Wednesday May 20 - Do Not Be Afraid – 1

Wednesday May 20 - Do Not Be Afraid – 1

Subject – Biblical Reasons Not to be Afraid

by Rick Welborne

Isaiah 41:8-10 (NLT2)
⁸  “But as for you, Israel my servant, Jacob my chosen one, descended from Abraham my friend,
⁹  I have called you back from the ends of the earth, saying, ‘You are my servant.’ For I have chosen you and will not throw you away.
¹⁰  Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand. 

–What would you guess would be one of the most common commands in the Scripture? It is not for us to be loving even though that may go to the core of God’s desire for us...It is not His most common instruction for us.

–Those who write about our spiritual lives often point to pride as being the root of our human fallen-ness but God’s most common command does not tell us to avoid pride.

–Walking in integrity and keeping oneself pure sexually is so important to God but these are still not what God commands us the most about.

–The single command in Scripture that occurs more often than any other—God’s most repeated instruction is formulated really in these words…Do not be afraid or fear not.

–God may say “Do not be afraid.  Be strong and courageous. You can trust Me. Fear not.”

1. Let’s look at why God tells us to not be afraid.

–When you think about it, fear does not seem like one of the more serious vices in the world...it does not even make it into the seven deadly sins that God names.

–As far as I know, no one has received church discipline for being afraid. So why does God tell human being to stop being afraid more than anything else?

–This hits me as humorous...God does not tell us to “not be afraid” because He is trying to spare us from emotional discomfort...usually what He asks us to do causes greater fear.

–I believe the number one reason God tells us to “not be afraid” is because fear is the reason humans are tempted to avoid doing what God asks them to do...to trust Him.

–All of us have more than likely played this game with our children when they were young...you are in the water trying to get your toddler to jump into the water.

–You can trust daddy...go ahead and jump...I will catch you...you will not fall! There is inner conflict in the child...their brain is saying don’t do this it’s dangerous!

–On the other hand it is daddy who is in the water...he is bigger and stronger and is relatively trustworthy...in most cases...The battle is between fear and trust.

–The child can’t stand there forever...the moment of decision...trust says “jump” and fear says “no”. Either he will jump or he will walk away...Tricia on the edge of the pool with Josh. He walks in and goes under.

–The choice he has will have great consequences...if he chooses to jump now he will trust his father more and will be more likely to do it again...Do it again...100 times.

–On the other hand...deciding not to jump also has consequences...he loses the opportunity to discover his dad can be trusted and also will live a more cautious life.

–This kind of person will work hard at avoiding fear or being put in situations where trust is so important.

–Everyone should have a healthy fear of water...of stepping out into the deep but we must work on our trust being greater than our fear. We never want the no of fear to be greater than the yes of faith...God can be trusted.

2. We must know based on God’s Word that He can be trusted even when we are afraid.

Isaiah 43:1‑7 (NKJV) 

1 But now, thus says the LORD, who created you, O Jacob, And He who formed you, O Israel: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; You are Mine. 

2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, Nor shall the flame scorch you. 

3 For I am the LORD your God, The Holy One of Israel, your Savior; I gave Egypt for your ransom, Ethiopia and Seba in your place. 

4 Since you were precious in My sight, You have been honored, And I have loved you; Therefore I will give men for you, And people for your life. 

5 Fear not, for I am with you; I will bring your descendants from the east, And gather you from the west; 

6 I will say to the north, 'Give them up!' And to the south, 'Do not keep them back!' Bring My sons from afar, And My daughters from the ends of the earth‑‑ 

7 Everyone who is called by My name, Whom I have created for My glory; I have formed him, yes, I have made him." 

–Father God can be trusted as long as we acknowledge Him...

Proverbs 3:5‑6 (NKJV) 

5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; 

6 In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths. 

–The key word here is trust...trust is the opposite of fear. Remember when Peter asked Jesus could he could come to Him on the water...Come.

–Trust said to Peter “Jump!” Fear said no...Peter jumped!  Peter got out of the boat and for a while everything went smoothly...then fear struck a second time. Peter saw the wind and he became frightened. 

–He lost his sense of confidence (trust) that Jesus was the Master of the situation. He did not just sink in the water...He sank in his own anxiety and fear.

Ortberg - I believe the reason God says “fear not” so often is that fear will sink us faster than anything else.  Fear disrupts faith and becomes the biggest obstacle to trusting and obeying God.

–Everyone of us will face those moments when we must choose between trust and fear. Trust and fear have been battling for supremacy in your heart for a long time...eventually one or the other will win.  

–Think about it...where is Jesus calling you to trust Him with all your heart. What is keeping you from doing it? More than likely it is fear.

3. Fear and the cost of living in fear.

Ortberg - At is simplest and most benign, fear is an internal warning cry that danger is nearby and we had better do something about it. It is designed to be what researchers call a “self-correcting mechanism”–to be unpleasant enough to motivate us to take action and remove ourselves from whatever is threatening us. It readies our bodies to flee, hide, or fight.

–When we are not willing to face our fears...it will definitely cost us...What?

A. Fear will cost us our self-esteem.

–Avoiding our fears kills a sense of confidence and esteem. Not even praise from others will encourage when we are stuck in fear. 

–We go into “impression management” pretending to be what others accept...allusion. In our hearts we think...If you knew the real me and my fears you would not compliment me. 

–When you take on a fear or challenge, it builds the core of who you are even if it does not turn out perfectly ...Witnessing or planting seeds for the harvest. 

–Every time you wimp out to a perceived fear you die a little on the inside. If this continues you will learn to live in fear and avoidance. You will feel bad about yourself.

B. Fear will cost us a loss of destiny.

–If you live in fear, you will never experience the potential and destiny God has planned for you. The truth is that growth always requires risk. Fear always makes us ask the “what ifs?” Failure or finances. 

–Some are afraid of success...higher expectations and more pressure from others. We don’t move until we get a guarantee we will succeed...we stay stagnate.

–If this pattern does not change you find yourself at the end of your life looking back wishing you had not been so careful...start wherever you are now. Fear will cost you your destiny...and that is too high of a price to pay. 

C. Fear will cost us a lack of joy.

–Fear destroys joy...if you choose to live in fear you will join the multitudes who live in constant paralyzing anxiety...look to pills for help. So sad how many are addicted because of ansiety.

–Have you ever noticed that the people who live next to the edge in their businesses, in their sports, in their lives are the people who are having the time of their lives. They seem slightly crazy!

–You see, trusting in the face of fear and challenge produces joy! On the other hand, those who give in to fear see that it is a joy killer. Imaginations running wild...worry!

Psalm 16:11 (NKJV) 

11 You will show me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore. 

D. Fear will cost us a sense of real intimacy.

–Fear has a way of making us hide from those in whom we should be close...Adam and Eve...Where are you?  I heard You in the garden and I hid myself because I was naked.

–We have been hiding ever since...behind fake smiles...behind agreeable words we don’t believe, behind things we feel but are too afraid to say.

–We hide behind what people might think of us, we hide by not saying what we feel at church, the lack of conflict does not equal peace.

–A husband and wife may choose to not argue...to play the quiet game...but what is lost is the intimacy that God has for them.

–We play the quiet game with the lost because we are afraid of rejection and embarrassment. Fear always lies behind the quiet game. What a price to pay for fear.

E. Fear will cost us our availability to God.

–Fear whispers to us that God is really not big enough to take care of our problems, that we are not safe in His hands, and it causes us to distort the way we think about Him.

–God has promised that if we go thru the water or the fire that He is with us but fear tries to convince us that it is not so. Fear and Satan are big liars. 

–This is key: you will never know God is trustworthy if you do not risk obeying Him. When you come to the end of your life all those “what ifs” becomes “might have beens”. What might have been if I had trusted God?  

F. Fear gets passed from generation to generation.

–Social science tells us that we are the most worried culture who ever lived. Life expectancy has more than doubled in the past century. Yet we worry!

–We have discovered more cures for more diseases than ever before. No group of human beings have been healthier but no one worries about health more than we do. Covid 19

–Journalist Bob Garfield tracked health articles in the Washington Post, USA Today, and the New York Times and found out according to experts:

–59 million Americans have heart disease. 53 million suffer from migraines. 25 million have osteoporosis. 16 million struggle with obesity. 3 million have cancer. 12 million have severe disorders such as brain injuries.

–On and on it goes! The articles he read said that there are 543 million Americans who are sick, which is funny, since we only have about 350 million.  We are convinced to worry...fear sells!

–We teach our children to fear...don’t do that or this...people are evil...don’t play with sticks...How many people have had their eyes poked out with sticks? We propagate fear...we must learn that trust and faith can be spread.

–Have you ever para-sailed, sky dived, bungee jumped...it may be terrifying but it only last a moment...the memory lasts a life time.

Psalm 103:15‑18 (NLT) 

15 Our days on earth are like grass; like wild flowers, we bloom and die. 

16 The wind blows, and we are gone— as though we had never been here. 

17 But the love of the LORD remains forever with those who fear him. His salvation extends to the children’s children 

18 of those who are faithful to his covenant, of those who obey his commandments! 

–What are we passing to our children...faith or fear?