Wherever you go in life, don’t go incognito. You should never disguise the reason for your hope or the light burning inside you (1 Peter 3:14-15). Our purpose in life is to know and glorify God (John 17:3), so we have a responsibility to be His ambassadors in a world that doesn’t recognize Him (2 Corinthians 5:20). How will people hear about Christ if we won’t be bold and speak the name of Jesus everywhere we go (Romans 10:14)?
The world at large will never darken the doors of a church, so we can’t rely on professional teachers to get the job done on their own. We are all called to be salt and light in this world (Matthew 5:13-16). That responsibility is not for a chosen few, but for the entire body of Christ.
The immense size of the harvest means the world does not need shrinking violets (Matthew 9:37-38). They need bold practitioners of the gospel who know how to handle the word of truth (2 Timothy 2:15). Again, this is the job of every individual who claims Jesus as their Lord. Knowing the scripture is not an optional component of the Christian faith. The good news of Jesus is not to be kept to oneself, but to be shared (Mark 16:15), and we can’t share it if we don’t know it.
Too many Christians hide their faith because they’re afraid they won’t be able to answer the questions or challenges sure to come their way. This is why you need to know your Bible. Jesus said when the authorities question you (which would be far more intimidating than your friends or the clerk at the grocery store), don’t be afraid because He will give you the words to say (Matthew 10:19-20). God will speak through you. But you’ve got to open your mouth for the words to come out.
Don’t go incognito in this life. Tell everyone you meet about Jesus, because if you don’t, perhaps no one ever will. We need to understand the urgency of the situation. Billions of people are going to die without Jesus, which means billions of people are going to spend eternity in Hell (Revelation 20:15). That should horrify and be unacceptable to you. We may not be able to reach billions, millions, or even thousands, but we can tell one person about Jesus today. Tomorrow we can tell another. Don’t you want to run into people in Heaven who are there because you spoke up? I do!
We can spend our lives carrying out the great commission of Christ (Matthew 28:19-20) or we can cower and be afraid of what people will think of us if we talk about Jesus. The Lord was clear: if we deny Him before men, He will deny us before the Father (Matthew 10:33). Silence in the face of opportunity is the same as outright denial. Don’t go incognito in this world. Be strong, be bold, and let the light of Jesus shine through you (Ephesians 6:10; 1 Corinthians 16:13-14). Jesus was not ashamed of us when He sacrificed His life. We must not be ashamed of Him by refusing to give our lives for His sake in return. Go tell someone about Jesus today!