In my developmental years, on certain occasions I battled with the presence of fear. I did my best not to disclose the battle that was taking place within me. However, I paid a price that resulted in me being emotionally drained for a period of time that followed.

Interestingly, as I read my Bible, I have discovered that I wasn’t on my own. In fact, it would appear that courage to overcome fear is frequently mentioned as a requirement to fulfill God’s purposes in our lives. Timothy is a classic example. He was a person with a timid and fearful personality, and on occasions Paul needed to be mindful of this when he wrote to him.

In his second letter to Timothy, Paul wrote, “….I remind you to fan into flame the spiritual gift God gave you when I laid hands on you. For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love and self-discipline. So never be ashamed to tell others about our Lord. And don’t be ashamed of me either, even though I’m in prison for Him. With the strength God gives you, be ready to suffer for the sake of the good news.” 2 Timothy 1:6-8

On another occasion Paul wrote to the Christians in Corinth and made particular mention of Timothy when he wrote, “When Timothy comes, don’t intimidate him (see that he has nothing to fear.)” 1 Corinthians 16:10

The Bible makes it quite clear that courage is an important quality for followers of Jesus to possess. Jesus said to His disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it.” Matthew 16:24-25
“When Jesus used this picture of His followers taking up their crosses to follow Him, the disciples knew what He meant. Crucifixion was a common Roman method of execution and condemned criminals had to carry their crosses through the streets to the execution site. Following Jesus therefore meant a true commitment, the risk of death, and no turning back.”
NIV Bible notes

There is no more important time to display the quality of courage than when a person steps out into a leadership role. The Lord realised this when He spoke to Joshua who was about to lead a new generation of Israelites into the promised land upon the death of his mentor, Moses. Joshua had passed critical tests along the way to prove that he qualified to lead his people into the promised land. He had been tested and approved to be entrusted with this mighty challenge.
1 Thessalonians 2:4
Joshua and Caleb were the only two spies out of twelve that forty years earlier had encouraged their people to go into the promised land.

So important was this quality of courage at that particular time, that the Lord on three occasions exhorted Joshua to be strong and courageous.

1. “Be strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land I swore to their ancestors to give them.” Joshua 1:6
   Joshua needed to be courageous because he was their leader, and he couldn’t ask his people to do anything that he wasn’t willing to do himself.
2. “Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the laws my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or the left that you may be successful wherever you go.” Joshua 1:7
   Joshua would need to be strong and courageous because he needed to model a life of obedience that required total submission to the will of God in all he did.
3. “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid, do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9
   Joshua could be strong and courageous because he was following the Lord’s command, and he was promised that the Lord would be with him wherever he went. He knew that one person with the Lord is a majority.

Leadership and courage are synonymous. A person without courage will struggle to lead whilst it is often the display of courage that opens the door for a person to lead.

Courage comes from the French word ‘coeur’ which means heart. Leaders with the heart to achieve some great purpose will inspire and influence those around them to join them in achieving this purpose. Billy Graham said, “Courage is contagious. When a brave person takes a stand, the spines of others are stiffened.”

There never was a time in the pages of the Bible where God’s people did not need to live courageously, and so it is today. Even the apostle Paul was aware of the possibility of fear compromising his ministry. Consequently he was not afraid to call out for support, as he did when he wrote to the Ephesians; “Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given to me so that I will FEARLESSLY make known the mystery of the gospel for which I am an ambassador in chains; Pray that I should declare it FEARLESSLY as I should.”  Ephesians 6:19-20

On one occasion, Peter and John were put in prison for teaching that Jesus had risen from the dead. The next day they were released from jail whereupon they boldly continued to proclaim that salvation is found in no other name than Jesus. The response of the religious leaders was one of amazement. “When they saw the COURAGE of Peter and John and realised that they were unschooled ordinary men, they were astonished, and they took note that these men had been with Jesus.” Acts 4:13

Perhaps it is true that we don’t need courage if we don’t struggle with fear. However, if you are like me, there are times you need courage to overcome your fears.

I recall the time when Sue and I accepted a call to live in Melbourne to pastor in a church. For some time, I experienced fear when I had to drive my car in unfamiliar places. To overcome this fear, I invited Jesus to sit in the passenger’s seat of my car and by a step of faith asked Him to guide me and help me overcome my fear.
Later on, a door opened for me to regularly travel to eight different Asian countries to share a week of leadership training with groups of emerging leaders. On occasions, I was aware that I was meeting with men who had suffered for their faith and if our gatherings were discovered by the police, we could suffer dangerous consequences. I recall some occasions when courage was needed as I stepped out to travel to certain countries.
I even had a time where I received death threats as a result of a decision my church had made. This resulted in members of my church sleeping in their cars outside my house each night until the police apprehended the instigators. It was a time where I feared for the safety of my family and needed courage from God to sustain me.

Consequently, I have developed the following definition of living courageously:

LIVING COURAGEOUSLY INVOLVES A FAITH DECISION OF MY MIND TO TRUST GOD, THAT MOVES MY WILL AND CONNECTS ME WITH THE PROMISE OF HIS POWER. COURAGE THEREFORE IS GOD’S GIFT TO ME.

THREE SUMMARY STATEMENTS ON COURAGE       

1. COURAGE IS NOT THE ABSENCE OF FEAR
   Without fear, there would be no need for courage.

   Fears to overcome include the fear of:

• Criticism and Rejection – What if I face opposition along the way?
• Change – What if I am taken out of my comfort zone?
• Failure – Taking risks and walking by faith in unchartered waters.
• Loss – Am I willing to pay the price to pursue great purposes for my life?
• Danger – Will I avoid the need to stay safe all the time?
• Insufficient Resources – Am I willing to step out in faith trusting God for my resources?
• Risk – “Unwillingness to accept risk has swamped more leaders than anything else.” Max Du Pree

2. COURAGE STRENGTHENS VIRTUES

   “Courage is the first of human qualities because it is the quality that guarantees all the others.” Winston Churchill

         Courage strengthens virtues:

• Love
  It helps us to “Love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us.” Matthew 5:44
• Obedience
  It helps us not to compromise as it did for Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, “If we are thrown into the blazing furnace the God we serve is able to save us from it…… But even if He does not, we want you to know O King, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.” Daniel 3:1-18
• Faithfulness
  It helps us to live a life of faithfulness as Paul testified when he said,
  “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race. I have kept the faith.”
  Paul, in 2 Timothy 4:7

3. COURAGE ESTABLISHES LEADERS

Courage establishes leaders because great leaders don’t always set out to be great leaders. Rather, they are people with a complaint who set out to make an impact with their lives by living courageously for a great cause, and leadership finds them. After David had killed Goliath, we read it was only then that “the men of Israel and Judah surged forward with a shout and pursued the Philistines….”  1 Samuel 17:53.
David’s courage established him as a leader.

Paul wrote, “Because of my chains, most of the brothers in the Lord have been encouraged to speak the word of God more COURAGEOUSLY and FEARLESSLY.”  Philippians 1:14
Leaders may not always be the first to see an opportunity, but courage ensures that they will usually be the first to seize an opportunity.

COURAGEOUS LEADERS :-

• Walk in front.
  “Follow my example as I follow the example of Christ.”
  1 Corinthians 11:1
• Walk into the unknown by faith.
  They take people to places they have never been. Courageous leadership makes it possible for followers to see what is ahead.
  “If the pathway to the future was well lit, it would be crowded.” Andy Stanley
• Live by their convictions.
  Trust is earned by having convictions and being true to them, by living a life above reproach. Compromised convictions, whether it be in a leader’s private life or public life, erode the leader’s ability to lead.

“One person with a belief is equal to ninety-nine who only have an interest.”
John Stuart Mill

• Live with continual change.
  People of courage never find their security in traditions and maintaining the status quo. They avoid having to colour between the lines but rather start with a blank sheet of paper and draw on it the vision that God has revealed to them.
  “Courage is the power to let go of the familiar.” John Maxwell
• Overcome obstacles and opposition.
  “In fact EVERYONE who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.”
  2 Timothy 3:12
  “The ultimate measure of a person is not where they stand in moments of comfort and convenience but where they stand in times of challenge and controversy.”
  Martin Luther King Jnr.
• Pay a great price.
  The regret of living a life of undisturbed comfort by staying safe and walking in the shallows is of far greater loss than paying the price to overcome our fears and pursue God’s pearl of great price for our lives.
• Never stop learning and growing.
  Courageous people realise that they never have arrived and that there is always more to learn and a better way to do things.

COURAGEOUS PEOPLE ARE NOT ON THEIR OWN

Courageous people rely on:

• The Presence of God.
  “Be strong and COURAGEOUS. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will go with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:19   Deuteronomy 31:16
• The Promises of God.
  “Be strong and very COURAGEOUS because you will lead these people to inherit the land, I swore to their forefathers to give them.” Joshua 1:8

• The Power of God.
  “Be strong and COURAGEOUS. Do not be afraid or discouraged because of the king of Assyria and the vast army with him, for there is a greater power with us than with him.” (King Hezekiah in Jerusalem under siege from Sennacherib, King of Assyria) 2 Chronicles 32:7

  “Finally, be strong in the Lord and His mighty power. Put on the full armour 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 power of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore, put on the full armour 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.” Ephesians 6:10-13

  “……..in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me. But He said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” 2 Corinthians 12:7-10

• Prayer to God.
  “Now Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great BOLDNESS. Stretch out your hand to heal and perform miraculous signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus.” Acts 4:29-30

  “Pray for me……that I will FEARLESSLY make known the mystery of the gospel for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it FEARLESSLY, as I should.” Ephesians 6:19-20.

• The Provision of God
  “I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all things through Him who gives me strength.” Philippians 4:12-13

COURAGE AND THE GROWTH OF CHRISTIANS

One of the amazing paradoxes in the New Testament is that persecution was a major factor in the growth of the church. Persecution forced the Christians out of their homes in Jerusalem and into Judea and Samaria, thus fulfilling the second part of Jesus’ great commission.

“On that day (the stoning of Stephen), a great persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. Godly men buried Stephen and mourned deeply for him. But Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house he dragged off both men and women and put them in prison. Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went.”  Acts 8:1-4
And ever since, history records that persecution has been a major factor in the growth of the church.
This lesson came home to me on the occasions I have spent with leaders in Nepal. From just a single secret Christian residing in Nepal in 1951, the number of Nepali Christians grew to forty thousand baptised believers in 1990. Recent reports claim that there may be three million Christians in Nepal with Nepal being the fastest growing Christian country in the world.

Persecution and hardship and courage are not uncommon experiences for Nepali Christians, and this is best illustrated in the baptism of new believers who are required to give their consent to the following questions.

1. Are you willing to be expelled from your home and community because of your faith in Jesus Christ?
2. Are you willing to give up your family inheritance because of your faith in Jesus Christ?
3. Are you willing to give up your job because of your faith in Jesus Christ?
4. Are you willing to be persecuted and sent to prison because of your faith in Jesus Christ?
5. Are you willing to pay tithes and offerings to honour God regularly?
6. Are you willing to go back to your village to preach the gospel?
7. Are you willing to die for Jesus Christ?

If a baptismal candidate agrees to these questions, then they are asked –
Do you willingly give consent to be baptised?

Persecution and courage have always accompanied the growth of Christianity. There is no greater example for us than the life and death of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

IN CLOSING

The book, Total Abandon is a story about an Operation Mobilisation couple who went to serve the Lord in Lebanon. Their names were Gary and Bonnie Witherall. After serving two years in Sidon, Bonnie was killed by a terrorist gunman in November 2002. On the back of the book, this quote caught my attention,
“Better to pass boldly into the other world in the full glory of some passion than fade and wither dismally.”
These words summarise the lives of two people who lived courageously for the Lord.

I close by asking, “Are you living your life boldly for the full glory of an eternal passion?”