Courage and Risk Taking 3

Photo Credit: Edgar Chaparro

On Monday, 7th May, as I researched our theme for the month, I came across a powerful teaching, which I promised to share with you. We will be learning about the application of a major ingredient recurring in our text —  Joshua 1 — and that ingredient is courage. To take risk you will require courage and not just that, you will need to be “very courageous.” And what’s more, it is a command from God. Our God instructs us to be Bold and very Courageous! Be ye transformed as you read. Amen.

"Let go of the bar"

There is, as you know in this world no such thing as a sure thing. In this world nothing appears to be certain. We cannot really control the outcome of a single day. When we think we are in control we have only bought an illusion. We’re never in control. We may think we are but we’re really not. You really can’t control the entire outcome of what will happen this day. Even if all your meetings happen, the details and all kinds of things that transpire will be different from anything you could’ve planned. It’s just that way. We can’t control as much as we’d like to suppose.

Paul Tourney used an analogy about the idea of life as sometimes like a trapeze act where you can swing on the bar. You can exercise and build muscle all you want but if you want to excel, what do you have to do? You have to let go of the bar. You can keep working out on the bar but you’re not going to excel by staying on the bar. That would be a boring act to just watch the guy and he doesn’t go from one bar to the other. The point is you have to let go with nothing beneath you and reach out for the next trapeze bar. I think that’s a very good way of understanding there’s a point at which we let go. The fact is that a turtle never moves forward until he sticks his neck out. You have to move forward and you have to take some risks.

Hebrew 6 tells us about two reasons why God’s promises are certain. The first reason why His promises are certain is the unchanging character of His purpose. In verse 16 He talks about His promises to Abraham and He swore since there was nothing greater for Him to swear by, He swore by Himself. It’s an interesting idea. He can’t say I swear to God. The fact is He doesn’t have a higher thing to swear by than Himself. There is no higher authority. So, He basically swears by Himself.

There’s a fundamental security in these two things. First of all, God does not break His promises. Secondly, God Himself doesn’t change His character. His character is immutable which means it will not change. He will not be in a good mood or a bad mood in the sense of vacillating. His character and integrity will not change. His immutable character and promises flow out of His unchanging character and become the two things then that this text invites us to see that gives us real stability. We find our feet are not on shifting sand but on the rock of God’s promises. — Dr. Ken Boa

My Commentary:

Isn’t that comforting to know? That in leaping out in faith and obedience to God’s instructions for your life; in letting go of the bar, and momentarily flying in mid-air, reaching out for the next level, our confidence lies on the rock solid promises of Jehovah. Our feet are not on shifting sand! I think that is the most assuring thing I’ve heard all year. Don’t you agree? Letting go of the bar for the briefest of moments can be the scariest thing ever. Why? We want to be in control. You want to know what will happen next, determine how it should happen and then manage all the outcomes. But my dear, if that is the life you wish for, then you do not need God. What you seek is a godless life and a life without walls. But a city without walls has no defense against the enemy. Psalm 125:2 says, the Lord surrounds us as the mountains surround Jerusalem. The security of the righteous is compared to that of Jerusalem encircled by its hills. How do you suppose you could encircle yourself from the assaults and tempests of this life? God’s protection is round about us on every side (those who trust in Him), and is constant and persevering, from henceforth, says the psalmist, even for ever. God does not (EVER!) break His promises. God Himself does not change His character. And for that our feet is not on shifting sand but on the rock of God’s promises. If that be the case, then you can let go of the bar, stretch, leap and reach for the next level. If that be the case then you should (TOTALLY!) take God on His word. You should (TOTALLY!) lean upon His gracious promise to you. You should (TOTALLY!) trust Him; trust and obey; follow His instruction to you. God does not (CANNOT!) lie. And He doesn’t (WILL NOT) change His character. Why do you hesitate? Oh ye of little faith.

Hebrews 6: 16-20

“For men swear by one greater than themselves, and with them an oath given as confirmation is an end of every dispute. In the same way God, desiring even more to show to the heirs of the promise the unchangeableness of His purpose, interposed with an oath, so that by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have taken refuge would have strong encouragement to take hold of the hope set before us. This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and steadfast and one which enters within the veil, where Jesus has entered as a forerunner for us, having become a high priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.”