courage

Wobbly World

by Ben Zornes · Aug 12, 2024

You live in unstable times. But as God’s people you must not flinch. Men of God, you are called to men of grit, fleet-footed to good works, generous with your resources, and unwavering in your faith. Women of God, you are called to laugh at the days to come. You cannot sway the machines of bureaucracy, but you can diligently make your home a world of peace, playfulness, and piety.

You can either waver in the face of all the upheaval, or you can rest in the words of the Psalmist, “Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day (Ps. 91:5).” You may bemoan that these evil days are yours, or you can rejoice as a warrior in the day of battle and find another gear.

Are you weary and anxious? Are you fearful and timid? Are you stingy and resentful? Cast aside all such luggage. You must offload all such encumbrances. This is the hour for faith, virtue, diligence, and unflinching joy. Now, the question you may be asking is how to get from cowering in the corner to courageous on the front lines.

Three things. First, do not forsake the worship of the living God. You serve the God who is immortal, invisible, and the only wise God. Render to Him all He is due both here in the courts of heaven and out in the city streets. Second, thank God that, in His wisdom, He picked this moment of history for you. Third, with certain faith in Christ, get busy with good works of grace. It is hard to be frightened or anxious if your hands are holding the fruit of faithfulness.

In short, the world may be wobbly; so believe and obey the steadfast Word of the Lord.

Hard Times for Joyful Saints

by Ben Zornes · Aug 28, 2023

While we enjoy a higher degree of comfort than any generation before us, it is also evident that we face hard times. Government corruption, economic instability, religious apostasy, and sexual degeneracy are abundant. In the midst of these hard times, your duty as a Christian is to be joyful despite the various cultural sorrows we face. However, a distinction should be made. Being joyful in the midst of clown world doesn’t mean that you just adopt the ethos of an eternal optimist: naive, gullible, but with a toothy grin all while things deteriorate around you. This joy which we are summoned to by the Gospel isn’t a joy of obliviousness, it’s an anchor.

You can flee from the terrors. That is the coward’s way. You can sulk in a corner. That’s the complainer’s way. You can give way and join the madness. That’s the compromiser’s way. Or you can joyfully give thanks in all circumstances, for all circumstances. That is the Christian’s way.

Cowering, complaining, & compromising are all false promises to lead you out of the misery. Gratitude to God–for the forgiveness He gives to You through Christ, for the mercy He’s shown toward your sin, for the abundant life He has sealed to you by the Spirit–is the only way to make it through the fog of trials, into the fields of everlasting joy.

Christian joy enables you to face hard times and emerge from them more like Jesus. This is true no matter what news story comes out this week as another proof of our national fabric unravelling. So, be diligent in the tasks God’s given you. Pay no heed to the conniving of evil-doers. After all, they’re like grass. While the Word, this Word which we preach & feast upon each Lord’s Day, is the Word that begets everlasting trees of righteousness.

Through Christ You pour out upon us eternal joy and everlasting grace, enough to supply us strength in every trial, courage in every dark valley, bright hope in the deepest valley. Yet too often we give way to various temptations to complain, cower, or capitulate. This is a great shame, for You are our God, and You are not thwarted, or terrified, or trembling before any of Your enemies. Forgive us for both the guilt of the ways we avoid walking in courage, and the shame of doing so, considering we have such a God as you. Be merciful unto us for we bring to you now all our various sins and failures, for we know there is no other God like you, a God who forgives repentant sinners.

The solution to our cultural woes is not political or economic or educational. The solution is repentance. Humbling ourselves before God, confessing our sin to Him, and then walking in uprightness of heart is the path of courage, which will bear fruit in all spheres of life.

Fighting Wild Beasts

by Ben Zornes · Aug 14, 2023

One of the most cinematic moments of Scripture is when David tells Saul how God prepared him to defy the Giant who was defying the armies of the Living God. David tells Saul that as a shepherd boy, he had chased down lions and bears, grappled with them with his bare hands, and delivered the prey from the predator’s jaw.

One commentator points out that in Mark’s description of Jesus being led into the wilderness after His baptism, his likeness to David is alluded to in this way “And he was there in the wilderness forty days, tempted of Satan; and was with the wild beasts (Mar 1:13a).” Jesus, like His forefather David, endured without fear the wild beasts.

This becomes just one example of how Jesus came in defiance of all the dangers which had come to fill this fallen world of sin. But this isn’t just interesting Biblical observation, this is highly practical.

The Spirit of Christ now dwells in you. Christ-likeness then isn’t adopting a mousy & timid disposition. Instead, you spot the wild beasts who would harm the flock, and sprint toward them. Is there a good thing you’ve been putting off? Wait no more. Is there a sin weighing on your conscience which you need to confess? Don’t delay. That evangelistic opportunity you’ve been too insecure to try, go for it. That wickedness which you’ve been trying to turn a blind eye to, chase it down & break its jaws.

This is the family trait of those born of God, from David down to us, all because of David’s greater son Jesus. The power of God is at work in you. So then, by faith seek out righteousness & root up wickedness in your own heart, and in the world around you.

The mighty men of old were not daunted by the wild beasts. The Lord God endued them with the grace of His Spirit that they might win the victory. It is a great folly to treat those Old Testament stories as if they were quaint fables, when God gave them to us to instruct us in righteousness. God sent forth the Spirit to embolden and strengthen us to fight against all internal and external unrighteousness. Where we’ve permitted packs of wolves to roam free in our hearts, may God forgive us. Where we’ve been apathetic about the pride of lions devouring our families, may God forgive us. He trains our hands for war, even as we bend our knees to confess our sins to Him.

In all this remember that the Lord Jesus, great David’s greater Son, sent His Spirit to dwell in you and assure you that by His blood, and His blood alone you might be washed clean, and equipped to boldly face whatever fearful beast you may find either in your own heart or in this world.

How To Be Courageous

by Ben Zornes · Mar 24, 2023

A Time for Courage

If you hadn’t noticed, the world is a bit topsy-turvey at the moment. As you all enter adulthood, you are faced with hard times. Congrats. You can either mope about it, complaining about previous generations idiocy. Or you can say, “I need a lion or bear thrown in to make it more interesting (Cf. Pro. 23:16).”

This is a time for courage. But courage isn’t a pill you take. It isn’t a class at a Christian Liberal Arts college. Courage isn’t found in poasting edgy memes. Courage is the steadfast stance of faith. God is your God. Believe it. Then live it.

Uprooting Discouragement

But we must first ask, “Where does discouragement come from?” There are a few ways in which staunchness can turn into stench. First, discouragement can arise from unconfessed sin. The cure, of course, is to confess your sin. To God & to those you’ve sinned against. Then sin no more. In the battle against darkness, harboring evil or disobedience in your own heart is doing the Enemy’s dirty work for him. Think of the Lord’s warning in Leviticus 26:14-17 “But if ye will not hearken unto me, and will not do all these commandments; And if ye shall despise my statutes, or if your soul abhor my judgments, so that ye will not do all my commandments, but that ye break my covenant: I also will do this unto you; I will even appoint over you terror, consumption, and the burning ague, that shall consume the eyes, and cause sorrow of heart: and ye shall sow your seed in vain, for your enemies shall eat it. And I will set my face against you, and ye shall be slain before your enemies: they that hate you shall reign over you; and ye shall flee when none pursueth you.”

Secondly, discouragement can arise from saying yes to going along with sinners. In other words, you may not be doing anything sinful per se (or so you argue with yourself), but you keep finding yourself keeping company with knuckleheads & idiots. Solomon’s instruction is the cure if this describes you: “My son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not (Pro 1:10).” Learn to say “No.” “No” to your own heart, and “no” to the enticements of evildoers.

A third source of discouragement comes from external trials. This one is trickier. It may be that you look around you and think that you didn’t ask for any of this. You were minding your own business. You didn’t ask to be cast in a dystopian novel about tyrannical mad scientists & politicians wanting to run experiments on you, while you wear VR headsets in a pod, being fed plant-based meat goo, and sedated with AI kink-porn generated specifically for you. Trials which arise without your doing can discourage. But you must not, for any reason, make excuses. Here be dragons, demons, devils, and dictators. You can either be a NPC or imitate Christ and open prison doors through Gospel fidelity and Gospel proclamation (Is. 61:1).

A Lesson from a Hobbit

Let me go on a little rabbit trail to Middle Earth for a moment. There’s a wonderful line in The Hobbit where it describes Bilbo entering Smaug’s lair for the first time. He had already faced many dangers, and acquitted himself nobly & courageously. But the seemingly small step from the safety of the tunnel into the danger of Smaug’s treasure room was described this way: “It was at this point [the end of the secret tunnel] that Bilbo stopped. Going on from there was the bravest thing he ever did. The tremendous things that happened afterwards were as nothing compared to it. He fought the real battle in the tunnel alone, before he ever saw the vast danger that lay in wait.”

It was that small step of courage that enabled great feats of history. In other words, faithfulness in a thousand daily duties is what leads to great exploits. You aren’t born courageous, you become courageous by doing the good things you know you ought to do, even when no one sees it; and fleeing the evil things you ought not to do even if everyone is telling you otherwise.

Where Courage Comes From

Furthermore, Scripture teaches us where true courage comes from: “Strengthen ye the weak hands, and confirm the feeble knees. Say to them that are of a fearful heart, Be strong, fear not: behold, your God will come with vengeance, even God with a recompence; he will come and save you (Isa 35:3-4).” Inward strength & fortitude arise from eyes fixed on Christ. This passage in Isaiah is foretelling the coming of the New Covenant mercies which Christ would usher in, and the exhortation to strength is in the context of the sweeping reformation which His redeeming work would bring about.

You cannot stand firm on toothpick stilts of self-determination, or self-righteousness. The only solid ground is that God, in Christ, has forgiven all your sins and given you His Spirit in order that you might walk in all righteousness. Paul exhorts the Corinthian church this way, “Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong (1Co 16:13).” This steadfast courage arises from those who know and believe that they have been buried with Christ, and raised into the life of resurrection which Christ secured for them, and which the Spirit assures them of. One saint of old said it this way, “My time is short; I must be up and doing; I must go briskly on with my work, leaving it to my Lord to find me strength for it and success in it. His blessing I expect here and forever; not for anything I have done; and yet I would labor as hard as if heaven was to be the reward of my labors.”

Ye Fearful Saints

And so, as the hymn reminds us, “Ye fearful saints, fresh courage take.” You’ve got a lifetime of hardship ahead. Don’t bemoan it. Don’t give way to discouragement. Rise to occasion. Play the man. Let Christ be seen in how you keep your room, your budget, your browsing history, your words to friends and strangers.

As William Plumer, a theologian of yesteryear, wrote, “Would you have dauntless courage in all coming trials and persecutions? Die unto sin, hold fast the covenant and promises of God, and let Christ be all in all to you. He who would not be filled with shame, must first count the cost of all he undertakes. God’s word and Spirit are always on the side of truth and duty, and may be infallibly relied on. The enemy has no arts nor devices that have not been thwarted a thousand times. He can be beaten. He has been vanquished.”

Confession for Conquerors

by Ben Zornes · Mar 13, 2023

The Gospel we proclaim here isn’t a Gospel meant for the back of the junk drawer. We don’t proclaim the remission of some sins, if they qualify. This isn’t some divine lottery where only one in a million have hope of hitting the jackpot. Nor is it a web of bureaucratic red tape, requiring a team of lawyers to sort through in order to find the loophole to avoid tax penalties.

This Gospel, which the church is tasked to believe & proclaim, is a Gospel for the whole world. It is a Gospel not of defeat. It is not Good News but only if you squint. Rather, Christ died for the sins of His people. You are clean. Your death for sin has been died. Christ has arisen, to eternal life, and by faith you share in that life. Christ is at the Father’s right hand, thrones & angels are made subject unto Him, and You are in Him. The God of peace, we are told, shall soon crush Satan under your feet.

As we prepare to confess our sin, we ought not to do so as whipped puppies. Yes, we’ve sinned against our Lord, and we should grieve. But we should come boldly, even audaciously. Where else can you find forgiveness for your sins, but in the One who took your sin by the throat, dragged it into the grave, and emerged alive without your sin.

The saints of God are more than conquerors. The church isn’t just an accountability group to commiserate over our blasted failures. Rather, we’re those who’ve overcome this world, because we’ve laid hold of Christ the triumphant, Christ the overcomer, Christ the King. So when you kneel to confess your sins, you do so as a beloved & forgiven child. When you rise, you remain in the bright glory of God’s favor. So, act like it.

The Lord, after all, hasn’t given us a spirit of fear, but of power, of love, and a sound mind. All too often, we go about as if the Gospel wasn’t efficacious, as if we still dwelt in Old Testament darkness, as if we were still slaves to sin. But the Lord promises to us true and lasting forgiveness for all our sin, past, present, and future; if we confess. As we confess, our Father fortifies our hearts so that we rest assured that in this grace which He pour upon us is not just forgiveness for the sins we confess, but grace to grow in grace, grace to slit the throat of our lusts, pride, envy, greed, and gluttony. He gives us all this, because He has given us Christ.

The Christian life is summed up in that wonderful quote from the famous hymn-writer and former slave trader John Newton: “My memory is nearly gone, but I remember two things: that I am a great sinner — and that Christ is a great Savior!” So, though you have sinned, God, in Christ, reckons you a saint. And if a saint, more than a conqueror.

How Shall We Then Risk

by Ben Zornes · Feb 14, 2022

God is not safe. He doesn’t fit into your plans. He isn’t whistled up to perform your every whim. He isn’t contained by the highest heavens. His ways are not your ways, and His thoughts are not your thoughts.

Furthermore, God’s plans for you aren’t “safe”. God doesn’t summon you to a cozy life. He doesn’t call you to live like everyone else, just with fewer R-rated movies. He doesn’t call you to obedience, but just when you feel like getting around to it. You aren’t delivered from the prison in order to relax at the spa. You’re set free from the concentration camp in order to take up arms against the enemy who once held you captive.

Christians aren’t those who draw back & are destroyed (Heb. 10:39). Rather, we’re those who give all to gain all. Christian maturity isn’t learning to avoid & mitigate all risks. No. It is learning to take bold risks. Risks arising from faithful study of God’s Word. Risks arising from praying specific prayers. Risks arising from taking bold steps outside the comfy lines of American life.

Have you been telling God that you’ll follow Him so far, but no further? Are you willing to obey God’s word only insofar as it comports with your plans for your life, your finances, your retirement plans? Have you started avoiding eye-contact with God, afraid that He’ll call on you in front of all the class to take some bold step of faith?

So take stock. Don’t confess the doctrine of God’s sovereignty, while attempting to argue yourself into thinking of Him as small enough to not disrupt your plans. Are the nations converted yet? Are all the orphans placed in families? Are the fortresses of evil overthrown? Since there is much work to be done, say your prayers, trust your God, and charge to where the fighting is fiercest.

Solomon tells us of the fool who complains of nonexistent lions and bears in the way, and won’t venture out (Pro. 26:13). He will not venture out, and so he wastes away in fear, apathy, and wins no victories. If we would see Christ’s kingdom come in power, the church reformed and renewed, our nation gleam with evangelical faith from our greatest cities to our smallest towns, the unborn spared, the marriage bed reverenced, and Christ acknowledged as King over all, we must repent of risking little in our attempts to obtain these ends, and for having a small faith. May God grant us courage to be of great faith, and risk much for His kingdom, power, and glory.

Dead Hearts Aren’t Courageous

by Ben Zornes · Oct 4, 2021

There’s no doubt that you’ll be called upon, in the very near future, to be courageous. Your company may change their HR policy to affirm some GQBLT dogma or require a medical procedure. Your teenager, whom you’ve always indulged, will need to be told “no.” You will need to send the living wage check back to the IRS. You’ll be skeptically questioned about your values. You might need to react to slander and lies about you, your faith, or your family. You may have a fracturing relationship that will require patient endurance and unabashed honesty. For all these, you will need courage.

But, courage isn’t summoned up because of good upbringing. Courage isn’t the result of being a strong willed and a respected member of the country club. Courage isn’t the birthright of American exceptionalism. A bigger paycheck, a facelift, or getting in shape won’t automatically turn you into a bastion of courage. Courage comes from receiving a new heart.

A guilty heart is a dead heart. A dead heart doesn’t have the will to speak up, or stand up. No matter how many American flags it waves, it is incapable of resisting tyrants because it’s a dead heart. Courage arises when you recognize that your standing before God isn’t determined by anything in you or done by you. When God gives a new heart, you realize that you stand in the light of God’s favor by grace alone; and then, and only then, can you stand firm in the face of multitudes that rise up against you.

As David exemplifies in Psalm 3, it’s only because the Lord is his shield, his glory, the lifter of his head that he can then say, “I will not be afraid of ten thousands of people, that have set themselves against me round about.”

God calls us to confess our sin, to not hide our iniquity. Yet we have opted for calling it courage when a woman chooses to abort her child, or when multitudes parade their sexual vices through our city streets. In truth, we are a fearful people. We have fled at the falling of a leaf. One enemy has chased a thousand. So we know that we are under the just judgment of the Living God. Even amidst the ranks of those who call themselves by Jehovah’s name, there is capitulation, ungodly compromise, and unconfessed sin. If we would be a nation under God’s blessing, we know it will only be because the Spirit is outpoured once more, making dead hearts new. We must bend, in evangelical contrition, turning from the cowardly works of sin to the fountain of forgiveness. May God make us the kindling. May a reformation begin in the house of God, and may God graciously turn our nation back to Himself.