Fear No Fear

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

“I tell you, my friends, don’t be afraid of those who kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do. But I will warn you whom you should fear. Fear him who after he has killed, has power to cast into Gehenna [or, Hell]. Yes, I tell you, fear him. Aren’t five sparrows sold for two assaria* coins? Not one of them is forgotten by God. But the very hairs of your head are all counted. Therefore don’t be afraid. You are of more value than many sparrows.“
_{(* An assarion was a small copper coin worth about an hour’s wages for an agricultural laborer.)}
Luke 12:4-7 (emphasis added)

Jesus used small animals as proof of God’s valuing people on several occasions. He points out that the Father knows each and every one of His creations. He cares for them. Check out Genesis. Everything He made was good. He spoke it into existence and took a moment to look at it. To observe it. To think, ‘Yeah. That is GOOD. I LIKE that.’ Creation is His taste. And since He values us more than animals (humans being in a different class of creation – Genesis 1:26-30), why do we worry so much about our needs? It says the hairs of our head are counted. As in pluck a hair and He can tell you what number it is. No matter when you plucked it. With that level of attention to detail about our lives, how can we worry about what He thinks of us? Isn’t it obvious He likes us? Notice that God cares about everything, not just humanity. Also notice that God doesn’t promise no problems, immortality, and perfection.

Because of sin, everything on this planet has to struggle to survive. But unlike the animal kingdom, we can make a covenant with God which changes our circumstances. Of course, since we can be Blessed in this way and the animals can’t, it’s our job to make sure to pass it along with our care of them and their environment. That is dominion. That is stewardship. You want to know a hard truth? If you’re a believer you don’t own anything. That’s not your money, your vehicle, your home, your pet, your property. Nope. It is all the Lord’s because you acknowledge the Lordship of Jesus (Psalm 24:1). Everything we have we are stewards of (Colossians 3:23). That’s why giving is such a big deal (Acts 20:35). That’s why blessing is such a big deal (2 Corinthians 9:8-11). The Lord can do what He likes with what is His. We are just the ones who help redistribute. We are blessed, so we should bless others. Everything in our lives should be blessed just because we are around. But how far does the Blessing extend?

Short answer: as far as it needs to. What does the Word say? In plain, easy to understand language? “Therefore I tell you, don’t be anxious for your life: what you will eat, or what you will drink; nor yet for your body, what you will wear. Isn’t life more than food, and the body more than clothing? See the birds of the sky, that they don’t sow, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns. Your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren’t you of much more value than they?” (Matthew 6:25-26). Again, while not promising easy street the Lord promises that He’ll meet your needs. Needs, not wants. We live in a culture of wants. We often start thinking them of needs, but they aren’t. What are our needs? Things like food, shelter, and clothing. Sometimes transportation. A place to wash. Dishes. There can be a lot of them, but none of them include the latest electronics, fashions, or high-priced 4-star meals. Those things are great, and if they aren’t interfering with your walk with God they won’t be a problem — but they aren’t needs. Needs are universal. Wants are individual. God promises He will meet the needs of His children. Period. Across the board (Psalm 34:10).

It takes belief and faith. You have to choose to believe the Lord. That can be hard. When you have nothing in the bank account and rent is coming due. When you have no food in your cupboards and you’ll have children to feed in the morning. What if you lose your job? Or the economy tanks? It’s all about belief. Believing in the Lord. Believing in His words. Regardless of what you see around you. Choosing to believe and then standing on it. That takes faith. The way to strengthen your faith is through hearing the Word of God. Reading the Bible and choosing to believe it. Every word. Verbatim. You might not understand it, but you can believe. Like when you were a child and believed what your parents said about things you hadn’t learned about yet. “How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in him whom they have not heard? How will they hear without a preacher? And how will they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the Good News of peace, who bring glad tidings of good things! But they didn’t all listen to the glad news. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed our report?” So faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Romans 10:14-17).

If you haven’t built up a trust in God through His Word, it’s harder to bring it to mind when you need it. What good is it to panic-flip through the bible searching out verses about healing after you have been diagnosed? It’s better to have it in your mind so you can rest on it immediately. When you get told ‘this is wrong’ and your mind immediately brings up verse after verse about the healing in God’s wings? It is impossible to get worried about a diagnosis (any diagnosis) when you’ve already convinced yourself God is worthy to trust in for healing. That doesn’t mean you’ll be cheerful and thanking the doctor for the diagnosis. It doesn’t mean you’ll be happy to hear it. It DOES mean that you have confidence in God and what He says. You KNOW that you KNOW that God has you. No matter what.

It works the same for meeting our needs in any and every circumstance. God’s provision is for all of His children. Do yourself a favour and look up some verses about the provision of our needs that the Lord has for you. It’s for me, you, and everyone who confesses that Jesus is Lord and believes in their heart that He was resurrected to life again. When that is true, you’re part of the family. And God always provides for His children. Every time. Try Him. He’ll show you. But I did that and I still don’t have what I want. First, remember He promises needs, not wants. Second, if you don’t have the right motives, God doesn’t listen (James 4:3). He isn’t a God of selfishness, greed, or gluttony. He IS a God of abundance and blessing. But we are to seek Him first and foremost (Matthew 6:33). We are to prosper in the spirit first (3 John 1:2). Why? Because the spirit and its health is the most important part of life. Everything else comes after. Everything else is temporal, malleable, and temporary. The spirit is eternal. The spirit is where true riches lie (Luke 16:11).

God knows what we need before we need it (Matthew 6:8). He doesn’t want us to worry about it. He does want us to talk to Him about it (Philippians 4:6-7). “This is the boldness which we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will, he listens to us. And if we know that he listens to us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions which we have asked of him” (1 John 5:14-15). According to His WILL. What is the Will of the Father? The Word. As we abide in Jesus and spend time thinking thoughtfully about the Word of God, we will see the Will of the Father. If we ask in accordance to that Will, believing that we are receiving it, we will get it. God wants good things for us. God wants to get good things to us. But not that which is motivated by impure desire. Not that which will negatively impact our relationship with Him. ““All things are lawful for me,” but not all things are profitable. “All things are lawful for me,” but not all things build up” (1 Corinthians 10:23).

But God has a better idea of blessing and taking care of needs than we do. “And God is able to make all grace abound to you, that you, always having all sufficiency in everything, may abound to every good work” (2 Corinthians 9:8). “My God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:19). “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ” (Ephesians 1:3). Clearly the Lord God Almighty has good things in mind for us. That He wants to bless us. That He wants us to have rich spiritual lives. And also, just as with the rest of His creation, He wants us unworried about our needs. For us to bring Him our concerns, and then to praise and thank Him for meeting them. To stand on that. To not let go of that truth. And for us to watch as He meets our needs, over our expectations, because He is a good father and a GOOD God.

Daily Affirmation of God’s Love: Isaiah 53

Jesus loved you a lot. He went through the wringer for you. On purpose. Voluntarily. He did it all so that you wouldn’t have to. He paid for sin. He took care of sin forever. In Him and through Him, it’s gone. God is not holding anything over you. God wants you with Him and is seeking to love you, not punish you. That is amazing news. The best news. It is a total solution for all the problems of life. And to those who believe and stand on it, He will one day divide the plunder of the earth (Zechariah 14:1). The rewards of the Kingdom are ours because the family of God resides in the Kingdom and we are in the family (John 1:12, Hebrews 5:5). Through Jesus, we are co-heirs of the Kingdom (Romans 8:16-17). Our inheritance is in heaven (1 Peter 1:3-5). It’s all ours by Grace, through Faith. Because God loves us. Because He loves us so much. He redeemed us from the curse (Galatians 3:13-14) which means we don’t have to put up with sickness, failure, poverty, lack, fear, or anything else from the curse. He is the Overcomer (John 16:33) and so in Him, so are we. And in Him we are the Righteousness of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:21). It is a gift of Grace. Paid for with a hefty price – the heftiest there is. But it has given us everything so He deemed it worth it to pay. We are therefore beloved children of God. Free, and free, and free in Jesus. It’s great to be in a family full of love, isn’t it?

Your Daily Confession of God’s love to YOU:

Today God loves that I _______.