Do Not Fear
06/22/08 AM
Text: Isaiah 41:10
Introduction
Isaiah 41:10 “Do not fear, for I am with you; Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, Surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.”
This is God’s message to his believing people in this world. Though in this world we often have trouble trials, and temptation, our God says to you and me, "Do not fear…"
The purpose and object of God in these verses is to silence the fears of his people and encourage them to confidently trust him in the face of trouble and adversity.
It is contrary to the mind of God for his people to be a timid, fearful, anxious people; and to suppress our fears he assures us of his constant presence, power, and provision.
I.The Commands Given
A.Do Not Fear...
1.This command is plain in its meaning and addressed primarily to the exiled Jews during their captivity in Babylon
a.The idea is that they as the chosen people of God had nothing to fear.
b.Psalm 27:1 “The LORD is my light and my salvation; Whom shall I fear?”
c.But this command and promise is one that may be applied to all who are God’s chosen people:
1 Peter 2:9 “But you are a chosen race, A royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession,” (now the people of God)
d.It is as true for us today as it was for the Israelites, that those whom God has chosen have nothing to fear; why?
2.“For I am with you…”
a.Jeremiah 23:23 “Am I a God who is near,” declares the LORD, And not a God far off?”
b.Psalm 145:18 “The LORD is near to all who call upon Him, To all who call upon Him in truth.”
c.Acts 17:27b “…He is not far from each one of us…”
d.James 4:8a “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you…”
e.Matthew 28:20b “and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
B.Do Not Look Anxiously About…
1.The children of Israel in their captivity were casting around for a solution, a savior, someone to help them, God says don’t cast around in the world when I am here.
2.People do the same thing today, when in trouble or faced with difficulties we “look anxiously about” for a solution, some kind of fix. The latest philosophy or best selling self-help book or most popular talk-show host, we search for the worlds advice on how to fix our problems.
3.Then we wonder why things don’t get better, why the answers found don’t really answer the mail. It’s because we look in the wrong place.
a.Matthew 6:31-33 Jesus tells us not to let the worries of this world distract us from seeking first His kingdom.
b.Philippians 4:6 “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.”
c.1 Peter 5:7 “casting all your cares upon him”
4.“For I Am Your God…”
a.The wonder of creation and the vastness of the cosmos speak to His greatness. All of it serves not to show how small man is but how great God is.
b.Greatness of God is recorded throughout the scriptures.
c.Account after account of His power, protection, provision, promises provided to His people.
[And we see His promises in these verses…]
II.The Promises Given
A.I Will Strengthen You…
1.Life is no bed of roses, never promised to us it would be.
2.But He promises to strengthen us and we have the examples of the saints to show us the He will fulfill His promise:
Hebrews 11:33-34 “who by faith conquered kingdoms, performed acts of righteousness, obtained promises, shut the mouths of lions, quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, from weakness were made strong, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight.”
3.Paul prayed for that this power would be given to the Ephesians
Ephesians 3:16 “that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man…”
4.His power can be in each of us, just as it was in Paul
2 Corinthians 12:9 “And He has said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.
B.I Will Help You
1.Hebrews 13:6a “so that we confidently say, “The Lord is my helper, I will not be afraid.”
2.Jesus promised a helper to the Apostles and the book of Acts chronicles what they were able to do through the help of the Holy Spirit sent by Jesus.
3.The history of God’s people is replete with example after example of God’s help in all aspects of their walk with Him.
C.I Will Uphold You.
1.God will strengthen us, He will help us, and he will always uphold us.
2.Isaiah 46:4 “Even to your old age I will be the same, And even to your graying years I will bear you! I have done it, and I will carry you; And I will bear you and I will deliver you.
3.John 15:1-6 Jesus upholds us as branches of the vine. We are able to live fruitfully be abiding in Him, being upheld by Him.
III.With My Righteous Right Hand
A.God’s Hand Is Faithful
1.The phrase is a Hebrew mode of expression, meaning that God’s hand is faithful, that it may be relied on.
a.I will walk hand in hand with you as your Father and your friend.
b.I will guide you and lead you in your way. Proverbs 3:5-6.
c.I will hold you up when you are weak and trembling.
d.I will pick you up when you fall.
2.He will uphold us with His Righteous Right Hand.
Conclusion:
God says to all who walk with him, "I am with you, I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you."
In trial
In trouble
In temptation
In the Path of Your Walk
I AM your God, do not fear.
Invitation
The Hebrew word translated as Righteous in this verse is also the same word for victorious. And it is Victory that the right hand of God can give to us all, victory over sin, victory over this world, victory over death. All by faith in the Son of God.
