To Hell With Hesitation

To Hell with Hesitation

Scripture References

• Luke 2

Overview

Bold faith rarely feels convenient. Using the Christmas shepherds as a mirror, the sermon insists that one Spirit-prompted moment can redirect an entire life. We either act or hesitate. The shepherds hurried, told everyone, and history was forever altered. This week—especially during the Christmas season—God will place similar opportunities before every believer; the only question is whether we will move with urgency or freeze in fear.

Main Points

A personal lesson in hesitation

• Story: On a late-night ride on Chicago’s L train, the speaker met Julio. When Julio learned he was a pastor, the preacher sensed a nudge to ask a spiritual question but stayed silent, fearing awkwardness.
• After prolonged small talk Julio finally asked, “What should I think about God?” The pastor fumbled; the train doors opened; Julio left saying, “Thanks for trying.”
• Takeaway: hesitation cost a divine appointment.

Key thought: bold obedience changes lives

“You never know how God might use one moment of boldness to change someone’s life.”

• Every believer will face multiple Spirit-promptings this week—often disguised as ordinary conversations.
• Our choice each time: boldly obey or quietly do nothing.

The shepherds: ordinary people, urgent response (Luke 2)

• After 400 years of prophetic silence, an angel’s birth announcement bypassed kings and went to night-shift shepherds.
• First-century shepherd facts:
  • Could not testify in court.
  • Suspected of theft; property sales were distrusted.
  • Ceremonially unclean—barred from temple worship.
  • Social outcasts, grouped with tax collectors and prostitutes.
• Despite stigma, the shepherds “hurried” to Bethlehem—no planning, no delay.
• Their urgency models the posture the modern church often lacks.

They told everyone

• “The shepherds told everyone what had happened.”
• Courage required: society deemed them untrustworthy, yet they proclaimed the Messiah.
• Reasons we hesitate today: fear of questions we can’t answer, not wanting to be pushy, insecurity about our past.

Good news for all people

• The shepherds’ simple message: a Savior is born; God reached down so we could be lifted up; no one is outside His reach.
• God delights in using the unlikely—people who feel uneducated, unworthy, or overlooked—to do the extraordinary.

Modern application: pray and walk in boldness

“A savior is here.”

• The speaker urged the church to pray, “Make me bold,” warning that God will immediately provide opportunities.
• Boldness may feel uncomfortable, but the satisfaction of obedience outweighs the regret of silence.
• Illustration: Conversation with a well-known, non-Christian influencer. Prompted twice to ask about his spiritual life; the pastor finally asked, clarified the gospel, and scheduled future time together—evidence that honesty can deepen, not damage, respect.

Salvation invitation

• Clear explanation: Jesus, born of a virgin, sinless “Lamb of God,” died and rose so people can be forgiven and made new.
• Public call to respond; many raised hands or typed decisions online.

Key Truths

• God often chooses the overlooked to carry His greatest news.
• Spiritual hesitation can close doors that boldness might open.
• Christmas week presents the year’s highest openness to gospel invitations.
• Boldness is not personality; it is Spirit-empowered obedience.
• One clear, joyful declaration—“A Savior is here”—is powerful enough to change eternity.

Response

• Pray daily, “Make me bold,” expecting God to answer with opportunities.
• Act immediately on Spirit promptings; avoid overthinking.
• Invite at least one person to church this Christmas week.
• Share your personal redemption story plainly and joyfully.
• View every setting—work, school, transit, coffee shop—as a potential divine appointment.

Closing

The shepherds’ urgency echoes across two millennia, confronting every believer with a choice. Will we hurry to Jesus and hurry to others, or will we stall? The preacher’s rally cry rings out:

“To hell with hesitation.”
This week, may bold obedience replace fearful delay, and may countless lives discover that a Savior is here.

Prayer

The congregation prayed collectively: “Lord, make me bold. Open my eyes to the people you place before me, give me words to speak, courage to act, and a heart that cannot stay silent about Jesus. Amen.”