Preach the word, be ready in season and out of season. – 2 Timothy 4:2

What does it mean to “preach?” In modern slang vocabulary, you might hear someone use the word to identify with what someone else is saying, as in “preach it, friend!” In Biblical terms, it means to publish or proclaim openly. This leads to the question: What do you preach?

Everyone’s life shares a subtle, unspoken message. That “word” is published simply by living. It is communicated casually over coffee, at the beach on vacation, or as you wait in lines at airport security. Your life sermon, in total, is in the choices you make and the attitudes you adopt, as well as the words you say. In his last letter to his protégé, the apostle Paul encourages Timothy to examine his message, urging him to always keep it grounded in the truth of the Gospel of Christ. Can you identify with the magnitude of that challenge?

Today, just as in Timothy’s time, the dominant culture does not welcome a message of God’s sacrificial love or human accountability to Him. Rather, many insist on hearing perspectives that permit the pursuit of self-indulgence and pleasure. Only through the Lord’s strength can your life stand up and speak out the truth of Christ under the pressure of the world system. That is the exceptionally good news of the Gospel, that you have everything you need, His power in reserve, to ultimately preach the message God has given you! 

Pray for insight and courage. Ask the Lord to strengthen His people everywhere, from your neighborhood to the halls of federal government, building up many to proclaim the truth of salvation through Jesus Christ, both with their words and through their lives.