Call to Colors: Boldly Sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ

By:  Dale Weckbacher

Habakkuk 3:2

I have heard all about you, Lord.
    I am filled with awe by your amazing works.
In this time of our deep need,
    help us again as you did in years gone by.
And in your anger,
    remember your mercy.

(NLT)

On the battlefield of Gettysburg, there is a monument to a brave color bearer who became isolated from his company.  His company had retreated but the color bearer, just a boy, bravely remained.  When his commanding officer sent a messenger telling the boy to retreat and bring the colors back, the boy responded, “No, bring the regiment back to the colors.”  (1) 

We are ambassadors for Christ and just like an ambassador to a foreign country, our duty is to represent our nation, the Kingdom of God.  Unfortunately, however, we often find ourselves in enemy territory and experience persecution for our faith.  In many parts of the world this persecution means the lives of those choosing to place their belief in Jesus as their savior find their lives threatened.  In nations like the United States where there is constitutional protection of religious expression, this persecution is a soft-persecution or social rejection. 

Whether the persecution we experience is hard or soft, there is a temptation to retreat and take the colors of our faith into our church buildings where we have a sense of security.  However, Jesus last words to his followers were to take the Gospel message around the world (Matthew 28:16-20). 

Our greatest obstacle to sharing our faith is our own fear.  While 2 Timothy 1:7 reminds us that the source of this fear is not from God, fear can still cripple us, preventing us from sharing the Gospel.  As we begin sharing our faith we may experience,

1)      Fear of physical harm – Judges 6 introduces us to Gideon.  The scene is Israel doing evil in the Lord’s sight and thus being handed over to the cruel people of Midian.  The Midianites raided the crops and flocks of Israel.  In this context, we see Gideon hiding at the bottom of a winepress to thresh his wheat.  Gideon had reason to fear for without wheat to feed his family and sell for income, he would be a slave to the cruel Midianites.  In Judges 6:12 we see the Angel of the Lord appearing to fearful Gideon and saying, “Mighty hero, the Lord is with you.”  In his current state of fear, I can imagine Gideon jumped a foot but what comforting words to someone full of fear.  Gideon’s answer however is something many of us have most likely thought in times of trouble and fear for he said, “If the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us (Judges 6:13)?”  Gideon feared physical harm, loss of property, and income from the Midianites.  Around the globe, many risk life, loss of property, and income for sharing the Gospel, but interestingly the spread of the Gospel seems to thrive in these situations.  (2)  These persecuted Christians are like modern day Gideons who overcome fear and go on to serve their Lord (Judges 7). 

2)      Fear of rejection – Peter walked with Jesus during his 3 ½ years of ministry.  During this time, he would have witnessed the miracles and heard the teachings of Jesus.  However, even being an eyewitness to these momentous events did not exempt Peter from the power of the fear of rejection.  Matthew 26:69-75 records the account of Peter’s denial of Jesus.  Jesus is facing a cruel death by crucifixion and in his greatest time of need for support from his trusted friends.  However, instead of standing strong for his Lord and letting those asking him know he was one of Jesus disciples, we see Peter giving into the fear of rejection and physical harm and denying Jesus.  We too may face rejection from friends and even family members when we start sharing our testimony of what Jesus has done in our lives but just as with Gideon, we can be mighty heroes sharing the Gospel for Jesus is with us.  The good news for all of us is that even after denying Jesus, Peter boldly shared the gospel with many in Acts 2:14-41. 

3)      Fear of our own faults and weaknesses – We all experience times of inadequacy in our lives but when it comes to sharing the Gospel, the greatest story ever told, with someone we believe may reject or even harm us, we all feel inadequate.  Moses experienced these feelings of inadequacy at the burning bush (Exodus 3) but God reminded Moses that He would be with him (Exodus 3:12).  No one comes to Christ unless the Holy Spirit leads them (John 6:44).  This means that we need not fear our inadequacy for that is not what draws people to Christ.  None of us was adequate to receive the gift of salvation and likewise none of us is adequate to share the message of the Gospel but just as Jesus took the penalty for our sins, he will just like Moses and Peter, empower us to share the Gospel. 

Let us therefore like the brave color bearer at Gettysburg bravely and fearlessly carry the colors of the Gospel to a lost world in desperate need.  Let us not allow fear of physical harm, rejection, or our own inadequacies stop us and instead raise our colors drawing the lost to Christ (John 12:32). 

1. Civil War Times. Fighting and Dying for the Colors at Gettysburg. www.history.net. [Online] History.net, June 7, 2007. [Cited: April 1, 2017.] http://www.historynet.com/fighting-and-dying-for-the-colors-at-gettysburg.htm.

2. Smith, Kate. AS PERSECUTION RISES, THE CHURCH GROWS. iglworld.org. [Online] India Gospel League, May 19, 2015. [Cited: April 6, 2017.] https://iglworld.org/as-persecution-rises-the-church-grows/.