Fear No Fear

(All scripture from the NET, netbible.org, all rights reserved)

Honor all people, love the family of believers, fear God, honour the king.
1 Peter 2:17 (emphasis added)

When we receive from Adonai, whether it is a touch or a healing or a verse that speaks to us, we are grateful. When we choose to remember what He has done for us, we are grateful. If we could experience that gratitude all the time by keeping Him and what He has done for us in the forefront of our minds, we would never sin against our Loving Father who has done so much for us. When we are grateful, our hearts are open to Him. We’re so grateful and joyful and looking to Him as our Source. That’s the moment when we get further teaching from Adonai. Jesus did it when He ministered on Earth. “She replied, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said, “I do not condemn you either. Go, and from now on do not sin any more.”] Then Jesus spoke out again, “I am the light of the world! The one who follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”” (John 8:11-12). “And Jesus answering said, Were there not ten cleansed? but where are the nine? There are not found that returned to give glory to God, save this stranger. And he said unto him, Arise, go thy way: thy faith hath made thee whole” (Luke 17:17-19). When our hearts are open we’re ready to hear something else, something deeper, something to teach us what we need to learn. It’s a great moment of connection where Adonai shows us how much He honours us. US, who are nothing but dust. Who are nothing special on our own. How WONDERFUL is our God.

Why does He honour us? To teach us. To show us what we are capable of. That is how He operates. We are capable of engaging Love because He loved us first (1 John 4:19). He did it so that we could do it. He did it so that we would know how to do it. He does the same with honour. Honour from Adonai helps us deal with our pride (placing our values and opinions above His). “Since you are precious and special in my sight, and I love you, I will hand over people in place of you, nations in place of your life” (Isaiah 43:4). The first part of the verse can also be translated as ‘Since you are precious in my eyes and you are honored’. We have NO REASON to be honoured by Adonai. I mean, He made us from dirt. We’re pretty average. Yet in spite of that, in spite of our rebellion, in spite of being who and what we are, He honours us. He does it because He WANTS to, not because we deserve it. “As for your birth, on the day you were born your umbilical cord was not cut, nor were you washed in water; you were certainly not rubbed down with salt, nor wrapped with blankets. No eye took pity on you to do even one of these things for you to spare you; you were thrown out into the open field because you were detested on the day you were born” (Ezekiel 16:4-5). We were NOTHING when Adonai found us. He chose us by GRACE. He lifted us through His MERCY. He lifts us because He loves us. He delivered us because He delights in us. He honours us because He wants us to honour others too.

One of the best places to start honouring is in our marriages. It’s a wonderful tool to engage our healing of the marriage unit. In a marriage we lay down our lives for our partner–because we HONOUR them. We leave behind self-gratification–letting go of it in EVERY form–in order to enter into true selfless service. True LOVE. When BOTH partners actively and consciously strive for this, NEITHER is taken advantage of OR neglected in ANY way. We can submit to one another without it being about power, position, dominance, or objectification. It can be about the smooth running of the marriage unit as it operates in Jesus and before the Throne. Our feelings about the various issues that can arise during this process don’t matter. It is fleshly knowledge only. We can base our EMOTIONS on the decisions of our spirits. We should NOT be moved by our feelings, thoughts, or experiences. Instead, once our SPIRIT has made a decision, we need to agree with it and TRUST it. The spiritual is ALWAYS more real than reality. Our mindset will always trump the feelings that are coming at us from the outside. No, we don’t IGNORE them. But we base NOTHING and NO decision on them. We base ALL our decisions on our spirit’s decisions, which are always in live with Adonai because our spirit is 100% renewed, perfected, the way it will be for eternity, and sealed by Ruach HaKodesh so that it CANNOT be corrupted in ANY WAY (2 Corinthians 4:16-18; Ephesians 1:13-14). Go with the spirit, don’t go with the flesh. “Therefore we are always full of courage, and we know that as long as we are alive here on earth we are absent from the Lord—for we live by faith, not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5:6-7).

It is a principle of the Kingdom of Elohim that as we honour Him who honoured us first, He CONTINUES to honour us. “Therefore the Lord, the God of Israel, says, ‘I really did say that your house and your ancestor’s house would serve me forever.’ But now the Lord says, ‘May it never be! For I will honor those who honor me, but those who despise me will be cursed!” (1 Samuel 2:30). Adonai doesn’t see things how WE see things. Adonai’s values are often (sadly) not our values. When we give Adonai the honour He DESERVES for choosing us by Grace, He gives us the honour we DON’T deserve BECAUSE of that Grace. “Honor the Lord from your wealth and from the firstfruits of all your crops” (Proverbs 3:9). When we put Adonai first–with our time, with our finances, with our everything–He honours that. When we DON’T honour Him with OUR substance, He doesn’t honour us with HIS. That can seem contradictory, but remember the honour He gave us first was His attention, His time, and His son. He didn’t need to do ANY of that. He could have killed off humanity right away and started again. He would have been justified. He chose something different. He chose to honour us with His love. Everything we have comes from that decision. He is calling us BY EXAMPLE to do the same for our partners, our children, our neighbours, our friends, and everyone else we come across. “The second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” (Matthew 22.39). This is how we are to act. This is what our mindset is supposed to be.

There was a man who was EXTREMELY good at it. We find him first in Acts 4:36-37: “So Joseph, a Levite who was a native of Cyprus, called by the apostles Barnabas (which is translated “son of encouragement”), sold a field that belonged to him and brought the money and placed it at the apostles’ feet.” He honoured others so much, they changed his name to encouragement. That’s a POWERFUL testimony. How did he manage it? He was consistent with it because he shows up later with the same kind of reports. “because he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith, and a significant number of people were brought to the Lord” (Acts 11:24). If you read through Acts you see him taking a chance on Paul. Introducing him to the church in Jerusalem. Going on missions trips together. Barnabas honoured people with words AND actions. He was consistent. The same in private as he was in public. If we want to honour people, that’s a good place to start. Consistency.

“Be devoted to one another with mutual love, showing eagerness in honoring one another. Do not lag in zeal, be enthusiastic in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, endure in suffering, persist in prayer” (Romans 12:10-12). Honouring someone is showing them great respect. Respecting their opinions, their choices (which is NOT the same as agreeing with them OR ignoring them), their boundaries, their emotions, and their voice. We accomplish that with mutual love. Eager to respect each other, showing them with OUR actions, words, and attitudes just how much we esteem them. How much we value them. How much we care for them. It’s serving them freely with no guilty, regret, or bitterness. It’s never choosing to let them be a burden, but to give your all cheerfully. Honouring is so important it was the first commandment with something extra. “Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. “Honor your father and mother,” which is the first commandment accompanied by a promise, namely, “that it will go well with you and that you will live a long time on the earth.” Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but raise them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord” (Ephesians 6:1-4). That’s some promise. We don’t naturally think this way, but our words and the attitude in which we undertake actions affects our longevity. Want a long life? Learn to cultivate a mindset of honouring others.

Honouring is about recognising proper place. This isn’t based on accomplishment, education, life experience, honesty, net worth, or track record. It is based solely on Adonai’s point of view. No one who knows Him or anything of substance about Him would say that Jesus ever occupied a lowly place as a man. Sure, He wasn’t among the elite, but everyone who encountered Him recognised His authority (Matthew 7:28-29). They recognised His greatness as a human being (Matthew 14:14). He was the greatest human who ever lived and people gave Him honour (Luke 7:36-50) and were jealous of Him (Matthew 27:18; Mark 15:10). Yet Jesus SERVED His disciples. They even tried to stop Him because they didn’t think it was right, but He honoured them with His service (John 13:1-17). We are meant to show other human beings honour NOT because of what they have or have not done, but because of how Adonai sees them. We are to treat everyone with respect, but those who honour Adonai should get our UTMOST honour.

Are we LISTENING to our spouses? Our friends? Or are we like the boss that calls a meeting to discuss options, but already had their mind made up? Are we giving our time to consider their words, thoughts, and ideas? Active listening is listening with focused attention. It is trying your best to understand what they are saying, responding to them, and pausing here and there to reflect on what you both are saying and confirm your understanding. AFTER the conversation you CONTINUE to reflect on what the two of you said as you ensure you will retain the information for later use. It takes EFFORT. It is NOT easy. But when you do it, you are showing your respect for the other individual(s) as well as for their ideas. Is this how you’re engaging your spouse? Or is it a race to see who can get to the end of their ideas first? Do you listen to them, but then ignore everything they said without even CONSIDERING it? Do THEY feel listened to? Do THEY feel like they have value? Or do they think they’d have the same success talking to an empty room? If we aren’t SHOWING that we value something, we are NOT honouring them. If they do not realise they have worth, we need to TELL them. First with our actions and then with our words. An encourager spends so much time encouraging, blessing, loving, respecting, and giving consideration–without being a doormat or a pushover–that they become KNOWN for it.

That is a report that Adonai would like to hear. How much of an encouragement you are. How much you honour His children. How much you honour your parents. Your spouse. Your kids. Your friends. Your neighbours. Your enemies. Even your boss. Adonai wants to know that you are using the Fruit He has given you so that you CAN honour people. So that you CAN encourage them. We can pick up patience, kindness, goodness, patience, and any other fruit we need WHENEVER we need them. It is a choice, it is a conscious choice, and it won’t be easy because your flesh thinks it’s allergic. We are to honour. It should be part of who we are. Part of what we are known for. We’re not just words, we follow through! Honour your spouse. Honour your parents. Honour Adonai. Be the encouragement we all know this world needs more of.

Daily Affirmation Jesus IS Messiah: Isaiah 53:2

“He sprouted up like a twig before God, like a root out of parched soil; he had no stately form or majesty that might catch our attention, no special appearance that we should want to follow him.” Messiah would be ordinary. Not in the spiritual realm, but in the natural. He would blend into crowds. He wouldn’t stand out. He would have nothing particular about Him to draw men to Him–except His Anointing. “So Judas obtained a squad of soldiers and some officers of the chief priests and Pharisees. They came to the orchard with lanterns and torches and weapons. Then Jesus, because he knew everything that was going to happen to him, came and asked them, “Who are you looking for?” They replied, “Jesus the Nazarene.” He told them, “I am he.” (Now Judas, the one who betrayed him, was standing there with them.)” (John 18:3-4). They had the betrayer with them. They didn’t need to ask who He was. But there was nothing remarkable about Jesus. They needed Him pointed out to them. Jesus IS Messiah!

Your Daily Confession of Jesus/Yeshua’s Identity:

Yeshua is the Christ, the Son of the living God.

Matthew 16:16b