does she not know the danger to her life? What drives such a woman to amazing fearlessness? In both cases, it is the truth of the gospel, learned at the feet of Christ and lived out by the power of the Holy Spirit (Acts 4:8), that emboldens disciples to fearless proclamation. Are we proclaiming the amazing, life-changing truth of the gospel? Despite danger? Despite hardship? Despite rejection? And are we remaining at the feet of Christ, in awe of His glorious salvation, seeking empowerment from the Spirit, that we might proclaim His salvation with amazing fearlessness?
Connect with TMAI on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube, and increase our schools’ reach by sharing our content with your family and friends.
