2 Corinthians 5:6-10
“So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, for we walk by faith, not by sight. Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord. So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please him. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.”
As I listened to Rusty Rice, one of our pastors as he is preaching a series on stories of faith in the Bible and today's was titled “Courage Under Fire” from the book of Daniel the third chapter. I came home to write on 2 Corinthians 5:6-10, about being of good courage. This question entered my mind; does the church have any understanding of what Paul is sharing and how great the need is for us who follow Christ to be confident and satisfied in our homes, at work, in the marketplace, and with our neighbors?
I asked myself, am I projecting courage at home, with my family, neighbors, friends, and in the marketplace? Am I living with confidence that my God is able, that He is big, real big, and I mean bigger than anything this world can hand to me? Rusty talked about three men who believed our God was bigger and able to rescue them from an evil leader, and they had the courage to stand when most were bowing to a false god. They were confident that even in death their God would not leave them, and they experienced walking in the fire with the Lord in total freedom, and God was glorified and they walked out of the fire to see an evil leader bow to the only real God.
Will you choose today what so many in the past have chosen, look at Joshua 1:8-9, "This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go." Could my problem and yours be we are not taking the Scripture into our heart, into our minds, and we are like mere men, not men of courage?
Could it be you and I need to revisit whom we serve, by looking back at what God promised His children coming out of Egypt, it’s found in Deuteronomy 31:3-6. “The Lord your God himself will go over before you. He will destroy these nations before you, so that you shall dispossess them, and Joshua will go over at your head, as the Lord has spoken. And the Lord will do to them as he did to Sihon and Og, the kings of the Amorites, and to their land, when he destroyed them. And the Lord will give them over to you, and you shall do to them according to the whole commandment that I have commanded you. Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the Lord your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you.”
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