God does not call cowards. Thankfully, with the calling of God comes the boldness of God.
The Apostle Paul told Timothy, “For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline” (2 Timothy 1:7). Paul was calling for a attitude of commitment that says, “I don’t care what the world thinks, says, or does. I know what God has mandated for me to be and to do, and that is what I determine, by His power, to be and to do. Whatever the consequences, I will boldly stand for Christ.” In fact, Paul repeats that theme three more times (vs.8, 12, 16)because it was the heart of his message to Pastor Timothy. It is a call for him to have an uncompromising, unflinching commitment to proclaim Jesus Christ, regardless of the danger or difficulty.
John MacArthur said, “No matter how gifted a person may be, or how well trained, biblically literate, astute, or articulate, and no matter much opportunity or privilege he may have, if he lacks spiritual courage and commitment, he will not speak and act effectively for the Lord.”
Occasionally people ask me, “What’s the secret to a successful ministry? What’s the secret to a successful church start? Or “how did you get to where you are?” I don’t know. All I can tell you is one day a call of God came in my heart as He granted me the faith to believe in Jesus Christ. I was a skinny, ugly, shy seven year old boy. Scared to death, I walked timidly down an aisle and fell at a prayer bench and I cried out to Christ for salvation. Five years later at the ripe ol age of twelve I surrendered to preach. I was a nobody with nothing to offer God.
God doesn’t have to have a somebody. He works with nobodies. In fact He never has used anybody but nobodies. And you can’t be a somebody full of God until you are a nobody reduced to nothing and God stands you up as somebody who gives Him glory. And all God has done since the day He called me is keep me reduced, so He can exalt Himself in me, so I can stand like a giant for God.
The Apostle Paul said in 2 Timothy 1:7 that God did not give us the spirit of timidity but He instead gave us three other things: Power, Love and a Sound Mind.
Power
With the power of the Holy Spirit we have been endued with the same power that Christ had to fulfill His earthly ministry. When I say, “I want to quit,” God says “No.”
When I say that I am hurting, God says, “That’s how you get healed. Real healing hurts.”
When I say I can’t do it any longer, God say, “If its ever been done in your life, it wasn’t you doing it anyways.” God knew I couldn’t do it when He called me.
And I definitely didn’t know it was going to be this hard when I surrendered to the ministry. My teenage years were rough. I have been slandered all my life. The first church I pastored was a severe and painful spiritual battlefield that hurt me and my wife. I have lived relatively poor. I spend enormous amounts of time helping many people who may break off our relationship at any time because they feel I don’t spend enough time with them. I have forsaken my hometown and family. YES, I didn’t know it was going to be this hard, BUT I have discovered a thousand times over that with God’s calling comes sufficient grace and the enabling power of Christ.
Love
The Greek word for “love” used by Paul in 2 Timothy 1:7 is the word agape. Such love is unselfish, thinking and doing what’s best for others. Such love motivated Christ to go to the Cross.
Real ministry comes from an unselfish heart. You can not be Biblical without being loving. You can not teach the Bible without being loving. You can not preach the Bible without being loving. Real love tells the truth and is not afraid of the consequences. Real love is confrontational when necessary.[quote]
Selfishness, on the other hand, leads to fear because, if we are selfish, we are interested only in what we will get out of serving God. Self-centeredness causes us to be afraid of losing prestige, power, or money. If our first love is for self, our life will center on seeking our own welfare, our own objectives, our own comfort and success. We will not sacrifice ourselves for others or even for the Lord. But if we love with the love God provides, our life will center on pleasing Him and on seeking the welfare of others, especially other Christians.
Sound Mind
A sound mind is a disciplined mind, a controlled mind, a properly prioritized mind. A courageous minister is one who has a discipled life, a balanced mind, and controlled emotions. He can be successful without becoming prideful and he can suffer failure without becoming bitter.
Are you a courageous minister of the gospel?
O for a faith that will not shrink tho pressed by many a foe,
that will not tremble on the brink of any earthly woe.
That will not murmur nor complain beneath the chastening rod,
but in the hour of grief or pain will lean upon its God.
A faith that shines more bright and clear when tempests rage without,
that, when in danger, knows no fear, in darkness feels no doubt.
Lord, give me such a faith as this, and then, whatever may come,
I’ll taste even now the hallowed bliss of an eternal home.
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Jason Robertson is a husband and a father and a pastor. He is dedicated to leading and equipping his the Church with God’s word and biblical theology for life ministry, using a combination of pastoral, church planting and evangelism experience. He holds a Master of Divinity from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. He is experienced in church planting, evangelism, missions, and the training of pastors and Bible teachers.
Jason has been preaching the gospel since 1985, serving the first ten years of ministry as a Southern Baptist itinerant evangelist out of Milldale Baptist Church in Zachary, LA which ordained him in 1993. He has preached in hundreds of churches in over 30 States and 4 countries. He planted churches in Siberia, Russia in the summers of 1993 and 1994. He founded Murrieta Valley Church in California, which he planted in cooperation with the SBC NAMB in 2001. He also teaches ministry students at California Baptist University.
You can hear his sermons and read his manuscripts on sermonaudio.com. Just follow the link to "sermons" at the top of this page.
I'd change your first sentence. God does call cowards. He just doesn't leave them cowards.
Exactly what I needed to read today. Funny how God let me ignore this post in my RSS feed until just the right time.
I’m glad that it was a blessing to you.