By Mike Chaffin
But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—they will be consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.” Revelation 21:8
The most unbecoming vice of a Christian is cowardness. In the verse above, Jesus leads in with this vice being the leading cause of people missing heaven. He makes many references to the impact of our witness, or lack thereof, of Him in our daily life.
32 “Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven. 33 But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven. Matthew 10:32-33
Where cowardice raises its ugly head is when we are confronted with making a stand for Christ, or caving into the world’s ways. As Charles Dickens wrote in his book, Great Expectations,
“In a word, I was too cowardly to do what I knew to be right, as I had been too cowardly to avoid doing what I knew to be wrong.”
André Gide said it best about this situation when he said, “Fear of ridicule begets the worst cowardice.”
Fear is one catalyst of cowardice. Fear of what others think of us, of ridicule, or of offending someone. These show us faithless in our Father.
For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. 2 Timothy 1:7
Cowardness diminishes our witness until we are no longer a light unto the world. Jesus taught us to shine our light of good works so others can see them and glorify God. When we are too cowardly to give God the honor he deserves in our service to others, we condemn ourselves as cowards.
Prayer: Dear Lord, thank you for your love for me. Help me to tell others about your love, your ways and to walk with you daily. You give me the strength to stand strong in the face of derision and abuse for being your child. In Jesus’ name, amen.
