INTRODUCTION
• SLIDE #1
• I enjoy that movie!
• God comes to Evan and tells him to build an Ark. Evan had to step out in faith in the midst of so many obstacles in order to get it done.
• As we continue our trek through the Series Building A New You, today we will delve into one of those areas that can stop our progress in its tracks.
• Step out in faith can be one of the more challenging actions one can take as a Christian.
• There is so much fear of the unknown.
• Leaving our comfort zone can be an intimidating thought. Consider your personality for a moment. Are you a risk taker?
• I am not talking about someone who would foolishly gamble his or her possession and life away, but are you the type who would never venture into the unknown? Do you know someone who would never venture out into the unknown?
• Are you married to someone who would never venture into the unknown? ☺
• Are you a no guts no glory sort of person?
• Think about your own life for a moment. When faced with the opportunities to venture out of the comfort zone, did GO FOR IT? What were the results?
• Were the results bad? If so did that keep you in your comfort zone the next time an opportunity arose? Did it go well? I bet the next time opportunity knocked, you made the jump!
• What keeps one from being willing to slide out of our comfort zones? Why is this a vital area to examine?
• First of all, in order to answer the call to follow Jesus, we are required to step out in faith, not a blind leap of faith, but rather we are called to leave the old manner of life to follow a new one under Jesus! PRAISE GOD!
• The second reason this subject is vital to our growth is that in the course of following Jesus, He will take down paths that are not always comfortable to follow.
• The signs tells us NO, our friends tell us NO. Our family may tell us NO. The circumstances even appear to say NO.
• However, God says YES!
• FEAR detours us and FEAR can derail our faith.
• Today we will be turning to the book of Isaiah, chapter 43. In the previous chapters the prophet is coming down hard on the nation because of their lack of faith.
• In verse 18-25 of chapter 42 God appraises the sad state of the nation, then we come to chapter 43!
• God tells the people they will be restored! They do not have to walk in FEAR!
• Today from Isaiah 43:1-2 I want to share with you three reason as to why you do not have to fear stepping out in faith!
• Let us begin by looking at verse 1
• SLIDE #2
• Isaiah 43:1 (HCSB) — 1 Now this is what the LORD says— the One who created you, Jacob, and the One who formed you, Israel — “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; you are Mine.
• SLIDE #3
SERMON
We need not fear stepping out in faith because…
I. God knows you.
• What does it mean to step out in faith?
• Let’s break it down. Faith means to trust. Biblically faith is whole-souled trust in God’s Word based on the sufficiency of the evidence.
• To step out means to move in a direction.
• So Stepping out in faith means that one will move toward a new direction that God is leading them, and being willing to do so out of their trust in God.
• This is not always easy to do; we have many reasons that will keep us in the bull pen warming up instead of being in the game.
• When we are faced with the opportunity to step out in faith, I know in my own life, one of the hesitations is we are not sure we can do it, or we are not sure that if we step out in faith that we will be successful.
• Who wants to fail?
• When Moses was called to lead God’s people, he was hesitant because he did not feel equipped to carry out the task.
• Gideon was fearful of answering the call to step out in faith and trust God. He laid out excuse after excuse, he even put God to the test, TWICE; just to be sure he was making the correct decision.
• When you are faced with the opportunity to step out in faith for the Lord, you need to understand that the Lord knows YOU!
• In our passage, we see the words, CREATED, FORMED, REDEEMED, CALLED you by your NAME!
• In the context, God is reminding the people through Isaiah of the time God delivered them from Egypt.
• It took a huge step of faith for the people to follow Moses out of Egypt.
• When we start to understand that when God presents us with the opportunity to step out in faith, it is done in the context of God KNOWING you.
• When I coached ASA Softball, I knew my girls; I knew them well enough to put them in positions in which they had to opportunity to succeed.
• There were times I asked them to step out in faith, to trust my judgment when I put them in game situations in which it looked impossible.
• As a coach, I would not ask the girls do something that would be impossible for them to do, I would challenge them to reach for heights they had yet reached.
• I could do this because I knew them.
• Jeremiah the prophet was asked to step out in faith and trust God. Look at what God says to Jeremiah.
• SLIDE #4
• Jeremiah 1:5–6 (HCSB) I chose you before I formed you in the womb; I set you apart before you were born. I appointed you a prophet to the nations. But I protested, “Oh no, Lord, GOD! Look, I don’t know how to speak since I am only a youth.”
• God asked Jeremiah to trust Him, to step out in faith, in spite of Jeremiah’s apprehension, God KNEW Jeremiah; He formed Jeremiah in the womb. God prepared Jeremiah to fulfill the task for which he was called.
• Now, think about your opportunities to step out in faith. Think of the missed opportunities. Think about the missed blessings.
• What held you back? Do you trust God? He knows you. He will stretch you further than you ever dreamed.
• I can verify this in my own life. I had nothing to offer God. I am nothing special. I am pretty average.
• When God called me to ministry, I resisted because I was keenly aware of my weaknesses, I was profoundly aware of my averageness.
• God knew me; He knew what I needed in order to be able to carry out His will.
• Let us reexamine verse 1 again.
• SLIDE #5
• Isaiah 43:1 (HCSB) — 1 Now this is what the LORD says— the One who created you, Jacob, and the One who formed you, Israel — “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; you are Mine.
• SLIDE #6
We need not fear stepping out in faith because…
II. You belong to God.
• When you are faced with the opportunity to step out in faith, it is good to know that God has your back because you are His.
• The last part of verse one reminds us, “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; you are Mine.”
• Creation established God’s ownership of all, His work of redemption doubly affirmed this fact!
• Knowing that we belong to God should help alleviate many of fear we have. When we belong to God, He will give us the strength and tools we need to succeed in our quest to step out in faith!
• In the original Hebrew, the phrase, “YOU ARE MINE” is EMPHATIC. Ownership does not fully convey the full extent of the meaning.
• God redeemed the Hebrews by delivering them from the hands of the Egyptians so that He could invite them into a covenant relationship with the promise that if they could remain faithful, they would be God’s treasured possession.
• SLIDE #7
• Exodus 19:3–5 (HCSB) Moses went up the mountain to God, and the LORD called to him from the mountain: “This is what you must say to the house of Jacob, and explain to the Israelites: ‘You have seen what I did to the Egyptians and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to Me. Now if you will listen to Me and carefully keep My covenant, you will be My own possession out of all the peoples, although all the earth is Mine,
• Now take it to today. Why did Jesus die on the cross for you? Because He wants you to be in His family!
• SLIDE #8
• 1 Corinthians 6:19–20 (HCSB) Don’t you know that your body is a sanctuary of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought at a price. Therefore glorify God in your body.
• This possession issue is not like that of a man who thinks he possesses his trophy wife or the wife possesses her trophy husband. Wait; is there such a thing? ☺
• This is not about you being a thing God has to mess with; this is about a loving family who adopts a child into the family. One adopts a child out of love, so it is with God.
• Always remember, God is calling you to step out in faith!
• Let’s turn to verse 2!
• SLIDE #9
• Isaiah 43:2 (HCSB) I will be with you when you pass through the waters, and when you pass through the rivers, they will not overwhelm you. You will not be scorched when you walk through the fire, and the flame will not burn you.
• SLIDE #10
We need not fear stepping out in faith because…
III. You will not be alone.
• Since God knows us and we belong to God as Christians, we can rejoice in the fact that we are never alone!
• When you decide to step out in faith; you will not be stepping alone, God will be with you!
• Let that sink in.
• As parents who taught their children to step out in faith learning to ride a bike, who was there; usually mom or dad. They were there to catch the child if they were going to fall.
• One thing we need to realize when if comes to our relationship with God is this…
• God’s relationship doesn’t keep one from passing through the waters or walking through the fire, but rather it means you will not do these things alone.
• When Isaiah speaks of passing through the waters, or walking through the fire, he is referencing the calamities of life we all face.
• God does not remove the problems; God assures us of His presence in the midst of those problems.
• Look at Jeremiah with me, as Jeremiah is bartering with God in order to avoid following God’s call.
• SLIDE #11
• Jeremiah 1:7–8 (HCSB) Then the LORD said to me: Do not say, “I am only a youth,” for you will go to everyone I send you to and speak whatever I tell you. Do not be afraid of anyone, for I will be with you to deliver you. This is the LORD’s declaration.
• The Lord will be with you!
• Sometimes it is hard to step out when we think we are alone in the dark, God is with us so we are never alone!
• SLIDE #12
• Matthew 28:20 (HCSB) teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
• When we walk with the Lord, we are not alone!
CONCLUSION
• Maybe for those who have been timid, for those who have been afraid to step out in faith, today is the day to change that.
• Maybe there is someone God has put on your heart to invite to church, you have been fearful so it has not happened.
• Maybe God is challenging you to drop a bad habit, which is inhibiting your growth.
• You are afraid of the unknown.
• Christians. Remember this!
• SLIDE #13
• 2 Corinthians 5:6–7 (HCSB) So, we are always confident and know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord. For we walk by faith, not by sight,
• We are missing out on some great blessing if we choose to walk be sight only!
• Maybe your faith is on life support, maybe your faith does not excite you.
• Try walking in faith by stepping out in faith!
• When I worked with Square D, I saw a lot of people whose lives were so mundane because they refused to step out in faith. Do not live an ordinary life, life an extraordinary life in Christ!
• For those who have not accepted Jesus…
• Maybe today is the day for you to accept the gift of salvation God offers to you!
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