Let’s admit it. We all like to lay low from time to time when it comes to fulfilling the Great Commission. There are a lot of us who don’t want all the baggage that goes along with sharing Jesus with others. Sometimes it’s because we’re overwhelmed. Sometimes it’s because we’re afraid. Sometimes it’s because we feel foolish or, come on now, even ashamed.

This past Sunday morning, our lead pastor Mike P. started off his message by talking about how Vertical Church is seeking to fulfill our part of the Great Commission by “leading people to be passionate about Jesus so that they can lead others to Jesus.” Take a second with me here and think about the implication of the last part of that statement. What if we re-worded it “…so that they can BE PASSIONATE about leading others to Jesus.” That word: passionate – how do we actually become passionate about sharing Jesus with others? Let’s look today at a few hindrances we have to overcome if we are going to develop this passion that makes us want to share Jesus uncontrollably.

1. Realize that you don’t have to be a theological scholar to share Jesus with someone. In fact, check this out:

But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to confound
the wise; and God has chosen the weak things of the world to
confound the things which are mighty… – 1 Corinthians 1:27
(AKJV)

Isn’t that reassuring? Even if you feel foolish, even if you think God could never use anyone with your lack of biblical knowledge, God said through His Word that he would use the foolish to “CONFOUND” the wise! If we can come to terms with this, the passion can begin to form within us. Now this doesn’t mean that we should abstain from reading and studying Scripture, but how much you know or don’t know should not be the basis upon which we seek to share the Good News with someone. Why? Because you might not know where that other person is anyway with their own knowledge, and even so, it isn’t Scripture that saves people – it’s JESUS that saves people.

2. You can’t be ashamed of Jesus. Now, why would anyone be ashamed? For one, because of public perception. Think about it – if you have lifelong friends who are unchurched, unsaved, and openly living in sin with no desire for reconciliation and salvation, you might be a grade-A Christian, but talking about Jesus to these friends? Many of us would say, “forget about it.” This is usually the number one objection to teenage evangelism as I’ve found through years of trying to teach teens how to share their faith. Listen to what Paul wrote in the opening chapter of his letter to the Romans:

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of
God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the
Jew, then to the Gentile. Romans 1:16 (NIV)

If you know anything about Paul, you probably know that Paul wasn’t ashamed of the Gospel. It kind of goes without saying. I mean, he was arrested for sharing the Gospel, and continued to share the Gospel from prison – he was eventually martyred for it! But why was he never ashamed? Because he recognized that it was synonymous with the power of God, which needs to be shared with everyone. Do you recognize that power? Have you ever read something in Scripture and thought – “WHOA!” The Word of God is powerful – insanely powerful.

3. We can’t be afraid of animosity, rejection, or even persecution. When we hear the word “persecution,” we don’t really think of that word applying to us, especially in the United States. But essentially, the word persecute means “to cause to suffer, to harass, or to systematically mistreat.” When we put it like that, chances are we’ve all been persecuted before. After Jesus ascended to be with the Father, and the church began to form in the book of Acts, the apostles faced constant persecution by the chief priests and government. They were even flogged due to their refusal to “lay low.” However:

The apostles left the [council], rejoicing because they had been
counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name.
Acts 5:41 (NIV)

What if we looked at persecution as a privilege? What if we rejoiced over something like this? In today’s culture, sharing the message of Jesus isn’t particularly easy or welcome on many accounts. But I’ve always heard that “nothing worth doing is ever easy.”

So, all that being said, are you laying low right now? Do you feel unworthy or not quite knowledgeable enough? Are you nervous about what others will think? Is it just really hard for you to share your faith? I want to encourage you – you’re not alone. In fact, if we believe what we read in Scripture, we are all unworthy and undeserving. But you know what? Jesus died for all of mankind, out of His unending, unconditional love for us, and God wants to use you to share that message. That, friends, is something we just can’t keep to ourselves. How can we not be passionate about leading others to Jesus?