Fear No Fear

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

But if you will not do so, behold, you have sinned against the LORD; and be sure your sin will find you out.
Numbers 32:23 (emphasis added)

The Lord sees everything. “For the ways of man are before Yahweh’s eyes. He examines all his paths. The evil deeds of the wicked ensnare him. The cords of his sin hold him firmly. He will die for lack of instruction. In the greatness of his folly, he will go astray” (Proverbs 5:21-23). “There is no creature that is hidden from his sight, but all things are naked and laid open before the eyes of him to whom we must give an account” (Hebrews 4:13). ““Am I a God at hand,” says Yahweh, “and not a God afar off? Can anyone hide himself in secret places so that I can’t see him?” says Yahweh. “Don’t I fill heaven and earth?” says Yahweh” (Jeremiah 23:23-24). The Lord sees everything.

Why is it that we try to hide our sin? To cover it up with platitudes and the blame game? We’ve been doing it from the get go. Adam blamed Eve. Eve blamed the snake. Everyone passed their responsibility – and authority – until the snake, whom the devil had conned. He didn’t say anything because the devil WANTED the authority. He also wanted Adam and Eve killed (“but you shall not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil; for in the day that you eat of it, you will surely die” – Genesis 2:17). The DID die – spiritually – the moment they sinned. And they were under the penalty of death from that moment too. The Lord in His supreme Mercy delayed that sentence to the cross, where Jesus picked it up, put it on, and paid the price for us (2 Corinthians 5:21, 1 Peter 2:21-25).

The world will tell you that it is perfectly natural to try and hide when things go wrong. That our natural instinct is toward denial. We feel shame (because our spirits know better). We are afraid of other people’s reactions (because everything not faith-based is FEAR-based). We feel a need to make others happy like us (because fellowship is hardwired into us). We fear being seen as phoney because we like to put on an act (fear and shame). We feel we don’t get what we need (envy, jealousy). It’s too painful to express what we’re feeling (brokenhearted). We hold back because we don’t think we can trust anyone with the truth (fear, shame). It’s all so painful. And ugly. And so we hide it. Not wanting anyone to see us as less than perfect – because deep inside your spirit you KNOW you are SUPPOSED to BE perfect. That’s what we were created to be. We fell, however. But the LORD can get us and WILL get us back to where we belong IN JESUS. Though Jesus, by Jesus, in Jesus, and for Jesus, we can and will be what we were meant to always be.

“We have seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son as the Savior of the world. Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God remains in him, and he in God. We know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and he who remains in love remains in God, and God remains in him. In this, love has been made perfect among us, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment, because as he is, even so we are in this world. There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear has punishment. He who fears is not made perfect in love. We love him,§ because he first loved us” (1 John 4:14-19). God didn’t send Jesus to kill us. He didn’t send Jesus to judge us. He isn’t TRYING to punish us. He isn’t TRYING to ‘get us’. He loves us, wants us in His love, and wants us submitted to obedience OUT OF LOVE. That is what free will is all about. We are here to worship and work. That was our job from the beginning (Genesis 1:26-28, 2:7-25). It will be our job again. In the meantime, we need to not forget who we are. God tells us to put the wicked man away from us – that means from around us and from within us (1 Corinthians 5:13).

In JESUS, we are the righteousness of God (2 Corinthians 5:21). That means that we need to remind ourselves each and every day who we are. We need to agree with the Lord’s Word and submit ourselves to it. No excuses. No ‘reasons’. If the Lord God says it is wrong, we agree. If the Lord God says it is right, we agree. If the Lord God says to do it, we do it. If the Lord God says that we don’t, then we don’t do it. Period. Even if we want to, feel like it, or whatever else comes up in our minds. A huge part of that is NOT HIDING. From the beginning to the end of the Word the Lord tells us that things are not going to stay hidden. Jesus said “What I tell you in the darkness, speak in the light; and what you hear whispered in the ear, proclaim on the housetops” (Matthew 10:27). When we miss it. When we choose sin. We NEED to admit it. Sin isn’t something we do by accident.

First, we are born again and remade into completely new creatures. “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old things have passed away. Behold, all things have become new” (2 Corinthians 5:17). Second, we have Jesus’ own righteous spirit. “If Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the spirit is alive because of righteousness” (Romans 8:10). Third, we are renewing our minds if we’re getting into the Word with the intent to submit to what we find. “Don’t be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what is the good, well-pleasing, and perfect will of God” (Romans 12:2). Fourth, we have the mind of Christ Jesus. ““For who has known the mind of the Lord that he should instruct him?” But we have Christ’s mind” (1 Corinthians 2:16). And fifth, we have the Holy Spirit dwelling within us. “Don’t you know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit lives in you?” (1 Corinthians 3:16).

That is not even ALL that we are, but that is enough to prove to even the most recalcitrant believer that we do NOT have to sin anymore. It just isn’t in our nature. We WERE suffering with a sinful nature, but then we were saved. When we were saved, we got all those things I just listed. We are IN JESUS. We do not HAVE to sin. Yet, being human, we are heading toward perfection. We are not perfect yet. It is therefore almost inevitable that at some point, in some way, we will sin. When we do, we must stop, drop, and repent. Don’t let any time pass before repenting with a full heart. Now, that means that we are always seeking not to sin. We are always accepting the consequences of our wrongdoing. We are always seeking with our whole heart to get closer to Jesus, worship the Father, and NOT sin. But if we do – we repent with our whole heart and IMMEDIATELY. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us the sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9).

Here’s the thing. God doesn’t find out about your sin when you repent of it. He knows when we step wrong. He knows when we sin. He KNOWS it all. “For by him all things were created in the heavens and on the earth, visible things and invisible things, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things are held together” (Colossians 1:16-17). He holds us all together. He sees everything we do every moment of every day. We repent NOT to confess to Him what we did in secret. We confess because we BOTH know that we have done wrong. And we are submitting to HIS morality. We are cleansing our hearts and seeking to not sin that way again. To turn from it, and move in the other direction, setting our minds on it being wrong (no matter what we felt at the time), and it being wrong for us forever. Not changing our minds and fleeing from it if it comes around again. It’s important because if we wait too long to change our minds and alter our behaviour and let the Lord cleanse us, we will be under judgment. “I, Yahweh, search the mind. I try the heart, even to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his doings” (Jeremiah 17:10). That isn’t a judgment of punishment. That’s a judgment of missing out.

We are believers. We are no longer condemned (Romans 8:1-2). The blessing is on us (James 1:17, Luke 6:38, Numbers 6:24-26). But if there is sin in us, the blessing will not work in its fullness. Sin separates us from God (Isaiah 59:2). Jesus is the restorer of our relationship, but if we are in rebellion to Him, we are stepping away from the Lord. We are refusing to let Him be at our side to protect us (Proverbs 3:25-26). We are not letting Him be our fortress and protection from evil (Psalm 91). We are not being submitted to His will. His Word. Or His Holy Spirit. That is pure rebellion. That is what cost us our rightful, created place. We were made only a little lower than God Himself (Psalm 8:5). But that is NOT where we stand now. We fell and fell far. That’s why Jesus came. To restore us. “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” (1 Peter 5:10).

Humble yourself before the Lord. Every time. No matter how large. No matter how small. Submit. Be humble. Admit that the Lord is the LORD GOD ALMIGHTY. “if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves, pray, seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin, and will heal their land” (2 Chronicles 7:14). “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” (1 Peter 5:6-7). “He has shown you, I man, what is good. What does Yahweh require of you, but to act justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?” (Micah 6:8). If we will stay humble and walk as He leads us, we will stay in Jesus. When we step out, we can accept correction, bow our knees, and get back in. It’s important. It needs to be done daily. And it needs to never, EVER be forgotten. The Lord comes first. His Will. His Word. His way.

“Yahweh, in the morning you will hear my voice. In the morning I will lay my requests before you, and will watch expectantly. For you are not a God who has pleasure in wickedness. Evil can’t life with you. The arrogant will not stand in your sight. You hate all workers of iniquity. You will destroy those who speak lies. Yahweh abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man. But as for me, on the abundance of your loving kindness I will come into your house. I will bow toward your holy temple in reverence of you. Lead me, Yahweh, in your righteousness because of my enemies. Make your way straight before my face” (Psalm 5:3-8).

Daily Affirmation of God’s Love: 2 Timothy 2:7

When you study the bible, you’ll find that whatever you study is all the bible is about. Study fear, there is nothing but fear-related verses from cover to cover. Study reverence, you’ll find the same. Study healing, you’ll find the same. Study blessing, you’ll find the same. When you study it out, the bible is about whatever you’re studying right up until you study the next thing. The bible has layers of meaning. It speaks to more than one thing at the same time. It is a living, breathing, moving collection of who and what God is (John 1:1). Which means there is real honest physical and spiritual value in submitting to it. Because Jesus IS the ALL in ALL and there is no escaping that (Colossians 3:11). The whole of the Bible is for you – whomever you are. Are you a Jew? It’s for you. Are you a Gentile? It’s for you. Have you been raised hating it? It’s for you. Have you been raised in a church? It’s for you. Have you never really heard of it before in anything but an abstract way? It’s for you. Do you love God? It’s for you. Do you not believe in God? It’s for you. It is ALL THINGS to ALL HUMANITY when you approach it as (1) TRUTH and (2) GOD’S WORD. It will transform you even if you don’t understand it. It will lead you into more understanding. It is the LIVING WORD of the LIVING GOD. Submit to what you find there. Seek what you find there. Worship God and fall in love with His Word. Because He enabled you to by loving you first (1 John 4:19).

Your Daily Confession of God’s love to YOU:

Today God loves that I _______.