Fear No Fear

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

“And do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, so that you may approve what is the good and well-pleasing and perfect will of God.”

Romans 12:2

Salvation wrought in us a MASSIVE change. We were dead and now we’re alive. We have changed kingdoms completely. Jesus was our passport and now we’re in a totally other place. The problem is our minds. It’s like someone changed the body of our vehicle, but when they came to the engine, instead of removing one they added another. We’re ‘driving’ a hybrid. If we use the new engine, we’re using what the vehicle has been designed to use. But if we refuse and switch back to the other, the vehicle has nothing but problems. Our battleground is whether or not to flick the switch. Do we drive using the engine that burns us up, or do we drive using the engine that renews us? Do we return to darkness or remain in the light. It’s a choice. A daily choice. Almost a moment by moment choice. And it is ours to make.

Death activated when Sin entered creation. Death is a spiritual seed that produces lack. It is independence from Adonai. It is disobedience. People who live in this space are not always visibly wicked. Some of them seem to be doing quite well. They are being blessed by Adonai because of His mercy and love. He is showing them His goodness. He is calling them to Himself. It takes a LOT of blessing to overcome the inherent LACK that is the harvest in the kingdom of darkness. And sooner or later it will overcome the good things they have in their lives. Sooner or later, they come crashing down. And then of course there’s death and the judgment. They have nothing to look forward to. Death spiritually seeds lack and lack leads to death – physical AND spiritual.

Life, on the other hand, was the gift of Adonai. It is SPIRITUAL and it is THE seed of GROWTH. It CREATED physical life (Hebrews 11:3). It is the WORD of ADONAI and He is the SOURCE of all of it. Being connected to the source leads to obedience from love of Him. That obedience activates the BLESSING. This isn’t being blessed. This isn’t a single thing. This is the BLESSING and it includes all the growth that Adonai EVER had in mind for us. It is THE SEED which produces the BLESSING. It is our eager expectation. It is our daily life. It is the reality of the harvest that we have MORE THAN ENOUGH – spiritual AND physical (3 John 2).

Which mindset are we going to operate? The Sabbath Rest of Jesus, relying completely on Adonai as our Source, connected to Him in every way. Or the broken thinking we grew up in. This is not a dig at anyone’s parents. We are all born in Sin thanks to Adam (Romans 5:12). It is in our DNA until we die in Jesus and get raised with Him into a NEW existence. Problem is, we retain the memory of how things used to be. We need to constantly choose to trust in Adonai. To rely on Adonai for everything. When we do that, when we remember everything Jesus did for us and why we have that new life in the first place, that’s the mindset where the BLESSING lives. Connected to Jesus. Abiding in Jesus. Resting in Jesus. His living seed is what gets us our living harvest. But it is planted in HIM, not us. We get our harvest from and through HIM. It is the New Covenant of HIS blood, not ours. Adonai is our Source, if we will allow Him to flow.

“Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If anyone wants to come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me” (Matthew 16:24). It is a daily choice who we are going to listen to. The voice inside us that is Holy Spirit, or the voice that is our appetite. Whether it is a good or bad appetite doesn’t matter at all. It isn’t a question of what we are doing, but who we are doing it for (Matthew 6:24). It is a choice that we must make again and again, searching our motives and intent for WHY we are doing something. It is too important to coast on. “For although we are living in the flesh, we do not wage war according to the flesh, for the weapons of our warfare are not merely human, but powerful to God for the tearing down of fortresses, tearing down arguments and all pride that is raised up against the knowledge of God, and taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:3-5). We must tear down the strongholds in our minds that we built up by broken thinking. Ruach HaKodesh is our guide and teacher in that. He shows us what is blocking our way and reminds us of what Jesus said about it. He reminds us of the victory Jesus wrought for us and how we have access to it. He points to it again and again so that we will never take it for granted or forget to apply it. Whether we do or not is up to us, but Jesus made the Way for us to succeed in and through Him (John 15:5).

Daily Affirmation of the Goodness of Elohim: Isaiah 26:3

“You will protect a firm inclination in peace, in peace because he trusts in you.” When we trust in Adonai, we get to have peace. We get peace BECAUSE we trust. Our trust is the seed that grows peace. How can we be anxious when the One who sees ALL THINGS is calling our shots? How can whatever chaos in the world truly bother us when we know that our steps are guided by One whose character is love, mercy, and goodness? How can we get weak and weary of obedience when His kindness and provision is what we can rely on? He gave food where there was no food (Exodus 16). He made a Way where we met Him (Exodus 14). He showed up and shook the foundations of the world (Exodus 19). He did it then. He can do it now. He can do much more. How can WE be fearful when HE is for us? When HE looks out for us. When HE cares and cherishes His obedient children? We have a DEPENDABLE Father. 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