What does the Bible say about courage?

“Be strong, and let your heart take courage, all you who wait for the Lord!” (Psalm 31:24, ESV)

There is a reason behind God’s command to be courageous. Nearly every time God says “fear not,” He provides a reason to have courage, and that reason is God Himself. God calms Abram’s fears after his battle with the kings of Sodom, when He says, “Fear not Abraham, I am your shield.” (Genesis 15:1) Hagar was despairing for her life and that of her child in the wilderness when the angel of the Lord tells her, “Fear not, for God has heard the voice of the boy where he is.” (Genesis 21:17) God promises the Israelites: “Fear not… I am the One who helps you.” (Isaiah 41:14) God does not command courage because it is natural to man, but because we are to be confident in His promise of guidance and protection. God hears our pleas and prayers. He is our shield and our helper.

This is not just an Old Testament reality. Jesus spoke to his disciples during the storm:

“Immediately he spoke to them and said, ‘Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.’” (Mark 6:50, NIV)

God also spoke to the Apostle Paul while he was being held by Roman guards.

“The Lord stood near Paul and said, “Take courage! As you have testified about me in Jerusalem, so you must also testify in Rome.” (Acts 23:11, NIV)

The Greek word translated “courage” and “good cheer” means literally “boldness and confidence.” Courage is not the opposite of fear, but is determination and confidence to move forward in the presence of fear.

“I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear.”

– Nelson Mandela

When God commands us to be of good cheer and to have courage, He is always commanding us to conquer fear. As stated in the previous posting on cowardice, fear is a lack of faith.

“And he said to them, ‘Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?’” (Matthew 8:26, ESV)

Courage results from faith in God’s promises. In God’s promises, we are to be confident, courageous, and of good cheer because of who He is.

Do not be afraid of sudden terror or of the ruin of the wicked, when it comes, for the Lord will be your confidence and will keep your foot from being caught.(Proverbs 3:25-26).

God promises to care for those who seek Him – a care that is absent from the lives of those who reject Him. Those who place their faith in Christ for salvation are to have no fear because Your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom (Luke 12:32). It is this great promise in which lies the reason for our confidence, our courage, and our good cheer.

“God’s love calls us to move beyond fear. We ask God for the courage to abandon ourselves unreservedly, so that we might be molded by God’s grace, even as we cannot see where that path may lead us.” 

– St. Ignatius Loyola