Journal: Journal for Biblical Manhood and Womanhood
Volume: JBMW 21:2 (Fall 2016)
Article: Like A Steersman In A Storm
Author: Jason G. Duesing

JBMW 21:2 (Fall 2016) p. 1

Like A Steersman In A Storm

Jason G. Duesing

Editor, Journal for Biblical Manhood and Womanhood
Provost and Associate Professor of Historical Theology
Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary
Kansas City, Missouri

Near the end of his life, the pioneer American missionary, Adoniram Judson (1788-1850), returned to America for the first time since he departed nearly 35 years prior.1 The twice-widowed Judson along with his children came in need of recuperation and rest and were welcomed with virtual celebrity status all along the Eastern seaboard. Instead of rest, Judson was shuttled from meeting to meeting speaking to churches both north and south.

During his stay, Judson met and married his third wife, secured care for his older children, and prepared to return to his Burmese home to finish the gospel work he started. Before leaving America, he gave a parting address on June 30, 1846.2 Surrounded by a new generation of church leaders and senders of missionaries who were not present when he left in 1812, Judson indicated he felt out of place.

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Yet, this did not deter him from challenging his audience to take up the mantle and press forward.

At the start of the address, he likened himself to “a steersman in a storm” who “must keep a steady eye to the compass and a strong arm at the wheel.” Judson’s self-portrait here actually describes quite well his lifelong courageous perseverance in the missionary task and in one way calls to mind the Apostle Paul’s admonition in 1 Corinthians 16:13 for believers to “act like men.”

This three-word phrase “act like men” in English actually comes from a single Greek word and thus can also be translated as “be courageous.” Standing in the midst of four other commands that convey a military theme, Paul is directing the believers how to live as spiritual warriors (see also Eph 6). To “act like men” is a call to an offensive maneuver prompting believers to engage the culture not as fearful children but rather as courageous men. Judson’s life very much is a testimony to this type of courageous engagement, and it is there we see a fitting model of biblical manhood, though not exactly in all the ways one might expect.

The pairing of courage and manhood is a natural one for which even those not viewing the world through biblical spectacles can resonate. Yet, biblical courage is distinct and more defined than a typical rendering of a simple self-sac...