Fear No Fear

(All scripture from Lexham English Bible, Copyright 2012 Logos Bible Software)

For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their reasoning, and their senseless hearts were darkened.

Romans 1:21

Water is a vital element for plants. It is the mechanism by which they take in nutrients from the soil. It is also how they carry sugar to the flowers and/or fruit that needs it. Water quality can also make a difference, varying the amount and availability of various elements that the plants need to survive. Without enough water, they cannot remain upright. They droop, unable to support their own weight, and can fail. The same is true for human beings. Lack of water makes us weak. Dehydration leads to sluggish blood flow which can lead to organ failure. Spiritually, it is also true. Without quality ‘water’, we will wither, droop, and fail.

Our water is Jesus. “But whoever drinks of this water which I will give to him will never be thirsty for eternity, but the water which I will give to him will become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life” (John 4:14). “Now on the last day of the feast—the great day—Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me, and let him drink, the one who believes in me. Just as the scripture said, ‘Out of his belly will flow rivers of living water.’”” (John 7:37-38). “And he said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the one who is thirsty I will give water from the spring of the water of life freely” (Revelation 21:6). This isn’t just in the New Covenant. It is also one of the proofs that Jesus is not only Adonai, but Messiah. “For I will pour out water on a thirsty land and streams on dry ground. I will pour my spirit out on your descendants and my blessing on your offspring” (Isaiah 44:3). “For my people have committed two evils: they have forsaken me, the source of living water, to hew out for themselves cisterns, cracked cisterns that can hold no water” (Jeremiah 2:13). Jesus is ALWAYS available (Hebrews 13:5). The problem is not the availability of the water. For us – as in the Old Covenant – the problem lies with US.

When we look for a source of ‘water’ other than Jesus, we end up with cracked cisterns that hold nothing. Or worse, sluggish, murky, and/or turbid water filled with poisons, pollution, and heavy elements designed to do you harm – while being promoted as feel-good benefits to your ‘true’ self. Our interactions with Adonai are based on our belief. Our belief has nothing to stand on if we do not have trust in Him. We cannot have trust if we do not hear the Word (Romans 10:17). It is ALL connected. The importance of the Word CANNOT be underestimated. “I bow down toward your holy temple and give thanks to your name, because of your loyal love and faithfulness, for you have magnified your word according to all your name” (Psalm 138:2). The Word is a PURE source of our ‘water’ because Jesus IS the Word and the Word IS Jesus. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. This one was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and apart from him not one thing came into being that has come into being. In him was life, and the life was the light of humanity. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome^[ it. . . And the Word became flesh and took up residence among us, and we saw his glory, glory as of the one and only from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:1-5, 14).

Our water is always available, our water is Jesus, our water is the Word, and we need it consistently. How do we make sure we get it? By NOT doing what the people in today’s verse did. They did NOT stay connected to the water. They dried up. They drooped. They had cracked cisterns – futile reasoning. And since they had no sense (the Word) in their hearts, their spiritual eyes got dimmer until they were blind and walking in darkness. It can happen to ANYONE. If we do not maintain our connection to our water source, and keep it open so that it can flow, we will NOT get what we need and begin the process of deterioration and dimming. Adonai MUST have known this was going to be the case. He DOES know the end from the beginning and is a VERY forward-thinking Elohim. What did He set up as our method of pipe cleaning? Blessing Adonai.

Jesus practised this kind of lifestyle (Mark 8:6-8). He marked it as the opening of the kind of prayer He prayed (Matthew 6:9-13). It is THE model of prayer. Be thankful. Bless Adonai. When we do, we are blessed in turn. “Let the peoples praise you, O God; let all the peoples praise you. The earth has yielded its produce. God, our God, will bless us. God will bless us, and all the ends of the earth will fear him” (Psalm 67:5-7). We don’t always know how to praise, how to be thankful. Our flesh gets in the way and our sight gets dim. “Jesus answered, “Truly, truly I say to you, unless someone is born of water and spirit, he is not able to enter into the kingdom of God. What is born of the flesh is flesh, and what is born of the Spirit is spirit” (John 3:5-6). We need Ruach HaKodesh. We need His guidance. Big and small. Urgent and back burner. We need it in every arena all the time. He should ALWAYS be our go-to.

“And likewise also, the Spirit helps us in our weakness, for we do not know how to pray as one ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with unexpressed groanings. And the one who searches our hearts knows what the mindset of the Spirit is, because he intercedes on behalf of the saints according to the will of God” (Romans 8:26-27). True in prayer. True in praise. When WE don’t know the words, HE does. When WE are overwhelmed by the sensations of our feelings, He is unaffected. He can lead us. We KNOW His voice. We WON’T be misled. We can pray with Him and He prays through us. We can praise with Him and He guides us in praise. He knows. We can trust Him and He knows. When we refuse the guidance, we’re trying to douse the light. It’s a bad idea. We can’t see in the dark. When things are looking bad and our sight is fading, it is time to focus on the Light. Jesus is the Light of the World (John 8:12). Ruach HaKodesh ALWAYS knows where He is and can ALWAYS point us toward Him. We need to listen. We need to pay attention. And we need to obey. When we do, the Light shines so bright, we’ll never be cold again.

Daily Affirmation of the Goodness of Elohim: 1 John 1:6-7

“If we say that we have fellowship with him and walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.” If we love Him, we’ll obey Him (John 14:15). We’ll obey Him because we love Him and who doesn’t want to see the person they love happy? It won’t be a hardship. It will be a natural course of action because of our love. When we love Him with our obedience, we’ll walk as He walked (1 John 2:6). By doing that, we will naturally be within the area of Light that He casts. We will have light, not darkness. Knowledge, not ignorance. And we’ll be cleansed of our sin. Why? Because when we seek to obey Him and don’t, it won’t feel right. It won’t sit right. We won’t be okay until we make it right. We’ll learn more about it. We’ll agree with the Word on it. And we’ll repent. When we do that, we get forgiven (1 John 1:9). From love, to love. It’s obedience, humble submission, and total restoration. Because of LOVE. What a GOOD God!

Your Daily Confession of Elohim’s Goodness:

I taste and see that Yahweh is good; I am blessed because I take refuge in Him.

Psalm 34:8