Escape from Fear
Rev. 1:17-18
Series: Salvation from Destructive Emotions
Intro
Delivering humanity from fear is both Jesus’ mission and message. Certainly the problem of fear is a problem to be recognized in many lives. One of the most outstanding and surprising disclosures of stressful, nervous, modern civilization is that many people are in the clutches of fear.
Fear is a problem for all types of people: rich or poor, educated or ignorant, old or young. All struggle with fear.
And people have all types of fears – fear of themselves; fear of others; fear of the past, present, or future; fear of sickness and death; fear of poverty. The list goes on and on.
Some of our fears are normal. Normal fears can be an aid to our safety, comfort, knowledge, and health. A person void of fear is in a dangerous situation. However, many fears are abnormal; they undercut our efficiency, our happiness, and our mental and physical well-being. They paralyze us! They are enemies of the spirit and the flesh.
Throughout the Bible, God often tells people not to be afraid. Two words stand out in the Bible like mountain peaks: “Fear Not!” With these words God comforted Abraham: “Fear not, Abram, I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward” (Gen. 15:1). With these same words he comforted Isaac at his lonely task of digging wells in the wilderness. With these same worked he comforted Jacob when Joseph was lost in Egypt. And similarly he comforted the Israelites at the Red Sea: “Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will show today” (Exodus 14:13).
The psalmist declared, “I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; they rod and thy staff they comfort me” (Ps. 23:4). Isaiah gave this admonition from the Lord: “Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness” (Isa. 41:10). God wants us to walk and work without being overcome by fear.
Yet many Christians are tormented by fears. This should not be! We can – we must – break the fear habit before it destroys us. Application of the following positive techniques will help us to do this.
I. We must cultivate the habit of accepting change
a. We often love life’s ruts
i. We love familiar scenery; the dependable landmark; the security of job, family, and home.
ii. We often become afraid to change, and when change is forced upon us, we become fearful and confused.
b. Recognize that life itself Is the story of change
i. Nothing in God’s world is permanent.
ii. He made it that way
iii. There is nothing we can do to alter that
iv. Human existence is fluid
v. History is the record of the ebb and flow of the human tide.
vi. Nature itself tells the story of a restless universe.
1. The Grand Canyon didn’t start off as a huge hole in the earth.
2. It took decades of the water cutting through the rock and erosion to get that deep into the ground.
c. The fear habit is broken when we accept change as a normal, natural part of life.
i. Fear does not stop change; it only adds to its intensity.
ii. To live in constant fear of change is to betray our faith in God in his world.
iii. It is imperative that we recognize:
1. Change has opportunity as well as danger
2. Change has life as well as death
3. Change make living interesting and challenging
4. Change often makes possible a better world.
d. It is a mistake to try to re-create the past, freeze the present, or stave off the future.
II. Cultivate the habit of adapting to the inevitable
a. Make the best of any situation.
i. This is not merely weak submission to the whims of fate.
ii. It is adjustment to the changes of life to use them for our very best.
b. Walk by faith and not by sight.
i. The child of God must remember to do this.
ii. When we walk in this manner, we can be of good courage even in the face of death, the greatest change of all.
c. Bible characters show us that we have power to make adjustments to the changes in life.
i. When God closes some doors, he opens others.
ii. This is seen in the lives of Joseph, Moses, Daniel, and Paul.
III. Cultivate the habit of being governed by facts
a. Many fears are not about existing situations.
i. They center on imaginary circumstances and events that we are afraid might happen.
ii. When the Israelites were in search of the Promised Land, twelve spies went in to investigate it.
1. They came back and reported to Moses that they found it to be a land of milk and honey.
2. There was, however, one thing wrong:
a. They reported that there were “giants in the land.”
b. At this report the people were fearful and wanted to turn back, but Joshua and Caleb thought otherwise.
c. Far from being dismayed, they knew the “giants” were mere men.
d. Thus they said, “The Lord is with us: fear them not” (Num. 14:9).
e. We need to have the faith and common sense of Joshua and Caleb.
b. Many fears are generated from prejudice
i. We often feed our fears with preconceived ideas and generalities concerning others.
ii. God gave us our intelligence to use: he surely wants us to deal with things as they are.
IV. Cultivate the habit of complete trust in God.
a. It is a truth presented in the Old Testament.
i. The OT prophet presented trust in God as an antidote to fear.
ii. Isaiah declared, “Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust in God and not be afraid” (Isa. 12:2).
iii. The psalms are full of expressions of trust in God as a remedy for fear.
iv. The psalmist said, “I sought the Lord, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears” (Ps. 34:4)
v. “The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear?” (Ps. 27:1)
vi. The writer did not say that God delivered him from some fears or from many fears, but from all fears.
vii. When we cultivate the habit of complete trust in God, we can be free of our fears.
b. The New Testament helps us cultivate the habit of complete trust in God.
i. Jesus frequently told his disciples that they need have no fear.
ii. Jesus wanted them to know that as God cares for the lilies, birds, and the grass, he would care for them.
iii. Paul sounds the same not many times: “For you have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but you have received the spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father” (Rom. 8:15).
iv. The author of Hebrews put it plainly, “The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me” (Heb. 13:6).
v. How do we get perfect love?
1. We ask God to fill us with his Holy Spirit.
c. Complete confidence in a great, good, and gracious God gives direction and stability to life.
i. We need to build the faith habit instead of the fear habit.
ii. The trust habit will keep us from being lonely by keeping us in touch with the Father above, and it will engender us with great power.
iii. Trust in God is sure protection for the hidden dangers that lie in wait for all of us.
Closing
People who find strength at all times by trusting the Lord are those who conquer fear. Their hearts are not fixed on trusting themselves, but on trusting God. Their hearts do no trust in circumstances and imaginary fantasies; their hearts trust in God. I pray that God will make us here tonight such a people.
