Daily Verse: John 12:43

“Yet at the same time many even among the leaders believed in him. But because of the Pharisees they would not confess their faith for fear they would be put out of the synagogue; for they loved praise from men more than praise from God.”

 

Many of the leaders during Christ’s time put their faith in him as the Savior, yet they did not make a public profession of this faith. They were afraid that if the word got out that they followed Christ…this radical and unusual guy claiming to be the Savior… then negativity would certainly build at their doorsteps. They were afraid of how the public (particularly the religious leaders of the time) might react to this bold claim of faith in this man called Jesus. Shameful, isn’t it? Unfortunately, we are not far off from these “cowardly” leaders that kept their faith hidden away. We are blessed to live in a free country, but even in this “free” land that we occupy, publicly professing our faith in Jesus can often be received with negativity. Now, when I refer to a publicly professing our faith,  I am not referring to taking a bullhorn and soapbox to a downtown corner and preaching to the passersby. Rather I am referring to simply not keeping our faith a secret from the world. It should be boldly evident in our lives…in the words that we speak and the actions that we take. People should be able to look at us and notice something different…something that doesn’t exactly align with mainstream culture…something a bit “odd” that sets us apart. And when they inquire, we can simply point to the Lord…giving him credit for the loving words that we speak…giving him credit for the generous hand we lend to someone in need…giving him credit for the selfless actions that put another above ourselves. While it is beneficial in certain moments, we don’t have to quote scripture and carry around a Bible to let the world know that we follow Christ. We can simply LIVE it…and let our lives profess with bold confidence that we follow the ONE true Savior! To God be the glory!