Articles
The Courage To Run
In the classic movie ‘The Wizard of Oz,’ the Cowardly Lion is told by the Wizard that his idea of courage is actually a misconception. After having told his friends and the Wizard that he sometimes runs away from a fight, the Cowardly Lion is told by the Wizard, "As for you, my fine friend, you're a victim of disorganized thinking. You are under the unfortunate delusion that simply because you run away from danger, you have no courage. You're confusing courage with wisdom." He wasn't wrong!
This is a problem many of us have at times, I think. We have been so conditioned by society to think that courage is only standing up and fighting that we don't even see as a possibility that running away isn't always cowardice, but sometimes the wisest thing we could do! In spiritual matters, this is no less true, either.
Take, for example, the story of Joseph. Here was a man who had been sold into slavery by his own brothers, yet he didn't wallow in self-pity about it, but continued to live for God and lived a faithful life and behaving in such a way as to gain the trust of his master. According to the Scriptures, “The Lord was with Joseph, and he was a successful man; and he was in the house of his master the Egyptian. And his master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord made all he did to prosper in his hand. So Joseph found favor in his sight, and served him. Then he made him overseer of his house, and all that he had he put under his authority” (Gen. 39:2-4). Joseph was so trusted by Potiphar, his master, that it is also said he “left all that he had in Joseph’s hand, and he did not know what he had except for the bread which he ate” (Gen. 39:6).
But Potiphar's wife set her sights on Joseph because he was “handsome in form and appearance” (Gen. 39:6). She desired him and asked him to lie with her -— to commit an adulterous act (Gen. 39:7) — but he refused. She continued her pleading daily (Gen. 39:10), but Joseph continued to refuse, saying, “How then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?” (Gen. 39:9). One day, when no one else was around, “she caught him by his garment, saying, ‘Lie with me.’ But he left his garment in her hand, and fled and ran outside” (Gen. 39:12). In this case, Joseph had to literally run away from a bad situation to avoid sin.
He was no coward; he was wise. Yes, I know he ended up imprisoned anyway because she lied about what had happened, but God knew the truth and God continued to be with him while he was in jail (Gen. 39:21-23), and He was with Joseph for many years afterwards. The foolish thing in this case would have been to stay! Joseph had resisted her pleas continually, but he knew when it was time to get away and prevent something far worse than being imprisoned wrongfully.
For God's people today, we could learn some important lessons about having the courage to do the right thing, and at the right time. Unfortunately, we sometimes confuse courage with foolishness and arrogance, and doing so puts us in spiritually dangerous situations. Let us learn from Joseph some truths about what courage really is and, maybe more importantly, what it is not.
Courage Is Not Staying When It Is Wiser To Flee. In the case of Joseph and Potiphar's wife, Joseph had already refused her advances numerous times, so the message should have been clear that he was not interested in what she offered. And when he found himself alone with her and she grabbed him by his clothing, then was not the time to stay and put on a brave face; it was time to get out of that situation! Joseph knew there were no eyewitnesses who could corroborate his account, so he saw that the wise thing to do was flee.
One of the wisest bits of instruction I got when I was preparing to enter into full-time work as a preacher was to not ever put myself in a situation alone with a woman who was not my wife. As we have seen in recent years, there is too great a risk of ruining the reputation of either the man or the woman in such cases, and if we are truly interested in being the example to others and never giving anyone a cause to doubt our spiritual and moral purity, we won't even hesitate to question the wisdom of this choice. But the same would be true of any situation where we are left alone with some temptation, whether it be with drugs or alcohol or access to pornography [i.e., the Internet]; don't go where you know it is not wise, and don't stay there if you find yourself in a situation you never intended or predicted.
Courage Is Not Taking On More Than You Are Able To Bear. In Joseph's case, he refused the temptation every time, and even fled when he had the opportunity. But what about cases where we are too spiritually weak or immature to resist? In such cases, it is certainly not wise to stay, right? No one would say you were wise to stay in a situation where you were unable to successfully resist a temptation; they would more likely call you foolish. It is just not wise to remain where you are guaranteed to lose the fight!
It is true that God promised He “will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it” (1 Cor. 10:13), and we know by the example of the temptation of Jesus that the answer is found in the written word (cf. Matt. 4:1-11); but what if we don't know the answer at that moment? Is it God's fault if we stay anyway, and give in to the temptation? No, friends and brethren, it is not God's fault; it is our own. We are drawn away by our own desires and tempted (Jas. 1:13-15), so it is up to us to know those desires and to be able to master them that we do not give in. The “way of escape” is there, but we must know it, and take it!
Courage Is Not Acting As If Temptations Are A Minor Thing. When Joseph faced the tempting offers from Potiphar's wife, he didn't tell himself, "Oh, I would never do that," or, "Oh, that stuff doesn't affect me." Joseph was honest enough with himself to know that temptations are temptations because they appeal to human desires and, if unchecked, lead to sin. He looked ahead to where her offers could take him, if he gave in, and replied, “How then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?” (Gen. 39:9). He called it what it really was, and acted accordingly!
Any military leader worth his stripes or stars will not listen to real threats and shrug them off as unimportant and go on as if there was no danger. If someone points a nuclear missile at you and threatens to use it, it is not 'courageous' to ignore them and not address the threat. A wise leader will address the threat for exactly what it is, and respond accordingly — even if that means picking up and moving with great speed to get out of range of the threat!
Courage is most certainly needed when facing “all the fiery darts of the wicked one” (Eph. 6:16), but to successfully do so, we must have on the full armor of God. If we find we are missing some pieces, it is not 'courageous' to go out into the midst of battle; it is wise to get properly prepared first and then go out and fight. Don't stay if you are not able to stand; don't stay if you put yourself in danger; and don't stay if you think you couldn't possibly be harmed. That is not 'courageous'' that is foolish.
Be brave, but be wise. — Steven Harper
