OVERCOMING THE SPIRIT OF FEAR
"Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9.
As we all have learned in Sunday School, the children of Israel wandered in the wilderness for forty years! However, Moses, the prophet who brought the children of Israel out of Egypt, was not allowed to enter into the Promised Land and was buried by God, Himself. Now, it was time for Joshua to take leadership. He was named as Moses’ successor, during the time in which the children of Israel had to cross the Jordan River and take possession of their Promised Land. If they could get over this one last obstacle, they would finally be home. On the other side of Jordan was a land flowing with milk and honey, the fulfillment of all dreams. But standing at the edge of the river, not knowing what events would unfold in the future, Joshua became fearful. And he had every reason to be afraid! Canaan was occupied by giants! The cities, which were to be captured, were fortified with great walls! And yet the Lord tells Joshua, in Chapter 1:6, “Be strong and of good courage." Meaning, in order for him to succeed in his new assignment, Joshua needed to overcome fear. God tells him this again and again. Indeed, God wasn’t “asking,” or "requesting," or “suggesting” Joshua not to fear. God was issuing a command!
"When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, nor shall the flame scorch you." Isaiah 43:2.
As we stand at the beginning of the year 2021, God is telling us not to fear. As we begin a new year, there will be many dangers and obstacles that we will face and become anxious and fearful. But God has given us a sound mind! We are instructed to be strong and courageous! God has given us the power so we can overcome every obstacle in our way; He has given us love. "For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind." 2 Timothy 1:7. So there is no reason for a child of God to be gripped, controlled, paralyzed, or destroyed by fear.
The Almighty Father tells us not to fear, because He is in control of every situation. He is our refuge and strength! God is our help in times of trouble. So we don’t have anything to fear! God will be with us. He knows our name and knows what we are going through, so we don’t have to be fearful of the unknown. We can face the future fearless. “Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand." Isaiah 41:10.
Have you ever been afraid? What do you fear? What is weighing heavy on your heart? Like Joshua, we all face fear! Some of us may be scared of heights, or spiders, or failure. Some of us are fearful of criticism? Some fear poverty, old-age, or the idea of separation or divorce. We worry about the future, about politics, and about our health. Fear is a normal human emotion. But, fear often results in depression. It stops your spiritual life. Fear paralyzes; It freezes us. Sometimes, it can rob us of our quality of life, or lead us to make bad decisions. Fear will cripple even the strongest. It can prevent us from moving forward to receiving all that God has for us.
Fear is a torment! Fear brings turmoil in our hearts and minds. When we are filled with so much fear, we do not think straight. Fear is everywhere! Whenever we turn on the news channels or go on social media, we hear the voices of fear. The media industry fills our ears with the noise of unemployment, murders, and a failing economy. The doctor reports flood our ears with cancer, heart attacks, tumors, COVID-19, etc. Friends and family speak their fears within their family lives, and it weakens our faith. "Fear, and the pit, and the snare, are upon thee, O inhabitant of the earth." Isaiah 24:17.
Still, we don’t have to listen to those noises. We don’t have to agree with them. "For whatsoever is born of God overcomes the world: and this is the victory that overcomes the world, even our faith." I John 5:4. Therefore, we can overcome these noises of fear by our faith. Even though we hear these noises every day, it does not mean we have to be afraid. God will silence these noises as soon as we activate our faith. We must abide in the presence of God."Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might." Ephesians 6:10.
ABIDE IN HIS PRESENCE
According to Bible Concordance, the Hebrew word for courage means: “to be strong, alert, courageous, brave, bold, solid, hard; to be determined, to make oneself alert, strengthen oneself, confirm oneself, persist in, or prove superior to” Courage is not the absence of fear, it is acting in faith IN the midst of fear! Courage is having the strength to do something despite being fearful. Hence, to be courageous means having the confidence to do what God wants them to do. Three times, the Lord told Joshua to be strong and of good courage. He also gives us the same promises He gave to Joshua today. "I will never leave you nor forsake you." Hebrews 13:5.
The secret of Joshua’s strength, courage, and fearlessness is the presence of God. And the assurance of this divine presence also applies to all who are in Christ today. The night before His death, Jesus told His disciples in John 14:16, “I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever.” Even in His last words on earth, He promises to be with us. No matter what is going on in your life, Jesus is there with you. During your fears of doubt, financial fears, work fears, family fears, health fears, or the fears of the future, God wants you to know that He is with you. Abide in His presence.
By abiding in His presence, we will be given strength to overcome our fears and struggles. Now, I would like to meditate on a few key points that you must know about abiding in God
A. You are a child of God
Understand who you are. When you put your faith in Jesus, then you become His follower; you are adopted into God’s family and become one of His children. You are now a child of God! The Holy Spirit is in you. The same Spirit that raised Jesus Christ from the dead is in you. Nothing will come your way in the next few days, weeks, months, or years, that should trouble you. You're precious in God's eyes! Even through your times of fear, He will give you the power you need to be victorious. Never once, have you been out of God’s hand. Fear not, for he is holding you.
Let go of your past weaknesses and fears. “Forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus” Philippians 3:13-14. Once you become a child of God, once you accept Christ as your Savior, all things are made anew. You are a child of God, no longer a slave to fear.
B. You are no longer a slave to fear
Refuse to focus on your fear. Do not let fear control your life. Guard your eyes and ears from the voices of fear, but heed the voice of God calling you to be strong and of good courage. Don’t let your fear continuously rob you of joy. For fear can be like chains and shackles around your feet. Do not let fear paralyze you, do not let it corrupt your thoughts. Realize that God is with you. We must not fear because God is with us. “The LORD is on my side; I will not fear. What can man do to me?" Psalms 118:6. If God protects you from all forms of danger, why should you fear? Trust in the Lord.
C. Trust in the Lord
For whatever challenges we face in this life, God is with us! We can be assured that He will never let us down. For some of us there may be an obstacle in our lives today, but God will destroy it. There may be opposition in the year ahead, but God will give us victory over it. Our role is to trust Him completely and genuinely. God will never leave us. "And He said, “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.” Exodus 33:14.
Therefore, pray always. “I sought the Lord, and He heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.” Psalms 34:4. When we seek God with all our hearts, He will hear us and deliver us from all our fears. Trust in God. Every time we are afraid, we must see it as an opportunity to surrender everything into God’s hands. Trust that He will provide all that you need. God is good; all the time. And all the time; God is good. He is faithful. He will never leave you.
For we serve a risen Savior. The same God, who delivered the Israelites from the hands of the Egyptians, is the same God who delivered us from the hands of sin and death. He was, He is, and He will always be our Savior.
D. He was and He is our Savior
Remember what God has done in the past. During our times of fear and pain, we sometimes may easily forget about the blessings and victories that God has given to us. Like the Israelites in the wilderness, some people may begin to grumble and complain. Because during times of physical and emotional weakness, it is easy to give into your fears. But God is telling those of you who are weary and fearful, forget not what the Lord your God has done for you. Forget not, God’s promises. Forget not, God’s word He has given to you.
Meditate upon the Word of God daily. The Word of God is powerful. The Word of God is truth. Let the truth strengthen your faith to overcome your fears. His word is constant through the ages. “For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” Hebrews 4:12. Let the Word of God be your mighty weapon in times of fear. Find comfort in the presence of God. Abide in Him.
E. Abide in God
Know that the Lord your God is a God of love and compassion. Be filled with His love. “There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love.” I John 4:18. When love prevails, fear stops existing. We can find peace in the comfort of God. We will have to fear, no more.
However, fear God. Every Christian should have this fear. The only time fear is mentioned in a positive light, in the Bible, is when it refers to the reverence for God. "Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me." John 15:4. Now abide means to: “act in accordance to”. We must live by faith and in the ways of Christ. Through the fear of God, we shall fear no other.
ABIDE IN HIS PRESENCE (CONT.)
God is longing to pour out His favor and blessings upon us this year, 2021. He has an amazing plan for us. Plans that are so extraordinary that you cannot even begin to dream about. God does not want us to be held back by fear. You are not alone! God is with you. He will not leave your side. God cares for you; He will never forget you. He watches over the sparrows and He watches over you. Troubles will come, but God never stops loving you. If He remembers each sparrow, you can be sure that He remembers you too. "Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature? " Matthew 6:25-27.
Robert Burdette wrote this piece called “God's Days”:
“There are two days in the week upon which I never worry; two carefree days kept sacredly free from fear and unease. One of these days is Yesterday. Yesterday, with its cares and worries and pains and aches, all its faults, mistakes, and blunders, has passed forever beyond my recall. It WAS mine; it IS God's.
The other day that I do not worry about is Tomorrow. Tomorrow, with all its possible hardships, burdens, misfortune, and its large promises, failures and mistakes, are far beyond my mastery like its twin, Yesterday. Tomorrow IS God's day; it WILL be mine.
There is only one day left, for myself, - Today. Any man can fight the battles of today. Any woman can carry the burdens of just one day; any man can resist the temptation of today. It is only when we fully add the burdens of these two awful eternities - Yesterday and Tomorrow - that we break down. Such burdens can only be sustained by the Mighty God.
It isn't the experience of Today that drives people mad. It is the remorse of what happened Yesterday and the fear of what Tomorrow might bring. But dear children of God, understand, these are God's Days ... Leave them to God.”
CONCLUSION
Today, you can overcome the spirit of fear. Because He lives, I can face tomorrow. Because He lives, all fear is gone. Because I know He holds the future. And life is worth living, just because He lives. Know that you are a child of God. And through His salvation, you are no longer a slave to fear. Trust in the Lord with all your heart, for He was, He is, and He will always be our Savior during our fearful times. Abide in God and abide in His presence.
God told Joshua, “Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go,” and that same God is instructing the same to you too. Amen.
