Jesus Bought Boldness
In Christ, “we have boldness and access with confidence through our faith” to God our Father (Ephesians 3:12).
TRUTH: There’s no power in heaven or on earth or under the earth that remotely approaches the power of God. He is the only one we need to fear (Luke 12:4–5). And Jesus took upon himself every reason we have to be terrified of God. Now in Christ, God is for us. And, if God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? (Romans 8:31–32)
So…if we can now “with confidence draw near to the throne of grace” (Hebrews 4:16), who then should we fear (Psalm 27:1)? Jesus did not die on the cross to have us quivering in a corner because some human being might say something mean, or stop our paychecks, or sever a relationship, or even kill us (Luke 12:4). No! For Jesus has ensured that, neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:38–39)
The only reason fear-based timidity remains in us is that we don’t believe these mind-blowing promises. What freezing fears might melt away, like snow in April, if we let the bright rays of Romans 8 shine on our shadowy places of unbelief, even for just a week?
Evangelist Janet Gloyd
The Spirit Empowers Boldness
(Re-read Romans 8)
Relishing in Romans 8 should given you the same warm secure feeling that you have when you are curled up in a warm cozy blanket on a cold winter day. Now, take an invigorating walk through the book of Acts and watch how Spirit emboldened the early Christians were.
Peter and John, once frozen with fear, when filled with the Holy Spirit, were out preaching the gospel for everyone to hear (see Acts 2:14–41). This soon got them arrested — the very thing that had terrified them before — and their boldness astonished the Jewish authorities, who then “recognized that they had been with Jesus” (Acts 4:13).
Don’t you want to bear that bold spiritual family resemblance? It requires the Spirit of Jesus (Philippians 1:19).