Giving Courage

A Sermon Preached by

The Rev. Paul Debenport

May 10, 2009

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Hear God’s Word from Romans 15: 4—13:

For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, so that by steadfastness and by the encouragement of the scriptures we might have hope.  May the God of steadfastness and encouragement grant you to live in harmony with one another, in accordance with Christ Jesus, so that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.  Welcome one another, therefore, just as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God.  For I tell you that Christ has become a servant of the circumcised on behalf of the truth of God in order that he might confirm the promises given to the patriarchs, and in order that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy.  As it is written, “Therefore I will confess you among the Gentiles, and sing praises to your name”; and again he says, “Rejoice, O Gentiles, with his people”; and again, “Praise the Lord, all you Gentiles, and let all the peoples praise him”; and again Isaiah says, “The root of Jesse shall come, the one who rises to rule the Gentiles;

in him the Gentiles shall hope.”

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing,

so that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

The Word of the Lord.  Thanks be to God.

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            Happy are those…whose delight is in the law of the Lord, proclaimed the Psalmist in our Call to Worship.  Really?  Happy in the law?  When was the last time you delighted in God’s law?  How often do your morning prayers start with, “Oh, thank you God for all those `Thou shalts’ and `Thou shalt nots!  They just give me such joy”?  Not often?  Not ever?  No, most often we hear God’s law with discomfort, not with delight.  Somehow, we hear an implied “or else” at the end of each:  Thou shalt have no other gods before me…or else?  Thou shalt not covet…or else?  Often we hear God’s law as an intoned threat.

            Tone of voice is everything, one of my preaching mentors testified.  “The way you say your words communicates more than the words themselves.  If your tone of voice is harsh, you can say the most loving words, but no one will believe you.  Not even your dog will believe you.  Try it.  Try shouting angrily, Oh, what a good dog you are! to your dog, and watch what it does.  It won’t wag its tail and lick your hand.  No it will cower in a corner.  Tone of voice is incredibly important,” my preaching professor declared, “and if you want people to grow and learn, your tone need to be encouraging, not condemning.”^[1]

            Which leads me to the rather remarkable statement of the Apostle Paul in today’s passage from Romans 15:  Whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, so that by steadfastness and by the encouragement of the scriptures we might have hope.  This is not only true, but is very important, for it reveals the intended tone of voice of the law, indeed of the entire Old Testament.  As one theologian testifies, “Our Hebrew scriptures are not the New Testament’s evil stepsister, whose secret intention is to rip our clothes to shreds, lock us in the tower and keep us enslaved for life.  No!  They are God’s words of encouragement and were always meant to be so.  They were intended to help, not to hurt.  They were written to build up, not to break down.  If we hear them as a threat, as words meant to bully or intimidate, we break faith with God’s intention for them.”^[2]  The Apostle Paul surely knew this.  Indeed, whatever was written in former days was written for our encouragement, so that we might have hope.

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            Encouragement is no fluffy, Little-Mary-Sunshine word.  Encouragement is not flattery, chicken soup, or positive spin.  It literally means, “to fill with courage.”  When we encourage someone, they feel brave in the face of real threat.  They feel strong.  They feel ready to take on whatever comes.  They don’t feel helpless, despairing, or overwhelmed.  They have courage, which is the first step to true freedom.  Take away someone’s courage and you can be pretty sure that they won’t make a move to change their circumstances.  Isn’t that why a good leader’s first job in any liberation from oppression movement is to empower the people with their own courage?  At least this is what I saw in the early years of our Civil Rights Movement.  And often it was the music that instilled the most courage.  Recently I’ve been listening to Mavis Staples new CD of songs from that movement, and my favorite even refers to Psalm 1:

Like a tree that’s planted by the waters

We shall not be moved.

These were and are encouraging words, words that strengthen people to overcome our fear.

            Fear.  There’s no doubt that instilling fear is easier than instilling courage.  Which is why so many governments and some churches choose to motivate their people with fear rather than encouragement.  Fear is quicker, and it’s effective.  Encouragement, though, takes time.  It takes patience and repetition, and steadfast love.  It takes words of God, uttered over and over again in a loving tone until they are inscribed on our hearts:

I am the Lord your God and you shall have no other gods before me.

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.  I have come that you might have life.  The Light is light of humankind, and the light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it.  Absolutely nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus.  In life and in death, we belong to God.

And, lo, I am with you always, to the end of the age.

Encouragement is an act of faith, because to instill courage is to give faith, to instill hope.

            What it is that makes you feel brave?  When did you last feel that way, and why?  Who or what encouraged you—gave you courage?  Where do we need courage today?  The economy?  Employment?  The seemingly endless wars?  The prevalence of gun and drug violence?  Our health?  Divisions in our families or our churches?  Where are we hobbling along, using our fear for a crutch?  Where are we actually being threatened by the tones of voice we hear out in the world, or within ourselves, or even within the faith, that make us believe that we are helpless to change anything and worthless to boot?

            The Lord God, whose loving power is made known in the triumphant cross of Jesus, declares:  Take hope!  Have courage!  Don’t discourage, but rather encourage one another with God’s Word.  And the God of hope will fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you may about in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Thanks be to God. 

Amen.