For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels. Mark 8:38
To be ashamed is to be unwilling to do something for fear of embarrassment or humiliation. For instance, you may choose to be silent about your faith in Christ because you know that your mates will think less of you, make fun of you or treat you negatively somehow. In your heart and mind you still believe, but you protect yourself through silence. What’s wrong with that?
Well, EVERYTHING! There is everything wrong with such an attitude, beloveds. To start with, the Lord Jesus points out that whoever seeks to preserve his life will actually lose it (Mark 8:35). That means we should stop trying to protect ourselves from ridicule, mockery and persecution on account of the truth. In fact, by trying to protect the earthly life we have now, we then lose the greater eternal life to come. God forbid!
Secondly, the Lord Jesus points out that society has become basically adulterous and sinful. That means people’s beliefs and behaviours with respect to matters of faith are basically distorted. The world as it is today is inclined towards immorality. So people generally don’t think straight as far as spirituality goes. Therefore, it does not make sense for us to try to fit in with the world.
So the smartest thing any of us can do is to boldly stand out. Refuse to be conformed to the world. Don’t be a silent saint. Don’t be an undercover Christian. There is no such thing! That’s why it’s good to carry your Bible to church, play Gospel music in your car and talk about the goodness of the Lord in public.
Practice by being unashamed of Christ in church. From time to time, give a testimony of what the Lord has done for you among fellow believers. How can you stand up for Jesus among sinners if you cannot stand up for Him among friendly believers? Come on saints! If you’re a sportsperson and you do well, don’t just appreciate your coach, teammates and parents-give glory to the Lord. When you stand up for Jesus, He will stand up for you on Judgment Day. Nothing beats that!
Pastor Josh