THE WEAPON WE MUST WIELD

The Sword of the Spirit is the Word of God.  This is how Jesus conquered Satan, and so must we with, “It is written!”  

This mighty weapon must be wielded with endurance.  Paul stresses endurance in 2 Timothy 3:10-11, and the need to “continue in what you have learned and firmly believed” (v.14). This is my call to you—“Keep true!”  

It is a fight to the finish.  In those days of soldiers engaged in hand to hand combat, endurance was demanded. This is true spiritually. How many have we seen who wearied of the fight, wounded in the battle, and finally have thrown down the sword in surrender to the enemy! 

This world is not a playground, it is a battleground!  The enemy is strong and on the march. Persecution is likely to become an increasing reality.  Paul mentions it in verse 11 twice and again in verse 12. We have known a period of protection in America and the church has become flabby and soft.  I heard a preacher, Stuart Briscoe, talking about the difference between our churches and other churches in places across the ocean that suffer persecution. I paraphrase, “In the west, we face problems and cry, ‘O God, take these burdens off my back.’ And in the east they pray, “O God, make my back strong to bear these burdens.”  The period of protection eventually yields to a period of persecution. The world is not going to get better (v.13). Those of us who are saved will endure. The seed of Scripture has brought us faith in Jesus—and that is eternal life (v.14-15).

THE COST OF CONVICTION

I wonder if we have considered much the suffering of our forbears who remained faithful to the Lord and His Word under threat, imprisonment, torture, and death?  I am reading, “The Story of the Baptists,” by Richard Cook, and there are many accounts of their persecution.  One I read today was of Pastor John James, who in London was “dragged by force out of his pulpit to prison” October 19, 1661. Witnesses perjured themselves as he was accused of “treasonable language against the king.”  He would be sentenced “to be hanged, drawn and quartered.”  The author states, “His death was a glorious one. ...he was calm, patient and forgiving, and exhorted those around him. His last words were, ‘Father into thy hands I commend my spirit.’”

In far too many places in our world today, we hear of such treatment of our brothers and sisters—India, China, Iran, Syria, Nigeria, and other spots.  Because America’s founding fathers established a country with religious freedom—having fled tyranny to come to here—we have enjoyed protection from such attacks.  The increasing secularism of the nation and pronouncements of courts indicate this may not hold much longer.

What would I do if I faced the challenge which came to John James, and so many other faithful Christians?  Would I stand?  How strong, how real is our faith?  God preserve us, and if it is Your will that we suffer, grant us grace to be faithful.

 “But before all these things, they will lay their hands on you and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues and prisons. You will be brought before kings and rulers for My name’s sake. But it will turn out for you as an occasion for testimony. Therefore settle it in your hearts not to meditate beforehand on what you will answer; for I will give you a mouth and wisdom which all your adversaries will not be able to contradict or resist. You will be betrayed even by parents and brothers, relatives and friends; and they will put some of you to death. And you will be hated by all for My name’s sake. But not a hair of your head shall be lost. By your patience possess your souls.”
‭‭Luke‬ ‭21:12-19‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

WOE IS ME

Read Jeremiah 15:10-21.

Self-pity is not a particularly attractive attitude, but an understandable one, given difficult circumstances we may find ourselves in.   The prophet Jeremiah was fairly wallowing in it as we come to the fifteenth chapter of this book—and can we blame him?

All he has tried to do is to be faithful to God’s call and proclaim his message.  The result was that people despised him and fought against him on every hand.  His sermons not only failed to bring sinners to their knees, it caused them to seek the man of God’s life!  And he was fine with dying.  He wished he had never been born.  It was that bad.

You may be shocked at that.  We want to elevate Bible characters to a legendary level—making them virtual demi-gods.  Reading Scripture shows us the opposite—that they were real men and women, plagued by doubts and fears, who knew heartache and pain like all of us—and sometimes much more than any of us!

The prophet spoke the truth—hard medicine to swallow—and yet the bitter pill of the call to repentance was an act of great compassion.  It was the only hope for the Jews—and they rejected it.  What would remain would be God’s fire and fury.

Back to the scorned preacher—he was not that way!  God knew his heart.  He didn’t loathe the Word of God; he loved it—voraciously devouring its message—and responding joyfully to those wonderful words of life!  He was not ashamed to identify himself with the name of the LORD.  He refused to sit in the seat of the scornful.  The result was that he was alone, broken-hearted—and becoming bitter.

It was then that he approached a line, none ought to cross.  He accuses God of wrong—that the Lord had been unfaithful to him. Like the promise of water in the desert, he came to God and said, “It is only a mirage.”

God answers his man—and calls him to repentance.  Jeremiah is headed down a path where he will join his countrymen in judgment, if he doesn’t turn around.  He thinks he has reached the end of his rope and God informs him that His power is available when Jeremiah’s resources fail.  He will not change his circumstances, but He will enable him to stand in the storm.  God won’t take away the enemy, but He will give the victory.

May God fortify our feeble faith.  The enemy is real.  The pain is not imaginary.  The test is severe—but our God is greater!

THE PERSECUTED CHURCH

 

Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life.  (Revelation 2:10c)

For over two centuries, the church in America has enjoyed exceptional freedom.  The laws of the land have assured the right to worship.  For much of that time there has been great respect and influence by Christianity in American life.  I say it is exceptional because for much of church history it has not been the case, and in places today believers will be imprisoned, tortured, and martyred.  There is every indication this is coming to America.  The verbal assault of strident secularism, as well as the government moving from benevolent, to benign, and now toward belligerence concerning religion is evident.

In the first century, persecution from the pagan world was commonplace and would intensify.  As Jesus speaks to seven representative churches in chapters two and three of Revelation, His message to the church in Smyrna was one of consolation to a persecuted people.

Jesus begins by addressing the angel of the church (2:8).  The word means, “messenger.”  In most places, this refers to heavenly messengers, but in these seven letters, I believe it speaks of human messengers.  God’s letter to the church is delivered to the pastor who will proclaim it to the people.  We know from church history that the pastor of Smyrna was Polycarp—burned at the stake for his faithfulness to Christ. 

The letter is directed to the assembly of the members (2:8), the church at Smyrna.  The town’s name came from their trade in exporting myrrh.  Myrrh is an aromatic resin made from a small, thorny tree.  The word myrrh means bitter.  It was used for embalming.  How appropriate for a church that would know bitterness and death.  Jesus commended them without complaint.  He consoled them without chastening them.  All of the other churches in these letters—even the really good ones—have problems that Jesus addresses, but not this assembly.  The fire of refining had purified them.

Jesus is the Author of this letter (2:8) and the way He describes Himself is most instructive.  He is “the First and the Last, who was dead, and came to life….”  Men may come and go, tribulations begin and end—Christ is eternal, unchangeable, invincible, even conquering death.  That was the hope and encouragement to these suffering saints, and to the persecuted today also.

The accomplishments of this church are presented next (2:9).  They were faithful despite the hostile environment.  Their church wasn’t respected—it was hated.  We are told today that the successful church is one that adapts its message to the culture.  It is the church that is welcoming to seekers.  The model churches of American evangelicalism scrupulously avoid the political and making moral pronouncements.  Yet, Jesus commended a church that was hated.  Furthermore, many popular voices today tell you that faith leads to financial prosperity.  This church contradicts that false gospel.  They weren’t celebrated, but lied about and persecuted.

These afflictions would bring wonderful attainments, however (2:10).  Satan would strike them, yet a Sovereign God would sift them with suffering.  There were limits set on the span of their persecution and the church would emerge stronger from being tempered by fire.  Jesus promised to reward them with the crown of life.

He closes with an appeal (2:11).  It is a personal one—for a church is only as strong as its individual members.  The overcomers may not evade the fire here, but are promised exemption from the fire hereafter.  We are not saved because we overcome, but we overcome because we are saved.

DARE TO BE A DANIEL

So the king gave the command, and they brought Daniel and cast him into the den of lions.  (Dan.6:16a)

One of my favorite parts of the circus is the lion-tamer act.  What courage it must take to walk into a cage with those powerful beasts!  Yet, those lions are well-fed, extensively trained, and the lion-tamer has some protection.  It took far more courage for Daniel to take a stand that would cause him to be cast into a den of ravenous lions!  Would we dare to be a Daniel?

Scripture is clear: “All that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution” (2 Tim.3:12).  Since the dawn of time, there has been enmity between the seed of the serpent and the children of God.  Daniel was in that godly line that began with Abel, who Cain killed, and proceeds to those who take a stand for righteousness today.

Daniel was chosen by King Darius due to his moral character.  He was a man of integrity.  Daniel was godly and it was a quality the King recognized.  Do people see that in us?  That very nature of godliness, however, is hated by those who are anti-God.  They cannot reach up to heaven and assail Him, so they turn their wrath on His followers.  A plot is hatched to attack Daniel in his devotion to God.  If you dare to be a Daniel, people may hate you, but they won’t be able to ignore you!

Daniel’s foes secure an edict where only King Darius is to be petitioned for 30 days.  Violation of that decree would bring the sentence of being cast into a den of lions.  They knew Daniel’s habit of prayer, and that would be his downfall.  What would you do?  It’s hard to get people to come to a prayer meeting now—I can only imagine how few would show up if it meant a death sentence!  Daniel did what he always did.  He didn’t cave under pressure.  He didn’t pray to be seen of men, but he didn’t mind if he was.  I would suggest that Daniel didn’t compromise his principles because he was consistent in his prayers!

Even the pagan king recognized the special qualities Daniel possessed and sought a way to deliver him.  Pride had caused him to sign the law, and know the monarch has no choice but to honor it.  If deliverance is to be found, it will be the hand of God who secures it.  Daniel must rely on the King of kings.  We can entrust our lives to a faithful God.  He will give us life on earth so long as there is a work for us to do, and when our mission is complete He will call us to a better land!  Notice that Daniel wasn’t delivered from the dwelling place of the lions, but from the deadly power of the lions.  Should God permit us to be devoured by them—as many Christian martyrs experienced in the Roman Coliseum—only the body of flesh is destroyed.  You cannot enter heaven in that form.  The real you—the person you are in Christ—cannot be harmed.  God doesn’t exempt us from lions, but delivers us from loss!  Heaven is all gain!

Daniel’s enemies reap what they sowed.  Sooner or later, God exacts justice on the believer’s persecutors.  It may be in this life, or in the world to come.  The end result is that God is glorified.  This is what can happen if we dare to be a Daniel!

THE HATRED OF THE WORLD

After these things Jesus walked in Galilee; for He did not want to walk in Judea, because the Jews sought to kill him.  (John 7:1)

It is a short distance from the penthouse to the doghouse.  You can go from hero to zero in a heartbeat.  Popularity is a fleeting thing because people are fickle creatures.  Jesus had fed 5,000.  The throngs that pressed upon Him wanted to make Him their king!  That was in chapter six.  In the next chapter, the masses are missing.  The acclaim has changed to anger.  In about six months’ time, His life is in danger.

What happened?  Jesus identified the problem in John 7:7, “The world cannot hate you, but it hates Me because I testify of it that its works are evil.”  The sinful world hated Him for exposing their evil.  They hated Jesus for the same reason an obese person hates a mirror.  The life of Jesus was a light that shone into the darkness revealing their wicked hearts and habits.  The lessons of Jesus confronted them with God’s Holy standard and their need of repentance.  Even those considered models of morality in those days—the Pharisees—were not spared His searching gaze and scathing indictment.  They were what we all are apart from grace—criminals in violation of God’s law and deserving condemnation.

The reaction of the religious leaders was not humble confession, but to form a hateful conspiracy.  They look at Jesus with a critical eye; they listen to Him with a condemning spirit—trying to entrap Him with His words.  They whisper and plot behind His back.  “And there was much complaining among the people concerning Him.”  (7:12a) 

Although the world’s hate focused on Jesus at the time—His followers would eventually suffer for His sake.  When they could no longer reach Him with their venom, they would sink their fangs into His followers. 

Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’  If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you.  If they kept My word, they will keep yours also.  (John 15:20)

The church that is faithful to Christ will be attacked.  The Christian who holds to the truth will be assailed.  If we denounce sin as Jesus did and dare to speak the “intolerant” words that only Christ can save a man or woman, then it is not popularity but persecution we will know.

Let us stand and speak truth nonetheless.  Our Savior stands with us, even if all men forsake us.  The cross precedes the crown and suffering paves the way to glory.  Far better to have the Father’s embrace even if it means the world’s exclusion.

THE PREACHER WAS A JAILBIRD

 

 

Having received such a charge, he put them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks.  ‎But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them.  (Acts 16:24-25)

What if the local news headline read, “Minister Charged with Inciting Riot”?  Subsequently, the preacher was convicted and cast into prison.  If that minister applied for a position at your church, would you hire him?  Surely no respectable church would consider such a fellow!  Then a criminal by the name of the Apostle Paul could not serve at your church!  That preacher was a jailbird!  In fact, his ministry in a town often commenced with a riot, and concluded in a prison!

Christ came into this world with a life of love to share.  The world’s response was to nail Him to a cross.  He warned His followers that the servant is not greater than his Master.  Jesus was a polarizing figure who disturbed those slumbering in sin.  That is a mark of His followers.  Paul certainly fit the bill.  The servant of God is concerned with the applause of heaven and not the approval of humans.  The fact that many will spurn the message, does not mean that we do not speak the message, nevertheless.  Some will believe and be saved.  In the sixteenth chapter of Acts, we see a poor young girl held in the grip of demonic power—yet, she was set free by the surpassing power of the Gospel!  This was the spark that ignited the riot.  Her employers were more concerned with her making gold than her finding God.  So, the opposition arose to these “disturbers of the peace.”  Paul and Silas were beaten and bound.  We should be reminded that we have brothers and sisters tortured and slain in Islamic and communist countries for their faith.  How long before the wave of antichristian sentiment hits like a tsunami on our shores?  Hostility toward the church is not the worst thing—apathy toward us is, when the world feels no threat.

Paul and Silas, however, did not sigh or sob—they sung!  They started the first cell group and had a captive audience!  Instead of whining, they were worshipping.  They really believed that all things work together for good to those who love God.  Nothing is by accident in the believer’s life, but by appointment.  The adversity may well open the door of opportunity!

God is in the business of shaking things up.  He surely did at Philippi!  The devil builds his little playhouses and God delights to tear them down!  When the jailer who had so mistreated them was about to kill himself, we would have understood had the missionaries cheered him on—or at least stood back and let him.  They chose to intervene instead.  Love compels us to forgive and bless even those who are our enemies. 

The darkest night gave way to the brightest day!  That was not only true for the preachers who were freed from their stocks, but the jailer and his family who were freed from their sins!  Midnight had found the missionaries singing in bonds and morning found them shouting at breakfast!  How quickly God can turn things around.

What must I do to be lost?  Nothing.  We are born in that condition.  The real question is, “What must I do to be saved?”  The simple answer: “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved….”

A WORLD UPSIDE DOWN

(This is the manuscript I had prepared for my sermon yesterday in response to the legalization of same-sex marriage. It is what I would have said if I had an hour to preach. I had 20 minutes--that sermon as delivered should be posted in a day or two--if you prefer that format, and that length! You will get the core of it. God bless!--Pastor Dennis)

A WORLD UPSIDE DOWN

 

Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; Who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; Who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!  (Isaiah 5:20)

 

When is a person not a person?  When they are a piece of property.  That is what the Supreme Court ruled in the Dred Scott decision in 1857.  Scott had sued to obtain his freedom.  Chief Justice Roger Taney ruled that because Scott was simply considered the private property of his owners, that he was subject to the Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution, prohibiting the taking of property from its owner "without due process."  Strike one!

 

When is a baby not a baby?  When it is a fetus.  The Supreme Court in its infamous Roe v. Wade decision in 1973 made abortion legal.  Since then 54.5 million babies have been brutally butchered—their mother’s womb meant to be a sanctuary turned into an execution chamber.  Strike two!

 

When is a marriage defined as between a man and woman not the only definition of marriage?  When the Supreme Court says it can also be a union of two of the same gender.  That was the irrational, unconstitutional decision rendered by 5 of the 9 justices on this past Friday.  Strike three!

 

Now in baseball, three strikes and you’re out.  Have we crossed the point of no return for America?  The final judgment will not be rendered by nine men and women robed in black, but by one Judge robed in white who sits on the throne in the Supreme Court of Heaven.  When will He say that America has gone too far?

 

Here is what I do know.  The inhumanity inflicted on a race of people whose only crime was to be born with darker skin led to their cries of pain reaching God’s ears.  America was plunged into Civil War, where on both North and South, the greatest loss of life occurred in any of our wars—620,000.  Lincoln said this in his second inaugural address, “If we shall suppose that American slavery is one of those offenses which, in the providence of God, must needs come, but which, having continued through His appointed time, He now wills to remove, and that He gives to both North and South this terrible war as the woe due to those by whom the offense came, shall we discern therein any departure from those divine attributes which the believers in a living God always ascribe to Him? Fondly do we hope, fervently do we pray, that this mighty scourge of war may speedily pass away. Yet, if God wills that it continue until all the wealth piled by the bondsman's two hundred and fifty years of unrequited toil shall be sunk, and until every drop of blood drawn with the lash shall be paid by another drawn with the sword, as was said three thousand years ago, so still it must be said ‘the judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether.’”

 

Now since 1973, the blood of the little ones torn to pieces, burned to death with chemicals, their brains sucked out with vacuum hoses, and when sometimes still surviving the abortion procedure, only to be suffocated, having their spinal cord snipped with scissors, tossed into a toilet, discarded to whimper alone in a closet until they die.  Millions of little voices, crying out to God for vengeance!  The Creator who takes notice of a little sparrow fluttering to the ground and dying, surely knows each one of these babies made in His image and weeps for them.  Meanwhile His anger builds—How long, O Lord?

 

Then this Friday—legalizing perversion—shaking our fist in the face of God—that which grieves a Holy God is now celebrated.  The rainbow colors illumine the White House.  “A great victory for the United States,” the President exults.  Those rejoicing should read the story of Belshazzar’s party in Babylon documented in Daniel 5 to see how such pompous parties may end.  When Justice Anthony Kennedy and four others affixed their names to the majority opinion legalizing same sex marriage in the U.S. they may have signed America’s death certificate.  Listen to Isaiah’s warning, “Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; Who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; Who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!”  (Isaiah 5:20)

 

The world is upside down.

 

How are we to respond?

 

1.  PRAYER FOR SPIRITUAL AWAKENING.  The  ills of America cannot be cured with elections, legislation or court decisions—that crowd is a contributor to the mess!  Someone correctly said that neither a donkey nor an elephant can save us—it takes a Lamb—the Lord Jesus is our only hope!  Unless there is a mighty move of God, America is going to fall.  2 Chronicles 7:14 is our Biblical imperative.  The great need is not in the culture, but in the church.  Sinners do what sinners do.  The world can only impact the culture as light and salt when we are distinctively different.  Instead the world has impacted the church.  Scripture warns, “For the time has come for judgment to begin at the house of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the end of those who do not obey the gospel of God?” (1 Pet.4:17)  Revival or wrath—which one will descend from heaven?   Our problems are spiritual and require spiritual solutions.  If a spiritual awakening comes to America then a government transformation can come.  Without that there is no political answer.  What if spiritual awakening should sweep across America?  Before you scoff at that don’t forget nothing is too hard for the Lord!  Following I describe a political framework to build on the spiritual foundation.

2.  PARTICIPATE IN REAL CHANGE.  Christians are citizens of two kingdoms.  Too often we think that if we just elect the right President or a different senator or congressman that everything will change.  It has not and will not.  The faces of leadership change—the pendulum swings from one party to the next—but most go up to D.C. and sell their soul; they settle into the same old progressive nonsense.  Both parties propose government solutions—the Democrats want to micromanage every part of our lives, as well as tax and spend us into oblivion and the Republicans say different but then do the same thing, just slower.  The Supreme Court—not only on Friday, but two other outlandish decisions on Thursday—usurped authority and made laws contrary to their Constitutional role.  “The Founders knew the federal government might one day become drunk with the abuses of power. The most important check to this power is Article V. Article V gives states the power to call a convention for the purpose of proposing amendments to the Constitution.  By calling a convention of the states, we can stop the federal spending and debt spree, the power grabs of the federal courts, and other misuses of federal power. The current situation is precisely what the Founders feared, and they gave us a solution we have a duty to use.” (http://www.conventionofstates.com/)   An informed citizenry with a moral backbone could rebuild this one nation under God.  

What if neither occur?  What if there is no spiritual revival and no political reform?

 

3.  LET THE CHURCH BE THE CHURCH ANYWAY.  Whatever society does, we must do what Christ has commanded us to do—to preach the Gospel, calling sinners to repentance and offering forgiveness and salvation. Should America turn back to God, it would only be a reprieve from judgment.  According to Scripture the day of reckoning is coming.  Imagine that this world is the Titanic.  It has hit the iceberg called sin (that happened in Gen.3).  It is sinking and nothing can stop that.  Our task is to man the lifeboats and get as many on as we can.  It will not be an easy job.  People will hate us for telling the truth.  But we must never respond with hate.  The good folks in the Mother Emanuel A.M.E. Church in Charleston, S.C. showed us that—and love is a powerful.  Love does win!  God’s kid of love, that is. It is increasingly likely that persecution will come to the church.  Four of the Supreme Court justices spoke to the grave danger to religious liberty.  We will stand and speak the truth in love as long as we are able.

 

Here is what God has in mind:

 

See that you do not refuse Him who speaks. For if they did not escape who refused Him who spoke on earth, much more shall we not escape if we turn away from Him who speaks from heaven, whose voice then shook the earth; but now He has promised, saying, “Yet once more I shake not only the earth, but also heaven.”  Now this, “Yet once more,” indicates the removal of those things that are being shaken, as of things that are made, that the things which cannot be shaken may remain.  Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear.  For our God is a consuming fire.  (Hebrews 12:25-29)
 

When the shaking comes, Your life must be founded on the solid rock—personal faith in Christ.

Only that will enable you to stand in the storm of God’s judgment.

 

This shaking will sift out the wheat from the chaff.  The church is filled with people who profess faith, but may not possess faith.  Easy-believism and cultural Christianity wither under the fire of persecution.

 

Because the world is upside down, genuine Christians will be described like this, “These who have turned the world upside down…” (Acts 17:6).  In reality the world is standing on its head and saying we are upside down!  Our desire is to put things right-side up!

THE FEARLESS WALK OF A FAITHFUL WITNESS

 

Then Paul answered, “What do you mean by weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be bound, but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.”  (Acts 21:13)

Do you like to read bumper stickers?  Perhaps you have seen this one: “Ask me about my grandchildren!”  The fact is, grandparents don’t need an excuse to whip out a wad of pictures and give glowing reports about the exploits of their little darlings.  I know that full well, since I are now anticipating the arrival of number twelve to someday call me, “Papa.”  It is easy to talk to total strangers about those we love.  So, why is it that we develop verbal paralysis when we have the opportunity to speak about Jesus?  If we love Him as we say we do, wouldn’t we desire to tell others about Him?  Let us be inspired to speak boldly of Christ by looking at the fearless walk of a faithful witness.  Hs name was Paul the Apostle.

It wasn’t that Paul was oblivious to the danger he was facing.  The same crowd in Jerusalem that had crucified Christ would not be any happier with him if he came into town and proclaimed the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  Yet, this was the very mission he had in mind.  It was enough to strike fear into the heart of the most courageous.

We must overcome the FEAR OF WHAT MIGHT BE.  “And finding disciples, we stayed there seven days. They told Paul through the Spirit not to go up to Jerusalem.”  (Acts 21:4)  It was a vague warning with few specifics given—just a general alarm as the Holy Spirit spoke through His people, alerting Paul to the possible dangers that were lurking in the shadowy future.  Our minds may be haunted at times by the specter of what might be—where we just have this general foreboding and our brains are eager to fill in the blank with a myriad of possibilities.  We think, “I would share the Gospel, but if I do, then…” and any number of bad outcomes slams our mouth shut.  We want to know the outcome and have a positive one when we tell people about Jesus.  We have no assurance, however, that when we share the Gospel it will be well-received.  You never know how people will react.  That fear cannot be allowed to silence us. 

We also must defeat the FEAR OF WHAT MUST BE.  “Then Paul answered, ‘What do you mean by weeping and breaking my heart?  For I am ready not only to be bound, but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.’  So when he would not be persuaded, we ceased, saying, ‘The will of the Lord be done.’”  (Acts 21:13-14)  Some of our fears have a basis in fact.  Paul had submitted to the will of God—and that was he would suffer for the sake of the Gospel.  From the outset of his ministry he had been willing to pay the price.  Scripture is clear—Jesus said, “Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. If they kept My word, they will keep yours also.”  (John 15:20)  Rejection by many is guaranteed.  Love for Christ and for others must override our fear.  God helped Paul.  He will stand by us if we stand for Him.