Devotion – Courageously Share the Gospel

Courageously share the Gospel

Kim Clark and Manuele Teofilo 

Kim – Good morning campers. I’m Kim

Manu – Good morning everyone. I’m Manu.  And today we will be bringing you the devotion. We’ll start by reading a passage from 2nd Timothy 1:6-11.

Kim – [Read 2 Timothy 1:6-11 NLT] ‘fan into flames the spiritual gift God gave you when I laid my hands on you. For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline. So never be ashamed to tell others about our Lord. And don’t be ashamed of me, either, even though I’m in prison for him. With the strength God gives you, be ready to suffer with me for the sake of the Good News. For God saved us and called us to live a holy life. He did this, not because we deserved it, but because that was His plan from before the beginning of time—to show us His grace through Christ Jesus. And now He has made all of this plain to us by the appearing of Christ Jesus, our Saviour. He broke the power of death and illuminated the way to life and immortality through the Good News. And God chose me to be a preacher, an apostle, and a teacher of this Good News.’

 

Manu –­­When I read this passage I ask myself, why would I be ashamed of exciting news? Like, think about it. When we receive something, finish school or Uni, or win a prize we’ll be quick to tell everyone. We would not be ashamed to tell people that we’ve achieved something or an exciting thing happened. Would we? No. Like when I think about last year when I got my job at Elevate, I was so e­xcited! I told all my friends and family. I put a post on Facebook. I even wrote an article about it, went everywhere.

But I feel we aren’t always as enthusiastic about the Gospel and our relationship with Christ. We may mentio­n that we’re a Christian or go to church. We don’t always go into detail about the power of God that raised Christ from the dead that gave us salvation, and about the powerful transformations that we experience in our lives by the power of Christ. Sharing our testimonies with others is powerful. We invite people to know Christ and start a relationship with Him. We can read Romans 10:13-15 where Paul said how can they believe if they have not heard. We need to tell people about the Gospel in order for them to believe.

 

Kim – Yeah, what I got from it was that Paul suffered so much and still he’s able to say no don’t be afraid of the Gospel because of what God has done for us. He died for us. So, we shouldn’t be ashamed of the gift that God has given us. And here in New Zealand we don’t suffer for the Gospel as much as someone in another nation. So, we have less excuse to hide away and be fearful because it’s unlikely that we’ll be killed for what we believe here in New Zealand. So at the end of the verse it says God called Paul to be a preacher. And God might not call you to be a preacher, but He calls you to be His hands and His feet. And He will use you no matter your ability.

Manu – Yeah, we shouldn’t be afraid of sharing the Gospel and telling our testimonies. Use our gifts. Take courage we have freedom to share the Gospel.

Lord I just thank you for this passage in second Timothy. You give us the strength. You give us the power to share the Gospel. That’s what you have called us to. And help us to be courageous and enthusiastic about your Word. And tell all our friends and family and everyone we know about you. You are powerful Lord Jesus. Bless everyone that is watching. And to you be all the glory, in Jesus name, amen.

Kim – Amen. Thank you guys, have a great day.

Manu – Bye