Notes of Faith July 15, 2025
Neither Ashamed nor a Shame
Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me His prisoner, but share with me in the sufferings for the gospel according to the power of God.
2 Timothy 1:8
It’s not unusual for teenagers to be embarrassed when their parents witness for Christ to strangers in public settings. It even happens to adults when one of their friends stops to witness to someone. It’s understandable for children to be embarrassed; it is less understandable when adults have the same reaction.
The apostle Paul reminded Timothy not to be embarrassed (“ashamed”) of two things: Jesus Christ Himself or of his imprisoned friend and mentor. Paul wrote his second letter to Timothy in the final season of his life when he was imprisoned in Rome. Just as Peter had once denied knowing Christ, it would be easy for Timothy to deny knowing the imprisoned apostle. It is worth remembering that Christ told His followers that those who denied Him “before men” He would deny before the Father in heaven (Matthew 10:33).
Take every opportunity to stand for Christ and to stand with those who speak boldly for Him.
Be not ashamed of your faith; remember it is the ancient gospel of martyrs, confessors, Reformers, and saints. Above all, it is the truth of God, against which the gates of hell cannot prevail.
Charles Haddon Spurgeon
Romans 1:16-17
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile. 17 For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed—a righteousness that is by faith from first to last,[a] just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.”
We may say and even think that we are not ashamed of the gospel but when we ignore opportunities to share the truth, to testify to the glory of God, to be a help in time of need, that someone might see Christ working through us, we might as well be carrying a placard saying I never knew the man! The giver of life and that eternal is to be proclaimed at every opportunity that His family might come home, worship their Father, because of the work of the Son, through the power of the Holy Spirit. Be aware and take every opportunity while you still can!
Pastor Dale