This is part 2 of a 4
part series based on a question which was asked dealing with my blog on “When
Did We Start Confusing Community Service With Evangelism?”
Reason 2-People are
genuinely afraid
2 Timothy 2:6-9 (NASB)
“6 For this reason I remind you to kindle afresh
the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands. 7
For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and
discipline.
8 Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of
our Lord or of me His prisoner, but join with me in suffering for the
gospel according to the power of God, 9 who has saved us and called
us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own
purpose and grace which was granted us in Christ Jesus from all eternity,…”
Being an introvert is not always easy. We have a tendency to shy away from criticism
and challenges that seem insurmountable.
We also feel pushed around by the world of extroverts who want to rule
and often ruin lives by doing things without giving any thought to what the
consequence of said actions. We can be
pushed into action often when we are either insulted to the point that we
realize that an intellectually inferior person is mocking us, or if the lives
of those we love are threatened.
Introverts in reality can be more self-conscience and more selfless than
extroverts because we give thought to what the actions can bring. A few introverts like the spotlight and
having public affairs, but most enjoy the idea of being left alone and
intellectually resolving issues. At the
same time we are not perfect and find ourselves having to be pushed into action
rather than acting before the necessity arises.
What is true in the “normal” realm of life has a tendency to
be true in the “spiritual” realm of life, even though that neither of those can
be separated like our post-modern friends would prefer. Since this is true in a “spiritual” since it
is especially true in the arena of evangelism.
I know the fear of knocking on a door, or approaching someone on a
sidewalk, or talking to a person on the street, or inviting myself into the
home of someone who is a total stranger just to talk to them about becoming a
member of the Kingdom of God.
This is not at all unusual, and according to the verses
above this would appear to be what was going on with Timothy, Paul’s spiritual
son. There are three things that make
this apparent. First, he tells Timothy
to renew the gift that God has given him, which we find out in chapter 4:2 is
preaching the gospel (v. 6). Paul also
notes to Timothy that there are three things that come from God which should
rule our lives over fear: power, love
and discipline (self-control) (v. 7).
The word used for power is the common Greek word δυνάμεως (dunameos) that we get the word which can
reflect strength or ability[1]. Therefore God gave to Timothy, as He gives to
us, the strength or ability to speak the gospel; the love for Him and for others
to tell the good news of Jesus Christ; and the self- control and soundness of
mind to know how to share the grace of God for salvation to others. As a result there should be no shame in
regards to who Jesus is, what He has done for us, or for those saints who are
suffering for His cause (v. 8). In fact
we are called to “join in” the suffering which those who have been mistreated
for the gospel’s sake. In fact the Greek
word used for “join in” is συγκακοπάθησον (sugkakopatheo)
which helps give the idea of suffering hand in hand with the other person as
family.[2] [3] All of
this should be done with two understandings:
(1) It should be done in the power of God (v. 8); and (2) It should be
done with the call of God as a constant reminder (v. 9). As Christians then, and now, suffer at the
hands of people who are in complete rebellion against God, it must be
remembered why we are grieving. If
Christ and His suffering for our sins are forgotten, then faithfulness to the
cause will diminish.
So, what are the fear factors that are involved in reason
number two? One is fear based on the
pier pressure from society as a whole.
That was discussed in the last article.
The second reason might be because of personality. Not everyone is willing to push themselves to
go out and constantly be on the forefront of sharing their thoughts on every
subject under the sun. This is what I
was discussing earlier. The third reason
might be because of a lack of knowledge.
There are two reasons for this:
(a) People don’t take time to read, memorize, or study their
Bibles. Therefore they do not know what
it says and are not able to articulate its message. There is an old saying, “Ignorance is no
excuse.” At www.bedevoteministries.com I have
a small power point set up that gives the six essential to studying the
Bible. You are invited to go view it,
learn from it and use it. (b) People are scared that they may not share the
message correctly. In my experiences I
have learned that the greatest way of not sharing the message correctly,
is not to share the message at all.
It is not only the sure fire way of making a mistake, but it is also
cruelty at its highest.
The final reason that people fear to share the gospel is out
of pure laziness. I’ll talk about this a
little further, but in this situation fear becomes an excuse. What people will say is that they are afraid
of witnessing or sharing the gospel, when in fact they just simply do not want
to. They don’t care about the needs
around them, there is no concerned for those who are going to spend eternity
burning in Hell, they are unwilling to take time to read or study the Word of
God afraid that they may become convicted of their inactivity. The reality is that their fear is
misplaced. They fear the desire of God
more than the people they are going to discuss the good news with.
Fear is something that should be reserved toward God, not
something that we hold within ourselves.
We should not fear what the world may say, or if we do or do not know
enough. Our fear should simply be toward
God alone. Our Lord Jesus said in
Matthew 10:28, “Do not fear those who kill the body but are unable to kill the
soul; but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.” It is His Son who has sent us forward with
the authority which is needed. He has
given us the needed resources (power), the deep concern for others (love), and
the soundness of what to believe (discipline) in order to reach our world with
the Good News of Jesus Christ.
Let me know what you think.
Steven Swaim
President and Founder, Be Devoted Ministries
Please feel free in contacting me if you would like for me to speak to your church or group.
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