Conquering the Giants
Message one of four
FEAR / EASTER
April 08, 2012
Michael Wiley
Easter ---
Introduction:
It's dark out, and you're home alone. You’re wrapped up in a warm blanket reading your favorite book. You see it and hear it at the same time: The front door suddenly moves.
Your breathing speeds up--your heart races--Your muscles tighten.
A split second later, you realize it's the wind. No one is trying to get into your home.
For a split second, you were so afraid that you reacted as if your life were in danger; your body had automatically initiated the fight-or-flight response that is critical to survival. But really, there was no danger at all. What happened to cause such an intense reaction? What exactly is fear?
Fear is a chain reaction in the brain that starts with a stressful stimulus and ends with the release of chemicals that cause a racing heart, fast breathing and energized muscles, among other things, also known as the fight-or-flight response.
The Fear I just described is healthy fear. It is part of how God made us so we can survive.
BUT, what about the fear that controls our life and actions that is unfounded and unrealistic.
The kind of fear the Apostles had when Jesus was arrested and crucified
Listen! You and I would think, even hope that in our darkest hour. Our time of greatest need, our best and closest friends would be there for us. I mean, if you can’t trust your best friends to be there – who can you trust.
From, the moment on Thursday when Jesus is taken into custody, the Disciples fall into fear and cut-and-run.
Peter followed, but only at a distance, and when questioned denied he even knew Jesus, nit once but three times.
He is taken to the High Priest and before the Sanhedrin, which was the Religious courtroom. There He is beaten and abused. The Disciples are not there.
He is then turned over to Pilate the Roman Governor who questions Him. The Disciples are not there.
Pilot turns Him over the Herod Antipas who questions Him. The Disciples are not there.
Herod turns him back over the Pilot who still finds no fault in Him, but washes his hands of the situation and allows the Jews to decide His fate. The verdict? Crucify Him! His Disciples are not there.
He is then taken to Golgotha (the Hill of the skull). Here the gospel writers do mention that Mary, Mary Madeleine and John, are watching at a distance.
Jesus dies and Joseph of Aramathia a silent Disciple and Nicodemus, a man whom never put his faith in Christ buried Him. Where were Jesus’ closest comrades—His beloved Apostles?
They were not there! WHY? FEAR!
BUT, praise the Lord that Jesus’ work is not hampered by the Apostle’s fear. He came to this earth foe one primary reason—to offer Himself as a sacrifice for you and for me and today we celebrate the day over two thousand years ago when He defeated death and walked from His grave!
He arose! He lives!
TRANSITION
Here’s the message:
The same power that brought Christ from His grave can help you overcome you fears!
Christ’s work is not hampered by our fears, but our fears hamper us from being all He has called us to be!
We kick off a new series today called “Conquering the Giants” I’ve realized this: You can’t conquer what you won’t confront! So, today we want to talk about the fear in our lives that controls us.
I’m not talking about healthy fear. Fear that comes up when you are in true danger. I’m talking about the unhealthy fear that controls us when it shouldn’t – fear that us unsubstantiated – fear that stands up against us like an angry giant and prevents us from moving forward when we should.
The fear you ca explain this way:
False Evidence Appearing Real, And, the only way to get through this fear is to face it head on.
I came across a web discussion of people talking about their fears and phobias:
Donna says she's deathly afraid of scary movies. Her husband, Tim, wants her to get over her fear and watch them with him. Because of some horror films she has seen, Donna refuses to go to the beach, get a dog, or go camping.
Justin says he's scared of people in costumes and avoids them wherever he can. He even takes off work every Halloween to avoid anyone in a mask. His wife, Leslie, says his fear gets in the way of family trips and pictures with Santa.
Amy says she has a phobia of cotton and yarn. She can't open pill bottles, get manicures, or walk anywhere near an arts and crafts aisle. Her friends like to chase her around with handfuls of the offending material, but Amy is not amused. (http://www.drphil.com/shows/show/708/)
What are your afraid of?
At the first examination, your fears might seem to be justified or sensible.
But, I want you to ask yourself two questions today: Do my fears paralyze me? And Are they justified?
Fear of what people will think or say
This is the strongest and the worst of them all. This type of fear is responsible for many people not being able to do exactly what they want to do because they are so afraid of what others might say or think about them.
We are always afraid of how others will judge us. We don’t want to embarrass anybody most especially ourselves. We are afraid that people will think us to be insane if we really voice our opinion.
Many of us are socially conditioned conformists and as such we don’t want to be seen as being “different” and any person who tries to break free will face a very big uphill task in the form of tough criticism, verbal abuse.
Fear of the unknown
The unknown is always confusing and mysterious and we are used to wanting things to be as they are because any small shift in perspective will require us to start learning and adapting, something we don’t so much fancy doing even though we are always calling for change…
This fear stops us dead in our tracks. Because of it we fear trying new things, fear confronting our doubts, fear of discovering that the people who we really thought loved us didn’t, fear of discovering that our spouses are unfaithful.
Fear of failing
Fear of failing can be such terrible limiting fears if care is not taken in that it has the capacity of making one not to even try thus forcing us to resort to all forms of ridiculous excuses because it is like the world is watching out for you to fail.
It has a terrible way of imprinting on someone’s mind the destabilizing idea that cynicism is the order of the day and the only good news is bad news.
This fear of failing can easily become a type of limiting fear whereby it discourages us from even attempting to try something new all together simply because we think we already know that it is always wise and better to avoid ending up being a laughing stock amongst folks in our society as a result of our embarrassing failures…
Fear of succeeding
It might sound funny but people are also afraid of succeeding. Why do you think most people will always vote for mediocrity over excellence or brilliance?
It is simply because most of us already know that the greatest “problem” with achieving success is not in the achieving itself. It is more or less the question of retaining or maintaining that very successful height so attained that is the problem.
So what then is the best thing to be done in that case? Why don’t you just leave things as they were after all don’t you know that we all are not meant to be successful?
You see what I'm saying?
Listen, any one of these fears can prevent you from being the person God has called you to be. Any one of these fears or a combination of them can prevent you from receiving what God has provided for you – living in the plans He has laid out for you.
As I thoughts about this, my thoughts went to Gideon:
Gideon Lived in Fear, But God saw different
Let me set this up. In the book of Judges in the OT chapters 6-8 we are told the story of Gideon.
The Midianites had been oppressing Israel for seven years.
The Midianites would come in from the East riding on camels every year at harvest time and take Israel’s Harvest. The Bible describes them like locusts, swooping in devouring the crops. In an agricultural society, the harvest is the most important aspect of life. Without the harvest, there is no food for the people. Think about your food source being taken from you for seven straight years.
So in the middle of chapter six, we are introduced to Gideon.
He is threshing wheat in a wine press.
Now picture this: Wheat was always thrashed out on an open platform where the wind could blow away the chaff. The kernel of wheat is heavy enough to fall on the floor, while everything else would be blown away in the wind. If Gideon had thrashed his wheat in the usual fashion, he would have been out on the open where the Midianites could see him, swoop down, and steal his wheat.
So he is hiding down in the winepress, a cut out stone where grapes were pressed and the juices would flow out of a little hole in the bottom corner.
His actions show he is living in fear of the Midianites.
In Judges 6:12 an Angel of the Lord visits him and says, “The LORD is with you, O mighty man of valor.”
Now Gideon goes on to free his people, which give them 40 years of peace until Gideon dies. BUT all of that begins with this statement from the Angel. It is this one statement I want to focus on in our remaining time today.
If your get this, it will remove all unhealthy fear from your life
The Angel tells Gideon two things:
1. The Angel tells Gideon, “The Lord is With You.”
What is he saying? He’s saying “Gideon, you are not alone – you do not have to rely on your own strength – you do not have to rely on your own resources – the Lord knows your situation. He knows your fears and He is here to guide you and strengthen you.
Much of the time, when we have an unhealthy fear in our life (False Evidence Appearing Real). We have forgotten that the Lord is with us. If we have the belief that we are on our own—that we have to go it alone, all kinds of fears can rise up and stop us from moving forward.
Fear to never ask for that raise, to never go after that new job, or make that investment, or start that business, or ask that special girl for her hand in marriage.
Our fears can stop us for pursuing God’s call on our life—from taking that path He has prepared for us
Isaiah 41:10 says this: “Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” (ESV)
To the person here today that is on the verge or has already lost your job
To the person here today that is on the verge or has already lost your home.
To the person here today who had that huge decision looming over you.
To the person here today who is fighting circumstances that seem insurmountable.
The Lord says to you: “Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” (ESV)
The second thing the Angel says to Gideon can life changing for us.
2. The Angel Calls Gideon a “Mighty Man of Valor.”
I personally do not believe Gideon had done anything in his past to warrant such a designation.
We can say that Gideon’s current actions certainly do not warrant the designation. In fact the Angel’s words seem completely out of line with the timid actions of Gideon threshing wheat in a wine press, hiding from the Midianites.
But the Lord could see Gideon, as Gideon could not. The Lord could see Gideon void of his circumstances. The Lord knew, that down deep inside of the heart of this man, lived Valor. A warrior was there waiting to be born.
I believe this same warrior—this same valor lives in the heart of every person in this room today. Every person here has the potential to reach down in the depths of your being and pull out the power of God that is in you to Conquer your fear and take hold of everything the Lord has already provided for you
2 Timothy 1:7 says, “God gave us a spirit not of fear, but of power, love and self-control.” (ESV)
FEAR DOES NOT COME FROM GOD!
POWER COMES FROM GOD-- The Power to overcome your fears -- The Power to receive all He has provided for you.
Conclusion:
Seize it just as Gideon did. Take hold of it! Allow the Power of God to rise up inside of you – the same power that raised Christ from the grave gives you power to overcome your fears.
I leave you with this Scripture from Ephesians chapter 1
I ask—ask the God of our Master, Jesus Christ, the God of glory—to make you intelligent and discerning in knowing him personally, your eyes focused and clear, so that you can see exactly what it is he is calling you to do, grasp the immensity of this glorious way of life he has for his followers, oh, the utter extravagance of his work in us who trust him—endless energy, boundless strength!
20-23All this energy issues from Christ: God raised him from death and set him on a throne in deep heaven, in charge of running the universe, everything from galaxies to governments, no name and no power exempt from his rule. And not just for the time being, but forever. He is in charge of it all, has the final word on everything. At the center of all this, Christ rules the church. The church, you see, is not peripheral to the world; the world is peripheral to the church. The church is Christ's body, in which he speaks and acts, by which he fills everything with his presence. (Message)
Now Go --- with the Power of Christ --- Conquer Your Fears!
