Thursday, February 23, 2012

The Engagement of Salvation


Engagement for marriage is one of the biggest desires of young people today. Recently, I stepped into this wonderful season of life known as engagement. Along with the thrilled anticipation of knowing I am going to marry the most wonderful, beautiful, and godly woman in the world, I have also learned a lot about how I should view my relationship with Jesus Christ.

As an engaged man, I am obviously super excited! I am not ashamed to tell people about how Kenzie and I met, how I proposed, and how we are living our lives in preparation for marriage. In fact, I find it a joy to tell people about these things in my life. It would be crazy if I was too ashamed to tell people that I love Kenzie and am marrying her! Sadly, many Christians, including myself, have not always shown our faith and love for Jesus the way we should. We should not be ashamed to tell people about how we met Jesus, what he has done for us, and how we are living our lives differently because of him.

The Bible talks about how the church (those who believe in Jesus as their Savior) is the bride of Christ. If there is a bride, doesn’t that mean there is going to be a marriage? Yes! Here are some verses talking about the bride and marriage.

2 Corinthians 11:2 For I feel a divine jealousy for you, since I betrothed you to one husband, to present you as a pure virgin to Christ.

Revelation 19:7-9 “Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready; it was granted her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure"-- for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints. And the angel said to me, "Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb." And he said to me, "These are the true words of God."

Revelation 21:9 Then came one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues and spoke to me, saying, “Come, I will show you the Bride, the wife of the Lamb.”

Isaiah 62:5 For as a young man marries a young woman, so shall your sons marry you, and as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you.

Ephesians 5:31-32 “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church.

Here is the truth. If you are a Christian, you are engaged to Christ! There is going to be a marriage supper and everything! If you are a Christian who is waiting to get married, the question is not, “Will I ever get engaged and married?” The question is, “When are you going to start living like you are engaged to be married to Christ?”

Since I am now engaged, I am realizing how this new framework of thinking would change my relationship with Christ. Kenzie and I are looking forward to our day of marriage with great joy. Christians also look forward to the coming of Jesus and the marriage supper we will have with him. I am not ashamed to tell people about my relationship with Kenzie. Christians also should not be ashamed to tell people about our relationship with Jesus. Kenzie and I are preparing for the wedding day. Christians should be preparing for the wedding day by being obedient to the commands of Christ. Be excited about your relationship with Jesus just as you would be excited about your relationship with your fiancée!

The moment you were saved by Jesus you immediately entered into engagement with Christ. What would happen if we lived our lives with the excitement of engagement? How would this change our perspective about telling the world about Jesus? 

Monday, February 20, 2012

Working with Wood


For the last couple days I have been praying for the Spirit to convict me of sin in my life. He answered my prayer very quickly and I know I have a lot of work to do by the grace of God to be more like Christ.

I was reading through 1 Corinthians 3 when I came upon verses 10-15.

“According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled master builder I laid a foundation, and someone else is building upon it. Let each one take care how he builds upon it. For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw-- each one's work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done. If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. If anyone's work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire.”

There are times I fool myself into thinking I am completely blameless in my actions because what I am doing outwardly lines up with scripture. But isn’t this exactly what the Pharisees did? They saw themselves as holding to the law perfectly, but they ignored the evil motivations of their heart.

1 Samuel 16:7 But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the LORD sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart."

I can “work with wood” by doing the commandments of the Lord with the wrong attitude and motivation. If my attitude or motivation is ever about bringing glory to myself rather than Christ, then I am prideful. My attitude should be the same as that of Christ (Philippians 2:5) and my motivation should be to bring glory to God (1 Corinthians 10:31).

Constructing a building with wood requires hard work. This is why I fool myself so often. I associate my hard work of living the Christian life as automatically being right and good because I work hard at it. Working hard does not automatically mean working right. My prayer is that I will be obedient to Jesus while having the attitude of Jesus for the glory of Jesus.

Saturday, February 18, 2012

Equally Yoked?


Imagine entering yourself and a partner into a three legged race. This isn’t just any three legged race because there are obstacles to climb over and tasks to accomplish in order to progress. The different obstacles include things like crossing over monkey bars together, climbing up a rock wall, climbing a cargo net, walking across a balance beam, and other tasks requiring teamwork for success. The time has come to line up for the race. Most everyone at the starting line is excited because they know how hard the race is going to be, but they also know how much fun it is going to be to work together with their partner through the obstacles. You are feeling just as excited as everyone else as the referees come around and tie everybody’s legs together for the race. In a moment of enthusiasm and anticipation you look over to talk to your partner about how to deal with the upcoming obstacles together, but he/she is lying on the ground next to you as a pale, cold, and stiff corpse. Your partner is dead! Then reality hits you, and you remember that this is the partner you CHOSE! Your legs are already tied together, the whistle has already blown, and the race will go on.

Disgusting, right?  Who would ever make such an unwise decision? Actually, this choice is made all the time. I am talking about a marriage between a Christian and a non-Christian. People who have been saved by the grace of God through faith have been brought back to life by Christ (Ephesians 2:5). The non-Christian is still dead in their sin (Ephesians 2:1). The three legged race is just an illustration of what it would be like for a Christian to go through the difficulties of marriage with a non-Christian spouse. The Bible speaks to this issue and gives a variety of different circumstances about how this could happen (1 Corinthians 7).

Before getting married it is typical to have a dating or courting relationship. While this is not necessarily a bad thing, the mindset of a dating/courting relationship should be a mindset focused on Jesus and marriage (Hebrews 12:1-2). If Jesus is not at the center of the relationship, then that means something else is. Removing Jesus from the center and replacing him with something or someone else is an act of idolatry. If a Christian is dating a non-Christian, it is impossible for both of them to have Jesus as the center of their relationship because one of them does not even believe in Jesus.

A lot of times this is called “missionary dating.” Here is the truth; a boyfriend/girlfriend relationship is not a prerequisite for sharing the gospel. In fact, if the only time someone would ever tell a friend about Jesus is if they are dating them, then there is a major fear of man issue that needs to be dealt with. Don’t hear me wrong, being friends with non-Christians is a good thing. Jesus hung out with “sinners” while the religious people would not even consider eating lunch with them. Be a good friend, and show love by presenting them the most loving gift of all, salvation through Christ.

A common verse used to talk about this issue of dating/marrying a non-Christian is 2 Corinthians 6:14-16a “Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness? What accord has Christ with Belial? Or what portion does a believer share with an unbeliever? What agreement has the temple of God with idols?”

The ESV Study Bible states, “To be ‘unequally yoked’ is to be ‘hitched up’ or even crossbred with another animal who is not the same.” Animals’ being “yoked” or “hitched” together was a common practice. Deuteronomy 22:10 says, “You shall not plow with an ox and a donkey together.” Latching an ox and a donkey to a plow would pose some problems. They have different personalities and work ethics. They are not the same size and would move at different paces. It is much better to use two oxen to pull the plow. This symbolism is relevant to the dating/marriage relationship between a Christian and non-Christian. Different life goals, different desires, and different objects of worship are some of the issues that are present in this situation. Being “yoked” together portrays a sense of influence on the course direction of the plow. The same is true with the course direction of life in the unequally yoked relationship. Marriage is a partnership and friendship through life, through raising children, through ministering the gospel, through the good, through the bad, through worshiping God, and based upon the mutual relationship with Jesus Christ. An unequally yoke relationship is not capable of this partnership or friendship.

Ephesians 5:7-10 “Therefore do not become partners with them; for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord.”

As Christians we believe marriage is a picture of Christ and the Church. The Church is made up of people who believe in Jesus as their Lord and Savior and are made alive in him. The Church is righteous in the sight of God because of Christ’s finished work on the cross. Non-Christians are not righteous in the sight of God; in fact the Old Testament calls people who worship other gods “whores”. Anyone who does not worship the true God is “whoring” (to use the language of the Bible) themselves to other gods.

Judges 2:17 “Yet they did not listen to their judges, for they whored after other gods and bowed down to them. They soon turned aside from the way in which their fathers had walked, who had obeyed the commandments of the LORD, and they did not do so. “

This is a very intense analogy the Bible uses about people who worship other gods. But it brings in some big implications to the Christian who wants to date or marry a non-Christian. If people who do not believe in the true God are whoring themselves to other gods, then why would a Christian want to unite with them? Why would someone want to unite the body of Christ with a whore?

 1 Corinthians 6:15-16 “Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I then take the members of Christ and make them members of a prostitute? Never! Or do you not know that he who is joined to a prostitute becomes one body with her? For, as it is written, "The two will become one flesh."

I would encourage every believer to stay away from dating/marrying an unbeliever, because I believe the Bible is very clear on this subject. 

Monday, February 13, 2012

Blogolatry: The Idolatry of Blogging


I recently decided to start submitting some of my writings to a blog. Since there are many good reasons to write and blog, I went for it. After creating the blog I was amazed to see the depth of statistics provided for the blogger. 

There are many statistics made available to the blogger. I am able to see a graph of how many people have viewed my blog page. I can see page views today, page views yesterday, page views last month, and page views for the history of the blog. I am able to see how many hits each individual blog entry has accrued. I can see the source of where this traffic is coming from, and even the countries where people are viewing the blog. Not only that, but as of writing this blog right now, I know 51% of people viewing my blog used Firefox, 20% used Chrome, 14% used internet explorer, 14% used safari, and 1% used mobile safari. Along with the browser information I also know what operating systems the viewers use, 56% use Windows, 42% use Macintosh, 1% Android, and 1% use Linux.  

The first time I saw all this data I knew I needed to protect myself from a potential problem. What’s the big deal? Aren’t these statistics helpful in understanding your audience and what kind of impact you are having? Absolutely yes! But, in saying these statistics are helpful, they can also be harmful. There is a fine line to walk between wanting to make an impact for Christ by having people read what I have learned and idolizing how many views/comments the blog receives. 

If I feel a sense of pride or am satisfied in seeing how many people view my blog page rather than being fully satisfied in Christ, then I am idolizing my blog and the viewers of my blog. John 12:43 “for they loved the glory that comes from man more than the glory that comes from God.”

My joy and hope needs to be based upon Christ and his work, not on anything else. Even if nobody ever reads this post or any other blog I write, it ultimately doesn't matter. Jesus matters.

Wednesday, February 8, 2012

Fear of Man vs. Fear of the Lord


                I have recently been looking at what it means to fear the Lord. In Proverbs I counted 19 times that the term “fear of the LORD” is used, one time Proverbs says “have no fear” and one time it refers to the “fear of man.” Since the fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, wisdom and understanding, I thought it would be a wise thing to look into for further study. There is a lot to get into with the fear of the LORD, but right now I am going to focus on one small aspect of fear that actually impacts a large portion of our everyday life.
                Sometimes the Bible displays examples of what not to do so we can understand what to do. The one aspect of fear I want to put the spotlight on is the fear of man. Only once in Proverbs does the specific term “fear of man” come up. Proverbs 29:25 “Fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the LORD is kept safe.” Proverbs uses a poetic way of writing to display its wisdom. In the first section of the sentence it talks about the fear of man, then after the comma it shows what would be the complete opposite of the fear of man. Fearing man is in opposition to trusting God. The term “snare” is actually the word môqêsh which means a noose for catching animals, or a hook for the nose. The word “safe” is actually the word śâgab which means to be inaccessibly high, or in an inaccessibly position. Also, it means to be exalted of God.  I find it interesting how a noose or a hook in the nose could be used to pull an animal (or a human for that matter) in any direction the captor pleases. The captor is in complete control of the one snared, and the one snared is held to the mercy of his captor. In contrast, trusting the Lord can put us into such a safe place that it is inaccessible to those who want to do harm to us, like the devil.  Those who put their trust in the Lord are people who fear God rather than fearing men, and they are put into a protected place by God. Proverbs 14:26 “He who fears the LORD has a secure fortress, and for his children it will be a refuge.”
                But I want to get back to what fearing man looks like because I know this is something I battle with daily. We find a good example of what the fear of man looks like in John 12:42-43 which says, “Yet at the same time many even among the leaders believed 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.”
                Wow, many people believed but would not confess their belief because of fear. What was it they feared? They were afraid the Pharisees would kick them out of the synagogue, which would mean they would have no place to go and worship God. They had made an idol out of mans approval and held the praise of man above the praise of God. Is this a problem? Yes it is, God is the Creator, and man is the Created. Holding praise from Created man above the praise of Creator God is making an idol out of something that has been Created rather than worshiping the Creator God.
                Not only that, if they had been kicked out of the synagogue they would have lost their reputation among the people of the town. This is shown in the last statement of the verse that says, “…for they loved praise from men more than praise from God.” Getting kicked out of the synagogue was a big deal. They would have been rejected and treated poorly. It is interesting that we tend to see the praise of man more than the praise of God. Why? Well, praise from man is a more tangibly experienced thing that we can hear and feel. We can hear the clapping of hands, the words of approval, and feel a pat on the back. Praise from man means that we are lifted up among our peers, and we become someone subjected to the worship of man. We also start to worship ourselves and we make ourselves out to be an idol, and put ourselves on a pedestal above God. But what does the praise and glory from God look like? It looks like Christ. As believers Christ is our glory, he is the one we praise. 1 Corinthians 1:30-31 “It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God – that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. Therefore, as it is written: “Let him who boasts boast in the Lord.” The contrast of these two different praises is quite startling. In order to get the praise of man, we lift ourselves up in pride and are worshiped for something we did or accomplished. But when someone comes to Christ, they must acknowledge that they are sinful and in need of help. Receiving the glory of Christ requires humility rather than pride because we are accepting what Christ did for us and giving him praise for his work rather than being praised for our own work.
                Jesus states in John 5:44 “How can you believe if you accept praise from one another, yet make no effort to obtain the praise that comes from the only God?” Jesus makes an excellent point, as always. If we accept the praise of a sinful man, we are worshiping both the acceptance of man and worshiping ourselves. When we fear man rather than fearing God we are inclined to self worship rather than the worship of Creator God because we are more concerned about what people think of us than what God thinks of us. When we worship something other than Creator God we are caught in the sin of idolatry and have cast our eyes off of God and onto something that has been created.
                The fear of man is in direct opposition to the fear of the Lord. The fear of man is steeped in self worship, idolatry, and pride. Now I have to start asking myself some really tough questions. How do I fear man more than fearing my Lord? Do I fear the rejection of a friend? Being rejected by a man is nothing compared to being rejected by God. Do I fear being made fun of or persecuted? We are called to be like Christ who was persecuted, beaten, and nailed to the cross. Christ was then lifted to the right hand of the Father and glorified. I must overcome my pride and overcome my sense of reputation in order to better serve my Lord.
                Paul writes in Galatians 1:10 “Am I now trying to win the approval of men, or of God? Or am I trying to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ.” Paul is not concerned about what people think of him. He is living with an audience of one, that one is God. As soon as we start living to please men, we are serving men rather than God, and we are no longer a servant of Christ. Our time on earth is short and unique. This is the only time we will be surrounded by people who do not know Christ. The rest of eternity we will be with fellow believers and with God. Let us use our time wisely and serve our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. So who is it that we fear? Do we fear man or God?

Three Characteristics of a real man


The other a day a good friend of mine asked me, “What three characteristics does a man need to have in order to be considered a real man?” After thinking about how I answered the question, I decided to delve a little deeper into the three characteristics I chose to give as my answer.  A real man is regenerate, responsible, and repentant.

A real man is regenerate. A dead man is no man, and without Jesus there is no life. This means that a real man has been raised from his death in sin into life with Christ by the grace of God through faith. This regeneration of the heart marks a change in who we belong to and who we desire to serve, God or Satan. When someone is dead in sin, they are a son of the devil. John 8:44 says, “You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father's desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and has nothing to do with the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.” This is an interesting point Jesus makes. We joke about kids turning into their parents because it is true. It is also true spiritually. If someone is not saved then their father is the devil, and they will continue to show the characteristics of their father. The same is true for those who have been brought to life by Christ and have been adopted into his family. Men who have God the Father as their father will also, through the process of sanctification, become more like their father. John 1:12-13 says, “But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.”


A real man is responsible. Being responsible means there is someone to be responsible to. Because of this, it is important to describe what kind of responsibility I am talking about when I say, “A real man is responsible.” Unregenerate people can be responsible to their family by providing for them, responsible at their work place by doing good work and completing their goals with excellence. While these are all good things, this is not the responsibility I am talking about. A real man is responsible to God.  Are women responsible to God? Yes, but it is not the same. Romans 14:12 says, “So then, each of us will give an account of himself to God.” All people, men and women, are responsible first to God. But in saying this, God called out to Adam in Genesis 3:9 because he is the one responsible and he is the one who has to answer for his wife and family. God made man to work and keep the garden in Genesis 2:15. That sounds like a big responsibility! When a man is not responsible to God, he falls into sin. This responsibility to God will also overflow into other things in life such as being a good husband (Ephesians 5:25), a good father (Ephesians 6:4), providing for family (1 Timothy 5:8), and many other things.  


A real man is repentant. Repentance requires humility. A real man is willing to see his mistakes and failures, call them as they are, repent of them, and move on from them to live as a man more like Christ. Keeping in repentance is actually a way to produce fruit (Matthew 3:8, Luke 3:8). Also, a man who is living a life of continual repentance is more apt to stay humble than get prideful. A repentant man is more able to seek out wisdom from older and wiser men, and is willing to listen. A repentant man is more willing to be shown how he is wrong and how he needs to change to be more like Christ.


My prayer is of thankfulness that I have been saved by the grace of God, and that I will be led by the Spirit to be a more responsible and more repentant man in the future by the power and grace given by the Holy Spirit.


Philippians 2:13 “for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.”
1 Corinthians 6:11 “And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.”

Why I am Praying for the Boldness of a Barhopper


Acts 4:31 “After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.”
                The cold driver seat welcomed me as I sat down and turned the ignition. It was time for another Sunday night Bible study with the guys at a local Starbucks. I was completely unaware of the lesson the Lord would teach me through an unusual experience that night. The coffee shop closed right as we were done with our Bible study. We walked outside to hang out and talk in the crisp autumn air. A short while later a jet black SUV with tinted windows drove by and parked on the opposite side of the road from where we were talking. The club anthem music was blaring from the SUV while the bass reverberated off the cement buildings of downtown. A short woman in her late 20’s stepped out of the passenger side of the car and came into view. She was wearing a stylish black jean jacket, had short blonde hair with tints of brown and was fashionably blowing smoke from her cigarette into the air. That's when she (I don’t know her name, so I will call her Claire) shouted to us from across the street saying, “Hey you guys, come over here!”
                All of us looked around at each other perplexed and walked across the street to go meet the woman who called us over to her. When we walked over to the other side of the street we exchanged hellos, then Claire got straight to the point asking, “So how old are you guys?” After she found out we were all over 21 she nodded at the SUV while confidently saying, “Alright, let’s go to the bar.” We told her, “Thanks, but no thanks.” She was dumbfounded we actually turned her down. Claire hopped back into the SUV her friend was driving and said, “Those people are lame. Let’s go.”
                Why is this a big deal? Well, it is the boldest way I have ever been evangelized to in my life, and I see Biblical principles in how she handled her situation, even though it was for a false gospel. Let me explain. Claire and her friend were on their way to a specific destination and wanted to take people with them. They were so determined to have more people go with them to the bar that they were willing to stop driving, get out of the car, initiate and engage in a conversation with five people they had never met in order to persuade them to come to the bar. I am still thinking about the boldness of her actions, and am learning from her example.
As a believer in Jesus I know I am on the road to heaven, just like Claire knew she was on the road to the bar. Her final destination, the bar, was Claire’s focus. As believers we have the mind of Christ (1 Corinthians 2:16b) and our focus should be on Jesus (Hebrews 12:2). We should be concerned about what the final destination of the lost will be just as Jesus was concerned about us when we were lost. The Bible commands us in Matthew 6:33 to “seek first his kingdom and his righteousness.” Whatever people seek first in their lives will rule and reign over every aspect of their lives. The actions Claire took were a byproduct of what she was seeking first, a good time at the bar. As Christians we must seek first His kingdom and righteousness and this will influence every decision we make in life.
As believers we should desire to have as many people as possible join us in our journey to heaven, just like Claire wanted to have as many people as possible join her on the road to the bar. This is a direct command of Christ, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age" (Matthew 28:19-20). Being obedient to Christ means following his command to make disciples by preaching (Romans 10:14) and teaching them the good news of Jesus Christ.
As a Christian, I should be willing to stop what I am doing in order to talk to people who are not on the road to heaven just as Claire was willing to stop and try to convince us to hop in their car. Because we have the mind of Christ, and eternity is on our minds, we should know and realize what is most important in every situation; Christ. So it doesn’t matter what I am doing, proclaiming the word of God is the most important thing. I need to be willing to stop what I am doing instead of hiding behind being “busy.” It would have been more convenient for Claire and her friend to keep driving to the bar without stopping for anything. But they chose to overlook their minor inconvenience of stopping and getting to the bar a little later in order to invite people to come with them. Christians should overlook inconveniences in order to obey the commands of Christ. This isn’t easy, but we are not called to an easy life, we are called to obedience.
As a Christian I should be completely unashamed of who I follow, where I am headed, and what my life is about, similar to how Claire was completely honest about what she was doing and what she wanted us to do. Romans 1:16 “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.” Luke 9:26 also says, “For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when he comes in his glory and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.” Living an unashamed Christian life by the power of the Spirit should be an aspiration for all of us who believe Jesus is God. Too many times Christians “confess” or “admit” they are Christians as if following Jesus is something regrettable or something to feel sorry about instead of boldly proclaiming what we believe and showing people the joy we have in Christ.
                 I was amazed at Claire’s boldness and how straight forward she was in preaching her gospel to us. Claire was going to the bar. She had the desire to have more people go to the bar with her which prompted her to look and see people who were not going to the bar.  In seeing us she wanted to have us go with her, which resulted in her acting upon her feelings. This is very similar to how we as Christians should be living our lives. We have to go on the mission God sends us on while having a desire to seek out the lost, and we need to look in order to see people in need. Once we see them the Holy Spirit may speak to us, then we must act upon what the Holy Spirit reveals for us to do. Go, desire, look, see, listen, act, and repeat. This is the way of life for a Christian.
Claire’s actions reminded me of some scripture. In Acts 8 Philip has been preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ. He is on a mission to tell people about Jesus and is going to see what the Lord has for him. In verse 26 an angel of the Lord tells him to go to a specific place. Philip obeys, and when he gets there the Holy Spirit says in verse 29, “Go to that chariot and stay near it.” By this time Philip has gone on his mission, has seen people in need (because he was looking for people to share Jesus with), and has heard from the Spirit. The next part of the story is incredible. Verse 30 says, “Then Philip ran up to the chariot and heard the man reading Isaiah the prophet. ‘Do you understand what you are reading?’ Philip asked.” This is absolutely incredible! The action Philip takes is to run towards the Eunuch because the Spirit told him to “go to that chariot and stay near it.” The act of running shows Philip’s eagerness to obey God and speak truth into the Eunuch’s life. Philip was extremely bold in approaching a stranger by running after him, and then initiating a conversation with him by asking a question. Philip’s purpose was to share the gospel of Jesus. The Eunuch is saved and baptized on the spot!
So what have I learned? I learned I must be bolder in my proclamation of Jesus. If a bar hopper has the courage and boldness to try to convince people to go to a bar with her, then we as Christians, should have the courage and boldness to talk to people about Jesus so they can meet Jesus.  I must be willing to go on the mission God sends me on while having a desire to find the lost, willing to look for people who are in need, willing to act upon the Spirit’s guidance after I see them, and willing to be rejected by this person. Ultimately, if people reject the gospel we preach, they are rejecting Jesus. This is why I am praying to have the boldness of a bar hopper.