Fear No Fear

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

And you, child, will be called a prophet of the Most High; for you will go before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways, to give knowledge of salvation to his people by the remission of their sins, because of the tender mercy of our God, by which the dawn from on high will visit us, to shine on those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death; to guide our feet into the way of peace.”
Luke 1:76–79 (emphasis added)

John the Baptist is an odd character. Not the way he dressed or his diet — though they were not on the ordinary side. It’s the way he is only in the fullness of his ministry for such a short period of time. Luke 3:1 tells us that John began his ministry in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar (which was between September AD 28 and December AD 29 depending on whether Tiberius started his reign in AD 14 when he was confirmed or the following January, which was the Roman New Year). John was probably ministering somewhere between three months and thirty months when Jesus was baptised. John’s death occurred before Jesus’ crucifixion (though there is a movement to put John’s death later than Jesus by about five years, separating their ministries and denying their obvious connections — based on why John never joined the Jesus discipleship program, though it ignores that was NOT John’s ministry at all). All in all, John had a ministry of only a few years. Prophesied to make a huge difference, called the greatest Old Testament prophet by Jesus, and he only was around for a blip.

The reason for this seems to be in the prophesy about him. “for you will go before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways, to give knowledge of salvation to his people by the remission of their sins” (Luke 1:17). John’s whole ministry was to prepare the way of the Lord. Not prepare His way into ministry. But to prepare the hearts of the people for The Way. “Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father, except through me. If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on, you know him and have seen him”” (John 14:6–7). Jesus is the WAY to the Father. There is NO OTHER PATH to God. PERIOD. Yet how do we know that? We know that because a voice selected by the Lord tells us. “How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in him whom they have not heard? How will they hear without a preacher?” (Romans 10:14).

John’s ministry was to be the preacher who tells the Jews (and anyone else who happens to be listening) about the Messiah. That was his calling. Once Jesus arrived, John continued. His ministry wasn’t to be a follower, but a voice pointing to the Messiah. The disciples of Jesus went on to tell about the Risen Lord, explain how Jesus fulfilled the Old Testament prophecies, and embodied the fulfilment of the Law through His sacrifice and resurrection. But John continued to point to Jesus. To point out that there WAS a Messiah and it was this man JESUS. No matter what point of Jesus’ ministry Jesus was at, no matter if it was before, during, or after the crucifixion, John’s message would have been the same. Messiah is coming. Prepare your hearts to receive Him. Repent and turn back toward Yahweh God Almighty. If we are not READY to accept Jesus, we will NOT accept Jesus. We can only be READY by hearing the call. God sends the call. “No one can come to me [Jesus] unless the Father who sent me draws him; and I will raise him up in the last day. It is written in the prophets, ‘They will all be taught by God.’ Therefore everyone who hears from the Father has learned, comes to me” (John 6:44–45). We NEED to hear a call.

This is why evangelists preach. They don’t show up, thank everyone for coming, and then give an altar call. No. They teach, they preach, and they build up faith for salvation by sharing the Word. “So faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Romans 10:17). This was John’s calling. To help God remove the blinders of those bound to sin by preaching repentance. To point to Jesus again and again and again as the redemption of Israel. “John answered them all, “I indeed baptize you with water, but he comes who is mightier than I, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to loosen. He will baptize you in the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fan is in his hand, and he will thoroughly cleanse his threshing floor, and will gather the wheat into his barn; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire”” (Luke 3:16–17).

The tender mercy of God came to us in the person of Jesus, manifested Word of God, firstborn Son of the Kingdom. The biggest lessons the two men have in common are (1) the message of repenting of our sin and turning to God, and (2) we produce fruit when we are connected to the Root. John cried repentance (Luke 3:4). Jesus cried repentance (Matthew 4:17). John preached connection to the tree that gives life (Luke 3:8–9). Jesus preached connection to the vine of life (John 15). John recognised Jesus as the sacrificial Lamb of God who would bring us peace (John 1:35–36). He desperately wanted people to know, but he wanted them to repent and be baptised, cleansed of their old attitudes and hearts so that they would be ready to accept Jesus — having prepared the soil of their heart. He yearned for Messiah to come and save them all. He looked forward to the peace of God walking the earth.

Isn’t that also what WE are called to do? To proclaim the peace of God on this earth? To preach, teach, and share the message of Jesus so that God can prepare their hearts? To pull the blinders off so that they can see clearly the salvation that Jesus is holding out to all the world, all the time? That the peace Jesus brings is not so two-dimensional as peace from war or strife or conflict. But peace between God and humanity. The cost of sin paid. By Grace giving that redemption to humanity. Not through their works. Not through their deeds. Not through anything THEY do, but by the unmerited Grace and Mercy of God. “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).

Jesus tells us to tell the world that He is the Anointed One. He is the propitiation of our sin. That He IS the Good News. To spread the word that peace — true peace — is within our grasp. NOT by works. But because God is holding it out to us. Thing is, He is holding it out to people who are holding fear. We have no hands free. We MUST drop fear if we are to grasp peace. We cannot love in or through fear. Fear cannot love. Love cannot fear. We’re told to love one another. Husbands are told to love their wives as Jesus loves the church. We’re to love those who hate us. We’re to marry love and prayer so that we are always encouraging one another and also praying for each other, building each other up in the spirit. This is how we get true peace. This is how we find ourselves when we walk in God’s paths. They cannot be separated from each other. They are hand in hand.

God wants EVERYONE to be saved (1 Timothy 2:3–4). He could appear, but that won’t save anyone. It will condemn the lost because their sinful nature will react to Jesus’ Righteous nature. That won’t be helpful. That is why Jesus said “This Good News of the Kingdom will be preached in the whole world for a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come” (Matthew 24:14). God wants everyone to be called, to hear the TRUTH, to get a chance to have their faith awoken. When Jesus comes again, it will be too late to believe by faith. Everyone will see and KNOW that it is the truth. But while that is effective, it is not God’s best. “Jesus said to him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed”” (John 20:29). Our best way to believe is through our faith in what we have heard. And what we all need to hear is the Word.

By spreading the Word, we help people hear it. When people (including ourselves) hear the Word, their faith strengthens. With faith in our hearts awakened by the God who gifted it to us, it can generate a response to His call to salvation. Jesus is the Word. Jesus awakens faith in us. Jesus IS the Way, Is the Truth, and IS our Life. No one can be saved apart from Him (Acts 4:12). We can practise righteousness by obeying the Law with our actions and words. But we can WALK in righteousness by abiding in Jesus who cleanses, corrects, leads, and guides us by His Spirit and in His Truth. It is the heartitude that we need in order to succeed — Jesus did it all for us. In Jesus, by Jesus, and through Jesus, we are saved, we are redeemed, and we are made new. This is the Good News that defeats fear and brings true and lasting peace. Preach the Word, spread the Word, and disciple in the Word and you’ll see the blinders fall off left and right.

Daily Affirmation of God’s Love: Ephesians 4:20–24

This is one of the great promises of God’s love. That IF we will be renewed in the spirit of our mind, we will be enabled to put on the new man. If we put on the new man, we will walk in righteousness and the holiness of truth. Of course, if we put on the new man we have to keep him on. It does no good to try and step in and out of him. It does no good to drag around the old man everywhere we go. Don’t worry that you’re not dressed as the rest of the world. It’s not you who is wrong. You are standing in TRUTH. You are founded on a rock that cannot be moved. The world will entice you. The enemy will entice you. You’ll be shown things that look fun. That feel good. You’ll be reminded of things YOU did. Things YOU said. Ways YOU thought. Hold fast to that rock. Don’t agree with what you see. Agree with the rock that never moves. Agree with the Word that is never wrong. This is the Christ we learned: dependable, trustworthy, truthful, correcting, righteous, loving, instructing, and never, ever, EVER neglectful. He has everything we need. Every time we need it. He loves us. He isn’t here to tempt us or to see us fall. He won’t allow anything we can’t overcome to harass us. Anything that comes our way is at the total mercy of the armour, sword, and faith that God has given us so that we can abide in Jesus the Anointed One. Cling to Him, don’t unbutton the New You in Him, and be the overcomer you are in Jesus the Christ.

Your Daily Confession of God’s love to YOU:

Today God loves that I _______.