There will be times that many of
us will encounter other people at work, in college, at school or at play who
will make it their mission in life to demonstrate or try and discredit the
Bible. They will do their best to put forth some sort of opinion on how the
Bible is only a book of fairy tales or simply good stories. Some will even go
as far as to picking out what they like and want to believe of it and leave the
rest as possible myths and history. Have you ever encountered one of these? Are
you ready for such encounters if you should? I Peter 3:15 instructs the child
of God to be ready at all times to defend their faith and the hope that is in
them, in gentleness and reverence. Those things are the core of every believer
and they are what provides them with the authenticity and validation of their
faith to others. We will all leave a legacy of our life and what we
accomplished and how we impacted others by our choices and the way we lived.
Those people around us every day are eyewitnesses of our faith and what
motivated us to live the life we did and be the person we were. When thinking
about these things I am reminded about I Peter 3:15-16, “But in your hearts set
apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks
you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness
and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously
against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander.” It is not the believer’s responsibility to prove someone
wrong that may disagree with them, but solely to claim that which they know for
themselves to be truth and leave it up to the Spirit of God to convict, reveal
and draw people to Himself as He wins over their hearts. This safeguards the
witnessing believer and takes the pressure off of them to be right or win the
disagreement. It’s never about winning the battle, but it is always about winning
the soul. Sometimes the greatest statement that we can make to others is how we
endure the ridicule or slander that we may be subjected to. If you recall,
Jesus Himself never retaliated. So sometimes, it is our very suffering that
becomes our greatest witness to others. And when the time comes that I leave
this world, the legacy I hope to leave behind me, will be that of love,
compassion and that I had done what I could do to reach others with what I
personally found to be the answer for the hope that I believed in, embraced and
entrusted. The Word of God never changes and It will never return void.
It will always, always accomplish its goals and Mission.
Loving on you today,
-Bren
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