Be of Good Courage

6 So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, 7 for we walk by faith, not by sight. 8 Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord. 9 So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please him. 10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil. – 2 Corinthians 5:6-10 ESV

Why do you do the things you do? Most likely, it is either to please yourself or to please someone else. We are either motivated by self-satisfaction or some form of people-pleasing. We are out to make ourselves feel good or to ensure that others feel good about us. But Paul introduces another motivating factor for the believer: pleasing God.

More than anything else, we should desire to do what pleases our Heavenly Father. Paul knew that a life of holiness, living set apart and consecrated to God and His purposes, was what pleased Him. He wrote to the Thessalonians: “For this is the will of God, your sanctification…” (1 Thessalonians 4:3a ESV). God desires His people to be holy and distinctively different in their attitudes and actions. He wants them to live according to His will and in keeping with the godly guidance of His indwelling Holy Spirit.

The apostle Peter described the life of holiness as “doing good.”

For this is the will of God, that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people. Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as servants of God. – 1 Peter 2:15-16 ESV

He went on to say that we must abstain from certain ungodly behaviors such as sexual immorality and lustful passions. But while we “put off” unrighteousness, we must “put on” godliness. Paul echoed this sentiment when he wrote, “For God has not called us for impurity, but in holiness. Therefore whoever disregards this, disregards not man but God, who gives his Holy Spirit to you” (1 Thessalonians 4:7-8 ESV).

To refuse to live a holy life is to disregard the very will of God for you. It is to willingly disobey and displease Him. But Paul insists that his primary objective in life was to please God. That was how he maintained his motivation even when doing the right thing produced the wrong reaction from others. He found the strength to endure injustice and abuse for doing God’s will because his real goal was to please God, not man.

Peter claimed that suffering was an expected part of living a godly life.

But if you suffer for doing good and endure it patiently, God is pleased with you. For God called you to do good, even if it means suffering, just as Christ suffered for you. He is your example, and you must follow in his steps. – 1 Peter 2:20-21 NLT

Just as Christ suffered for doing what was right and godly, so shall we. We should not be surprised when pursuing a life of godliness in an ungodly world brings godless reactions from ungodly people.

But Paul was of good courage. Even though he found life on earth to be difficult at times, he was encouraged by his belief in the afterlife. He was buoyed by God’s promise of a life to come, and his conviction about the eternal state enabled him to live by faith, not by sight. Like the author of Hebrews, Paul knew that faith was “the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1 ESV). If we live as if this world is all there is, we will lose sight of all that God has promised us for the future. But waiting on what we can’t see requires faith. That is what the 11th chapter of Hebrews is all about. The author chronicles the lives of Old Testament saints such as Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, and Sarah and declares that their lives demonstrated faith in the promises of God. But he goes on to reveal, “All these people died still believing what God had promised them. They did not receive what was promised, but they saw it all from a distance and welcomed it. They agreed that they were foreigners and nomads here on earth” (Hebrews 11:13 NLT). 

Each of them had received a promise from God, yet they had to operate sight unseen, having no firm assurance that what God had promised would be fulfilled. And in most cases, they never lived to see the ultimate fulfillment of God’s promise. Noah lived through the flood that destroyed the world, but did not live to see the world repopulated and restored by God. Abraham had moved to Canaan because God had promised it to him as his inheritance, but he died a landless nomad. Yet, he was “confidently looking forward to a city with eternal foundations, a city designed and built by God” (Hebrews 11:10 NLT).

Paul was convinced that faith was essential if anyone wanted to live a life that pleased God, because “it is impossible to please God without faith” (Hebrews 11:6a NLT). 

Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him. – Hebrews 11:6 NLT.

Paul found courage in the fact that God had promised him eternal life through His Son, Jesus Christ. He was encouraged by Jesus’ promise to return one day. Paul found hope in the promise of a redeemed and resurrected body, and he longed for the day when he would vacate his earthly “tent” and move into his new body, a “house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens” (1 Corinthians 5:1b ESV).

But in the meantime, while he waited for the return of Christ or his own death, he made it his aim to live his life to please God. That meant he had to stop trying to please others or himself. He knew that there would come a day when his actions would be judged by God.

For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil. – 1 Corinthians 5:10 ESV

On that day, every believer’s conduct in this life will be judged – every thought, action, attitude, and word will be exposed. Everything we have done since the day we accepted Christ as Savior will be assessed and evaluated as to whether it was good or evil. This has nothing to do with judgment for sin, because all our sins have been paid for by Christ. It is about whether what we have done in this life since coming to faith in Christ was godly or ungodly, righteous or unrighteous, and pleasing or displeasing to God. Did we live our lives in keeping with His will? Since His will for us is our holiness, did we allow that to be our motivating factor? Was pleasing Him our aim?

Our actions and attitudes will reveal whether our lives were pleasing to God. How we lived our lives will expose whether we were trying to please Him or whether we were living to please ourselves or others. Paul’s aim was to please God – even in this life. He made it his life-long objective to do the will of God, to live holy and set apart, and to do good even when it produced less-than-desirable outcomes. He lived by faith, not by sight, trusting in the reality of what he hoped for, yet couldn’t see: heaven and his resurrected body.

Paul actually looked forward to the judgment seat of Christ, because he was confident that his aim in life had been to please God. He was attempting to do the will of God, not men. He was striving to please God, not himself. And while that kind of lifestyle might result in troubles and tribulations in this life, it promised rewards in the life to come. Paul looked forward to hearing the words, “Well done, good and faithful servant” (Matthew 25:21 ESV).

Father, I want to live my life to please You, but I don’t want to do it because I think I have to earn Your favor. You have already proven Your love for me by sending Your Son to die in my place on the cross. So my attempts to please You should not be to score brownie points with You. They should be expressions of gratitude for all that You have done for me and all that You have in store for me in the future. When I live with my eyes fixed on the hope of the resurrection and the promise of eternal life, I am pleasing to You. That required faith because I can’t see the future. So, whenever I display “assurance of things hoped for” and “the conviction of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1 ESV), I am living by faith and that is pleasing to You. Help me to remember to live with the end in mind, to place my faith in Your unwavering promises for my future. I have nothing to fear and everything to look forward to. Thank You! Amen

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

A Final Charge.

1 Corinthians 16:10-24

Be on your guard. Stand firm in the faith. Be courageous. Be Strong. And do everything with love. – 1 Corinthians 16:13 NLT

As Paul wrapped up his letter to the Corinthian believers, he summarized all that he had said in one simple, memorable, and thoroughly jam-packed sentence. Mixed in with his final greetings, instructions, news, and words of encouragement, Paul provided them one last succinct charge. He warned them to be on their guard. They were facing dangers from within and without. They were attempting to live the Christian life in the midst of a hostile, pagan culture. Many of those pagan influences had found their way into the church itself, brought there by the Corinthian converts to Christianity themselves. Paul warned them to stay alert, like a watchman on the wall, keeping their eyes open to the threats facing the unity of the church. The enemy would love nothing better than to destroy the body of Christ from within – like a cancer, spreading and infecting the entire body until it can no longer function as God intended it to. They were to keep their eyes open for signs of pride, arrogance, jealousy, division, disunity, and self-centeredness masquerading as freedom and rights.

As they watched, they were to stand firm in the faith. They were not to falter or fall. But they had to remember that their spiritual stability had to based on one thing and one thing only – their faith and trust in God. Their hope was to be placed in the gospel message they had received, not on their feeble attempt at self-righteousness. Nothing else would support them in the storms they were facing like the message of salvation in Christ alone through faith alone. Attacks were going to come. False teaching would attempt to rock their world. But they were to be strong and immovable in their faith – trusting God regardless of their circumstances.

Paul also warned them to be courageous. In the original language, he actually told them to "act like men." Instead of responding to the difficulties of life like immature children, with fear and faithlessness, they were to act like mature men. Paul wanted them to face life boldly, confidently, and courageously. They were not to run and hide. Rather than fear and flight, they were to exhibit faith and fearlessness – even in the face of seemingly overwhelming odds. And on top of that, Paul told them to be strong. The interesting thing about his word choice is that it conveyed an on-going action. They were to continually increase in strength. As time wore on, rather than growing weaker, they were to grow stronger. Their faith and confidence would increase as they watched God faithfully work in their midst. Our job is to stand firm, confident in what God can and will do. Then the rest is up to Him. And as we watch Him work, we will increase in strength and our faith will grow.

What's interesting is Paul's final words of exhortation. He wraps up all his admonitions about watchfulness, stability, strength and courage with a call to love. "And do everything with love" (1 Corinthians 16:13 NLT). As Paul so clearly stated earlier in his letter, anything we do as Christians that is devoid of love is little more than wasted effort. To be on guard, stand firm in the faith, and show courage and strength would all be worthless if it was done without love. We have a tendency to take so much of what Paul wrote to the church and apply it to ourselves. We individualize what he meant for the community of faith. Christianity is not a solo sport. This admonition from Paul is for the church corporately, not individually. What good would it do if I stay alert, firm in my faith, courageous and strong, but only think about myself? If I fail to care about those who God has made my brothers and sisters in Christ, I am missing the point. I am to be alert and watchful because I love and care for my fellow believers in Christ. I am watching out for them. I am to stand firm and secure in my faith out of love for those around me, so that when they begin to doubt, they can be encouraged by my faith. I am to be courageous and strong, out of love for those God has placed in my midst. There is no place in the Christian life for self-preservation. We are part of a body. We are to care for and lovingly protect one another. As Paul so eloquently wrote earlier in his letter, "Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance" (1 Corinthians 13:7 NLT).

The Christian life is not easy. But the Christian life was also not meant to be lived alone and in isolation. It is a community effort where each person plays a vital role in the well-being of the entire body. Love is what should motivate us. Our mutual care and concern for one another should drive our actions and be the glue that holds our community together – even in the midst of the most difficult circumstances.

Father, make us a people of love. Remove our selfishness and self-centeredness. Forgive us for always making it about ourselves. May love permeate all that we do. And may all that we do be done for others, not for ourselves. Give us the same attitude that Christ had – a selfless, sacrificial attitude motivated by love for others rather than love for self. Amen.