STAND

Those who passed by hurled insults at him, shaking their heads and saying, “So! You who are going to destroy the temple and build it in three days, come down from the cross and save yourself!” In the same way the chief priests and the teachers of the law mocked him among themselves. “He saved others,” they said, “but he can’t save himself! Let this Messiah, this king of Israel, come down now from the cross, that we may see and believe.” Those crucified with him also heaped insults on him. (Mark 15:29-32)

Sticks and stones will break my bones, but names will never harm me. We have all herd this saying a few times in life. So did Jesus! Not only did folks insult Him with words, they spit upon Him, slapped Him, and beat Him . . .and the brutally murdered Him upon a cross. yet it was by God's design to save each one of us! What does God have in mind for you and me? Will we not suffer insult? Should we not come to expect ridicule if we remain faithful to our calling as believers? Why then do we seek such an easy life? We cannot be ashamed of the Gospel. We cannot stand for our God to be mocked and ridiculed. We must take a stand and not back down . . . in the market place, on the job, and in our communities. We must not allow our leaders to constantly trash the values of the Bible and ignore Scriptural principles in which we believe. We must be willing to stand! It remains a verse that I must keep at the forefront:

As for me and my house, we WILL serve the Lord (Joshua 24:15)

. . . even if it is not politically or socially correct!