Valiant in Faith and Witness

For Wednesday, January 18

Valiant in Faith and Witness

Mark 13 (click to read)

11 When you are arrested, don't worry about what you will say. You will be given the right words when the time comes. But you will not really be the ones speaking. Your words will come from the Holy Spirit.

This chapter in Mark is Jesus' statements about either the next 30 years (their time) or about the "end times." When one looks closely, it is difficult to see this as "end times" stuff. Too many things point to their time. I picked this verse because it is very often misused. The key part is "when your are arrested." The verse is Jesus' assurance that when a believer is arrested for their faith, they will be given the words to say by the Holy Spirit. Note that it does not say the words will be a defense that gets one released. Indeed, if the persecutions of the 3rd and 4th century A.D. are studied, we see that the record shows the believers were valiant in faith and witness even as they suffered and lost their lives. It can be argued that Rome and the (at the time) western world came under the influence and persuasion of the Christian faith partly because of these believers and their witness to Jesus as Lord of Life and Lord of All, even while their life and their all was being taken from them. I totally confess I do not want to be in that position, but I am comforted by the fact that Jesus Spirit will lead me in times of great duress as well as now.

Lord Jesus - many of Your followers have paid a great price for believing You and trusting You. May I have that kind of faith and devotion as well. I want to be a believer of impact for Your Name and Kingdom's Sake.

(You can download the Pathway 2012 Bible reading list here.)