Courage Opens Doors
“For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline. So do not be ashamed to testify about our Lord.”
2 TIMOTHY 1:7–8
Think - the door is always open, never closed, to the choices we may make. Success is making life choices that please God. You can choose courage. Courage pleases God. Today I would like you to think with me about courage. Today I will use the story of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, Daniel’s three friends held in captivity along with him. Before getting to their story, I would like to set things by defining some aspects of courage.
Courage may be gained by experiencing the presence of the Lord. When Jesus walked on the water, he scares the daylight out of the disciples and calls to them. Matthew 14:27b, “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.”
Peter and John were placed on trial in a religious court in Jerusalem. After declaring the good news of Jesus, the judges fell silent. The book of Acts records it this way. Acts 4:13, “When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus.”
Paul was placed on trial in Jerusalem before a religious court. After a raucous day before the judges, he lingered that night in the barracks of the soldiers. During the night, we are told that the Lord came to Paul to elevate his courage. Acts 23:11, “The following night the Lord stood near Paul and said, “Take courage! As you have testified about me in Jerusalem, so you must also testify in Rome.””
Courage may be gained by experiencing the presence of the Lord.
Courage is doing what you’ve got to do when you have fear.
When artist Damon Davis went to join the protests in Ferguson, Missouri, after police killed Michael Brown in 2014, he found not only anger but also a sense of love for self and community. His documentary "Whose Streets?" tells the story of the protests from the perspective of the activists who showed up to challenge those who use power to spread fear and hate. He says from the Ted stage, “So, I'm afraid. Right now, on this stage, I feel fear. In my life, I ain't met many people that will readily admit when they are afraid. And I think that's because deep down, they know how easy it spreads. See, fear is like a disease. When it moves, it moves like wildfire. But what happens when, even in the face of that fear, you do what you've got to do? That's called courage. And just like fear, courage is contagious.”
Courage may be gained by experiencing the presence of the Lord. Courage is doing what you’ve got to do when you have fear.
Courage is telling the story of who you are with your whole heart.
Brené Brown[*]studied people she calls whole-hearted people. Here is what she found out about them. “What they had in common was a sense of courage. And I want to separate courage and bravery for you for a minute. Courage, the original definition of courage, when it first came into the English language -- it's from the Latin word "cor," meaning "heart" -- and the original definition was to tell the story of who you are with your whole heart…”
Courage may be gained by experiencing the presence of the Lord. Courage is doing what you’ve got to do when you have fear. Courage is telling the story of who you are with your whole heart.
Opposite courage is shame.
Paul units two opposing ideas. Fear is not the opposite of courage. For Paul, shame is the opposite of courage. Philippians 1:20, “I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death.” And again, in 2 Timothy, “For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline. So do not be ashamed to testify about our Lord.”
Courage may be gained by experiencing the presence of the Lord. Courage is doing what you’ve got to do when you have fear. Courage is telling the story of who you are with your whole heart. Opposite courage is shame.
Standing is a simple thing. When we are healthy and whole, to stand takes little to no effort of mind and body. We stand without care or thought. Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego stood. They simply stood in a crowd. They stood in a crowd when all were commanded to bow in worship to Nebuchadnezzar and his gods. They stood in a crowd when all were commanded to bow in worship to Nebuchadnezzar under the penalty of death by fire. Their courage let them be seen. Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego simply stood. All others bowed. Were they afraid? Perhaps. Did they want to live? Perhaps. Did they run from their testimony? No. Did they use angry words? No. Did they threaten or lash out in anger? No. Did they bargain with God for their lives? No. They simply stood in testimony to their faith in God. They stood without shame in their faith in God. They stood with courage.
How many of us have the courage of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego to simply stand in testimony to our faith in God? They had the courage of their faith because God was with them. The presence of the Lord manifested for others to see when they walked in the flames of the fire. They had courage doing what they had to do when fear may have stopped them. They had courage to testify to the story of who they were with their whole heart. They had no shame before Nebuchadnezzar. They did not even ask God to save them. Hear their words, “King Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.” In total vulnerability, they simply stood for God.
When you testify about our Lord, you are vulnerable. You shake off shame because you share your story with a whole heart. It is not because you will not be afraid. You overcome fear as you share your story with a whole heart. For the Lord is with you and will give you courage to stand.
I would like to share with you the story of one who stands for God and faces the punishment that comes. Met Pastor John Cao. He has been held for 894 days. He was arrested March 2017 in China.
On March 5, 2017, police arrested Cao San-Qiang (John Cao), a Chinese pastor known for his work among Myanmar’s poor. Authorities charged Pastor Cao with “organizing illegal crossings of national borders” and, one year later, sentenced him to seven years in prison.
Pastor Cao, 58, is married to an American citizen and is a long-time resident of North Carolina. The pastor, who is currently being held in the Menglian Detention Center, had been crossing the border between China and Myanmar for three years without incident and with the knowledge of Chinese officials. In the Wa State of northern Myanmar, Pastor Cao helped build 16 schools that serve 2,000 impoverished children. He also established educational projects to help alleviate poverty among local minority groups.
Experts believe his arrest and sentencing are related to the ruling Communist Party’s attempts to control the house church movement.
Pastor Cao became a believer in his 20s. After he married an American citizen, attended seminary and settled in the U.S., he felt led to return as a missionary to his home country of China. He worked for many years establishing schools in China before turning his attention to neighboring Myanmar in 2014. According to his son, his work in Myanmar was much more humanitarian than his previous work with the house churches in China.
Pray for the pastor’s wife, Jamie Powell, and their sons, Benjamin and Amos.
Your vulnerability that comes with courage may make you beautiful. You have the courage and capacity to be the first to say, "I love you"... the courage and capacity to do something where there are no guarantees ... the courage and capacity to breathe through waiting for the doctor to call after your mammogram. Have the courage and capacity to invest in a relationship that may or may not work out. Reframing Brene Brown:
When we have courage, then we stop screaming and start listening, we're kinder and gentler to the people around us, and we're kinder and gentler to ourselves.
[*]Brené Brown studies human connection -- our ability to empathize, belong, love. In a poignant, funny talk, she shares a deep insight from her research, one that sent her on a personal quest to know herself as well as to understand humanity. A talk to share. TEDxHouston | June 2010
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