“Boldness” || What Makes a Believer? || Week 1

Welcome to a brand-new series called “What Makes a Believer?” I wonder if you ever asked that question to yourself, to others, or about others even. It’s a question I feel a lot of non-believers ask about those who believe in Jesus. It’s a question that sparked during one of my studies, so I thought would be a cool topic to dive deeper into. I was to re-iterate something.

I DO NOT HAVE A DEGREE IN ANY FORM OF THEOLOGY. I AM NOT A PASTOR. I DO NOT HAVE ANY PREACHING OR THEOLOGICAL LICENSES. I AM JUST A YOUTH AND CHILDREN’S MINISTRY LEADER THAT ENJOYS DIVING DEEPER INTO THE BIBLE. THESE ARE MY OPINIONS BASED OFF MY STUDIES, SCRIPTURES, AND PERSONAL TESTIMONY. 

I say all that even though no one has come to me and questioned what I’ve said, how I’ve said it, or that I’ve taken scripture out of context. I always want to call that out to make people aware of it before we jump into it. It’s a failsafe for me honestly. Alright! Are you ready to dive into the first message of this new series? Great! Here we go!

Introducing Today’s Message

I got the list of characteristics from my study Bible. It was under the subheading “Characteristics of Believers” and listed a lot more others than we’re going to talk about this series. There’s a total of 30 characteristics that my study Bible lists regarding the descriptors of believers. We are only going to talk about 7 of them. If this series is received well with others, I’ll write a sequel to this series. This series will take us to the end of November and I am currently planning to take the month of December off from writings so I can focus on Advent at my church and give myself a break for the holiday. I’ll write a blog about it at the end of this series.

The Characteristic that we are going to focus on today is “Boldness”. What a true descriptor of a believer to start with, right? I feel that we’re taught early on in the formation of our belief structure to be bold in our faith. To be bold in our actions when reflecting Christ’s values and teachings. Christ was bold in his actions, right? I mean, he healed people on days where the law told him not too. He also recognized the death he was going to have, and even though he didn’t want to experience the suffering that came along with it (who would), he still followed what God had planned for him to do. That’s a pretty bold thing to do. Today’s scriptures have us in both Testaments! First, we’re reading from the Book of Proverbs. Then, we will be reading Paul’s letter to the Roman church. Let’s dive into this!

Point #1: What? Guilty Conscious? (Proverbs 28:1)

Proverbs 28:1 says: “The wicked run away even though no one pursues them, but the righteous are as confident as a lion.” It’s interesting to me how my study Bible explains this verse. It says: “A guilty conscious imagines accusers everywhere, while a clear conscious has boldness to face everyone.” How true, right? If you feel guilty about something, your anxiety skyrockets and you fear everyone is going to call out about it. You think everyone is going to blame you for something and you will jump down their throats at the slightest possible mention of it. You are worried about something that God already knows. You are worried about the opinions of others over your relationship between you and God.

Instead, a clear conscious will face everyone with boldness and acceptance about what they would be worried about. They’ve probably talked to God, asked him for forgiveness, repented, and are trying to right their lives again. This is the common process that we’re taught as believers. It’s a great way to lift the weight off your shoulder regarding your situation and give it to God. You then receive his yoke. You receive peace and strength to continue on your life and you eventually grow in faith because you know to trust that God is going to manage your situation. You have the boldness now to proclaim: “Yeah. I messed up, but our God is good God. He forgave me. I’ve turned away from what I did wrong, and am working on doing what is right.” Notice the tense choice in these words too. You’ve “turned” from what you’ve done wrong, meaning this is an action you have already done when receiving this boldness. You’ve made the choice in getting back on God’s path. You’re “working” on doing what is right. You will never complete that objective…like EVER. We will always be progressing on our journey of faith. Jesus is the only one who completes this journey. (See Hebrews 12:2a). Be okay with always working on progression. That’s how we grow stronger in Jesus. We learn something new each day, during each situation that we come across. Stick to this path, and your boldness will grow.

I’ve always believed that your tests can turn into your testimonies. Part of telling your testimony requires boldness. People might write it off as luck or as chance or as your hard work, among others, but it takes you being bold to say that “God got me through the thick and thin. I dedicate my life and my future to do His will.”

Point #2: Romans 13:3

Romans 13:3 says: “The authorities don’t frighten people who are doing the right thing. Rather, they frighten people who are doing wrong. Would you rather not be afraid of authority? Do what’s right, and you will receive its approval.” This is saying that the most wicked, godless government act as a deterrent, or a hindrance, to crime. Governments that focus less on what God is about regarding His teachings, values, and morals, can still act properly in not letting crime occurring. I almost feel like I could possibly stir the pot in saying that the government/authorities can still act NOT like God, but can still do its job. I’m trying to withhold my own perceptions about that. After Paul still says that governments can still do their job in deterring rule-breaking, Paul asks this question, “Would you rather not be afraid of authority?” Listen to what he says after that.

The peaceful, law-abiding, rule-following believers do not need to be afraid of the authorities. They are following the rules properly. They don’t feel the fear of being yelled at or screamed at. They’re wearing their mask. They’re staying socially distant. They’re doing what the authorities are rec…too real? 😉

Few governments will harm those who obey their laws. In fact, governments usually commend such people. I still feel that this is such a hard topic to still talk about based on what’s going on in our world today. I still personally believe this to be true, but I’ve also lived in a privileged life where I hadn’t had to worry about the government in my life. I’ve never broken any laws. I’ve never had any interactions with any police department. I’ve never run into any issues with any governmental system on any level. So, I have no issues with the government. I agree that government will leave those who follow the rules alone. The government will then come after those who do not follow the rules.

What does this have to do with boldness? Sometimes, it may be bold to follow the rules. It may be bold to uphold rules in the name of God and in the name of the common good. I can only pull this back to what we’ve learned the past 6 months from the COVID-19 pandemic. Forgive me, please. I try not to take hot-button topics and pull a religious twist on it all. I’m just taking what’s current in my mind and apply it to my own perception. We received new rules on how to live our lives. We were told to wear a mask when we go out in public. We were told to stay six feet apart from others outside our household. We were told to not go anywhere for a decent time, 3 months in my area. We were told all this, and regardless of what we felt about it, we followed the rules. No one really came after those that followed. You only really heard about those who refused to follow the rules via news and social media, etc. Now, people are growing impatient evermore as this pandemic, myself included, we’re hearing more and more people not abiding by those rules. Now, regardless of what you believe about it and how you feel about it, please remember that this is based on my perceptions, perspectives, and opinions. We’re hearing more and more about those who aren’t following the rules, and the results of that being possibly higher positive tests coming back, longer quarantines from certain areas, lengthier time of dealing with transmission and spread of the disease, in itself. The government is trying to make decisions for the greater good still, again, regardless of what of you believe. I believe the government is trying to do what is best for the common good, more so on a state and communitive level than a national level. Those that are still following these guidelines are being appreciated by the government. Those that aren’t are being condemned and “punished” (in some sense of the term) by the government in lengthier bans, lengthier time away from their “normal” lives, and more.

We need to be bold in what we believe in, and that needs to be aligned with what God believes in. Jesus broke down all the 613 Mosaic Laws into just 2 laws. “Love God. Love People.” We need to love others. We need to treat others with respect. We need to put other’s needs and wants above our own. If people need me to wear a mask to feel more comfortable, I’ll do it. I may not agree with it at times, but I want to help others. If people feel more comfortable talking to me in person with a 6-foot distance in-between, then so be it. If I treat others with respect, then I treat God with respect. If I treat others with love, then I treat God with love. How can I say that? God created us in the “image” of him. We are children of God. Therefore, when we disrespect humans, we disrespect God. We respect and love others. We respect and love God. See the pattern. Be bold. Be loving. Be kind. Be full of care. Be respectful. Love others. Love God!

That ends Week 1 of “What Makes a Believer?”. I am really looking forward to what this series will be like. We have a new song blog next week, and then we’ll be back for Week 2 of “What Makes a Believer?” when we discuss the characteristic of faithfulness via the book of Revelation.