Is your faith private or public?

I tell you, whoever publicly acknowledges me before others, the Son of Man will also acknowledge before the angels of God. ~Luke 12:8 (NIV)

When was the last time you publicly acknowledged Jesus as your Lord and Savior?  When was the last time you told someone what He has done or what He is doing in your life right now?  Jesus tells us in Luke 12:8 that if we do this, He will acknowledge us before the angels of God.  Having a couple of angels who know you could prove to be a benefit if you know what angels are here to do.  God tells us in Hebrews 1:14 “Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?” (NIV) That is you and me. We are those who have inherited salvation.  God's angels are here to minister to us.  The word minister means to "attend to the needs of" or "to look after and take care of".  If you found yourself in a crunch, wouldn’t you like for God’s angels to know you belong to Jesus?  Acknowledging God to others takes confidence and commitment.  We must be confident of who we are in Christ knowing that whatever we say or whatever we do is coated so to speak with the grace of God.  The enemy would like nothing more than to stop us in our tracks from sharing the good news of the Lord by trying to convince us that our imperfections and mistakes would hinder any influence we might have but that is just not true.  It's Gods good news and Gods word we are promoting, and His Spirit knows how to help us in every endeavor.  

It is, however, important that we commit ourselves to Gods word and to seeking first His kingdom and His righteousness if we want to share the gospel because those are the foundations of the gospel.  People can tell a fake a mile away.  If you went around telling people that you were besties with Donald Trump it wouldn’t take long for people to tell whether you had really spent a lot of time with the man or not.  That’s because when we spend time with someone, we come to know a lot about them.  Their thoughts and their ways of doing things.  Do you know God’s thoughts?  Do you know His ways?  If you know God's word then you know God and He says if you publicly acknowledge Him before others, He will acknowledge you before His angels.  He will say that you are His friend.  Despite popular belief our faith is not supposed to be a private thing.  If it were, Jesus would not have told us to go public with it.  The closer we are to Jesus, the harder it is to keep what He is doing in our life quiet.  It's equally important to acknowledge what we are expecting Him to do.  What are you expecting God to take care of for you today?  How about this week or this year?  How will you know He has come through for you if you are not believing Him for something that only He can accomplish in your life?  Talking to others about Jesus not only lifts their spirits, but it will also lift yours as well.  Just the name "Jesus" should inspire hope in all of us.  Acknowledging the Lord before others doesn’t have to be flamboyant either, though it can be.  It could be as simple as encouraging someone going through a hard time that the Lord is with them.  Or giving God the credit for something you know you couldn’t have done without Him.  There are many ways to share your faith.  When we publicly acknowledge our Savior and our very best friend, He promises to reciprocate that in all of heaven and on earth!  Doesn’t that make you want to go find someone to tell them all about Jesus?

If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.   For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. ~Romans 10:9-10 (NIV)

What are you expecting God to bring to you or bring you through with great anticipation? Can you see the end from the beginning? Ask God to show it to you!

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