Bible Reading: Nehemiah 12 & 13; Acts 4:20-37
”And now, Lord, behold their threatenings: and grant unto thy servants, that with all boldness they may speak thy word, By stretching forth thine hand to heal; and that signs and wonders may be done by the name of thy holy child Jesus” Acts 4:29-30 (KJV).
The propagation of the gospel of Jesus Christ must be fought against and resisted by the forces of evil but the ultimate victory belongs to believers. We are born to overcome all resistance that we may confront in the cause of preaching the gospel. The message of Jesus Christ is a threat to the evil activities of men in authority, both in the open and in secret. They are exposed by the word of God that we preach hence they will fight to subdue the believers. But the scripture mandatorily declares our victory in 1 John 5:4 (KJV), “For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.” Our faith in the infallible word of God, our faith in the person of Jesus Christ, our faith in His name, our faith in His death and resurrection, our faith in His power and ability to save, our faith in His grace, mercy and Love, our faith in His Blood that was shed at Calvary as the Blood of the everlasting Covenant and for the remission of our sin, are what makes us overcomers in this world.
We must receive boldness to speak the word. The force behind righteous boldness is faith. When our faith is strong and unshakeable it results in boldness to speak His word. Irrespective of the threat, our knowledge of and trust in God will attract his mighty hand in doing signs and wonders. Our God is the God of signs and wonders and as such when we declare Him in boldness to the people of the world He will manifest Himself. To crown our boldness in Him is the power in His name for the manifestation of our declaration in faith. The name of the holy child Jesus has been exalted to be above every other name both in heaven, on earth and underneath the earth. Even in the kingdom of darkness the name of Jesus hold sway. His name carries the authority that cannot be resisted by any power among men. So when we come boldly by that name propagating the message of salvation we bring to subjection all powers to the obedience of His word. In addition to all this is that the word of God we preach is extremely very powerful as described in Hebrews 4:12 (KJV), “For the word of God is quick and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.”
My dear reader, redemption is a free gift from God. It places you on the platform of boldness because of the righteousness of Christ inputted into you. When we accept Christ we receive the nature of God to operate on earth as His representative. We become overcomers, overcoming all the obstacles of the enemy on our part. I therefore admonish you to seek Him to facilitate your overcoming and being victorious in this world.
Prayer: Father grant me boldness to declare your love and grace to my fellow man wherever I go.
Bro. Joel Ezeugo