“FEAR LESS”
PSALM 46
Black Bart was a professional thief whose name struck fear as he terrorized the Wells Fargo stage line. From San Francisco to New York, his name became synonymous with the danger of the frontier. Between 1875 and 1883, he robbed 29 different stagecoach crews. Amazingly, Black Bart did it all without firing a shot. Because he wore a hood, no victim ever saw his face. He never took a hostage and was never trailed by a sheriff. Instead, Black Bart would later say from prison he did not need to fire a shot; all he had to do was to use fear to paralyze his victims. “Fear, the face of the unknown, was my weapon of choice, my weapon of intimidation.” One of Satan’s greatest weapons is fear.
According to most studies, people's number one fear is public speaking; number two is death. “This means,” Jerry Seinfeld once commented, “to the average person, if you have to go to a funeral, you are better off in the casket than doing the eulogy!"
Psalm 46 was composed in response to a terrifying event in the life of Jehoshaphat. 2 Chronicles 20 says he was a good king, a godly king. One day, his troops saw the dust clouds of three mighty armies marching toward Judah. The Moabites, the Ammonites and the Meunites, had made a treaty to attack and plunder their nation.
Jehoshaphat was understandably afraid. His tiny, ill-equipped army could no way defeat such a force of strength; so, he prayed, pouring his heart out to God. In response, God sent the prophet Jahaziel with a message. Listen, King Jehoshaphat. This is what the Lord says to you; “Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours but the Lord’s.”
Upon hearing this, Jehoshaphat led the people in a worship service. The next day, he and his army went out to meet their enemy with the choir leading the way still singing God’s praises. As they crested the hill and looked down on the enemy camp, all they saw were dead bodies. In the night, God had confused the enemy soldiers so much they had attacked each other and not one warrior in that vast army had remained alive. This inspired Jehoshaphat’s music minister to write the 46th Psalm. SCRIPTURE
God says, in verse 10, when fear raises its ugly head, you and I must: Be still. As the armies of all those “ites” came his way, Jehoshaphat heard God say, “Relax; lay down your arms. Put the army at the end of the column with the choir singing my praises in the front because the battle is not yours to fight; it is mine.” Be still and know that I am God. Verse one reveals three things we can know about our God which causes fear to be less. He is…
ACCESSIBLE
God is our refuge. We are granted access to the love, care, and concern of the Holy God. The word refuge appears three times in Psalm 46: in verse 1, 7, and 11. Its meaning is “a place of shelter.” God is our shelter in the midst of the storm, much like an umbrella shelters us from the rain. This does not mean God removes us from the storms of life any more than an umbrella causes the rain to stop; rather he shelters us while we are in its midst.
Not everyone, though, receives this shelter. The Hebrew verb “to seek refuge” implies placing one’s trust in the source of shelter in order to receive its benefits. We have access to our shelter through Jesus Christ. Jesus declared, I am the way the truth and the life; no one comes to the Father except through me.
God knew of the need for deliverance from the “ites” and allowed access to His salvation. In the same manner, God knew of your need for deliverance from the penalty, power, and presence of sin in your life so He gave his only begotten Son that whosoever believed in him would not perish but have everlasting life. You have a direct, unhindered access to the Holy God as you place your faith in Jesus Christ as Savior.
Child of God, if you feel oppressed, weary, or afraid; if you are grieving, anxious, disappointed, lonely, or heartbroken, then hear Psalm 9:9. The Lord will be a refuge for the oppressed, a refuge in times of trouble.
Jehoshaphat accessed the shelter of God as he prayed. All you need to enter this refuge is to ask. Psalm 62:8 says, Pour out your heart before Him; God is a refuge for us. Fear is less when you are sheltered within the presence of God. Are you needing the shelter of God? First, come to faith in Christ as your Savior. Second, seek Him with all of your heart.
ABLE
God is our refuge and strength. Psalm 27:1 says, The Lord is my light and my salvation Whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life…of whom shall I be afraid? As Jehoshaphat accessed the shelter of God, he experienced God was able to do what he could not: defeat the “ites” without firing a shot.
Many times, when a trial comes, we attempt to carry the burden on our own shoulders when we should heed the instruction of Psalm 46 and rely on the power of the Spirit of God. Jesus said, My power is made perfect in weakness. In 2 Corinthians 12, Paul said, Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties for when I am weak, then I am strong.
The moment you see the armies of fear coming over the horizon, run to your refuge. In the presence of God, your weakness becomes strength. You will hear the Lord say, Do not be afraid or discouraged; for the battle is not yours but the Lord’s. Our God is able to accomplish what you deem to be impossible.
Be still, and know that I am God. The worship hymn, “I Am Able” says it best. “He is able, more than able, to accomplish what concerns me today. He is able, more than able, to handle anything that comes my way. He is able, more than able, to do much more than I could ever dream. He is able, more than able, to make me what He wants me to be.” Run to your refuge and be strengthened! Then, go out in song, worshipping his ability to deliver you.
AVAILABLE
Our God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. God does not promise to remove suffering from our lives; but, He does promise His presence in the midst of our suffering. God is an “everywhere-present God.” There is no place where He is not; He is always available.
History was made in 1996 by the Dallas Cowboys when one of their players, Deion Sanders, played both defense and offense. On one play, during the third game of the season, Deion blitzed a run and stopped the running back behind the line of scrimmage. When Dallas got the ball back, he caught a long pass from quarterback Troy Aikman. The announcers declared, “He’s all over the field friends! He’s everywhere!”
Deion was not really everywhere. If you left your seat to buy a hot dog, he would not have been working the concession stand. If you had to get out of the stadium early, Deion would not have been directing the traffic. But, God IS everywhere. Wherever you are, God is. Whatever crisis you are facing, God is near. He is right there with you. He does not leave or turn his focus elsewhere when times get tough. He is always available.
God promises, Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you. No matter what circumstances may indicate, we can know our God will not leave us to the mercy of those circumstances. We can be still because God does not leave us on our own when life goes in the ditch.
We can withstand anything if we know God is with us. The Psalmist reminds us no crisis is too big for God. The earth could give way, the mountains could fall into the sea, and even that would not cause us fear because God is with us. Our God is an ever-present help.
God yearns for you to experience His love. He wants to be your refuge and strength. He wants you to experience the peace of His constant presence. But, He will not force it on you; it is your decision. Ask Jesus to forgive you of your sin and come into your life because you are placing your faith in Him as Savior.
Christian, God may be calling you to commit yourself to trusting Him more. Fear has either taken a strong hold on your life, or it is boiling beneath the surface ready to explode when circumstances become trying and tough. But, fear is not of God. Paul told Timothy, For God did not give us a spirit of fear, but of power, of love and a sound mind. (2 Timothy 1:7)
The Bible says, in 1 John 4:18, There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. The more we love God, the less fear we will have; it is a matter of trust. When we realize God will take care of us, it relieves our fear.
Can you today, “Be still and know God is accessible; God is able; and, God is available?”
