Title: True Courage/Matthew 26:47-54
Content A person needs a variety of assets to live. However, property can be broadly classified into two categories. It is both visible and invisible. Both are valuable assets. But if you look closely, you can see that invisible property is much more valuable than visible property.
Faith, hope, love, these are all invisible assets. Visible property can actually survive without it. Even if you have little or no property such as wealth or a house, it is a little difficult, but it is enough. However, invisible property, although intangible, is the most precious property. For example, without wealth such as faith, hope, and love, people cannot survive. A life without hope, a relationship without love, these are truly miserable aspects of life. That is why intangible property is so valuable in human life.
However, among intangible assets, there are more valuable assets. That is courage. You don't know how essential and necessary courage is in the process of living in the world. From being small in front of people to running your life at large, this courage plays a huge role. So courageous people live the world dignifiedly. They are also able to overcome the difficulties of the world well. That's why Seneca said, "Fate can deprive you of wealth, but it cannot deprive you of courage." So, if you look at the great achievements in history, they are all made by courageous people.
Even in the Bible, there are many stories of people who lived courageously. The courage of Moses who defeated the iron fist ruler Pharaoh, the courage of David who defeated Goliath, the courage of Stephen who did not lose his smile even though he was stoned to death, and the apostle Paul who lived his life in overwhelming emotion while sacrificing his life for Jesus. The courage of all of them are wonderful appearances. Indeed, courage is such a good and important property.
But not all courage is good. Courage, when used for good, brings good results, but when abused, it can also bring unspeakable misery.
In today's text, we see three different courageous faces. However, these three faces of courage all have different meanings.
1. The courage of Judas Iscariot.
Judas Iscariot is more courageous than anyone else. That courage is rare in the world. As Judas was attending the Last Supper, the Lord spoke with a mournful expression. "One of you will sell me tomorrow." At that time, each of the disciples was perplexed.
Who it is, each to assert his innocence, "Is that me?" I asked. Of course, the other disciples had no intention of selling their master, nor did they have the courage to do so, nor even dreamed of it. So of course it's me? and could ask.
But Judas is different. We are now in a state of negotiating to sell and eat the Lord. We have set the market price to hand over early tomorrow morning. And yet, naturally, I came out and sat down. Yet, after hearing the word of the Lord, is it me like the other disciples? and asked. And even if you were sitting with me, your head would be bowed the moment you saw the face of the Lord, and when the Lord spoke like that, even if your heart was pierced, you would not have been able to endure it without bending your knees in front of him. Then it is human. And yet Judas is naturally me? I asked. How courageous are you?
That's not all. At dawn the next day, Judas, who appeared with the soldiers, handed Jesus over and said, "How are you, teacher?" and kissed him. Judas is no ordinary man. There is courage like this in the world.
Where did this courage come from? It is courage from the Fall. Once a person falls, he turns into such a terrifying person. When a person becomes spiritually corrupt, he or she will deny God, who used to be afraid, and may turn into a person who dares to curse God. And sometimes it turns into a courageous person who can say “I am Jesus” and become Jesus. What a terrible fall is this?
Once a person is corrupted by lust, she is a housewife of a family who was virtuous until yesterday. A person who used to be a wife and mother suddenly becomes a scoundrel who runs away from home. When a person is corrupted by lust for water, his brothers, neighbors, parents, and trust will disappear. When a person is mentally ill, he or she turns into a person who has no remorse for anything. All of this courage is courage from the Fall.
When a person falls, he receives this terrible magical power. At first, Judas Iscariot was also an innocent young man with many dreams and a promising future. So he, who was living in the land of Iscariot in the south, came to the Lord who was active in the north and became a disciple. At first he was a very innocent young man. But he has fallen. This is not just another story. We, too, have the potential to become like that. That's why the Bible tells us to pray always. In this way, Judas Iscariot's courage is a sickly courageous one.
2. Peter's courage.
After spending the night praying on the mountain of Gethsemane, the Lord came down the mountain with his weary disciples. But at the foot of the mountain, Judas Iscariot is waiting for him with his soldiers. The time has come. Soldiers try to bind Jesus. At that moment, a fire broke out in the eyes of the disciples. Among them, Peter's eyes must have shone even more intensely. He would have been intolerable by his nature.
So Peter drew his sword. Because it is mountainous and wilderness, there are many opportunities to encounter robbers at any time. So, one of the party's people is supposed to carry a bayonet with them. Peter was wearing the bayonet. Peter, unable to overcome his anger, struck someone. Here the commentator said that Peter struck someone on the head. But because he was quick to dodge, only one ear piece fell off. He is a man named Malchu.
Here we see Peter's courage. Soldiers armed with swords and spears surround it. Moreover, the place is sparsely populated in the mountains. It is a place where even one person will never know. But the disciples are bare-fisted. You can't be your opponent. The fact that Peter was able to draw his sword and smite his opponents alone under such circumstances clearly shows that he has extraordinary courage. Peter's courage to stand alone against the enemy when one sells his master and the other disciples are afraid is great courage.
It takes courage and courage like this for us to follow in Jesus' footsteps. It also takes courage to preach the word. Even in difficult circumstances, it takes courage to consistently lead a life of faith. You must have the courage to live your life as a Christian in the world. You must have this courage to walk down the street with the Bible. It is difficult for a Christian without courage to lead a life of faith with confidence. In that sense, Peter was a courageous man.
But strictly speaking, Peter's courage like this is not actually courage. That is why the Lord did not commend Peter for such a courageous act. Rather, the Lord coldly rebuked him. "Put the sword back into its house, for those who use the sword will perish by the sword." What a stern rebuke.
Peter's courage like this comes from nothing other than blood. Courage from blood sometimes looks brave and courageous, but most of it is frivolous courage, and dangerous courage that comes from an unpolished person. A person who shouts out that he does not agree with him during a meeting, a person who always fights loudly and breaks down in a couple fight, a person who cannot control their reason and is always excited, these are all things that come from blood. These are the factors that make people make mistakes.
Although Peter had the courage to draw his sword for the Lord and out of sympathy, the Lord was not moved by his actions. Rather, he rebuked him. Because Peter's courageous act like that does not help the Lord's way at all.
The life of the cross is not just about having a sense of self-righteousness or righteousness. Therefore, Peter could not get through the night and had the experience of failure by denying that he did not know Jesus three times. So courage that comes from blood is not courage. It's omnipotent. It's just blood.
3. The true courage of Jesus.
It is here that we see true courage. That is the courage the Lord has shown. The courageous act the Lord showed us is such courage that leaves a deep impression on us forever.
The disciple who had followed him until yesterday appeared before him as a traitor today. Seeing this, the Lord's heart must have been both sad and angry. The most difficult thing in the world to bear is being betrayed. But the Lord calls the disciple standing in front of him, “Friend”. In my heart, I could have mobilized an angel who had more than 12 heavenly spirits to defeat it with a single sword, but the Lord endures to accomplish God's will, not because of incompetence.
The spirit here refers to 6,000 soldiers. This means that 12 Spirits can mobilize an army of 72,000 men. But it can't be. Because that's a failure. That's why he told me to put the knife back. This is courage. Being patient because you can't do it is not courage. But to endure what you can do is true courage. That's why a man named Wendell Phillips said, "Physical courage is instinct, moral courage is a higher level of courage, and religious courage is the highest courage."
We see three different kinds of courage in the above. The courage of Judas Iscariot is clearly the courage that came from the Fall. It is a paralyzed conscience, not courage. There are so many paralyzed consciences like this in this world. Peter's courage is courage from blood. But that's just wrath, not good courage.
True courage is the courage of the Lord. It is courage that comes from patience. It is courage, not out of incompetence, but out of enduring for a higher will.
With this same courage, the Lord took up the cross, triumphed in the grave, and opened the way for us. Thinking of the Lord's courage on this morning of Passion Sunday, let's strive to become courageous saints who follow the Lord.