It takes courage to show the world one’s faith in today’s modern world, but people have the Constitutional right to speak out about their beliefs, Pastor Jesse Bradley, the senior pastor at Grace Community Church in Auburn, Washington, told Newsmax on Sunday.

“It’s important to be aware of and know your rights,” Bradley told Newsmax’s “Sunday Agenda.” “The apostle Paul was on trial in the Book of Acts, but he was a Roman citizen. With those rights, he appealed to Caesar and went to Rome and ultimately there was justice.”

However, Bradley stressed that it’s important to be humble while going public with one’s faith, not “obnoxious and rude.”

“Jesus was full of truth and full of love,” he said. “So we live out our faith where we live, work, learn, or play. It doesn’t stay within the walls of the church, but ultimately, we have an example here of someone honoring God with God’s Word, bringing hope.”

And as a country, the motto of the United States is “In God We Trust,” Bradley said.

“It’s another reminder we need to return to God,” he said. “We don’t want to push God out of the way. We want to welcome God. And if you honor God, blessed is the nation that will respect God, and we need God’s presence today.”

His comments came while discussing the suspension of Serbian judo champion Nemanja Majdov after he made the sign of the cross several times during the Paris Olympics.

“When you think about this man’s actions, it’s significant in his heart that he loves God and the message of the cross is good news,” Bradley said. “Jesus loves you. Now it’s Jesus’s death. There’s no greater sacrifice than Jesus’s resurrection. When he makes the sign of the cross, he’s honoring God.”

Bradley noted that he was an atheist before coming to know Jesus while attending Dartmouth College.

“Then I played professional soccer,” he said. “A big part of my life as an athlete is my faith. It’s the foundation of my life and a lot of people don’t know what the cross means.”

There are many problems in the world, Bradley added, “but the cross is not one of them. It’s good news and it’s that message that Jesus loves you.”

He also discussed Pastor Matthew Minucci, who was arrested recently for reading the Bible outside a Seattle abortion clinic.

A judge threw out the case, and he has been permitted to continue preaching in public and exercising his right to freedom of speech and religion.

Bradley pointed out that he lives in Seattle as well and said it’s “the least religious city in America.”

“It’s also the saddest city,” he said. “There might be a correlation there, but there’s hope. The story is not over.”

Bradley also on Sunday discussed the Hezbollah attacks on Nazareth, the hometown of Jesus Christ, and the threats that countless holy places could be put in the crosshairs.

“It’s sad, and we’re grieving,” he said. “We also know that there won’t be peace in the Middle East until Jesus, the Prince of Peace, returns. That’s the good news. He will return physically, visibly, and globally. But until then, we need to pray. Don’t be rattled. Be a peacemaker. That’s what Jesus called us to do.”

And people can continue to pray daily for the Middle East and for the world’s leaders, said Bradley.

“The Bible calls us to pray for all leaders, and we pray that people would turn to God,” he said. “Because until God works in your heart, there can be vengeance that just continues and patterns and cycles of resentment.”

“But when Jesus forgives you, you can love people in a fresh way,” said Bradley. “We need the love of Jesus in the Middle East. All of us have a role, but know this we’re getting closer and closer to Christ’s return.”

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