Jesus was faced with opposition from every side. Judas betrayed him. Peter, one of his closet disciples, denied him, and now Jesus was falsely accused. Jesus had plenty of reasons to threaten those who misunderstood him. He could have chosen to argue with the people, or defend His position. He could have challenged the religious through the scriptures. However, Jesus did none of the above. Jesus’ response is described in below scripture:

As soon as the chief priests and their officials saw him, they shouted, “Crucify! Crucify!”But Pilate answered, “You take him and crucify him. As for me, I find no basis for a charge against him.”

The Jewish leaders insisted, “We have a law, and according to that law he must die, because he claimed to be the Son of God.”

When Pilate heard this, he was even more afraid, and he went back inside the palace. “Where do you come from?” he asked Jesus, but Jesus gave him no answer.  “Do you refuse to speak to me?” Pilate said. “Don’t you realize I have power either to free you or to crucify you?”

Jesus answered, “You would have no power over me if it were not given to you from above. Therefore the one who handed me over to you is guilty of a greater sin.” John 19:6-11

Pilate asked Jesus a question, but Jesus did not answer him. Pilate reminded Jesus that he had the power to release Him or convict Him, but Jesus still did not defend Himself. He only reminded Pilate who was his true source of authority.

It takes courage not to defend ourselves. Generally, we defend ourselves for one of three reasons. The first reason is because we want to clear our name of any wrong doing and explain our position. This didn’t seem to be an issue for Jesus. He never seemed to be concerned about His reputation. Secondly, we speak up because we want to fight for our rights and correct an injustice committed against us. Jesus knew that it was man’s sinful nature that brings about injustice towards others, and He knew a deeper solution was needed for that condition. Thirdly, we find a need to defend God and take up His cause. Jesus always spoke about God as His father and showed them His special relationship to the Father. That was more important to Him than fighting for God as an advocate. 

Jesus didn’t fall for any of these temptations. He was courageous in the midst of all the injustice, betrayal, and rejection. He knew God was the ultimate authority, so He looked to the Lord in the midst of all the pain. 

Are you focused on those who wronged you? How you are handling your challenges? Are you facing them with courage?

Esther was a Jewish girl who was raised by her cousin Mordecai. King Ahasuerus married Esther, and she became the Queen of Persia. The scripture tells us that the King loved Esther more than all the other women in his harem. Esther had the king’s favor. However, she had to be courageous to risk her life and disclose her true identity. 

When the king’s assistant, Haman, plotted to annihilate the Jewish people, Mordecai sent the news to Esther, and he also sent the following message to her:

And Mordecai told them to answer Esther: “Do not think in your heart that you will escape in the king’s palace any more than all the other Jews.  For if you remain completely silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. Yet who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” Esther 4:13-14

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Esther may have been a bit fearful in approaching the king since he had not invited her to his chambers for thirty days. However, Mordecai’s message had a sobering impact on her. He reminded her of two important facts.

The first was that God desired to save His people, and that if she did not respond to the call, God would use someone else to carry out that assignment. This is an important principle. Just because God has chosen us to fulfill His purpose, it does not mean that He will indefinitely wait for our obedience. God desires for us to partner with Him in accomplishing His will. Nevertheless, if we don’t respond, He may eventually use someone else to get the job done.

The second fact was that Mordecai reminded Esther that her position as the queen may have been for such a time as this.  God had favored Esther in order to use her influence at this particular time. This fact applies to us as well. God’s favor in our lives has a purpose. His blessings are supposed to bring life to us as well as others. He expects us to use our favor for the benefit of others. 

She gained clarity of vision through Mordecai, and she realized that her favor had a purpose. Esther became determined to approach the king even if it meant losing her life. She was no longer comfortable to just be a queen. She became courageous and risked her life in order to fulfill God’s purpose. God’s vision gave her the courage to face the injustice and stand in the gap for her people.

I have used my favor at times to stand in the gap for others. I knew that God was pleased, but my flesh and my soul had to experience the pain of rejection. I also had to face the consequence for standing in truth. Being courageous does not guarantee results, but it does please the Lord. 

Are you willing to be courageous and to stand in the gap for others? How are you using your favor to bless others?

Jonathan was King Saul’s son, and, technically, he would have been next in line to the throne of his father. However, Saul disobeyed the Lord, and therefore, God rejected Saul as king (See 1Samuel 15:10-35). This also meant that his son was disqualified to be the next ruler.

God directed Samuel, the prophet, to anoint David as the next king over Israel, but it took years before David came to the position. In the meantime, David served Saul at the palace, but Saul developed jealousy and hatred towards David.

Now when he had finished speaking to Saul, the soul of Jonathan was knit to the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul.  Saul took him that day, and would not let him go home to his father’s house anymore.  Then Jonathan and David made a covenant, because he loved him as his own soul.  And Jonathan took off the robe that was on him and gave it to David, with his armor, even to his sword and his bow and his belt. 1 Samuel 18:1-4

Interestingly, Jonathan should have been the person hating David. He could have been jealous and resentful that God picked David, a shepherd boy, over him. He could have been angry about losing his right to the throne. However, Jonathan was courageous to accept the truth and God’s assignment for him as well as David’s.

The above scripture tells us that Jonathan took his robe off and gave it to David. This was the recognition of the call of God on David and the admission  that Jonathan was not going to be the future king. Furthermore, Jonathan became a good friend to David. When Jonathan knew that Saul was searching to find David and kill him, he was courageous again to inform David of potential threat to his life.

In the face of seemingly unfair circumstances, Jonathan’s courage made a way for God’s plan to be fulfilled. He partnered with God to ensure that David remained safe and that took his position as king. The prophesies in the Old Testament foretold that the Messiah was going to come from the line of David and from the root of Jesse (David’s father). Jonathan’s courage helped to fulfill God’s redemptive plan for humanity.

Are you courageous to accept the truth about yourself as well as others? Are you able to be a friend to someone who seems to be doing better than you? Can you courageously accept people’s placement and provision in life and be happy for them?

A quiet and humble prophet shows another face of courage. This man was willing to risk his life and deliver God’s word. Nathan was a brave prophet who had to deliver a tough word to the King of Israel. Many times we equate courage with being a strong warrior, but in this case Nathan was a courageous prophet.

It takes courage, risk, and resolve to deliver a word that others may not want to hear.  Nathan observed David for quite sometime before he addressed his sin . Nathan began by telling parable about a rich man who took a little ewe that belonged to a poor man. David rightly reacted with anger and said that the rich man should get killed for such an injustice.

Then Nathan said to David, “You are the man! Thus says the Lord God of Israel: ‘I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul. I gave you your master’s house and your master’s wives into your keeping, and gave you the house of Israel and Judah. And if that had been too little, I also would have given you much more! Why have you despised the commandment of the Lord, to do evil in His sight? You have killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword; you have taken his wife to be your wife, and have killed him with the sword of the people of Ammon. Now therefore, the sword shall never depart from your house, because you have despised Me, and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife.” 2 Samuel 12:7-10

Nathan confronted David about his sin with Bathsheba and the fact that he taken the only wife of Uriah. Nathan took a major risk by confronting David. David could have killed Nathan out of fear or anger. He could have denied the whole thing and accused Nathan of having ulterior motives. Nathan must have counted the cost before going to King David.

David was patient. He waited until almost a year later to confront David. The Bible does not tell us that David shared this information with anyone during that time. Nathan must have sought the Lord for wisdom and discernment on how to handle this touch situation. 

Will you be able to deliver an unpopular/tough message?  Are you afraid of backlash? Despite all the possible fears or concerns, Nathan didn’t stop from doing God’s will.Nathan loved David and was a loyal man to the King. However, he loved God more most and that gave him the courage to do God’s will in God’s time! 

Courage has many faces. It expresses itself differently based on the circumstances at hand. Sometimes, it shows up as mental strength when we don’t allow ourselves to be influenced by too many opinions. At other times,  courage causes us to stand up for truth and show moral strength in the midst of compromise. There are times when we are faced with opposition, and we show courage when we don’t give up. In some cases, fear pushes us to retreat, but courage overcomes fear and does not run when things get hard.

Definition of Courage ( according to Webster’s Dictionary): mental or moral strength to venture, persevere, and withstand danger, fear, or difficulty.

When we look at the Bible, the people of God showed courage in different ways as they were faced with opposition, difficulty, lies, and injustice. In the next few devotionals, I will share about the Biblical account of God’s people and the faces of courage revealed in the midst of tough situations. 

But if you do not worship, you shall be cast immediately into the midst of a burning fiery furnace. And who is the god who will deliver you from my hands?” Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego answered and said to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter.  If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king.  But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up.” Daniel 3: 15-18

Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego were commanded to submit to the demands of a pagan king and were pressured to compromise their allegiance to God. They chose not to worship the king and to disobey the established edict.  Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego showed courage in the midst of the opposition by having mental and moral resolve. They committed to staying unshakable in spite of the outcome. They knew that God was all powerful and could save them. However, they didn’t know if God was planning on rescuing them. Therefore, they decided that if God didn’t save them from this tough predicament, they were still going to remain loyal to God. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego were willing to stand tall and pay the price of obedience.

What if Shadrach, Meshak, Abed-Nego hadn’t shown moral strength? What if they decided that they only would stand their ground until they reach the furnace? They could have set a limit as to how long they would hold on to their stance. They could have presumed that God will strike the soldiers dead, and they would not be thrown in the furnace. What if their plan was that as soon as the soldiers tied their hands and feet and opened the furnace, they would give up on their stance?

Praise God for Shadrach, Meshak, Abed-Nego’s  courage and obedience. If they hadn’t shown moral resolve, they would have completely missed seeing God’s deliverance in their lives.We also would have missed not having their story in the Bible to inspire and challenge our faith.  

It was in the midst of the fire that God protected Shadrach, Meshak, and Abed-Nego. Sometimes God wants to do the same for us. If we decide to retreat too soon, we will miss seeing God’s deliverance. When God’s strength sustains us in the midst of the fire, not only we gain a new revelation about God’s character, but also others around us see the strength and the provision of God in the midst of the battle.

Are in the midst of a fire right now? Are you being pressured to compromise your beliefs by those around you? Are you willing to be courageous in the midst of the trial and allow God to deliver you as he sees fit?

We serve others because we love God, and He has called us to love our neighbors. Loving others may include serving family members, friends, or the church. However, there is a kind of giving that goes beyond helping those we know and we like. The below scripture shows the significance of this type of giving:

for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’

 “Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink?  When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You?  Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’ Matthew 25:35-40

When we give to strangers or to those incapable of repaying us, Jesus is pleased with us. This is the true form of spiritual giving.  Jesus goes so far as to say that when we give to strangers, we are doing it as unto Him. Our giving to the poor and the strangers becomes an act of worship as unto the Lord.  It is a place of humility and thanksgiving to God.

In addition, when we give to those who cannot repay us, we represent the heart of God to people. We become the Lord’s hands and feet to a dying world who needs to know Him. How will unbelievers get to know God unless they see individuals who selflessly go out of their way to help someone? We are His servants on the earth serving God by touching people’s lives. We are there to show the love of God rather than getting a recognition or an applause out it.

This type of generosity takes us to deeper places of fellowship with God where we hear His voice, sense His pleasure, and feel His comfort. We move into new realms of intimacy with God because the door is shut to the applause of man. In the secret place, we are enjoying His presence and His love in a new and profound way.

Who are you serving today who cannot repay you?

When Jesus was asked about the greatest commandment, He gave the people two commandments. He stated that they are to love God with all their hearts, minds, and strengths, and to love their neighbors as themselves. 

We serve others as unto the Lord. Serving is about giving of ourselves in some way. It begins by loving our neighbors. Many times we enjoy the convenience of serving the nice neighbors rather than the ones we prefer to avoid. We tend to give of ourselves where we are appreciated or recognized for our efforts. Do we have a desire for people to be aware of our generosity? 

Take heed that you do not do your charitable deeds before men, to be seen by them. Otherwise you have no reward from your Father in heaven. Therefore, when you do a charitable deed, do not sound a trumpet before you as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory from men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. But when you do a charitable deed, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, that your charitable deed may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly. Matthew 6:1-4

God is  generous and giving, and He expects His children to be generous as well. If we were to look at His generosity towards us, we find that He does it subtly and quietly. He models a generosity that is not showy. He does not advertise His giving from the rooftops nor does He pridefully reminds us of those great blessings.

If you have ever had an abusive person in your life, you know how people remind you of great things they have done for you in order to make you feel guilty. God does not do that for He is loving, patient, and generous with us, and  It takes effort and attention for us to recognize all His blessings.  He waits for us to come to the realization that He has been very good towards us.

In a similar manner, Jesus tells his disciples not to do their charitable work to be seen by men.  If we truly love God and love people, our generosity comes from a heart of giving not a need to receive recognition for it. If we have a need to be seen by men, then we should think about our motive and the reason for doing it in the first place.

Everything we do must be done in faith because the scripture tells us that it is impossible to please God without faith. If we seek to be seen by men, then we have received the earthly reward we were looking for. However, we will forfeit the pleasure and the reward of God because we did it to be seen by men rather than by God.

I sleep, but my heart is awake; It is the voice of my beloved! He knocks, saying, “Open for me, my sister, my love, my dove, my perfect one; Song of Solomon 5:2a

The Lord tells us that we are his sister/brother, his love, and his dove. In the above scripture, his final thought about us is that we are perfect. Jesus does not see us as a project to work on. He sees our potential to grown and mature.

Jesus is confident that we will change. Love is the greatest changing agent. Jesus considers us enough! In the light of His glory we are perfect! We don’t have to feel ashamed or defective. We don’t have to strive to be accepted or loved! He is not concerned about what others think of us, and He wants us to feel the same way about ourselves.

The Lord is looking for that awakened heart who is willing to respond when Jesus knocks on the door. He has a genuine interest in our lives, and He desires an intimate relationship with His bride. We don’t have to understand everything, but we can still respond with love, trust, and expectation.

Jesus is the author and finisher of our faith (See Hebrews 12:2) . That means that no one else holds the pen to write our destiny. He is there to carry us through all the way to the end. He has committed Himself to us. He made a covenant with us that is a guarantee of our union with Him through eternity. He is a faithful bridegroom, and He expects His bride to be faithful to Him.

Be excited about the journey with Christ and a loving intimacy with Him! He knows where He wants to take us. We are to enjoy our relationship with Him, and at the same time grow up into maturity. We already are His sister/brother, His love, His dove, and His perfect one. He has seen the end from the beginning. We rejoice in His work and keep going!

I sleep, but my heart is awake; It is the voice of my beloved! He knocks, saying, “Open for me, my sister, my love, my dove, my perfect one; Song of Solomon 5:2a

To live a successful Christian life, we need to find out what God thinks about us.  There are times that we are tired, burdened, and exhausted, and we are in need of being refreshed by God. Jesus desires to encourage and uplift His bride.  He wants us to know His thoughts about us. The above scripture gives us a glimpse of how Jesus feels about those who have accepted Him:

He calls us His sister/brother. We belong to the family of God, and we are His brothers and sisters. He adopted us the day we made a decision to accept Him into our lives. We may have come from a family who rejected us, but God accepts us into His family. His Kingdom and all the benefits of the Kingdom belong to us. 

He calls us His love. God is love, and He enjoys giving that love away to His beloved. He is a generous God who desires to lavish His children with His great love. The scripture tells us that nothing can separate us from His love (See Romans 8:35-37). It is God’s nature to love. He chose to create us in His image, so we can have the ability to commune and communicate with Him. People’s love may be shaky at times. Sometimes we may not even love ourselves, but God always does. 

Jesus calls us His dove. It doesn’t matter how dark or ugly our past has been. He has the power to wash us, make us clean, and restore our innocence. We don’t have to live in a survival mode,  fight for ourselves, or prove to be right. We can walk in innocence and simplicity of faith not because the world is a trustworthy place, but because He is trustworthy to protect us and watch over us.

Do you see yourself as Jesus sees you?

I will continue on this subject in the next devotional. 

Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me. Revelation 3:20

In the above scripture, Jesus is not asking the unbelievers to open their hearts to Him. He is knocking on the door of His church, and He desires to come in and meet with His people. Jesus wants fellowship with us and desires to be part of our lives.

This a reminder of the story of Mary and Martha when Jesus visited them at their house (Luke 10:38-42). Martha was distracted with all the planning and preparing, but Mary sat at Jesus’ feet. Jesus told Martha that Mary had chosen the better thing.

Many congregations are too busy serving God that they have lost the intimacy with God. Having plans are not the problem. However, working on the plans without being open to hearing God’s voice is the issue. This causes our relationship to be only functional.

We cannot afford to ignore the Holy Spirit’s knock at the door. He is a gentleman and will not force Himself. If we let Him come in, He will transform our perspectives, will heal our hearts, and will deliver people from bondages. Isn’t that what we want in our services after all!? He is the ruler of His church and desires to minister uniquely to each person and touch His bride.

Have we lost the faith that God may speak in the midst of the service? Do we leave room for people to have few moments of personal worship without rushing them from one song to another? Can God show up without a three point sermon? Do leaders see themselves as the point person rather than pointing to Jesus?

Our intimacy with the Lord will grow when we give Him room to speak and are not always the ones doing the talking. We then give Him room to be our friend, lover, and counselor. His voice will affirm, encourage, and strengthen us. We need His presence and His voice to ensure we are staying in a living and growing relationship with God.