Tyler Blevins, best known as the prominent Twitch streamer “Ninja”, recently shared that he has been attending church regularly while on stream.
Blevins rose to fame in 2017 by playing Fortnite Battle Royale. He has since become one of the top video game streamers in the world, with over 19 million followers on his Twitch channel alone. This year, however, there has been a much larger change taking place in Blevins’ life that exceeds gaming, and that is a life being transformed by God. He has referenced his faith several times to his followers while on stream, such as publicly declaring “Jesus Is King” and that he is attending church regularly with his wife. Like any news regarding people taking initiative in wanting to follow Christ, especially when it’s someone in a public space, this news is worth celebrating because we know our Lord is at work.
How can believers encourage bold, authentic faith in public spaces without compromising humility and truth?
1. A Change In Priorities
The first thing to consider is that there is a change in priorities where one recognizes that they’re no longer living for themselves but for God. Blevins acknowledged this in a recent stream where he said he was struck by what he read in the book, No More Excuses: A 90-Day Devotional for Men by Pastor Tony Evans.by Tony Evans.
Blevins quoted Matthew 6:24, saying, “No one can serve two masters. … You cannot serve both God and money,”
“That’s so hard,” he admitted.
“The first thing that came to me was video games,” the streamer explained. “But, I’ve really reshaped my priorities and rearranged them greatly.”
“The first thing I do when I wake up is I stretch, I read the Bible, and I pray,” he added. “And that’s really hard. That was like a really hard thing to do. The first thing in the morning that I would do for the last 20 years of my life would be, like, checking my phone. And the first thing I do now is pray.”
I appreciate Blevin’s comments here as he recognizes that his relationship to God is his top priority now over video games. In turn, others can be encouraged by what he says because what he is saying is true. It is essential. We were made for God, not ourselves. Just as we are to know God, so we must make Him known to the world through the preaching of the Gospel as well as through our lives, through our testimony.
2. Talk about Your Life
Another way to promote public witness is sharing one’s testimony, as it gives hearers an opportunity to hear what God has done in a believer’s life. Whether you’ve had a rough past or not, every Christian has a testimony because they all needed to be saved. In Christ, we have passed from death unto life, from darkness to His light, as we are born again.
And because we have been saved, we can testify what God has done for us in Christ, as evident in our lives. Although no one is perfect, there is evidence of change in one’s life to the point where other people who know you take notice. They’ll say, “Something is different about you, I see a change,” or something along those lines. Anyone here reading this as a fellow brother or sister in Christ knows what I’m talking about.
In Ninja’s case, he shared how walking with God has helped him maintain his cool when playing video games, even if it means not always hitting the mark.
"I don't want to be that person anymore," he said, "I might still pop off every once in a while and lose my cool, but I'm working on it."
That’s the beauty of a testimony, to see how God has changed one’s life, because that’s how it should be. There is no such thing as an unchanged life in Christ; that is to either deny God of His power or that you have yet to be saved. But those who are saved see and taste that the Lord is good (Psalm 34:8) and have benefited from His salvation. There is a change of heart, not simply behavior modification, but a desire to serve the Lord, whereas there wasn’t in the past. We went from rebelling against God to having a relationship with Him. Although we still fall short at times, or many times, rest assured that God will finish the good work He began in our lives (Philippians 4:6).
3. Share the Gospel
The third and final step is sharing the Gospel. As we know, the apostle Paul says that “I am not ashamed of the Gospel is the power of God unto salvation” (Romans 1:16). In the words of the apostle,” I am not ashamed.” Here is a man who once persecuted the church to become one of the most prominent figures in the Bible. Paul, formerly known as Saul, wrote about half of the New Testament, as we continue to read today. Despite his past, his life was never the same following the supernatural encounter he had with the resurrected Christ on the road to Damascus (see Acts 9). And now he is "unashamed" because he recognizes that Christ has removed his shame, and that the same applies to others who receive the Gospel. In Christ, the past is no more. He forgives us all our inequity and transgressions, which he does not count against us. Therefore, we no longer have to be ashamed but are all the more grateful in light of what Christ has done for us.
Sharing the Gospel is the top priority for believers. It is what we are called and mandated to do. It is non-optional. It doesn’t matter if you are an evangelist, missionary, or churchgoer; we must preach the Good News to the lost. After all, we received the Gospel by hearing it through someone, why can’t we share it ourselves? Overall, it is the “power of God” unto salvation. He is the one who saves, not us, for we can never save ourselves to begin with. No matter how many good works we do, it is like filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6). We can never work or earn our salvation before God, who rightly has all authority to judge us and condemn us for our sins. But He did not leave us without hope, but by sending His Son, Jesus, to die in our place, bearing God’s wrath that was meant for us, and reconciling us to the Father. Christ also gives us His righteousness, so now we are no longer condemned, and sends us the Holy Spirit, who regenerates and renews us (Titus 3:5). This is the power of God at work when we receive the Gospel. When it comes to salvation, “with man it is impossible, but with God all things are possible (Matthew 19:26). Therefore, we have all the more reason to share it.
As Christians, we recognize what Christ has done for us on Calvary, and we are eternally grateful. Moreover, Christ calls us to preach the Gospel as part of the Great Commission (Matthew 20:18-20). The Gospel is meant to be shared, not kept under wraps. Let us go out into the harvest, for it is plentiful, but the laborers are few (Matthew 9:37). Let us not give in to compromise nor the pressures of the world, but let us proclaim the Good News to the glory of God for He is glorified when we share and when those who hear it are saved. Amen.
Photo Credit: ©Facebook/Ninja
