If anyone is ashamed of me and my words
in this adulterous and sinful generation,
the Son of Man will be ashamed of him
when he comes in his Father's glory
with the holy angels.
Mark 8:38
Let's think for a moment about the difference between "shame" and "ashamed."
Shame, it could be said, is a synonym for sin. For example, when Adam and Eve at the apple, they covered up their sin and shame with an inadequate fig leaf.
Ashamed, on the other hand (and at least in this context) is more of a synonym for faith ... or really the lack thereof. For example, is our faith and Christian witness a) bold and vibrant, or b) timid and ashamed?
Now ... use these definitions to ask one of the big question in life: What keeps us out of heaven?
It's not shame. After all, as it says in Romans 3:23, "we've all sinned and fall short of the glory of God."
Rather, it's being ashamed. A confident faith testifies. But if we're justified by faith, then what is a non-testifying faith? If Jesus is saying, "if you're ashamed of me, then I'll be ashamed of you," then maybe we need to be a bolder in our witness.
In Christ's Love,
a guy who's often been tempted
to be a boulder (silent as a rock)
than bolder.
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