Fear No Fear

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

You shall observe to do therefore as the LORD your God has commanded you. You shall not turn away to the right hand or to the left.
Deuteronomy 5:32 (emphasis added)

A narrow path doesn’t have a lot of space. Not a lot of elbow room. You kinda have to go the one way or not go. That can be wearying. That ‘long tunnel with no end in sight’ thing. Except when you are dealing with the things of the Lord it isn’t a tunnel, it isn’t dark, and you’re not alone. The Lord is always with you (Deuteronomy 31:6). That doesn’t always make the job we do easy. If it was easy, anyone could do it. But with the jobs the Lord puts before the church JESUS has to do it. And we walk it through with Him. But that’s okay. Because I like having a God like Yahweh.

I like having a God that sees the end from the beginning (Isaiah 46:10). A God who decided before creation was created what was going to happen (Ephesians 1:4, John 17:24, 1 Peter 1:20) and then spiritually accomplished it right then: “All who dwell on the earth will worship him, everyone whose name has not been written from the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who has been killed. If anyone has an ear, let him hear” (Revelation 13:8-9). Once Yahweh accomplished it, He accessed His own faith about it to bring it about (Mark 11:22). “for by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, that no one would boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9). We know the Word IS God’s faith (Romans 10:7, Hebrews 11:1). And the Word is all that God is (John 1:1) because the Word IS God. Everything God did He did by and through the Word (John 1:3).

The Father gave us this faith (Acts 3:16) by Grace, because we hardly deserved it. It has been granted to us for the sake of the Anointed One, the Christ, Jesus (Philippians 1:29) so that we can believe in Jesus. All believers have received this faith (2 Peter 1:1), but the truth is that all of us who have ever been born human have this faith available to us (Romans 12:3). God doesn’t want ANYONE to miss out. “For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and come to full knowledge of the truth. For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, the testimony at the proper time, to which I was appointed a preacher and an apostle—I am telling the truth in Christ, not lying—a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth” (1 Timothy 2:3-7).

There are several reasons to have a narrow path. One is that a larger one isn’t needed because a lot of people either aren’t looking for it or choosing to use it. “Enter in by the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter in by it. How narrow is the gate and the way is restricted that leads to life! There are few who find it” (Matthew 7:13-14). Another is that a wide way has too much room. Too much to distract us. Too much to catch our attention and take it off what we’re supposed to be doing. A narrow hedge to keep us on track. “Therefore behold, I will hedge up your way with thorns, and I will build a wall against her, that she can’t find her way. She will follow after her lovers, but she won’t overtake them; and she will seek them, but won’t find them. Then she will say, ‘I will go and return to my first husband, for then it was better with me than now’” (Hosea 2:6-7). It can be for protection. To keep us surrounded and safe or to keep bad elements out (Job 1:10).

It is also much easier to correct us when we can’t run away and hide in our own obstinance. “The donkey saw Yahweh’s angel standing in the way, with his sword drawn in his hand; and the donkey turned out of the path, and went into the field. Balaam struck the donkey, to turn her into the path. Then Yahweh’s angel stood in a narrow path between the vineyards, a wall being on this side, and a wall on that side. The donkey saw Yahweh’s angel, and she thrust herself to the wall, and crushed Balaam’s foot against the wall. He struck her again. Yahweh’s angel went further, and stood in a narrow place, where there was no way to turn either to the right hand or to the left. The donkey saw Yahweh’s angel, and she lay down under Balaam. Balaam’s anger burned, and he struck the donkey with his staff. Yahweh opened the mouth of the donkey, and she said to Balaam, “What have I done to you, that you have struck me these three times?” Balaam said to the donkey, “Because you have mocked me, I wish there were a sword in my hand, for now I would have killed you.” The donkey said to Balaam, “Am I not your donkey, on which you have ridden all your life long until today? Was I ever in the habit of doing so to you?” He said, “No.” Then Yahweh opened the eyes of Balaam, and he saw Yahweh’s angel standing in the way, with his sword drawn in his hand; and he bowed his head, and fell on his face. Yahweh’s angel said to him, “Why have you struck your donkey these three times? Behold, I have come out as an adversary, because your way is perverse before me. The donkey saw me, and turned away before me these three times. Unless she had turned away from me, surely now I would have killed you, and saved her alive”” (Numbers 22:23-33).

“Let your eyes look straight ahead. Fix your gaze directly before you. Make the path of your feet level. Let all of your ways be established. Don’t turn to the right hand nor to the left. Remove your foot from evil” (Proverbs 4:25-27). When the Lord sets your path, He does it by His Word (Psalm 119:105). That is a path of light and wisdom. It is a highway of light in this world of darkness. It will lead wherever the Lord wants and wills – IF you will stay on it. Treat it like a highway through hostile territory. “Let me pass through your land. I will go along by the highway. I will turn neither to the right hand nor to the left” (Deuteronomy 2:27). When you walk in the centre of the path the Lord lays down, you are walking in the centre of His will. Maybe your enemies surround you and it looks like your territory is about to be destroyed. God’s Will has made a way from before the foundation of the world (Jeremiah 29:11). Maybe it looks like the ignorant of the world are taking over and no one cares about the truth. God’s Will is for them all to come to truth (1 Timothy 2:3-4). Maybe there are things you like or think feel good, but the Word says no. Cut them out. Get them gone. Take your foot from them and flee (1 Thessalonians 4:3). Maybe you don’t like what’s happening around you. Maybe you think you’ve been surrounded. Make sure your attitude is right with God and aligned with the Word (1 Thessalonians 5:18). How do we do that? How do we make sure that we are walking His path, His way?

“Now may the God of peace, who brought again from the dead the great shepherd of the sheep with the blood of an eternal covenant, our Lord Jesus, make you complete in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is well pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen” (Hebrews 13:20-21). Jesus taught about it too. “He said to all, “If anyone desires to come after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever will lose his life for my sake will save it. For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses or forfeits his own self? For whoever will be ashamed of me and of my words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when he comes in his glory, and the glory of the Father, and of the holy angels. But I tell you the truth: There are some of those who stand here who will in no way taste of death until they see God’s Kingdom”” (Luke 9:23-27).

God enables us to walk His path. God teaches us His ways. God inhabits us with His Holy Spirit so that we always have a companion, a teacher, a voice, a corrector, and a witness to the work Jesus accomplished. The Holy Spirit always points to Jesus. Jesus always points to His Father. The Lord God Almighty, One who is Three who are One, made the plan before anything was anything. He sat and decided. His will WILL come to pass (Deuteronomy 28:1-14). Yahweh God is Sovereign above all things (Ephesians 1:11-12). THAT is why He makes the way narrow. To HELP us, not to HURT us. To GUIDE us, not to dominate us. To protect us, not HARM us. To BLESS us, and not CURSE us. “Blessed is the man who doesn’t walk in the counsel of the wicked, nor stand in the path of sinners, nor sit in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in Yahweh’s law. On his law he meditates day and night. He will be like a tree planted by the streams of water, that produces its fruit in its season, whose leaf also does not wither. Whatever he does shall prosper” (Psalm 1:1-3).

This is a God worth following. This is a God whose way is BEST, whether WE see it as narrow or not. He knows what He is doing. It is narrow for a reason. It is the way it is supposed to be. He knew it from the beginning. From before the beginning. From before the beginning of the beginning. And THAT is a God worth loving, following, and being corrected by. Stay in His will. Right in the centre of His path. Don’t turn to the right. Don’t turn to the left. Rely on the Lord. Listen to Him and He will make your path straight – right through His narrow!

Daily Affirmation of God’s Love: James 4:8

Anxiety is a terrible thing. It sucks joy out of life. It can prevent you from accomplishing.. well… anything. It can be an undercurrent throughout your entire waking life ranging from mild to severe. It can cost in time, productivity, relationships, and even living spaces. It is one of fear’s worst babies. But it is interesting that the opposite for anxiety are antonyms like trust, confidence, peace, and aloof. The Lord provides all those things for us. In HIM we can have them. We can TRUST in the Lord and that when we are obedient and humbly submitted to His will, He has everything well in hand ( Isaiah 12:2, Proverbs 3:5-6). We can have CONFIDENCE in the Lord and all that He does for us, because what He says will be will be (Jeremiah 17:7, Proverbs 3:25-26). The Lord’s PEACE is in the Lord’s presence and it is a peace that comes when logic says it can’t. It is supernatural peace directly from God’s heart to ours (John 16:33, 2 Thessalonians 3:16). When we walk in His ways, the Lord keeps us ALOOF from trouble (Psalm 91). When we are in obedience to His commands and keep them in our daily goings on, we can keep ourselves ALOOF from strife and conflict (Proverbs 20:3, Galatians 5:22-23). We don’t need to have anxiety OR worry. We serve a God who loves us enough to comfort, keep, and bless us with peace. We serve a God in whom we can have trust, regardless of how things look or feel. We serve a God who loves us, corrects us, cherishes us, and wants the best for us. What reason is there to be anxious when we know and believe that to be true? None. Kick fear to the curb. Embrace His peace. Get close to Him and He’ll get close to you.

Your Daily Confession of God’s love to YOU:

Today God loves that I _______.