How many of you have seen the new Robin Hood
Movie? The one featuring Russell Crow. There is a quote from the movie that
positively hangs in my mind whenever I think of it. The quote written on the
hilt of his sword, the one carved into the bottom of the stone steps, the one
that burns a lasting impression on my heart. “Rise and Rise again until Lambs become Lions.” This quote inspires
the common man to never give up or give in. To take risk and rise again after
being knocked down. This…is…Boldness!
When
I think of Boldness I
instantly go to Daniel chapter 3.
We see in verse 13-15 that King Nebuchadnezzar (Chadnezzar
for short) is enraged that these 3 Jewish men for not bowing down and
worshiping his golden image. He has them brought before him to question them. He
tells them that if they don’t give into his commands, bow before his statue,
and worship him, they will be thrown into a furnace alive. Then old Chadnezzar does
the one thing you should never do to a praying Christian, He challenges our
God. “Who is
the god who will deliver you out of my hands?” Chadnezzar boasts. This is where it gets
good. 16-18 “Shadrach,
Meshach, and Abednego answered and said to the king, ‘O Nebuchadnezzar, we have
no need to answer you in this matter. If this be so, our God whom we serve is
able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver out of
your hand, O king. But if not, be known to you, O King, that we will not serve
your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.’” Can you say BURN! Shad,
Mesh, and Abe basically just told the king of the greatest empire in the world
at this time, “Aint nobody got time for that!” They had the one true God to
worship. They couldn’t take their worship away from the creator of the world
and life breather to give false praise to a fallible man. What blows my mind the most though is that despite
all that was at risk and despite the fact that they faced death they trusted God
would save them more then Chadnezzer would kill them.
Then Chadnezzer the dude
that once had favor for this triumphant trio turned his fury against them! His
furry what? No, fury, as in ‘anger’ but more angrier. He commands the furnace to be heated seven
times more than normal! So it’s pretty dang warm! After having some of his best
army men bind the trio’s hands and they through them in that hot place. The fire
is so hot that the mighty green army men that through them in died. They practically
melted! But seriously they melted! Shad, Mesh and Abe landed in the furnace but
didn’t die. They had Boldly stood
fast to what God has called them to and what God had taught them was right.
The fire
burned the bindings of the 3 men and when king nevercan-kneesher looked he saw
four…yes I said 4 as in one more than 3, walking around. Now let me hang on
that for just a moment. In the midst of persecution, in the midst of trial, in the
midst of hard times they had boldness and faith and one “like the son of gods”
came and saved them and was walking around with them. Now if I were in that
situation I don’t think I would be walking around. Its freak out time!! The thing
is when we have Boldness in hard times God will give us peace not to freak out. He
will give us peace to walk through fire and not be burned.
Another
awesome thing to realize is they were surrounded in a sea of flames, like as in
there was nothing but the floor they stood on and flame. They were walking
around! Did you catch that! David pointed it out but come one really! Yet no
harm befell them not even the smallest burn when those bindings were burned to
a crisp and falling off their wrists.
So king Nebuchadnezzar sees this and calls them out. Not a hair was singed not even a scent
of smoke on their clothes. Amazed the king gave glory to God! Your life is
a light that was made to be Lived or Burned with boldness. This light
is infectious, more so than Ebola or a baby’s laugh. …ok that first one was a
bad metaphor but you get the point. What David’s getting at is that when we let our
lives be used of God we unconsciously awaked the light that lives in all who
live their lives for Christ. Isaiah 60:1-3 “Arise, shine, for your light has come and the
glory of the Lord has risen upon you. For behold, darkness shall cover the
earth, and thick darkness the peoples; but the Lord will arise upon you, and
His glory will be seen upon you. And nations shall come to your light, and
kings to the brightness of your rising.”
This
jumps back to the quote we started with, “Rise
and Rise again until Lambs become Lions.” When we shine our light, that is
Christ dwelling in us, it becomes infectious. It’s like when the sun cracks
over the horizon in the morning creeps in your window and touches your face.
You wake up and know it’s time to rise. Don’t let yourself become discouraged
because God loves Boldness and
wants us to take risk because it helps to further the kingdom. So we will leave
you with one final verse as a reminder. Ephesians
5:13-14 says “But
when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible, for anything that
becomes visible is light. Therefore it says, ‘Awake, O Sleeper, and arise from
the dead and Christ will shine on you.’”
So Church we challenge
you Go with all Boldness putting fear aside jumping head first into a life of
lightbearing!!!Much Love,
The Bear
And David Cooper
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