Courage for Christ

"Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of courage; be strong. Do everything in love."

1 Corinthians 16:13-14

 

The definition of courage is a quality of spirit that enables you to face danger or pain without showing fear. The first thing that jumps out at me from that definition is "without showing fear." The bible is a little more specific. Let's not just not show fear, but let's get rid of ALL fear:

 

"For God did not give us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of self-control."

2 Timothy 1:7

 

When I hear the words, "Courage for Christ" I immediately think of persecution. That is diffidently a situation where you would need courage for Christ. But lately, the Lord has shown me something. He said, "My courage is not just for them, its for you." I find myself in situations where I don't know what to do. I hear the Lord's voice. I know when I am in a place or situation where I'm not supposed to be. I hear God speak, I'm supposed to obey. Obedience is the key to living out your faith. It takes courage. For example: God says, go pray for that person. But God... In all situations (or at least the ones I have been in) all my reasons to not do what God is telling me to do are all excuses. The root of my excuses is fear.

Another thing I think about when I hear those words is the passage in Ephesians about The Armor of God:

 

"Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people."

Ephesians 6:10-18

 

This passage is so packed with truth! But my most favorite part it the part where it says, "after you have done everything, to stand." That is a true picture of courage to me. To stand no matter what. God's courage is not temporary. Then the first verse that I put in this post says to stand firm in the faith. So when there is nothing else you can do, when all hope seems lost, you stand, in faith.

 

When you are reading the first verse (1 Corinthians 16:13-14) you are probably getting the picture of this mighty warrior for the Lord. He is always on guard, standing firm in faith, having courage, being strong, and then at the very end of this verse it says do everything in love. We can't overlook this part. It is very important. All throughout the bible we see God's love on his people, and then we see that love reflecting off of his people onto others. Put on love. It is a very important thing. Love your enemy. Love your neighbor as yourself. Love God. Love others more than yourself. The list goes on and on and on. It may seem overwhelming at times, but when it gets overwhelming we remember that God loved us through all the confusion, through all the pain and all the hurt. No matter what, he loved us.

 

Today have:

Courage for Christ