When Christ rose from the dead, He did so with authority. His resurrection was explosive, ushering in a new age. There was nothing stagnant about this new age and there was nothing sluggish about mission of Christ’s followers in it. They went from Jerusalem, to Judea, to Samaria, to the ends of the earth. They went to deserts, caves, and halls of power. Their operation was a risky one and no doubt they had Jesus’ parable in their heads, the one about the talents.

That parable can make conservatives nervous. Conservatives like to conserve, after all. And if conservation is the only standard, why did the wicked servant who had received one talent get condemned? He did keep what was entrusted to him. Evidently, our Lord expects us to use the gifts He has given us and turn a profit on his investment.

Each one of you have gifts from the Lord. Some of you have a been given wisdom, others the ability to lead with zeal. Some of you have the gift of generosity and others of you bleed mercy anytime you are pricked. Discovering your particular gifts is not nearly as important as using them.

The tendency for conservatives is to ride the brake. We recognize there are risks with every action and it is right to count the costs. But we can forget that inaction is quite risky itself. Pharaoh’s chariots behind you are just as much a threat as the Red Sea in front of you. The desert swallows up your people if you don’t enter into the land and giants will attempt to when you do. 

But what God said throuhh the prophet Moses, He says all the more to His new covenant church through the Greater Moses, “Speak unto the children of Israel, that they go forward.”