STANDING UP FOR THE GOSPEL

Text: Acts 7:54-60, 1 Cor 9:16-22, Daniel 3:1-30, Phil 3:7-9

Standing up for the gospel means holding out, defending and promoting the gospel; something that may be extraordinary, giving your ‘all’ in support of the doctrine/the truth/message of Christ and truth about Him.

Things to do can be in form of preaching, winning souls for Christ, holding on to faith, not compromising on truth, surrendering your life to Christ, or as it were, being in chains for the gospel, sacrificing your comfort in your effort to defend the gospel, and standing by faith no matter what.

Let us consider some examples of people in the Bible who had given much for the sake of the Gospel. People like Paul, Deacon Stephen, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, Bishop Polycarp of Symrna and Bishop Ignatius of Antioch.

Paul said in 1 Cor 9:16, “Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel”. Paul believed he was discharging the trust committed to him and had to preach freely. He was committed to preaching freely, noting that not preaching could be a curse for him. Like Paul, what will you do for the sake of the Gospel? “Though I am free and belong to no man, I make myself a slave to everyone to win as many as possible. To the Jews I become like a Jew, to win the Jews”. In v22-23, “To the weak I become weak to win the weak; I do all this for the sake of the gospel”. Paul was able to adjust and come to the level of those he wanted to win for the sake of the gospel.

What are you ready to give in? There is blessing in doing that. The rich should be ready to associate with the poor for the sake of the gospel.
In Philemon 1:13, Paul said, “I am in chains for the gospel”. Paul was imprisoned, he served God with humility and in tears, yet he carried on. His being in chains advanced the gospel. What have you suffered for the gospel sake? Do not be discouraged. A crown awaits you.

In Phil 3:7-8, Paul said, “But whatever was to my profit, I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish that I may gain Christ”. Have you lost anything for Christ sake? Properties burnt? Persecuted? Lost job?, Denied promotion?, Imprisoned? Do not be discouraged. Everything is transient on earth; Heaven is home. Christ has gone to prepare a place for you.

In Daniel 3:1-30, King Nebuchadnezzar made an image of gold and instructed his people in Babylon to come and worship it. Anybody who did not worship it will be thrown into a blazing furnace. Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, the three men around did not worship the image. The king, furious with rage, ordered that they should be thrown into the blazing furnace seven times hotter than normal; the king then said in v15, “Then what god will be able to rescue you from my hand?” These three men held on to their faith and stood their ground for the sake of the gospel. In v16-17, they said, “O king, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter, if we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and He will rescue us from your hand. If He does not, we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up”.

The Lord saved them for they were not affected by the furnace. The king was amazed and baffled that they were not consumed. The king acknowledged the supremacy of their God and even decreed that nobody should say anything against the God of these three men. He later promoted them. He knew their God is the Most High God. If you stand out for the gospel as these men did, the Lord is ready to deliver, save and promote you. They were able to win over the king and his people to God’s side.

In Acts 7:54-60, Deacon Stephen was always following the disciples, sitting at their feet to learn about Christ. He was among the first seven deacons chosen by the disciples. He was full of the Holy Spirit and faith. He was falsely accused and testified against for witnessing for Christ. He was brought before the Sanhedrin and was stoned to death. While being stoned, Stephen said, “Look, I see heaven open and the son of man standing at the right hand of God.” In v59, He prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit”. He fell on his knees and cried out, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them”. Then he died. He suffered like Jesus and also prayed for his murderers. He was convinced that the gospel was worth dying for. Stephen’s death made a great impact on Paul who was to be the pillar of spreading the gospel to the gentiles as he witnessed participated the event. Hence Stephen became the first Christian martyr.

There may still be many ‘Sauls’ waiting for your involvement and actions in standing for the gospel to witness before they can become the ‘Pauls’ of our time. I pray the Lord will encourage you and fill you with His spirit.

There are other martyrs such as: Bishop Polycarp of Symrna, Bishop Cypian of the church in North Africa and Bishop Ignatius of Antioch.
The non-Christians referred to Bishop Polycarp as “destroyer of our gods” because he was teaching people not to sacrifice or worship the Emperor. He was always praying for Christians all over the world. But on his day of arrest, Herod persuaded him to deny Christ and that he should say ‘ Ceasar is Lord’ but he refused. When he was about to be burnt, Bishop Polycarp said, “Eighty and six years, Christ has done me no wrong. How can I blaspheme my King who saved me?” “I am a Christian, and if you want to hear the doctrine of Christianity, appoint a day and you shall hear it”. After saying this, he was set ablaze but the fire did not consume him.

Bishop Ignatius of Antioch was thrown into the Lions’ den in about AD117 by Emperor Trojan because he pronounced that he had Christ. Some of those who watched him and listened to him before he was thrown to the Lions’ den were so much encouraged by his boldness and loyalty that they became Christians.

Bishop Cypian of the church in North Africa was beheaded because he proclaimed the name of Christ. Thomas J. Bowen from Southern American undertook the study of a Nigerian language to be able to preach when he came to Nigeria. He later wrote books on the language. This made his preaching easier.

Also for the sake of the gospel, Erasmus tried to encourage the sound teaching of the Bible and for availability of the scriptures in the people’s native language; he translated the whole Bible into Greek and the New Testament into German.
Martin Luther protested against the indulgencies in the church and he circulated his write-up titled, “The Just shall live by faith”. He did this for the sake of sound doctrine.

What are you busy doing? What role are you playing? Are you in a place where false doctrine is being preached? You must stand up for the gospel. Are you advertising Jesus? What are you known for?

Prayer
Father in the name of Jesus, let me be filled with your spirit and be full of faith so that I can be bold and courageous enough to go all out for the sake of the gospel. Amen