“With flattery he will corrupt those who abandon the promise. But the people who KNOW THEIR GOD WILL BE STRONG and take action.”
Daniel 11:32 GW
“Fear is a reaction. Courage is a decision.” – Winston Churchill
The opportunity of courage now stands before us and will only increase as each day unfolds. The biblical sign posts found in the Word are given to us as a means of encouragement that our faith would not fail when times of uncertainty would increase. We are to take comfort as we read the Word and discover all its prophetic promises laid out before this day, knowing the Lord is not only fully aware but He’s also fully present!
I’ve often evaluated my walk with the Lord because I’ve seen seasons of courage as much as I’ve noted times of great fear. I’ve tasted the rewards of courage and reaped the consequences of fear equally. So the question that I’ve pondered in prayer is where is courage discovered and how is it sustained?
Joshua and Caleb entered the promise land because they choose courage rather than cowardly bowing down to the populist vote. (Numbers 13) How did they discover courage? What was different in them? They were different from the rest because they FULLY BELIEVED!!
“And do not be afraid of the people of the land, because we will devour them. Their protection is gone, but the Lord is with us. Do not be afraid of them’” (Numbers 14:6–9).
They had FULLY AGREED with the covenant promise of God. It wasn’t just theory to them. It wasn’t just familiar stories handed down to them by previous generations. They had seen the Lord and His ways and were fully convinced of His promises!
Remember Daniel 11:32 states, “But the people who KNOW their God will be STRONG…”
Courage is a matter of the heart! Courage is discovered in your knowing or believing! For example, many times we’re still living in agreement with the testimony of who we were before salvation rather then living in FULL agreement of the cross! The more our hearts agree with the testimony of righteousness the more our lives demonstrate or manifest its truth!
In the last days, many will fall away because their belief was theory rather than FULL AGREEMENT as with the other ten spies that Joshua and Caleb opposed.
Now is the time more than ever to evaluate what you fully believe! Do you believe that the Lord is fully present in all circumstances? Do you fully believe and fully agree with God who is faithful to finish what He began? Evidence of your belief will displayed for others to see!
QUESTIONS:
1. Review the 4 sign posts Pastor spoke about on Sunday.
2. Do you find yourself leaning toward fear or faith? Explain
3. What should our response be during times of uncertainty?
4. If your find you’re lacking courage how can you grow your courage? (Mediating/chewing on the promises of God until they change your belief)
