Holy Boldness
The story is told of a traveler walking through a forest during a bitter cold winter. Coming to a river capped with ice the traveler stopped and stared in fear. The river must be crossed, but how?
Terrified the traveler got down on hands and knees and began to crawl across the ice. The ice popped and cracked with frightening sounds until the traveler lay flat upon the ice trying to wiggle forward ice inches at a time.
Suddenly there was a horrible sound! Thunderous. It seemed the river shook! The traveler supposed the ice was breaking and he would soon die in the cold, cold waters!
To his surprise, he looked up to see a loaded wagon pulled by six horses thundering by with the driver calling the horses to run faster and faster!
Last Sunday my missionary brother-in-law Wayne Wozniak shared a sermon about the sinking of the Titanic. Captain Rostron's ship was four hours away when the distress signal was received. He ordered the ship to full throttle in dangerous waters in hopes of saving people from the Titanic.
His crew warned him of the danger and urged him to cautious speed, to which he replied: "Caution is a luxury that we cannot afford!"
He was the hero of the Titanic story. All persons in lifeboats—700+— were rescued by the ship captained by Rostron.
A friend of mine has been making a study of famines in biblical times. Again and again God favors those who turn to Him. In their love for God they love people. They share what they have. Unselfishness becomes the standard for behavior.
Let us imagine that today every person in America began to say: "I will share what I have. I will not be selfish. I will honor my body and my mind with sacredness as a possession of the Lord. I will speak good. I will reach out to those in need. I will not be afraid."
Suppose every Christian in America began to sing of the redemption of the Lord. Every heart renewed itself in hope of the coming of Jesus. Every hand and foot became an instrument to serve and bring honor to God.
I have walked through ghetto areas of cities with trash and filth lining the streets. I have wondered how long it would take if every home and business came out at an appointed hour with trash bags and cleaned in front of their own door. In one day a city could be cleaned. In one day ugly could become beautiful.
What we need is a holy boldness to believe God for miracles. We need the courage to read the Bible as a book of true stories, not of fiction. We need the willingness to expect of God that He will make a way where it seems there is no way.
We need the audacity to dare to hope for sinners to come to Jesus and to believe they can be changed without having to experience years of psychotherapy.
We need the humility to surrender our love for things in love for the cross.
We need the courage to say that God loves our soul more than our comfort.
When we lose godly hope, we lose boldness. When we lose boldness, defeat is imminent. May God open our eyes to hear the thunder of His Coming. May we awaken from our stupor and have the courage of a Captain Rostron to say: “We cannot afford the luxury of caution, souls are in danger. We must hasten to share the Hope that is in Jesus Our Savior!”
Join with me in talking the good talk and walking the good walk. Let us not measure our worth in worldly value. We are children of God. Our names are written down in heaven. Angels attend us. Angels watch over us. And, God says in Psalm 18 that if necessary He will come down from Heaven to our rescue.
Stand up! Run. Beat your chest with the battle cry! Sound the trumpet. Declare that Our God lives! Be wise as Gideon's 300. Open your eyes to the victory God has prophesied.
Our Lord will not come back for an anemic, bleached, sick, faltering, and spineless church, but for the victorious Church, His Church, blood-bought, blood-washed, pure and holy! He has destined that we reach the other side!
Rise and run!
Pastor Bare
“That he might present it to himself a glorious Church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish” (Ephesians 5:27).