FEARLESS is a five-part series based on Old Testament stories of people who faced great fears.
It’s often said that humans are born with only two fears: the fear of falling and the fear of loud noises. It doesn’t take us long to learn many more fears.
Phobias:
• Arachnophobia – the fear of spiders
• Claustrophobia – the fear of confined spaces
• Technophobia – the fear of technology, especially computers
• Nomophobia – the fear of being out of mobile phone contact
• Glossophobia – the fear of public speaking
For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind (2 Timothy 1:7 NKJV).
BENAIAH: THE LION-CHASER
Who was Benaiah?
• He was one of the most FAMOUS soldiers in Israel (2 Samuel 23:22-23).
• He was the CAPTAIN of King David’s body-guards (1 Chronicles 11:25).
• He was the COMMANDER of Israel’s army during Solomon’s reign (1 Kings 2:35).
Benaiah son of Jehoiada was a valiant fighter from Kabzeel, who performed great exploits. He struck down two of Moab’s best men. He also went down into a pit on a snowy day and killed a lion. And he struck down a huge Egyptian. Although the Egyptian had a spear in his hand, Benaiah went against him with a club. He snatched the spear from the Egyptian’s hand and killed him with his own spear (2 Samuel 23:20-21).
Benaiah was not the odds-on favorite to win any of these battles:
• Two Moabites vs. one Israelite
• An Egyptian with a spear vs. an Israelite with a club
• Lion vs. man
A lion-chaser = a RISK-TAKER.
What lion do you need to chase?
Background to 2 Timothy 1:7: Timothy was young (probably about thirty years old) and timid (some versions say “spirit of timidity”). But God had called him to preach. Would he chase the lion or run away? The apostle Paul wrote two letters to encourage Timothy to face his fears.
Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity (1 Timothy 4:12).
Do not be ashamed to testify about our Lord... (2 Timothy 1:8).
OUR ENEMY: THE ROARING LION
1. Living in FEAR means minimizing risks.
Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith... (1 Peter 5:8b-9a).
Resist the devil, and he will flee from you (James 4:7b).
2. Living by FAITH means taking risks.
The greatest victories are on the other side of faith.
CHASING THE LION
1. Lion chasers know that the BIGGER their God is the SMALLER lions become.
When [King Darius] came near the den, he called to Daniel in an anguished voice, “Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you serve continually, been able to rescue you from the lions?” Daniel answered, “O king, live forever! My God sent his angel, and he shut the mouths of the lions” (Daniel 6:20-22a).
How big is your God?
My God is...
• Perfect (Deuteronomy 32:4)
• Infinite
• Unchanging (Malachi 3:6)
• All-powerful (Jeremiah 32:27)
• All-knowing (1 John 3:20)
• Everywhere-present (Jeremiah 23:24)
• There is no one like my God!
My God is...
• My Savior (Isaiah 43:3)
• My Redeemer (Psalm 78:35)
• My Deliverer (Psalm 18:2)
• My Shield (Psalm 18:30)
• My Strength (Psalm 22:19)
• My Rock (Isaiah 30:29)
• There is no one like my God!
My God is...
• El Echad: “the one God” (Malachi 2:10)
• El Haggadol: “the great God” (Deuteronomy 10:17)
• El Olam: “the eternal God” (Genesis 21:33)
• El Hakkadosh: “the holy God” (Isaiah 5:16)
• El Gibbor: “the mighty God” (Isaiah 9:6)
• El Elyon: “the most high God” (Psalm 78:35)
• There is no one like my God!
My God is...
• El Hannora: “the awesome God” (Nehemiah 9:32)
• El Tsaddik: “the righteous God” (Isaiah 45:21)
• El Shaddai: “the all-sufficient God” (Exodus 6:3)
• El Channun: “the gracious God” (Jonah 4:2)
• El Hanne’man: “the faithful God” (Deuteronomy 7:9)
• There is no one like my God!
My God is...
• El Hakkavod: “the God of glory” (Psalm 29:3)
• El Hashamayim: “the God of the heavens” (Psalm 136:26)
• El De’ot: “the God of knowledge” (1 Samuel 2:3)
• El Emet: “the God of truth” (Psalm 31:5)
• El Roi: “the God who sees me” (Genesis 16:13)
• There is no one like my God!
My God is...
• El Yeshuati: “the God of my salvation” (Isaiah 12:2)
• El Sali: “the God of my strength” (Psalm 42:9)
• El Rachum: “the God of compassion” (Deuteronomy 4:31)
• El Chaiyai: “the God of my life” (Psalm 42:8)
• Immanuel: “God with us” (Isaiah 7:14)
• There is no one like my God!
My God is...
• Jehovah Osenu: “The Lord our maker” (Psalm 95:6)
• Jehovah Nissi: “The Lord our miracle” (Exodus 17:15)
• Jehovah Shalom: “The Lord our peace” (Judges 6:24)
• Jehovah Tsikkenu: “The Lord our righteousness” (Jeremiah 23:6)
• Jehovah Rohi: “The Lord our shepherd” (Psalm 23:1)
• There is no one like my God!
My God is...
• Jehovah Sabaoth: “The Lord of Hosts” (Psalm 46:7)
• Jehovah Yir’eh: “The Lord who provides” (Genesis 22:14)
• Jehovah Rophe: “The Lord who heals” (Exodus 15:26)
• Jehovah Shammah: “The Lord who is there” (Ezekiel 48:35)
• There is no one like my God!
My God is...
• The Judge of all the earth (Genesis 18:25)
• The Father of His people (Ephesians 4:6)
• The Alpha and the Omega
• The First and the Last
• The Beginning and the End (Revelation 22:13)
• The King of kings
• The Lord of lords (1 Timothy 6:15)
• There is no one like my God!
My God is...
• Indescribable
• Incomprehensible
• Incomparable
• Invincible
• There is no one like my God!
2. Lion chasers understand that playing it SAFE is RISKY.
And without faith it is impossible to please God... (Hebrews 11:6).
We live by faith, not by sight (2 Corinthians 5:7).
There is no such thing as risk-free faith.
To chase your lion, you will have to take a “first step.” What is the first step you need to take to conquer your fear?
WHAT IF?
In his book, If Only, Dr. Neil Roese makes a distinction between two different types of regret:
• Regrets of action
• Regrets of inaction.
A regret of action is wishing you hadn’t done something that you did do. A regret of inaction is wishing you had done something that you didn’t do. In theological terms, a regret of action is the result of a sin of commission. A regret of inaction is the result of a sin of omission.
At the end of our lives, what will we regret more: sins of commission (the mistakes we made) or sins of omission (the opportunities we missed)? According to research by two sociologists named Tom Gilovich and Vicki Medvec, time is a key factor in what we regret. Over the short term, we tend to regret our actions. But over the long haul, we tend to regret inactions. Their study found that over the course of an average week, action regrets outnumber inaction regrets 53% to 47%. But when people look at their lives as whole, inaction regrets outnumber action regrets 84% to 16%. At the end of our lives, we will regret opportunities missed more than mistakes made. (adapted from a sermon by Mark Batterson)
Our greatest regret at the end of our lives will be the lions we didn’t chase.
PRAYER
Heavenly Father,
I don’t want to live in fear;
I want to live by faith.
You are bigger than my biggest problem.
You are bigger than my biggest challenge.
You are bigger than my biggest fear.
I don’t want to end my life with regret.
Please give me the courage to take risky steps of faith.
Please give me the boldness to do Your will.
Amen.
SCRIPTURE READING
PASTOR: God is our refuge and strength,
EVERYONE: An ever-present help in trouble. (Psalm 46:1)
PASTOR: Do not be terrified...for the LORD your God, who is among you,
EVERYONE: Is a great and awesome God. (Deuteronomy 7:21)
PASTOR: The LORD is my light and my salvation—
EVERYONE: Whom shall I fear?
PASTOR: The LORD is the stronghold of my life—
EVERYONE: Of whom shall I be afraid? (Psalm 27:1)
PASTOR: So do not fear, for I am with you;
EVERYONE: Do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
PASTOR: I will strengthen you and help you;
EVERYONE: I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” (Isaiah 41:10)
PASTOR: So be strong and courageous,
EVERYONE: All you who put your hope in the LORD! (Psalm 31:24 NLT)
PASTOR: The Lord Almighty is with us;
EVERYONE: The God of Jacob is our fortress. (Psalm 46:11)
PASTOR: When I am afraid,
EVERYONE: I will trust in you. (Psalm 56:3)
RESOURCES USED
“Benaiah,” a sermon by Craig Groeshel
“Taking Risks,” a sermon by Mark Batterson
Hebrew Names of God at www.hebrew4christians.com
