Friends, the church must foster the art of courage—a boldness that holds its strength in meekness—like the Good Shepherd who lays down his life for his sheep, who could have called down 12 legions of angels with a word.
Aesop told some clever and revealing tales—and this one is not unlike the rest. Sadly, this fable may resonate in our age with those of us in the church. There appears to be one of two extremes common among the people of God—the extremes of the lion. Either shrinking back when we ought not. Or viciously thundering forth when we ought not. It seems the church may need to regain the lost art of courage, for there are those who shy away from battles that must be taken up, and there are those who don bravado and (seemingly) do nothing but battle. What may be lacking in these two poles is the biblical concept of “meekness”—or courage, rightly carried.
The Apostle Paul in Titus 1, speaks to the young evangelist, and lays out to Titus (and by extension, us) a list of qualifications we are all familiar with; the qualifications of elders. After Paul walks through these character qualities he points out that these godly attributes lead somewhere. The character of these leaders have a purpose, a goal, a particular practice. You see, it is not enough to have godly character, the scriptures expect us to rightly labor in accord with that Christ-like character.
