If you are an authentic believer, you never want to hide Jesus.
 

The Apostle Paul made a similar statement in (Acts 17:24-25). Jesus told his followers to not hide their light under a bushel. Let's just take a look at his own words. Please read these powerful words of encouragement into your spirit.

14} "Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. 15} Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.
 

16} Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven. (Matthew 5:14-16 KJV). Jesus also spoke these powerful words.

32} "Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven. [33] But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven. (Matthew 10:32-33 KJV).

When a person repents of their sins, and confesses Jesus as Lord, the Holy Spirit takes up residence in their body (temple). He was poured out on the Day of Pentecost. Please read these words into your spirit.

2} "And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. 3} And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them." (Acts 2:2-3 KJV).

John the Baptist equates the power of Jesus and how he will baptize his followers. Please read this spiritual fuel into your spirit to maintain that combustion you'll need to speak at just the right time. (Matthew 10:19-20, 27-28).

11} "I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire:

12} Whose fan is in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire." (Matthew 3:11-12 KJV).

So beloved, let me elaborate my point even deeper. What does fire need to burn powerfully? Oxygen, right? Your heart, mind, and mouth are that oxygen. When the Holy Spirit ignites your heart, the threats of this world lose their grip.

Do you realize that you cannot be an effective witness if you let culture dictate your volume? This morning church, we are pulling off the muzzles. We are stepping into our divine calling as voices for the Most High!

Because when God puts a fire in your bones, no critic, no culture, and no fear can shut it down. God's power and might encourage the shy and timid to stop burning embers inside that burn, but not enough for others to see.

Beloved, believe me when I tell you, those who personally knew me from youth until Jesus saved me at 22 years of age, saw how I was terrified to publicly speak anywhere. From grade school oral reports to girls, I always kept a muzzle on.

But once Jesus showed up, the Holy Spirit gave me just enough spiritual fuel that started burning inside just like Jeremiah. It makes me excited and wanting to start rejoicing with that song, “Go tell it on the mountain." 🎵


🗣📢 Last words: Here are my final practical points to help you never consider quenching the Holy Spirit by continuing to wear the muzzle of denying who you live for. Peter found out what it felt like after he denied Jesus. He faced:

📌 The pressure to put on the muzzle.
The world will always use intimidation, mockery, and social pressure to try to silence the truth about God. Like Jeremiah, and Peter, we may face moments where being quiet seem easier.

But standing in Jesus brings much more powerful results for you and the ears that hear you. See how it helped Peter later in (Acts 5:27-33). Remember beloved, the muzzle of the enemy usually looks like the fear of rejection or the desire for human approval.

📌 The fire that cannot be contained:
Jesus said he is the way, the truth, and the life. When something comes natural to you concerning speaking, it simply rolls off your tongue. You're not forced or coerced to confess who Christ is.

It's not like my older sister, when I was little, would put my arm behind my back and force me to say uncle. Of course, she couldn't do that today. (Lol). But truth and true faith is not passive, it is Holy Fire breathed outward.

When the word of God is alive in you, trying to suppress your witness will cause more internal agony than any external persecution ever could. (Acts 4:19-20).

God's presence in your life creates an internal compulsion to speak truth that completely overrides human restriction. People may put out the person, but they can’t snuff out the flame from the consuming fire of God (Mark 13:31).

📌 Step out as an unmuzzled witness:

God did not call his church to be a secret society. He called us to be a city on a hill. Church, if you're going to be a voice for God, you must actively choose to reject fear, open your mouth, and speak with divine authority.

Boldness is not the absence of fear; it is the absolute refusal to let fear dictate your obedience to speak to the moral darkness in our society. God has given you the courage needed to stand against evil forces. (Ephesians 6:18-20).

My challenge to my brothers and sisters in Christ is to allow the specific moments below to become a natural occurrence as you follow the Lord daily. Remember beloved, it's not you alone speaking the truth. It's the Holy Spirit.

🔥 Identify your muzzle moments.
Pay close attention to when you feel the sudden urge to stay silent. Is it around certain coworkers? On social media? Recognize that hesitation as a spiritual cue to speak up rather than back down.

🔥 Pray for Open Doors and Open Mouths.
Don't wait for the perfect moment; pray for it. Every morning, ask God for one specific opportunity to share his love or truth, and explicitly ask him for the boldness to open your mouth when it happens.

🔥 Speak the name of Jesus explicitly.
It's easy to use safe, generic terms like "the universe" or "good vibes." This week, break the cultural muzzle by being direct. Share what Jesus did for you, how God answered a prayer, or how the Bible guided a tough decision.

🔥 Stand up for the silenced.
Being an unmuzzled witness means speaking truth to power. If you see someone being mistreated, gossiped about, or marginalized at work or school, use your voice to bring God’s justice, kindness, and defense into that space.

The church should never be muzzled because Jesus was never muzzled. God's true prophets in the Old Testament spoke his words to the people. Paul said, "Woe unto me if I don’t preach the gospel." (1 Corinthians 9:16).

Paul also stated he was not ashamed of the gospel. (Romans 1:15-16). "What is the gospel?" Good news, right? Why would you want to muzzle good news? We must Allow God's work to flourish, Amen?

Unlike Paul, Zechariah found himself muzzle for a period of time. With his first words, he began praising God. The last words Zechariah had spoken months before had been words of doubt. (Luke 1:11-23; 57-64).

Have you ever kept doubting God over, and over, and over, and over? Does it make you filled spiritually muzzled when it's time to trust and confess him to others?

God was going to do great things through Zechariah's son, John. After all the praise, there is no room for doubt. Doubt can eventually simmer and potentially smother a fire that wants to keep burning.

Church, the world is loud in its brokenness, and it is begging the church to stay quiet in its righteousness. The enemy wants nothing more than to see a generation of muzzled Christians walking through life like a church mouse.

Unbelievers are completely overjoyed to see God’s people muzzled with fire trapped in their bones and suffering in silence. But beloved church, you were not created to contain the wildfire of God; you were created to spread it.

This week, when you walk into your workplace, your school, or your neighborhood, you are going to face opportunities to stay silent. You will feel the tug of that leather strap trying to buckle across your mouth.

When that moment comes, remember Jeremiah. Remember the fire shut up in your bones. Shake off the fear of man. Open your mouth, be a witness, and let the fire rage. You cannot be muzzled, because the one who is in you cannot be silenced.


🛐 Here’s a prayer you can pray to restart the pilot flame in the furnace of your heart. "Heavenly Father, we thank you for the consuming fire of your Holy Spirit. Forgive us for the times we have allowed the fear of man to silence us.

Forgive us Lord, for cowardly waiting for the desire of their approval, or the pressures of culture to muzzle our witness. Lord, we ask right now that you would ignite a fresh, unquenchable fire inside our bones.

Give us a holy boldness like Jeremiah, like Peter, and like Paul. Let your truth burn so brightly within us that we simply cannot hold it back. Empower us to be your voice and your witnesses in a dark world.

Break every muzzle of fear today. Help us to walk in the Spirit of power and might. Help us to stand in the armor you provided for us. Help our tongues to be set ablaze with Pentecost fire, in Jesus' mighty name we pray, Amen."


❤ "If you would like to know Jesus as your Savior, please read the drop-down page entitled "How to know Jesus."


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🙏 Please remember to pray for the people in Israel. They are God's people because of his covenant promises to them. (Genesis 12:1-3; Numbers 6:22-27; 24:8-9). ✝️



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