Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.
— Joshua 1:9
Courage and fearlessness are, and ever have been, the hallmarks of true believers. In the New Testament the Jews took note of the disciples that they had been with Jesus when they saw their “boldness,” their intrepidity, their courage, their fearlessness. Those, who but a few weeks before had fled before the wagging finger of a little servant girl, now stood before the Sanhedrin and dressed them down.
What made Joshua bold, and what changed the disciples? It was the promise of the Lord that He would be with them. It was seeing and experiencing the mighty deeds of God. Most of all, it was the Holy Spirit empowering them and equipping them to be His servants. The reason we can be fearless in serving the Lord is the profound knowledge that He Himself is with us and that He has promised to never leave us and never forsake us.
The great missionary David Livingstone courageously went where no man had gone before him in order to proclaim Christ to those living in darkness. He said, “Shall I tell you what sustained me in the midst of all of these toils and hardships and incredible loneliness? It was a promise, the promise of a gentleman of the most sacred honor; it was this promise, ‘Lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world’ ” (Matthew 28:20b).
Question to ponder:
How are you called by the Lord to be bold for Him?