PRAYER
Father, open my eyes to see Your Word.
Open my ears to hear.
Open my mind to understand.
And open my heart so I may receive Your Word today.
AMEN
I don’t think anyone would argue that there is a fear factor in the day and age we are live in.
Let me explain that statement.
All around us there are threats of violence. We see it in the news all the time. Threats of terrorism, threats of wars, man made threats, natural threats, threats of financial ruin and all sorts of others threats. Those threats cause fear.
I remember back in the 80’s and 90’s people were afraid of the African killer bees that were coming to America, then we all became afraid of global warming, and last year everyone was afraid of the pandemic swine flu. It seems the news media can really manipulate our fear factor.
Fear can be a disabling emotion. It can hinder a person and stop them from doing the things they want to do or need to do.
Fear in the United States is the biggest reason that over 60 million people in the United States receive prescriptions for tranquilizers every year according to FDA estimates.
Webster’s Dictionary defines fear as; anxiety and agitation caused by the presence of danger, evil, or pain. It is a feeling of uneasiness or apprehension.
Let’s be honest with each other this evening, we all have something that we are afraid of.
I will start. My fear, I am afraid of heights. It is a fear that I have had to work hard at to overcome. I would never have made it on the show Fear Factor.
I have had jobs that required me to be in some very uncomfortable places. I have worked as a bridge worker, I have worked at roofing houses and of course as a fireman.
I had to meet my fear of heights head on so I could overcome it. And yes, I still have a problem with heights.
What are some of the things you are afraid of?
Another word for fear is phobia. A phobia is an irrational, persistent fear of something.
I looked up some interesting phobias.
Acrophobia – the fear of heights.
Hylophobia – the fear of the forest.
Technophobia – the fear of technology.
Triskaidekaphobia – the fear of the number 13.
Pyrophobia – the fear of fire.
Abluthophobia – the fear of bathing.
Arachnophobia – the fear of spiders.
Claustrophobia – the fear of closed spaces.
Gamaphobia – the fear of marriage.
Pentheraphobia – the fear of your Mother-in-Law.
There are some religious phobias, and I hope none of you suffer from any of these.
Ecclesiophobia – the fear of church buildings.
Homilophobia – the fear of sermons.
Hadephobia – the fear of hell.
Hamartophobia – the fear of sinning.
Satanophobia – the fear of Satan.
Some other phobias that I found interesting were;
Lachanophobia – the fear of vegetables. I bet they hate the Veggie Tales.
Caligynephobia – the fear of beautiful women.
Phalacrophobia – the fear of becoming bald.
Scelerophobia – the fear of bald men.
And lastly, there is the fear of everything which is Panophobia and there is the fear of phobias which is phobophobia.
Let’s face it there is a lot of fear in the world; fear of getting hurt, fear of failing, financial fears, dying fears, loosing fears, and all sorts of others fears.
People are afraid but we don’t have to be afraid. We don’t have to live in fear.
More than two thousand years ago, Jesus’ disciples knew what it was like to experience fear and worry as they faced an uncertain future.
Jesus said something they really hadn’t heard Him say before. He told them He would be leaving, and it turned their world—as they knew it—upside down.
But then He went on to share some words to calm their troubled hearts. The words that Jesus spoke to them in John 14 ring just as true in light of world events today and can calm our troubled hearts as well as they did when He first spoke them.
"Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also." John 14:1–3 NKJV
Jesus starts by saying, "Let not your heart be troubled." Another way to translate this phrase is, "Don’t be agitated or disturbed or thrown into confusion." He didn’t say, "Mull over your problems." He didn’t say, “Be freaked out.” Jesus said, "Don’t be troubled."
Life is filled with trouble. It seems that once you have one problem resolved, three more take its place. Job 5:7 says, "Man is born to trouble, as the sparks fly upward" NKJV. It is so true. From the moment we come into this life, there are all kinds of troubles and problems awaiting us.
Although there are reasons to have fear in life, there are greater reasons to not have fear.
John 14:1-3 gives us 3 things that we know so we don’t have to be afraid but instead we can find hope. These things are the Faith Factors.
1. We know who Jesus is.
Jesus continually called God his father. He said here that if we believe in God then we should also believe in Him.
Why? Because Jesus and the Father are one. Jesus told us this in John 10:30. He said, “the Father and I are one.”
And the Apostle John tells us this in John 1:1-2, In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God, He was with God in the beginning.”
We know who Jesus is. Jesus is God.
2. We know He is preparing a place for us.
Jesus tells His disciples to believe in Him and then He reassures them that He is going to heaven to prepare a place for them, but not just for them, He is preparing a place for all believers.
Right now, Jesus is preparing heaven for our arrival. He is getting everything ready, the mansions are going up, the food is being prepared; all of the arrangements are being made.
Jesus is preparing a place for us.
3. We know He is coming back to get us.
Jesus is coming again. This is His promise. He will once again leave heaven, but this time He will not come as a baby born of a virgin, this time He will come back triumphant to take control of that which the enemy stole a long time ago. He is coming back again.
There is hope in those three facts; hope that is intended to calm our fears.
Fear does not need to be a part of our lives, in the Word of God the phrase “do not fear” is found 365 times.
Two of my favorite "do not fear" Scriptures are in the book of Isaiah. Let’s look at them. Isaiah 43:1-2 2X.
But now, this is what the LORD says—
he who created you, O Jacob,
he who formed you, O Israel:
"Fear not, for I have redeemed you;
I have summoned you by name; you are mine.
When you pass through the waters,
I will be with you;
and when you pass through the rivers,
they will not sweep over you.
When you walk through the fire,
you will not be burned;
the flames will not set you ablaze. Isaiah 43:1-2
Isaiah 41:8-13 3X
"But you, O Israel, my servant,
Jacob, whom I have chosen,
you descendants of Abraham my friend,
I took you from the ends of the earth,
from its farthest corners I called you.
I said, ’You are my servant’;
I have chosen you and have not rejected you.
So do not fear, for I am with you;
do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you;
I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
"All who rage against you
will surely be ashamed and disgraced;
those who oppose you
will be as nothing and perish.
Though you search for your enemies,
you will not find them.
Those who wage war against you
will be as nothing at all.
For I am the LORD, your God,
who takes hold of your right hand
and says to you, Do not fear;
I will help you. Isaiah 41:8-13
In these Scriptures we see three more reasons why we as God’s children should not fear, three more Faith Factors.
1. The first reason we should not have fear is that God is with us.
In both Scriptures, God assures us that no matter what we are going through, He will be there with us. Isn’t it comforting to know that you don’t have to go through things alone?
Even if everyone else abandons you, God promises to always be there with you. I hate to sound old fashioned but I still like the poem, Footprints in the Sand.
No matter what I am dealing with God is going to be there.
Economic problems, God is there.
Health problems, God is there.
Relationship problems, God is there.
In the good times and in the bad times, God is there, promising to never leave you nor forsake you.
God is with us.
2. The second reason that we should not fear anything is that God has established a father – child relationship with us.
He called us child and said you are mine.
This was the reason that God sent Jesus to the earth in the first place, so that we could be called children of God, joint heirs with Jesus and as such share all the blessings that come from the Father.
It was a relationship that was broken by the sin of Adam and Eve and was completely repaired by Jesus giving His life as a sacrifice on the cross.
God is our heavenly Father and He loves us.
3. The third reason that we should not fear is that God has given us His assurance of His strength and His help.
He said in Isaiah, “Do not fear; I will help you.”
We have the promise of God’s strength and God’s help.
The Psalmist writes in Psalm 46, “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging.” Psalm 46:1-3
I especially like that part that says, ever-present help.
Do you know what that tells me. It tells me that we do not have to live in fear! God is always there to help.
The Apostle Paul taught us “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6-7
When fear causes anxiety we can be assured that we can take it to God. There is nothing that He cannot help us with. There is no amount of tension, trouble, frustration, and fear that He cannot help us with.
When we take these things to God we have the promise of the peace of God to fill our lives. The peace of God comes to a child of God when they trust in God.
This is where the faith factor needs to be present. This is the key.
Jesus said something to his disciples one day after they had entered Jerusalem for the last time. Jesus had cursed a fig tree and it withered up and the disciples were amazed.
Jesus said something to them that sums it all up, He said, "Have faith in God." Mark 11:22
The faith factor always overcomes the fear factor.
Have faith in God to overcome your fears.
If fear is disabling then faith is enabling.
It enables us to not be afraid.
It enables us to do what we need to do.
It enables us to be effective for the kingdom of God.
It enables us to make a difference.
It enables us to reach the lost.
Faith is enabling.
If you have things in your life that are causing you to be afraid then would you turn those things over to God in faith and allow His peace which surpasses understanding to fill your life.
God does not want you to be afraid, He says, “Fear not, for I am with you.”
Give your fears to God
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