Paul’s qualifications as a Christian leader had been called into question by members of the Corinthian church. He lacked the rhetorical skills and resulting personal magnetism that were so prized in Graeco-Roman culture. In response, Paul highlights something crucial about Christian ministry. The kind of boldness, and accompanying effectiveness, that characterised Paul and many other Christians in the early church did not come from their personal ability. It was something that came from God’s work within them as is clear from the sequence of Acts 4:29-31. We are told here that the early church prayed for boldness and power to continue to make Christ known. It is then said: “After they prayed…they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.” Some Christians feel confident about their ability to share their faith and others not so much. If this confidence, or lack of confidence, is grounded in personal ability then both groups are in the wrong. God uses our abilities but it is not human ability that ultimately changes lives. If you are not a particularly articulate person, you may feel reticent talk to people about God. What really impacts people spiritually, however, is not so much the words in your mouth as the Spirit of God in your heart. God dwells in you, and he wants to radiate out. He isn’t asking you to be clever. He is asking you to radiate his peace, joy and love as you share your faith openly with others. Let your boldness come, not from what is in you, but from who is in you.
Pray for those you know who need a revelation of God and ask God to give you opportunities to share your faith with them.
Read 2 Corinthians 3
