January 15, 2023 | Faith Filled Courage
January 15, 2023 • Pastor Ken Cline
True faith gives way to courage; it’s a lack of faith if we have fear. Isaiah 43:2 tells us to fear not because God will be with us. Faith is to take God at His word (v.3), which is true courage. It requires both faith and courage to complete the Great Commission. When making disciples, you will experience fire and floods. Many people groups don’t have a witness. By fulfilling the Great Commission, we are rescuing people from destruction.
How can we participate in the Great Commission? LEARN, PRAY, GIVE, AND GO. This is the calling for all Christians. What is your part? The enemy would like to get us distracted. We must all be salt and light. We must put the right seed in the next generation. Frederick Douglass said, “It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men.” There must be a heart change. We must have faith filled courage.
In John 14:6, Jesus said, “No one can come to the Father except through me.” If our family and friends don’t know Jesus, we must reach them. Our faith can’t just be “personal” and private. When sharing our faith, we will go through floods and fires. Endurance, however, comes through tests (Jas. 1:2-4; Rom. 8:35-39). Nothing can separate us from God and His love. God is not concerned about our “comfort zone.” Accept the word and walk in courage to teach this to the next generation! We need resilient faith!
Here are some specific ways to increase our faith and pass it to our children.
Be rooted in the Word of God (We have 9 classes this winter to choose from!)
Stay connected to the local church (Heb. 10:23-25)
Pray–this means spending time with God, not just our requests or praying for others
Be secure in your identity in Christ (Eph. 1:3-5) God takes great pleasure in us!
Be engaged in serving, giving, and sharing
Challenges: Will you serve the next generation? There are many ways to serve at our church. Will you give towards the Great Commission? (Missions pledges) Will you tell others about Christ? Will you pass the test to share the testimony? (Eph. 3:20) Will you throw away all idols that are before God in your life? (Joshua 24:14-15)
