Unashamed

​Daily Devotional - Tuesday, July 28, 2020

“ For I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes” (Romans 1:16)!
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There are many verses in Scripture which speak of our need to share the Good News. Those of us who have accepted the message that God has a plan to redeem this messed up world, Jesus is the key to our rescue and our future hope is placed firmly on staying in relationship with Him, are to be quick to share this Good News with others. We are not to hoard it, keeping it to ourselves; but too often that is exactly what we do. As I write these words, I acknowledge that I too am not innocent of this neglect. We go through life surrounded by people who do not have a relationship with Jesus, but we stay silent. Is it fear that silences us? Is it shame? Is it uncertainty? Perhaps if we looked at the situation from God’s heavenly perspective we could finally silence the voices of fear, shame and uncertainly rather than allowing them to mute our witness.

As I was thinking about how God might view our earthly situation, I pictured a sea filled with people struggling to stay above the water line–some cry out, but most stay silent, resigned to their fate that eventually they will simply sink and disappear below the water line. On the shoreline there are also a number of people, each with a life ring. Some of these have their ring laying on the shore beside them as they sit and watch the swimmers; some sit but with their backs turned to those who continue to struggle in the water. Some have inserted themselves inside their life ring as though afraid they could be swept back into the sea; others stand on the shore holding their ring, their confusion apparent–they don’t know what they’re supposed to do with it. There are a few however, too few really, who are casting out their life rings into the water towards the swimmers. Some swimmers simply ignore the ring, some appear put-off that this thing is in their way, but others reach out and cling to it for dear life. Those who have thrown their rings then diligently pull the clinging swimmers to shore. Once safe, these newly rescued individuals are given a ring of their own–their task is obvious; but they too must decide which group on the shore to join–the indifferent, the blind, the fearful, the confused or the casters.

God looks on and weeps, not simply for those who are floundering in the sea, but also for the neglect of the life rings on the shore. The ‘life ring’ that we as Christ’s disciples possess cost God a tremendous amount–God the Son became a man, limiting His powers, subjecting Himself to the authority of His human parents; He died, taking on the punishment we all deserved for our disobedience to God; He offers any who accept His free gift a ‘life ring’–rescue from the ‘sea’ of sin and our inevitable demise under its waters. It is then our obligation to cast our life ring to those still left in the sea. Not all will take hold, some may even resent our offer, but some will readily take hold...but can’t until it is cast to them. Paul’s words in Romans should motivate us, “ But how can they call on him to save them unless they believe in him? And how can they believe in him if they have never heard about him? And how can they hear about him unless someone tells them” (10:14)? The answer is they can’t...not unless we work diligently to spread the Good News and get busy casting our life rings into the water for people who, whether they know it or not, are drowning within sight of their Rescue.
~ Pastor Jane