WHY IS THIS SUCH A FAVORITE VERSE OF SCRIPTURE FOR SO MANY? Because there are times in ALL OF OUR LIVES when we are AFRAID!
Illus: In one movie, John Wayne, who is known for his toughness, was leading a bunch of young marines landing on the island of Iwo Jima. They were under heavy fire as they approached the shore, when one young recruit who had never been in such a battle ran up to John Wayne and said, “I am scared!” John Wayne looked him in the eyes and said, “I am scared also.” The young man found comfort in knowing he was not alone in his fear.
Listen, it does not matter:
• How big we might be
• How talented we might be
• Who we might know
We ALL have to face FEARFUL SITUATIONS!
David faced that giant called Goliath who was almost ten feet tall, and did not seem to be afraid, but when he fled from King Saul, he confessed he was afraid and we find him hiding in caves.
Most of the time DAVID KNEW WHAT TO DO IN THESE FEARFUL SITUATIONS! Notice, he said, “What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee.”
I want to ask you something, “WHEN YOU ARE AFRAID, WHAT DO YOU DO?”
I know what some folks do:
• Some head for a friend to tell them about their problems
• Some head for the medicine cabinet
• Some walk around in circles expressing how afraid they are
Listen, these things are not the solution.
David had the solution to FEAR, he said “What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee.”
Today we face all kinds of fears, such as:
• What if I lose my job?
• What if my business takes a nose-dive?
• What if God takes one of my loved ones?
• What if my teenager tries drugs?
• What if I get cancer?
Many teenagers today are living with fear. A survey was taken and these are the fears they have:
• Nuclear War - 57%
• My Parents Dying - 54%
• Failing in School - 44%
• Dying - 43%
• Having a Car Accident - 34%
• Loneliness - 33%
• Not Having a Boyfriend/Girlfriend - 30%
• Being Beaten/Injured - 29%
• Disease - 28%
• Rejection - 28%
There are so many things to fear in our society that someone said, “The joys of today are drowned in the sea of tomorrow’s fear.”
It is difficult to enjoy THE GOOD THINGS OF GOD because of the many BAD THINGS WE FEAR!
Illus: There was a lady who died in 1916 named Hetty Green. She lived in fear every day of her life. She was called America’s greatest miser. When she died in 1916, she left an estate valued at $100 million.
• But she was so fearful of poverty that she ate cold oatmeal in order to save the expense of heating the water.
• When her son had a severe leg injury, she took so long trying to find a free clinic to treat him that his leg had to be amputated because of advanced infection.
She was so afraid of losing her wealth that she never enjoyed her life…
Did you know there are some who have the fear known as Ergophobia, which is the fear of work? It seems to affect a lot of folks that you and I know. But regardless of our fears, the Lord said in Matthew 14:27, “But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid.”
The Lord told the disciples on the ship not to be afraid. Why? Because He was with them.
Illus: Chuck Swindoll said, "Nothing under God’s control is ever out of control."
When we are afraid, we need to remember the God we serve and know that He has everything under control. When we UNDERSTAND that God has everything under control, we see why David said, “What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee.” (Psa. 56:3)
God is there to PROTECT US and we find comfort in that.
Illus: Suppose you are on one of the dark streets in New York City and you are surrounded by a bunch of thugs who have come to do you some bodily harm and to rob you. But as they surround you, you notice a man coming to rescue you. As he gets closer:
• You notice it is Barney Fife, would that bring calmness to your life? Not at all!
• But suppose you look up and saw it was Arnold Swartzeneger, would that bring calmness to your life? Yes!
Listen, we have someone greater than Arnold in our life, we have the Lord Jesus.
Let’s take a few minutes to get a better LOOK AT FEAR. We first need to consider-
I. FEAR’S ALLIES
What is the chief purpose of man? Man's chief purpose is to GLORIFY GOD. The Bible makes that crystal clear in 1 Cor. 10:31, “Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.”
Everything you and I do should bring glory unto the Lord.
SATAN KNOWS THAT! That is why he does everything he can do to keep us from bringing glory to God. And listen, when we live a life of fear we are not bringing glory unto the Lord.
Notice the fear Satan brought when he made his first attack on mankind.
Look at Gen. 3:7-10, “And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons. And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden. And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou? And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, AND I WAS AFRAID, because I was naked; and I hid myself.”
As soon as Adam and Eve ate the fruit, their eyes were open. They actually, for the first time, saw themselves as God saw them.
Then God came to the garden in the cool of the day to fellowship with His greatest creation. Can you imagine them hearing the voice of God before sin entered into the picture? His voice was sweet to their ears. This was a special time for them.
Then sin entered the picture, and now Adam says, “...I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.”
Notice, the fear was so great that Adam actually hid himself.
WHY WAS ADAM HIDING FROM GOD? One of FEAR’S ALLIES IS SIN!
Adam had heard the voice of God before, but when he heard it after he had sinned, he was afraid.
Illus: A military child tells how his dad speaks to him. He said, “Most of the time he speaks to me in a kind voice, but when He is upset with me, he speaks to me in his military voice and I know I am in trouble!”
Adam knew he was in trouble with God the Father when he heard his voice. Sin is always ASSOCIATED WITH FEAR.
We have looked at FEAR’S ALLIES, now let’s look at -
II. FEAR'S ABILITY
Fear has the ability to make us freeze in our tracks. Have you ever been so afraid that you could not move?
Illus: Did you hear about the fellow in college that was practically scared to death. A friend saw him in this pitiful condition and said to him, “Are you alright?”
• The young man said, "I'm scared! I got a letter from a guy who said he is going to break both my legs if I don't stop seeing his girlfriend."
• The friend said, "Well, I guess you'll have to stop seeing his girlfriend."
• The young man said, “It isn’t that simple.”
• The friend said, “You really like her that much?”
• The scared college student said, "It's not that, He didn't sign his name to the letter!"
Fear can actually cause us to do two things. Fear has the ability -
A. TO STOP YOU
FEAR CAN PARALYZE YOU.
Illus: Did you ever hear about Black Bart? Black Bart was a professional thief whose very name struck fear as he terrorized the Wells Fargo stage line. THIS IS TRUE!
• Between 1875 and 1883 he robbed 29 different stagecoach crews
• From San Francisco to New York, his name became synonymous with the danger of the frontier
• Because a hood hid his face, no victim ever saw his face
• Amazingly, Black Bart did it all without firing a shot
• He never took a hostage and was never trailed by a sheriff
Instead, Black Bart would later say from prison that he didn’t need to fire a shot; all he had to do was to use fear to paralyze his victims. He said “Fear, the face of the unknown, was my weapon of choice, my weapon of intimidation.” His sinister presence and his threat of words was enough to overwhelm the toughest stagecoach guard.
Fear can paralyze us, STOP US IN OUR TRACKS! We see a good example of that in Numbers 13. That is where the scripture tells of the time when God’s children came to the Promised Land. God told them to spy out the land that He was going to give them.
Here are some truths to consider as we think about them conquering the land.
• God had delivered them out of the hand of the Egyptians
• God had miraculously given them manna from heaven
• God had miraculously provided them water to drink.
• God led them with a cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night
• God had delivered them from every enemy
• God had promised that He would give them victory
All they had to do was to obey God and go into the land.
They sent twelve men, one man from each tribe. They were gone for forty five days. THE SPIES RETURNED WITH DIFFERENT REPORTS.
• TWO of the twelve saw the blessings of the land. They returned with a cluster of grapes that took two men to carry on a stick between them. Those must have been some great grapes.
• TEN of the twelve saw the giants, and they were like grasshoppers in the land compared to them.
Those ten men convinced the people of God that they just could not conquer the land. Fear stopped them for 40 years.
Fear has the ability TO STOP YOU and fear has the ability -
B. TO SILENCE YOU
John 7:13, “Howbeit no man spake openly of him for fear of the Jews.”
The fear of what men might do, will keep many people from speaking about the Lord to those who so desperately need to hear. Has fear silenced you?
Illus: A woman takes her 16-year-old daughter to the doctor. The doctor says, "Okay, Mrs. Jones, what's the problem?"
The mother says, "It's my daughter Darla.”
• She keeps getting these cravings
• She's putting on weight
• She is sick most mornings
The doctor gives Darla a good examination, then turns to the mother and says, "Well, I don't know how to tell you this, but your Darla is pregnant-- about 4 months, would be my guess."
The mother was so devastated to hear such news she could not speak for a few minutes.
But finally, the mother says, "Pregnant?! She can't be, she has never ever been left alone with a man! Have you, Darla?"
Darla says, "No mother! I've never even kissed a man!"
The doctor walked over to the window and just stares out. About five minutes pass and finally the mother says, "Is there something wrong out there doctor?"
The doctor replies, "No, not really, it's just that the last time anything like this happened, a star appeared in the east and three wise men came over the hill. And I was not there then but I want to see them this time!”
We can become so FEARFUL that we are rendered speechless.
We saw FEAR'S ALLIES and FEAR’S ABILITY, also we see...
III. FEAR’S ANTIDOTE
The antidote to FEAR is FAITH! After the death of Moses, Joshua is called to lead the people into the Promised Land.
Notice the instruction God gives Joshua. Look at Josh. 1:9 “Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God [is] with thee whithersoever thou goest.”
God said He would be with Joshua, and He says He will be with us. All we need to do is have FAITH in God and in His Word to us.
Illus: One tribe of native Americans had a unique practice for training young braves. On the night of a boy’s thirteenth birthday, he was placed in a dense forest to spend the entire night alone. Until then, he had never been away from the security of his family and tribe. But on this night he was blindfolded and taken miles away. When he took off the blindfold, he was in the middle of thick woods. He was by himself all night long.
• Every time a twig snapped, he probably visualized a wild animal ready to pounce
• Every time an animal howled, he imagined a wolf leaping out of the darkness
• Every time the wind blew, he wondered what more sinister sound it masked
No doubt it was a terrifying night for many. After what seemed like an eternity, the first rays of sunlight entered the interior of the forest. Looking around, the boy saw flowers, trees, and the outline of the path.
Then, to his utter astonishment, he beheld the figure of a man standing just a few feet away, armed with a bow and arrow. It was the boy’s father. He had been there all night long.
Notice what Paul writes in the Book of Romans. Rom. 8:31, "What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?"
That is the kind of faith that will overcome fear. When we come to recognize who God is, we understand that we do not have a thing to fear.
• What can overcome the STRENGTH of God?
• What can overcome the WISDOM of God?
• What can overcome the LOVE of God?
• What can overcome the POWER of God?
The answer is NOTHING CAN! Then why be afraid??
Conclusion:
The question is this:
• Has FEAR stopped you
• Has FEAR silenced you
Psa. 56:3 “What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee.”
Illus: We live in a very open society. When I was young, you didn't talk about a lot of things, especially in mixed company. Now, it seems that anything goes--except for one subject. People today on national television will talk about almost anything, but there is still one thing they do not want to talk about and that is death.
One day, we are going to hear the doctor say, “I have done all that I can do, modern medicine can do no more.” When that time comes for us as Christians, it only means we go to a better place to live.
Illus: Nancy Phy had cancer in her sinus cavity and they had to removed half her face. She made four resolutions and faithfully kept them:
(1) I will never complain
(2) I will keep the witness of Christ strong in my life
(3) I will count my blessings
(4) I will use this suffering to try to bring those I love to Christ
She kept her faith in the Lord Jesus and was able to keep all four of these resolutions.
I. FEAR'S ALLIES
II. FEAR’S ABILITY
III. FEAR’S ANTIDOTE
