BE Strong and Courageous

“This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says to all those I carried into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: “Build houses and settle down; plant gardens and eat what they produce. Marry and have sons and daughters; find wives for your sons and give your daughters in marriage, so that they too may have sons and daughters. Increase in number there; do not decrease. Also, seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper.”  (Jeremiah 29:4-7)

Over the past few weeks, we’ve learned that: we are to live intentionally and with a plan. we are to be active in praying for and seeking the welfare of our community. we are to put down roots in our community in a way that permits us to bless those around us in significant ways. To do this, strength, courage, boldness and fearlessness will be needed.

At the time of our passage, the people of Israel were living in exile under the feared Babylonians. To live as God called the exiled people of Israel to live, calls for risk. If we are to truly pray for the welfare of our community, even praying for the welfare of those who persecute us as Christ encourages, we’ll need a good dose of courage. If we are to involve ourselves in the welfare of our community, even when our culture runs significantly contrary to the directives of scripture, we’ll be pulled into all sorts of difficult and tension ripe circumstances.

A Lesson from Joshua 1 “Have I not commanded you? 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) When God commands us to do something, we ought to follow through with strength and courage, knowing that God is with us wherever the following of that command will lead us. There is no place for fear and discouragement, for when we follow God’s command, we know that He is with us.

On the cusp of the Promised Land, God commands His people to be obedient, to manifest strength and courage and to trust that His promises will be fulfilled. Somehow through this highly confrontational circumstance “all peoples on earth would be blessed (Genesis 12:3b)”. To do this, both strength and courage would be required.

A Lesson from 2 Chronicles 32 In this passage, we encounter the people of Israel, now established in the Promised Land, facing some serious threats from Sennacherib, king of Assyria. “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” (2 Chronicles 32:7). In the face of a hostile enemy, God encourages strength and courage because His power is present with His people.

The Assyrians were shortly conquered by the Babylonians, who then sent the people of Israel into exile. God encourages of the people of Israel in Jeremiah’s time to: show strength and courage by seeking the welfare of their oppressors be the blessing they were meant to be to the people of this pagan kingdom. From a position of apparent weakness, God’s strength would be manifest through His people. When we act in obedience to God’s commands, we can do so confidently and courageously, knowing that regardless of the outcome, God promises to be with us in proximity and in power.

Scripture teaches us that men like Shadrach, Meshach, Abednego, Daniel, Zerubbabel and Nehemiah acted in obedience to God’s command through Jeremiah, fully engaging the culture around them, while maintaining their distinctiveness as followers of God and becoming a blessing not only to the exiled people of Israel, but also to their Babylonian and later Persian captors.

A Lesson from Matthew 14:22 – 36 “Jesus immediately said to them: “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid”.” (Matthew 14:27) The disciples were completely overmatched by the storm raging all around them and yet Christ called Peter to step out into an extremely hostile environment, urging strength and courage, highlighting His presence there with him. When God commands us to do something, we ought to follow through with strength and courage, knowing that God is with us wherever the following of that command will lead us ... even if that leads us out onto a stormy sea.

In the boat that night sat twelve men who had every reason for confidence and courage, yet in that moment, how did they react? Though God was incredibly present and His commands immensely clear, we often see very poor response rates. Instead of bold and courageous responses, we hear this refrain whispered: “keep calm and don’t rock the boat”.

God is calling us as a church to courageously and boldly act in obedience to it; to more actively root ourselves in this community in such a way that we can be a blessing to it. To do this, we’ll need to be bold and courageous, showing great strength as we take risks in the name of Jesus. If God is with us in both proximity and power, then don’t we have every reason to act and live with confidence? In what was is Jesus calling me out of my boat? What calculated risk is Christ urging me to take to act in obedience with His will for my life?

A View on Communion “Very truly I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day. For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in them.” (John 6:53-56)   The religious leaders of Israel couldn’t get past the literal injunction of eating flesh and drinking blood to see that Christ was encouraging a radical commitment to Him. “From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him.” (John 6:66)

Following Christ is not for the faint of heart Following Christ is not for the faint of heart. Participating in communion is a declaration of our allegiance to Jesus and a statement of bold and courageous faith. May we all together respond in faithful obedience to Christ’s command and together serve our community more fully and in the name of Jesus.