Who Are You, Really?

GETTING STARTED

I once had the opportunity to speak to a group of men at our church about what makes them afraid to share their faith in the workplace. A few felt they were not equipped enough with scriptural knowledge. Others worried they would alienate friends. Some, especially business owners, even feared that telling others about their walk with Christ would create undue legal difficulties. It can be tempting when faced with such challenges to shrink back from boldly sharing the truth of who we are with those around us.

  • What keeps you from openly sharing your faith with others?

READ THE WORD: 2 CORINTHIANS 4:1-6 (ESV)

4:1 Therefore, having this ministry by the mercy of God, we do not lose heart. 2 But we have renounced disgraceful, underhanded ways. We refuse to practice cunning or to tamper with God’s word, but by the open statement of the truth we would commend ourselves to everyone’s conscience in the sight of God. 3 And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. 4 In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. 5 For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. 6 For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

DIGGING DEEPER

  1. What kept unbelievers from seeing the light of the gospel (vs. 4)?
  2. What was Paul’s message, and how did he view his role in proclaiming it (vs. 5)?
  3. What do you think Paul meant when he wrote that he refused “to practice cunning or tamper with God’s word” (vs. 2)?
  4. What would it look like for you to provide an “open statement of the truth” when you share your faith?

RESPOND TO GOD

When we experience God’s presence in our lives, we are given the opportunity to recount such moments as “God stories.” These stories about our faith journey allow God to shine his light through us into the darkness of the world. When we respond to the fears and anxieties of the “god of this world,” by veiling the truth of our own experiences with Christ, we rob others of a real opportunity to view “the light of the knowledge of the glory of God.”

  • Pray that God would show you ways in which you can share your faith with others today, in a way that refuses to filter or veil his truth and light.