Fear No Fear

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

“Now these are the nations which Yahweh left, to test Israel by them, even as many as had not known all the wars of Canaan; only that the generations of the children of Israel might know, to teach them war, at least those who knew nothing of it before: the five lords of the Philistines, all the Canaanites, the Sidonians, and the Hivites who lived on Mount Lebanon, from Mount Baal Hermon to the entrance of Hamath. They were left to test Israel by them, to know whether they would listen to Yahweh’s commandments, which he commanded their fathers by Moses. The children of Israel lived among the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. They took their daughters to be their wives, and gave their own daughters to their sons and served their gods. The children of Israel did that which was evil in Yahweh’s sight, and forgot Yahweh their God, and served the Baals and the Asheroth.“
(Judges 3:1-7)

“May Yahweh answer you in the day of trouble.
    May the name of the God of Jacob set you up on high,
send you help from the sanctuary,
    grant you support from Zion,
remember all your offerings,
    and accept your burned sacrifice. Selah.
May he grant you your heart’s desire,
    and fulfill all your counsel.
We will triumph in your salvation.
    In the name of our God, we will set up our banners.
    May Yahweh grant all your requests.
Now I know that Yahweh saves his anointed.
    He will answer him from his holy heaven,
    with the saving strength of his right hand.
Some trust in chariots, and some in horses,
    but we trust in the name of Yahweh our God.
They are bowed down and fallen,
    but we rise up, and stand upright.
Save, Yahweh!
    Let the King answer us when we call!”
(Psalm 50:7-15)

When Israel was in the Land, the residents of the Land that had not YET been driven out were watching to see if they would OBEY. Think about that. They didn’t move against Israel. They waited to see if Israel was going to worship Yahweh properly. By showing obedience to Yahweh, Israel would demonstrate their worship of Yahweh. Those who worship Yahweh are blessed and protected by Yahweh because that is His nature. He does not protect those who do not have a relationship with Him. Makes sense, doesn’t it? We don’t protect strangers for no reason. We always form some kind of relationship before we step out to protect. We always take on a role before we protect. So the nations were waiting to see what Israel would do. Israel dropped the ball. It didn’t go well for them, because they had stepped out from under their protection. They were not seeking a relationship with God – but when they DID, He responded and handed them victory over their enemies.

It all comes down to trust. Who are you calling to for help and who is it that you trust to deliver that help? We can trust in our own might, our own creations, our own resources. That will only get us so far, though. We need to lean into the One who has ALL power and ALL authority and ALL resources. We need to make sure we are placing our trust in the One who has demonstrated again and again throughout human history that He is FAITHFUL and MERCIFUL and GRACIOUS and GOOD. Again and again, the Israelites lost sight of that. Again and again, they turned away. But when they turned to God with their whole hearts, honestly repenting of their errors, He was faithful and responded to them. This is why Messiah came. To open the Way to salvation and right relationship with God so that we can live in Him and never leave the blessing zone. Not for our BENEFIT, but so we can GLORIFY Him – the benefits to us are the cherry on the top.

Summary

God CAN be trusted and God SHOULD be trusted. The things of this world may SEEM to be deadly and terrible. Formidable and unstoppable. But the reality is that God could stop the planet from moving, should He desire to. He can change ANYTHING and EVERYTHING about this world. If we trust in Him, He will be faithful to us. If we obey Him, we will see Him move. We will see situations change. We will see victory and ever more opportunities to be a blessing to the world around us. To be a light showing them the glory of God’s kingdom, the faithfulness of His nature, and the goodness of His love. When we trust, things flow God’s way and nothing can stop that.