Courage and Cowardice

Yesterday at Church, the preacher used a quote from C.S. Lewis that I really liked. The quote follows -


“We have made men proud of most vices, but not of cowardice. Whenever we have almost succeeded in doing so, God permits a war or an earthquake or some other calamity, and at once courage becomes so obviously lovely and important even in human eyes that all our work is undone, and there is still at least one vice of which they feel genuine shame.” ― C.S. Lewis, The Screwtape Letters (which is book talking about temptation from a demons point of view . its a very good read)


This morning I happened to be reading from Ephesians 6:


(NIV)Ephesians 6:10-20
Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. [11] Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. [12] For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. [13] Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. [14] Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, [15] and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. [16] In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. [17] Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. [18] And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. [19] Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, [20] for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.


Interesting thoughts this morning, the quote from CS Lewis talking about the vice of cowardice, and the verse from Ephesians, talking about being strong and courageous. I find it interesting that in our world today, taking a stand for Christ is becoming more and more looked down upon. The present encouragement is to be inclusive of all things, even that which is clearly not of God, in an effort to not be seen as divisive. 


The reality is that the truth, when proclaimed, does cause separation from the things of this world. The truth should bring conviction of sin. We must not be afraid of proclaiming the truth through our lives. We need to be able to stand our ground, unashamebly acknowledging our Savior and faith in Him. Its important to remember that we are not fighting against other people - our call is to love all people - but against spiritual forces.


Lord, I pray that You will strengthen us, and help us to stand our ground in the face of the constant onslaught of the world, telling us that our faith is wrong, and that by holding to the truth we are bigoted, self-righteous, judgemental, and generally trying to force our beliefs on others. Lord, we pray that by Your strength and love working through us, that the Church might be known for its love and power. 


 Lord, I pray, like Paul, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I may fearlesly make known the glorious mystery of the Gospel. The truth is that You loved us so much, that You came and took our punishment upon Yourself, Jesus, so that we could enter into eternal life with You, the Father and the Holy Spirit. That is indeed a glorious mystery.