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"Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints — and for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak."
(Ephesians 6:18-20)
In a few weeks, I will lead a group to Greece where we will retrace the Apostle Paul's second missionary journey. We will visit the very places Luke wrote about in Acts 15-18 around AD 50. I made this trip once before in 2004. We were in the process of moving from Virginia to Texas. Our children were young at the time, so Ashley stayed back. For 20 years, she has been wanting to go on this amazing journey, and I am very glad she is going on this trip with us. Part of our journey will include a three-day cruise in the Aegean Sea as we make our way from Greece to visit Ephesus in Turkey.
Since 2019, we have been studying the Book of Acts. Except for some special, short sermon series during each year, our focus has been on this amazing Book that details the expansion of Christianity in the first century AD. The first 12 chapters highlight the person and ministry of the Apostle Peter, and the remaining chapters focus on Paul and his missionary journeys. Paul was completely sold out to Jesus. His goals in life were to know Christ and to make Him known to as many people as he could. He is a spiritual hero to all followers of Jesus. He was not ashamed of the Gospel of Jesus. He knew it was the power of God for salvation to anyone who believes (Romans 1:16). Because of his unwavering commitment to Jesus, he died a martyr's death at the hands of Emperor Nero in AD 64. But before he passed from this life, he wrote a large portion of the New Testament and has left us a powerful model to emulate.
I will close today's devotion with three words of challenge for us today from Paul's life and example.
- Give your all for Christ. Paul followed Jesus with passion. He died to self so that he might be all-in for Christ and the call God had on his life. He writes in Galatians 2:20, "I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me."
- Practice a lifestyle of sacrificial giving and living. When you read about Paul in the Word of God, you cannot help but be moved by his life of service. Like Jesus, he sought not to obtain glory, wealth, or man's applause, but his aim in life was to please Christ and Him alone.
- Ask God for boldness to tell others about the death of Jesus on the cross and His resurrection. Twice in our biblical text for today's devotion, Paul asked the church to pray for him to be bold, to "speak boldly, as I ought to speak." Sure, some will reject, but we must at least try. I had a guy literally walk away from me the other day at the gym as I tried to invite him to our Easter service. The next day I went to my bi-annual teeth cleaning appointment and had the opportunity to share and invite four people to our church. It was great, and they were receptive. If the greatest evangelist and church planter asked the church to pray for him to be bold, so should we.
I am praying for you and me both, that we would be bold in our witness for Christ.
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