Fear? NOT!
Good story tellers save the dramatic revelation until the end hoping you are caught up enough in the clues to stay the distance. But today’s good news fairly shouts off the page and hopefully, the application of it will be well worth the anticipation. We live in a society all but dominated by fear…of all kinds of things, people, and the future. The psalmist writes, “In God, whose word I praise, In God I have put my trust; I shall not be afraid. What can mere man do to me?” (Ps. 56:4).
I’ve taken a little liberty with the title of this message using some younger-generation vernacular. Over 200 times in Scripture we are told some variation of “fear not”. Why do you think that is? A few times it was because an awesome, probably terrifying being—an angel (see Luke 1:12)—was sent to communicate a message to one or a group. Sometimes it was because God was about to lead His people through dangerous territory or into war.
But mostly it is because
God is our all-powerful Father who can and does protect His children. In Hebrews 13:5 He says that He will never desert us or forsake us. Desert is a strong word implying even in the scariest situations, He won’t abandon us. We know God cannot lie (Tit. 1:2). So if this verse isn’t enough, allow two more. The psalmist writes, “cast your burden upon the Lord and He will sustain you. He will never allow the righteous to be shaken” (Ps.55:22). And again from the Psalms, “For he (the man who fears the Lord) will never be shaken; the righteous will be remembered forever” (Ps. 112:6).
Never and forever. Great reminders of God’s power and presence. I’m sure most of us know the 23rd psalm that starts out, “The Lord is my shepherd.” But have you ever considered one of the most comforting promises in verse four? “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, (here it is) I fear no evil, for You are with me.” There was a period in Israel’s history when they were surrounded by 10 plagues that God brought upon the Egyptians. How many of those 10 plagues affected God’s people? You can read the specifics in Exodus 9:6, 9:26, 10:23, 11:7, 12:3. Exactly zero.
For two years,
our government leaders have bombarded us using fear tactics to control and compel compliance. They have blocked true science, put forth silly mask and distance requirements (which didn’t seem to apply to BLM and ANTIFA) that have been proven ineffective. We’ve been pummeled day after day with death statistics. And when the political heat is becoming too much for them (they fear the mid-terms), they simply “change the science.” How convenient. And all to what end? Their thirst for power, greed, and control. If you think it hasn’t been effective, ask yourself why do you see lone drivers with windows rolled up wearing masks? Hmmm.
The Bible warned us against these men: “In the last days difficult times will come. For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, arrogant…irreconcilable…without self-control…haters of good, treacherous…avoid such men as these” (2 Tim. 3:1-5). We have been in the last days since Christ was on earth. But is this the last of the last? I don’t know. Neither does anyone else but God. Does it really matter? Each of us has an expiration date, determined by God before we were born (Ps. 139:16). Our job while we remain on earth is to obey the verse we talked about Tuesday (Aim at Nothing): “do all to the glory of God.”
Fear does not promote God’s glory.
Fear binds us, defeats us, keeps us on the bench out of the game. If you are afraid…of anything, ask yourself is the object of your fear something beyond God’s ability to protect you? Is COVID? Is losing your job. Is the death of a loved one? Life happens. And it’s ALL under God’s sovereign control. Think about today’s promises of God never leaving you, of “the righteous” never being shaken. Memorize these verses so the next time the tempter whispers in your ear “be afraid, be very afraid” you can combat him with the same weapon Jesus used in His 40 days in the desert…the Word of God.
The qualifier in all this is the verses apply only to “the righteous,” those of us who have given our lives to Jesus Christ and who don’t fear the future because we have a great expectation of Jesus’ return to bring us to heaven to be with Him forever. If you don’t have that confidence, check out our Steps to Salvation on this website. As a closing thought, ponder this verse and see where you fall on the continuum: “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear…” (1 Jn. 4:18).