The upcoming sermon series for September is "Let the Lion Out" by Ron Ott, Preaching minister at Lincoln Christian Church.

Let The LION Out “The Gospel is like a caged lion. It does not need to be defended. It simply needs to be let out of its cage.” —Charles Spurgeon.

Most of us remember the Cowardly Lion in the Wizard of Oz. He was an embarrassment to his kind. But he found his courage when he sought to let his true lion nature out. Jesus is described as the Lion of Judah. He is the picture of strength, wisdom, control, nobility, and fierceness. In The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, C.S. Lewis describes Aslan (the lion) this way, “’Course he isn’t safe. But he’s good.”

Throughout the scriptures, we have encountered over and over those who are courageous vs. those who compromise. The crowds became a mob shouting for the crucifixion of Jesus. From the shadows, distant nobodies risked being associated with Jesus—Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus came asking for Jesus’ body. That took courage. David standing up against a giant vs. his brothers cowering with Saul’s armies. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego refusing to bow to the image vs. the crowds who did. Elijah vs. the prophets of Baal. The stories go on and on, people who choose bravery over conceding. Christians are asked to do the same—to separate ourselves from the philosophies of this pagan world and choose to follow Jesus, unashamed, unapologetic, and without compromise. We choose the hard path over the easy. We enter through the narrow gate vs. the wide path that leads to destruction. We side with good over evil, right over wrong, light over darkness, truth over lies, heaven over hell. Why? Because the Lion of Judah lives in us, and through us, and the time has come to let him out.