Fear No Fear

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

When Peter had come to himself, he said, “Now I truly know that the Lord has sent out his angel and delivered me out of the hand of Herod, and from everything the Jewish people were expecting.”
Acts 12:11 (emphasis added)

This whole passage of scripture is no fear in action. Peter had been seized and imprisoned because King Herod had killed James, the brother of John and it pleased the Jews. Not just the religious leaders, but a chunk of the general population had a thing against the followers of Jesus. Herod saw it pleased them, and like any politician wanted to keep his base happy. So he seized Peter and tossed him into prison with four squads of soldiers to guard him. One squad in the cell – with two on each side, chained to him. One squad outside the cell. And two in reserve to spell them off. This way there were guards fully awake surrounding him around the clock. They had probably heard of when Peter and John were imprisoned by the Pharisees (Acts 5:17-23) and had escaped in the middle of the night. These were dire circumstances. But Peter had no fear.

That is quite a statement when you think about what’s happening. Put yourself into Peter’s position. His good friend has just been martyred. There is a good chance they had all been praying for James. But he had been killed. Peter would know that the other believers were praying for him, but things didn’t look good. It was Passover. The anniversary of when Jesus Himself had been killed. Chained to guards. Considered a high-risk prisoner. Things would not have been comfortable or promising. Could you manage no fear? We don’t know what Peter’s thoughts were. Whether he was thinking about all the work left to do or whether he was thinking about the possibility that in a few hours he would be in heaven. Maybe his family came to mind. He had a wife, a mother-in-law. Whatever it was that was on his mind in this situation, it wasn’t keeping him up. Peter was asleep. Getting rest. Fully confident in his situation.

It doesn’t say what his confidence was in other than the Lord. Peter is a very self-effacing guy. He doesn’t put himself forward a lot and admits to any failings he has. He’s humble. Good example for us. We don’t know if he was expecting an escape, but from his behaviour a little later I think we can infer that he didn’t. Maybe he wasn’t expecting anything specific. Maybe he was just trusting in God’s overall plan. In any case, he was sleeping and you don’t sleep when you’re worried. You don’t sleep when you’re fearful – unless you’re so exhausted you can’t help it. Peter was seized on a whim, so he should have been going about his daily routine. No reason to think he had been working out hard or had returned from a long trip or anything like that. He was just not entertaining enough worry or concern to keep him awake.

I’m a fan of sleep. I enjoy it. Always have. I have a rich mental landscape, a vivid imagination, and I dream in 4D, high-def, full technicolor. I experience dreams the same way that I experience life. But I can’t say that in myself I could sleep if I was chained between two guards waiting for execution. I think it would take some serious peace to be able to do that. Which of course is exactly what is going on with Peter. We have to assume that he prayed about his situation. We can assume that because Peter was at peace. “In nothing be anxious, but in everything, by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your thoughts in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6-7). Peter had the peace of God. He had prayed. He’d put things into the Lord’s hands. He wasn’t anxious or panicking. He’d cast his cares on the Lord.

“Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time, casting all your worries on him, because he cares for you. Be sober and self-controlled. Be watchful. Your adversary, the devil, walks around like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Withstand him steadfast in your faith, knowing that your brothers who are in the world are undergoing the same sufferings. But may the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a little while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you. To him be the glory and the power forever and ever. Amen” (1 Peter 5:6-11).

Did he learn this lesson while in prison? Or did he already know it and was walking it out. Could be either way, but it is obvious that he was at rest in Christ Jesus. He was sleeping. Hard. How hard? An angel had to hit him awake. It’s true. In Acts 12:7 it says “an angel of the Lord stood by him, and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him up, saying, “Stand up quickly!” His chains fell off his hands.” In the Greek it is clear that the angel was gentle. This was nudging, not a smack-down. I’d like to think I’d notice if a light appeared in my room and an angel stepped out of it. I’d like to think that I would wake up. But Peter was at peace. Peter had no fear. It didn’t startle him. He didn’t even think it was real. He wasn’t seeing this as the rescue he may have been hoping for. He thought it was a vision. He was completely passive. The angel had to tell him to put on his shoes, put on his coat. He even had to tell Peter to stand up. Peter – thinking it’s a vision – is standing there, waiting for it to play out.

The angel told Peter to follow and they walked out of the prison and into the city. They went one street away from the prison (vs 10), and then the angel disappeared. How long did Peter stand there? How long was he waiting for the next bit of the vision? Before he realised he was only a street away from the prison and the Romans would really like to put him back in there? It must have been at least a few minutes because of the wording of today’s verse: “When Peter had come to himself.” He was off in his own world. Probably praying or praising under his breath, worshipping the Lord who was showing him this vision. Eventually he popped out of his revere and immediately gave God the glory. “Now I truly know that the Lord has sent out his angel and delivered me out of the hand of Herod, and from everything the Jewish people were expecting.”

Peter wasn’t expecting this rescue. Herod wasn’t expecting this rescue. The Jewish people weren’t expecting this rescue. Peter WAS trusting the Lord. He was confident that the Lord had the situation in hand. He was confident that the Lord COULD save him. He was confident that the Lord might be calling him home to heaven. Peter was okay with whatever the Lord wanted. Peter was expecting without expectation. That’s why he was so open to it being a vision. If the Lord wanted to teach, Peter was ready to hear. If the Lord wanted to deliver, Peter was ready to learn what he needed to do. If the Lord was calling him home, Peter was ready to learn what he had to do before that happened. Whatever was going to happen, Peter was expecting it. He put no limits on God, so was able to rest in whatever God was going to do.

Anxiety is a negative expectation of future ills. Faith is a positive expectation of future blessing. Which side of that line are you standing on? You don’t have to be in prison facing execution. Maybe you need to get a shot. Maybe you need to take a test. Maybe you have a date. Maybe you have a work problem. It doesn’t matter how trivial or how serious it is. In every moment of every day we are walking in fear or in faith. We are being obedient to what Jesus commanded us to be or we are disobeying him. In John 14:1 Jesus said “Don’t let your heart be troubled. Believe in God. Believe also in me.” It wasn’t a joke. Jesus expects us to follow him. In obedience. Not troubled or anxious, but consciously giving Him our cares and worries. To expect without expectation the blessing of the Lord.

“Trust in Yahweh with all your heart, and don’t lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. Don’t be wise in your own eyes. Fear Yahweh, and depart from evil” (Proverbs 3:5-7). This is our roadmap for unexpecting our expectations. We need to trust the Lord. Period. The key is not leaning on our own understanding. I was recently talking with my father and he mentioned a historical event. It’s one that I know a little about. My father talked about it in a way that seemed absolutely crazy. And it was a moment where I sat there realising I had no idea what was happening in the spiritual realm in that event. Instead of being a crazy conspiracy theory, it could have been exactly what happened. Why? Because God doesn’t do things my way. Or your way. Or the way of any human. God is God and that means He is God. We are seeing the effects of what the Lord is stirring, but we are not always seeing His hand, his plan, or HIS expectation. In the time of Moses He changed the course of human history. In a day – 24hrs – the Lord changed the power dynamic in the world. He changed the politics. Changed the lives of thousands upon thousands of people. How did He do it? Through Moses’ unexpecting expectation.

The Lord gave us free will and dominion here on earth (Genesis 1:27-28, 9:8-17). In the sovereignty of the Lord, He has decided to grant US sovereignty in the area of our will. God wanted to deliver His people. God wanted to show the world He was real, existed, and held all the cards. He needed our permission. Can I? Yes. That’s it. He raised Moses for the job of leading the Israelites. Moses was grown into a prophet. All that is amazing and worth reading about. But Moses was also chosen because he was a man willing to say yes. Yes, God. You can move. Any way you want, any time you want, anywhere you want. Yes. Not putting limits on God. Not putting thought into how, when, where, or why. Just yes. Expecting God to work in ANY way He wants to.

We are facing some turbulent days. In our nations. In our cities. We are approaching times that are going to be unlike any other times that have ever been. God wants to move. There are things He wants to do. In the way He wants to do them. Would you like to know a secret? He already found His ‘yes’. He already found the person who would say yes, and they have said it. There are those today, right now, who are expecting without expectation. So this isn’t about God waiting on us. He already did that part. Someone said yes. We are in the part where He is about to do the thing He wanted to do. The part where He is walking out the system He set up. You don’t have to choose or decide to do anything about that. What we need to do is decide whether we want to join in expecting without specific expectation.

Listen to any prophet of any good standing with the Lord who is operating today. You will hear about what God is going to do. Not in specifics, but in generality. If you listen, you won’t need specifics. God is about to move and move in ways we have only read about. It is GOING to happen. It is only a question of His chosen timing. Imagine you are on earth in the days of the flood. Noah has been building the ark for over a hundred years. All that while he’s been saying flood coming. Flood coming. Would you believe it? No one did. The Ark could have held more people. The door remained open right until the rain fell. No one came. No one chose to expect the unexpectable. We are living in days that are becoming more and more like the days of Noah.

We have the same decision to make. Flood coming. Are you going to be ready for it? If you choose to expect the Lord to move and be ready for ANYTHING He wants, He will shelter us (Psalm 91). If we seek His face and follow Him, we will find Him. If we listen to what He says, we will not be taken by surprise. We might even see an angel nudging us awake. Flood coming. Are you ready? Are you on the Lord’s side? Are you expecting whatever He wants to bring? Whenever and however He wants? Feel free to sleep in the boat. Sleep in the prison. No matter what circumstances, rest in Jesus. By trusting Him. By casting your cares on Him. This is how you will know peace. His peace that baffles the human mind. That helps us get nudged by angels. Expect His move, but don’t expect specifics. Rely on the Spirit to keep you informed about what you need to know. Be confident in the Lord’s ability to shake things up even as He protects His obedient children. Trust in Him and He will make your paths straight.

Daily Affirmation of God’s Love: Genesis 40:7

Why do you look so sad today? These guys were in prison. The ones in the cell and the one who asked the question. They were in jail. Prisoners. Could be executed at any moment or left to rot for decade after decade. Three men all in the same situation. But only one was at peace. He wouldn’t have liked where he was. He would have longed to get home. But he was at peace. He was abiding in Yahweh. What about you? Are you abiding in Him? No matter what you are facing? From making a meal to sitting or dental surgery to making a cup of tea. Everything we do, could do, or might do is an opportunity for faith or fear. Will you be burdened by the future or peaceful in the present? A slave to the whims of the world, or yoked to the person of Jesus. If we abide in Him in all things, then we can rest in His peace. He tells us to cast ALL our cares on Him – which implies leaving them there so do not drop something off and then come pick it up later. That’s not what he’s talking about. Once cast, always cast. What’s given to the cross, stays on the cross. Practice this. In small or large. Every day. From making breakfast to fluffing your pillows. Practice the mindset. Practice praising Him in all things. And listen to the Holy Spirit. Flood is coming, but we can be secure in the boat. Peaceful and asleep.

Your Daily Confession of God’s love to YOU:

Today God loves that I _______.