The Courageous Life

An employee had been working for a company for about a year, felt it was time for a pay

rise. After a lot of deliberation, he eventually went to his boss and asked for it. The boss

just took one look at him and said, certainly not. You haven't been here five minutes. In

this company, you've got to take your time to really work yourself up. He looked back

at him and he said, take your time to work yourself up. That's exactly what I've been

doing. Look at me. I'm shaking like a leaf. What does courage mean to you? Is it about

just throwing caution to the wind? Is it about suppressing anxiety or is it about pretending

that it doesn't exist or is it about completely overcoming it? What does it mean? Mark Twain

once wrote that true courage is not the absence of fear, but the mastery of fear.

So let's turn to this passage and there's far more in it than we can possibly unpack over

just a few minutes. But it gives us a vital insight as to what courage, true courage looks

like. That is not the absence of fear, that's not the absence of terror, but it's the relationship

with that as we see it played out in the hands of Jesus, who is simultaneously God and human.

This is that mystery of what theologians have always referred to as the incarnation.

That Jesus is fully God and fully human. He is fully human and he's fully God.

The light of the world that's come into darkness. And so as we see him staring the reality of the cross,

torture and death in the face, we see him as a fully human being wrestling with that. And yet we see God

in human form wrestling with that. Now, how we begin to get our minds around what that means,

well, that's something that's perplexed theologians for as long as the gospel has been around.

But what we certainly have here is a sense of fear.

And overcome by courage.

This was arguably the most critical moment in history. Now, you could say that the most critical

moment in history is the cross itself. But what we've got going on here in Gethsemane

seems to be something of that critical moment upon which whether the cross happened or not depends.

And again, part of that whole theological mystery of what it means for Jesus to be fully human and

fully God is, did he have to go to the cross? Does the possibility exist that he might not have done?

Well, if God is completely the definition of love and is absolutely love and there is no greater love

than that, then you could argue that perhaps the cross was inevitable. And yet, can we really say that

the cross was inevitable? Surely there was this sense of decision that was within it. In order for

love to exist, surely the choice has to be made in order to go through with it. Now, these are things

that are beyond our human understanding. But it just gives us a sense of the intensity of this moment.

That what we have enshrined in this moment is Jesus, the man who is fully human and yet is fully God.

And is faced, confronted with this decision. And I want to suggest that it is a decision

because what we see here is the wrestling with it.

Had Jesus not gone to the cross, my guess is that the New Testament would never have been written

and we would have never have heard of him.

The point is, is as far as these things lie beyond, as much as these things lie beyond the grasp of our human minds,

what we have here is the intensity of the moment. The man who is fully human and is fully God,

wrestling, wrestling with the cross that awaits.

And what we see here is what courage in the widest, deepest and fullest sense played out looks like.

So Peter goes off to pray with Peter, James and John.

Now, it's not the first time that this has happened.

And our thoughts can go back to that moment when Jesus went off with these three men to the mountaintop

to pray.

And what came to be referred to as the transfiguration happened.

Where earlier on, where they were together on the mountaintop, there was this blinding light.

There was this loud voice as thunder from heaven saying,

this is my son with whom I am well pleased.

Listen to him.

But this time,

Jesus,

now in a garden with Peter, James and John,

there's no bright lights.

There's no mysterious clouds.

There's no voices from heaven.

There's no words of affirmation.

There's Jesus.

And the only thing we hear is the prayer that goes from his lips.

And what I want to suggest is that perhaps there's a sense in which this connects with our own human experience at times.

Yes, there may be those, what we could call mountaintop spiritual experiences.

But there are those times when we see what courage really looks like,

when actually there's no such things as that.

And it feels like we are utterly alone.

And the only words we hear are our own words.

And we do not hear a sense of God speaking back to us.

We just hear the reality of our fears

and our pleading.

And I want to suggest that there's a key moment within this story

where we're shown what true courage really is.

And it's in verse 36

where Jesus prays,

take this cup from me.

Take this cup of suffering from me.

Yet not my will,

but yours be done.

What I want to suggest,

without oversimplifying things,

and I'm sure there's far more than can be said,

but what I want to suggest is that what we see there

in just those few words

are two expressions,

two dimensions, if you like,

of what true courage really means.

And the first is the first part of those words,

where Jesus prays,

take this cup from me.

Take this suffering from me.

I don't want to go through this.

Take it away.

Save me from this.

Now, at face value,

you could argue

that's not courage.

That's trying to avoid the situation.

That's trying to say,

what lies ahead?

I don't want to.

Get me out of here.

I want to escape.

Stop it from happening right now.

But what I want to suggest to you

is that actually the opposite is true.

That true courage lies in the honesty

of being able to face up to reality

as it is

and to bring God into that,

knowing that we need God

and that only God can face us.

Only God can help us.

And the reason I say that

is that time and time and time and time and time and time and time again,

we hear stories of people

who have overcome challenges and situations

and they've got from a terrible place

to an amazing place.

They've got from a place of utter devastation and brokenness

to a place of renewal and hope and life

and becoming actually what God wants them to become.

And the reason being is that change has happened

and whilst that journey from being right down there

to being right back up there

may have been a long, gradual and complex one,

somewhere in there lies that moment

of facing up to reality

where they grasp that nettle

and they stare it in the face

and say,

yep,

something's got to happen.

I need some help.

How many times would there have been a situation

where somebody has made it through

some kind of addiction,

whether that be to a substance

or whether it be to a lifestyle or whatever,

but they've made it through

and the key critical moment

was the moment when they realised

it can't go on like this.

It's got to change.

Take this from me.

Or maybe somebody's been,

looks back on

and they're now in a restored

and renewed relationship

but there was a time

when they looked like

there was no hope whatsoever

for that relationship

and there came that point of recognition,

that moment of truth

where they dared to face reality in the face

and say,

I can't go on with this.

It's got to change.

In all sorts of different ways

and there will be as many versions

of these stories as there are

Christians in the world today

who have known what it is

to be transformed by the Holy Spirit

but there will be stories

where we've gone from

one spiritual state

where God has not seemingly

been part of our lives

to a part of a spiritual state

where God is very much

a part of our lives

and there's a huge contrast

between those states

and it may be a southern one,

it may be a gradual one

or it may be something

between a combination of the two

but somewhere in there

has been that point of recognition

that we need God

and that has involved

some sense of staring reality

in the face

and not chasing away from reality,

not denying it,

not turning our back on it

but actually daring to look at it

in all its ugliness

and to know furthermore

and perhaps most importantly

that we need God

and that if we try to actually

either run away from that reality

or we try to pretend

that he's not there

then in fact we're kidding ourselves.

Now I'm not suggesting

for one moment

that Jesus' experience here

is one where he's turning back

to God

having not been following his father.

I'm not suggesting that

but what we do see going on

in the dynamics of his prayer

is Jesus,

the fully human being,

facing reality

and facing the cross

and everything that he knows

that that represents

and crying out to his father

in honesty

and in agony,

I don't want this.

I don't want this.

If there's any way

that this can be different,

father make it so.

And what I want to suggest

is there is the most tremendous

sign of courage

in that prayer.

And perhaps that

may be where we need to be

when there are realities

going on in our lives

that we perhaps feel

afraid to confront.

Perhaps because they just seem

too big

and too complex

or too intimidating.

or maybe we recognise them

but somehow

we just don't want God

to get a hold of them fully

because we're frightened

of what he might do with it.

We know that God's there

deep down inside

but perhaps we might even

follow him in some way

but there's this bit of us

that we're just a little bit afraid

that if he gets hold of it

what's going to happen.

What we see in these words of Jesus

is that that turning point

in our lives

where courage

really true courage

comes into play

is the recognition

that things are going to change.

The recognition of reality

before us

and the recognition

that we need

God our Father

to be part of it.

Father

take this

away from me

please.

But Jesus

doesn't stop there

in his prayer

and that's the point

because

as his prayer continues

we see

this

deepening

and this

widening

and this

strengthening

of courage

because the second part

the second dimension

and I want to suggest

the deeper

stronger dimension

is the words

lies within those words

yet not what

I want

but what

you want

God.

And sometimes

we can only get

to that place

when we've actually

gone through

that first prayer

and we've had the courage

to face up

to the fact

that what is ahead of us

we just don't want

and we actually

plead with God

to take it away

if that's a possibility

but then

having held

that prayer

to submit

with that sense

of trust

that

even though

it doesn't make sense

to us

we believe

that God's view

of things

is bigger

than our view

of things

and therefore

we can say

that even though

I don't want this

I'm trusting you

Lord

that

you know

what you're doing

trusting our

uncertainty

into that sense

that God's kingdom

God's purposes

are bigger

and wider

and deeper

than our understanding

of where we are

right now

and the circumstances

in which we find

ourselves

now that's a tough

call

that's a tough call

because it involves

sacrifice

it involves

self-denial

and those aren't

fashionable things

even within

the contemporary church

we've bought into

this idea

so much so

and it's

you know

we can understand

where it comes from

we talk about

how being a Christian

is about living life

fully

and about enjoying life

and about knowing

all of God's blessings

in our life

that's all true

but the danger can be

that we so overplay that

that we overlook

the reality

that life is hard

and that Jesus

came into this world

not to suddenly

take away

all of our problems

and to make life

really easy

and straightforward

and simple

not this side

of eternity

but that rather

in Christ

God comes to us

to help us

with those situations

and to see ourselves

through the battles

that we face

in this life

now when we know

that God is with us

by his Holy Spirit

that he's with us

that he's around us

that he's within us

then of course

we are unstrengthened

and we are empowered

but it doesn't necessarily mean

that those challenges

are taken away

rather we are given

the strength

to face those challenges

but that's a difficult

thing for us

to face up to

the thing is

is that

we can have this sense

of what we feel

is right for us

and what's in our

best interest

and yet

God may think otherwise

and that's where

the courage

of that prayer

but not my will

but your will

be done

truly lies

let me give you

an illustration

I don't know if you remember

a few years ago

quite a long time ago

there was a series

I think it was

the BBC series

featuring two

at the time

quite well known

personalities

called Trini and Susanna

they were fashion experts

do you remember them

they did a series

called

What Not to Wear

they did another

rehash of that series

I can't remember

what it was called

but anyway

there was a number

of different versions

of these programs

around

and Trini and Susanna

were fashion experts

and they would

people would come

on the show

and sometimes

they were celebrities

some of the other

people would just

write in

and they would

go through

their entire wardrobe

and they were

ruthlessly critical

they would say

now that looks

terrible

or it is terrible

on you

just get rid of it

and then they would

completely redesign them

give them new outfits

and the point was

was they were

actually trying to

make them look

as best as they

possibly could look

not to sort of

criticise them

or be horrible

but actually bring out

the very best

in them

now I used to

watch this program

with Tamara

who loved the program

so I used to find

that it was on

and I used to sit down

and I would enjoy it too

that's my theory

and I'm sticking with it

the program was

fascinating actually

because what I found

really really fascinating

was the

the responses

that people would

make

when they faced

criticism

of the choices

that they had made

and whether

they were willing

to trust

the view

of these people

who dealt

all the time

with trying

to help people

look the best

that they possibly could

and there was

one particular episode

where there was

a particular celebrity

that went on there

and they were going

to a big

I don't know

some charity gala

thing

and they'd already

bought this outfit

and they thought

they were convinced

that they looked

absolutely great

Trini and Susanna

thought the opposite

in fact they said

we're going to be

really honest

with you here

because that's

what we're here to do

you look terrible

frankly you look awful

in that outfit

what led you to choose it

we don't know

but we genuinely believe

that you could look

absolutely fabulous

and this whole programme

went through

all the reasons

as to why

this was a bad choice

but they took them out

and with loads of effort

they went through

bought this new outfit

and all the rest of it

was due to go to this

she was all dressed up

ready to go to this

particular event

all the cameras were on

and she went through

it was like a red carpet event

wearing this

new outfit

and then

the next scene

we find out

that she'd actually

slipped into the loos

and changed back in

to her original outfit

now looking around

some of you here

are going

now

forget about

the content of that programme

and the theme of that programme

and forget about

the whole issue

of Trini and Susanna

and this celebrity

and outfits

and all the rest of it

what you've got there

is a principle

of somebody

going to somebody else

who is entrusted

as being an expert

and they give you

their expert opinion

and you can make the choice

as to whether you go with it

because they have

your interest at mind

or you can completely

throw it out the window

let's take another image

let's imagine

that you walk in

to your GP

and you manage

to get a face-to-face appointment

that's going to take

quite a bit of imagination

to start with

but let's just imagine

that that happens

yeah

and you're sat there

before your doctor

and you say to them

a whole list

of ailments

different aches

pains

every time you bend

in a particular way

you get a particular

flinch of pain

or whatever it is

whatever the

it doesn't matter

what it's to do with

but you give them

a whole list

of everything

that's wrong with you

then you turn around

and you go out

do you see

what I'm getting at

if we're not careful

we can end up

with a version

of Christianity

that effectively

turns God

into the one

that we bring

to our views

of what we should

and shouldn't be doing

and say to God

here's my plan

for my life

God

now please bless it

and that's it

now

Christian faith

growing as a disciple

of Jesus

involves

bringing our own

ideas of our lives

to him

of course it does

and in fact

we see that

playing out

within Jesus' prayer

in Gethsemane

where Jesus

brings in honesty

and openness

before his father

I don't want to

go through with this

if this cannot

happen

father

please make this

not happen

and that's a

courageous prayer

to pray

but it's not

the end

of the prayer

and we see

true courage

pray out

as Jesus

stares to pray

to his father

yet

it's not

what I want

it's what

your will

is

father

and true

courage

as we see

defined by

Jesus

in this story

it's the courage

that dares

to stay in there

and to hang

around

even when

we don't

like what we

hear

even when

those words

that come back

or whether

it may not

be words

at all

in prayer

but the

circumstances

remain

and we

take one

look at

them

and frankly

we hate

them

and yet

deep down

inside

we know

that that

is what

God is

saying

you're

going to

have to

go through

with this

but I'm

with you

and that

involves

trust

it involves

sacrifice

it involves

that

willingness

to accept

that we

may not

be right

even though

we cannot

understand

why not

and to

hang around

and to

stay in

there

and to

keep on

staying in

there

knowing

that even

though our

view of

things

can't make

sense of

it

God's view

of things

is bigger

and greater

and we're

going to

pray right

now

but as we

come to

pray

I'm going

to ask

each and

every one

of us

just to

think about

what courage

might look

like or

needs to

look like

in our

own lives

right now

because that

will be

different for

each and

every one

of us

but just

take a few

moments to

think about

that question

what does

that courage

or that

need of

courage

look like

for you

right now

take a few

moments

just to

think about

it

I'm not

going to

ask you

to talk

about it

with

anyone

except

God

so take

a few

moments

and just

ask yourself

that question

what does

having courage

look like

for you

right now

where would

you want

that courage

and as we

come to

pray

just remember

this

that sometimes

often

that need

for courage

actually translates

into that need

for patience

to hang on

in there

knowing that

in God's

time

God will

you know

it was

after the

battle of

Waterloo

that it

is reckoned

that

well

Wellington

actually

said

that

our men

were no

braver

than the

enemy

but they

were brave

for five

minutes

longer

so let's

pray

in the

stillness

of this

moment

let's

hold

before

God

whatever

our

answer

to that

question

looks like

what does

courage

or the

need for

courage

mean for

you

now

Lord

we hold

before you

our own

lives

and our

need for

courage

and we're

all at

different

points

and different

things going

on in our

lives

Lord

firstly

we would

pray

that if it

is possible

to remove

those things

that would

cause us to

suffer that

that would

happen

Lord we

believe that

you are the

God of

transformation

the God of

miracles and

that you can

do anything

Lord help us

to have that

courage to

face up to

those realities

that need

change

Lord

secondly

we know

that there

are some

situations

that for

reasons we

don't

understand

won't

necessarily

change

or change

in the way

that we

would like

them to

but that

you can

change us

and that

you can

give us

that boldness

that strength

that courage

whatever we

need

so Lord

we pray

that not

just in

this moment

but in

the days

weeks

whatever it

might even

be months

or even

years ahead

that we

would have

exactly that

courage that

you can give

us

that courage

that you

gave to

your son

Jesus

that courage

that knows

that your

will

is so far

bigger and

greater

than our

will

because your

vision is so

bigger and

greater than

our vision

here on

earth

so Lord

give us that

courage by the

power of your

spirit

now

and in the

time to

come

in Jesus

name we

pray

Amen

Lord

rative

Lord

and

Lord

Lord

as

we

he

as