The Cowardly Lion - Proverbs 28:1

Welcome to Weekly Wisdom, an inspirational series hosted by Pastor Jeff Schreve. Each week, Pastor Jeff illuminates different sections of the Holy Bible, meticulously extracting pivotal themes and life lessons that can enrich and uplift your daily life. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Proverbs, chapter twenty eight, Verse one. The wicked flee when
no one is pursuing, but the righteous are bold as
a lion. Let's pray together, Father in heaven. We thank
you that we can come boldly before your throne of
grace because of what Jesus did when he died on
the cross and rose from the dead. And we're grateful

(00:21):
for your love for us, and that you have grace
to help us in our time of need. And we
ask you to speak to our hearts today, Lord, as
we consider the truth that the righteous are indeed bold
as a lion in Jesus' name. Amen.

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Speaker 1 (01:54):
Well, hi, and welcome to another episode of the Weekly
Wisdom Podcast. I'm pastor Jeff Shrie from Texarcana, Texas. Now,
do you remember the classic movie The Wizard of Oz
Growing up as a kid, that was one of our
favorite family movies. Now, if you remember the story, you
know that Dorothy and her little dog Toto were taken

(02:14):
by a tornado into another world, a world with witches
and munchkins and wizards and interesting friends. On her trip
down the Yellow Brick Road, Dorothy befriended the Scarecrow, the
tin men, and the cowardly Lion. Now all four of
them needed something from the Wizard of Oz. Dorothy needed

(02:35):
to go home to Kansas, the scarecrow needed a brain,
the tin men needed a heart, and the cowardly Lion
needed what many Christians need today, courage. The cowardly lion
is an oxy moron, because lions are courageous, They're not cowardly.

(02:55):
The Bible tells us that a lion is mighty among
beasts and does not retreat before any Proverbs thirty verse thirty. Now,
God's people are to be bold as a lion, as
we stand up and speak up for Jesus. Cowardice is
a mark of an unbeliever and the first category of
sinners mentioned as being in hell in Revelation twenty one, p. Eight. Now,

(03:21):
I believe that any honest, objective person would look at
the landscape of the world today and conclude that we
are in serious trouble. Objective truth has been replaced with
subjective fantasy. Biblical morality, common sense, and basic decency have
been tossed to the garbage. Anger, hatred, violence, selfishness, lying,

(03:45):
the love of self, and the love of money seem
to rule the day, and far too often Christians are
too timid to stand up and speak up in their communities,
their schools, their places of business, and the public square.
To make matters even worse, many pastors are too fearful
to speak the truth and love. Even in the church,

(04:08):
many pastors preach unbiblical sermons that present a false Christ,
one who exists to approve and support us regardless of
our beliefs or practices. The word love has been hijacked
by the culture to mean accepting and embracing all sin
and insanity. And if a person does not accept all

(04:29):
sin and insanity, well that person is a hater who
knows not the way of Jesus. May God have mercy.
No one could ever be more loving than Jesus. He
is God in the flesh and love personified first John
four eight. God is love. Now. His love was and
is real love. He told people the truth in love,

(04:54):
and they hated him for it. Jesus said to his
half brothers before their conversion, the world cannot hate you,
but it hates me because I testify of it that
its deeds are evil. John seven, verse seven. Now the
moment that you shine the light of truth on the
wickedness in men's hearts, the hatred spills out. Sinful men

(05:19):
and women cannot stand being called hopeless, helpless sinners and
desperate need of a savior. But that is precisely who
they are and who we were before we came to Christ.
Now the apostles were threatened by the religious leaders to
speak no more in the name of Jesus. They politely
but firmly refuse to heed this command. Instead, they had

(05:43):
a prayer meeting and ask the Lord for boldness to
speak the word of God. God immediately answered their prayer
request by shaking the place where they had gathered. This
shaking was God's amen to their prayer. Make no misions.
God has saved us and called us to be his witnesses.

(06:05):
We can't do this without His hand upon us and
his spirit empowering us. The greatest among us have feet
of clay and the tendency to retreat in the face
of danger. Hey, without him we can do nothing, But
with him we can do all things. Now, let me
ask you, have you been more like the cowardly lion

(06:27):
than you care to admit? Have you been going along
just to get along, failing to speak up for fear
of the consequences. What is the way to stand strong
for Jesus in this evil age in which we live.
We need to remember who we are, whose we are,
and why we are on the earth, that is, to

(06:48):
be His witnesses. We need to pray for boldness and
remind ourselves daily of the words Paul gave to fearful Timothy.
God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but
of power and love and discipline. Hey, if you know Jesus,
you are a lion for the Lord. And may your

(07:10):
boldness be contagious as you speak the truth and love
and leave the results with God. Let's pray together, Lord,
thank you that you did not give us a spirit
of fear or timidity. You gave us a spirit of power.
And those who are righteous because of Jesus are indeed
bold as a lion, just as your word says. We

(07:32):
ask Lord that we would live out our faith in
Christ boldly before this lost and dying world. May they
see and hear the truth as we walk in the
light with Jesus. Thank you for the opportunities that you
give us to be your witnesses. May we be faithful
Lord even until death, knowing that you will give us
the crown of life. For we pray in Jesus' name. Amen. Well,

(07:55):
thanks for listening to this episode of the Weekly Wisdom Podcast.
I'm Pastor Jeff and I would love to connect with you.
Visit my ministry website at Fromhisheart dot org for resources
and materials to help you grow in your faith, for
more wisdom to last a lifetime, and to make prayer
priority in your life. Download Theprey dot com app, and

(08:16):
if you enjoyed this podcast, please share it with a
friend who might also be encouraged by it. Thanks again
for listening, make it a great week, and may God
richly bless you.