Fear No Fear

(All scripture from the World English Bible, ebible.org, all rights reserved)

Therefore don’t be afraid, O Jacob my servant, says Yahweh. Don’t be dismayed, Israel. For, behold, I will save you from afar, and save your offspring from the land of their captivity. Jacob will return, and will be quiet and at ease, No one will make him afraid.
Jeremiah 30:10 (emphasis added)

The world wants you to believe it is all powerful. The world wants you alone and besieged and vulnerable. Because when you are feeling that you are all those things, you are not realising that you are a conqueror. Don’t feel like one? Romans 8:37 says “we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.” Once again it is Jesus, Only Begotten Son of the Most High, who through dying for our sins and being raised again to live who does the heavy lifting. By Grace through Faith He has given us His nature. Among other things, His nature is love. Paul goes on to say in verses 38 & 39 of Romans 8: “For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any created thing will be able to separate us from God’s love which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” That’s a heck of a promise and it certainly sounds like we’re anything but vulnerable and alone.

We are not in the same situation as the Israelites Jesus (still in Heaven) was talking to in Jeremiah. They had disobeyed the Lord for generations and brought His punishment on their own heads. We are in the New Covenant where there is no condemnation (Romans 8:1-2) and we have been given all the tools we need to succeed (Galatians 5:22-24). But they were in a predicament. Very, very far from the one place God gave permission for sacrifices to be given for the remission of sins. Far from the country He gave to them. They were feeling very alone and lost. But what did He tell them? He would save them from afar. And save their children from captivity. What did He promise them? That there would be quiet and ease. That nothing would make them afraid.

God’s promises don’t fade (Joshua 21:45). He doesn’t speak them out and then they pass into the depths of space and time getting ever-smaller as they go. No. God’s promises are Now. Always Now. As loud and ringing today as the day they He spoke them (2 Corinthians 1:20). Ten thousand years from now just as loud. Just as ringing. The Lord’s voice doesn’t fade (Numbers 23:19). Can you imagine the sound of the atmosphere around us? The sound of all those promises ringing, reverberating, and thundering around us? It is a great wind. A mighty noise (Hebrews 12:26). A tremendous rush of promise and Blessing that is constantly there and available to us for whom they were spoken.

This verse is Old Covenant. How much more will we be saved? We who are the righteousness of God in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:21)? How much more will our children inherit (Isaiah 54:13)? What victory we can stand on! How can anyone make us afraid when we have the mighty name of Jesus at hand and the power of the cross behind us (1 Corinthians 1:18)? When we can walk right into the throne-room of Heaven and ask things of our Father the Almighty God (Hebrews 4:16)? These — and many like them — are the promises of God to the believers in Jesus. Those who have accepted Him as Saviour and Lord. But how do we actualise it? Get it from the realm of the spirit into the realm of our hearts and minds? Praise.

“Rejoice in the Lord always! Again I will say, “Rejoice!” Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand. In nothing be anxious, but in everything, by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God” (Philippians 4:4-6). If it works for requests, it works for promises. Why? Because when we’re claiming a promise we’re requesting of the Lord. We’re asking Him to bring it to pass. We’re seeking the source of the promise. Seeking a promise isn’t begging. It is a reminder. How does it not become nagging? Praise. Praise and thanksgiving aren’t gimmie-gimmie-gimmie. Praise and thanksgiving are thanking Him for what He said He would do, acknowledging that He is able to do it, honouring that He will do it, and thanking Him as if it is already done — because when your word is good we say ‘It’s as good as done’ and don’t think of it anymore. Right? We do that. And then we just expect it to happen. If anyone else casts doubt, we shut them down because we know it’s going to happen. It works the same way with God. It works better, really. Or should.

You know what kills the promises of God? Doubt. Fear. Our refusal to accept them. Imagine being starving. Standing on the street outside a restaurant. You’ve been promised a meal. And you’re looking through the cold glass in the biting wind. Looking at the warm glow of the interior. Seeing the steaming food, the beads of moisture on the cool, creamy desserts. And you’re waiting. And waiting. And you’re thinking you’ll never get that kind of food. You’re so hungry and it isn’t fair. You hear a voice and look toward the door. It’s open. The waiter stands there beckoning. And you look back into the window, feeling jealousy for whatever person is being called in. You never get called in anywhere. If only that meal will show up. If only it would be you one day eating that food. And you stand there in longing and pain. Cold. Bitter. Eventually, you walk away. You knew it wasn’t for you. It never is.

But God kept His promise. God provided. You refused the promise. You walked away from His Blessing. Your doubt and self-loathing kept you from realising it was you being called. You that they wanted to usher into warmth and fullness. That’s what kills promises. Every time. Hope isn’t wishful thinking. Hope isn’t standing at that window and hoping one day it will be you inside. Hope is an eager expectation of what you have been promised. It’s rushing to the door if it so much as creaks, much less opens. It’s that bubbling excitement that used to keep you up as a child on Christmas Eve. It’s the butterflies of promise fluttering in your belly as you open a present. Hope isn’t a waste. Hope isn’t a fantasy. In the Kingdom of God, hope is a reality coming to pass. As you speak. As you believe.

I say we take the Lord’s commands to heart: Don’t be afraid and don’t be dismayed. Take JOY and praise Him. Laugh and enjoy the Lord. Let your praise and His love drive the enemy from around you. It’s the ultimate pest repellent. Works Every. Single. Time. God will NOT forget His promises. God will NOT drop the ball. God will NOT leave your side or stop supporting you. God HAS you. God LOVES you.

Daily Affirmation of God’s Love: Romans 8:1-17

No one who is normal hates their kids. Oh, we get frustrated by them. We get run down. We get all sorts of crazy. But we don’t hate them. In fact, most of our frustrations come from an intense and vibrant love. We pour so much of ourselves into them and want so badly to see them succeed in so many ways. When perfection doesn’t happen, we don’t always take it well. This is not God’s problem. God had a plan. God made sure it happened. He paid the debt for us — not just paying it, but wiping it away so that He doesn’t remember it existed. He then gave us the Faith to believe in Him. Then He extended His Grace so that we could, in fact, believe and receive that salvation. Then He gave us the nature of His son, making us co-heirs and children of the Kingdom. Then He sent a comforter and teacher to us, His Spirit. That’s the best part. He gave us everything we needed to succeed and then someone who will tell us how to use it. Someone who doesn’t condemn, but points out all the ways we can utilise the Love of Jesus to succeed. No matter what we’ve done or not done. That is love.

Your Daily Confession of God’s love to YOU:

Today God loves that I _______.