Mar 8 2020 Fear vs. Faith - A Timely Message from 2014

Do not be afraid – do not tremble – said 365 or 366 times – more times than we have been commanded to love one another. This must be a real problem – we must have an issue with fear – as God says – Don’t be afraid!

There is the obvious fear – we know it is an issue – we know it is a problem in our lives – but there is also hidden fear – things we hide that are based in fear. Some of the greatest risk-takers live in fear. Sometimes it is done to hide a deep inner sense of fear – trying to get by. So even if you are not the kind of person who has the outward fear… - This is one of my biggest issues – fear – something I struggle with – but all of us have fear.

There is a good side to fear. Not all fear is bad. It tells us to RUN! Or HIDE! It is like anger – there is a good and bad side. The problem is, it is hard to distinguish.

Fear tells us to avoid certain activities or places.

There is a fear of God that teaches us to love what is good and hate what is evil.

There are millions of phobias. Heights – that is mine – Spiders – not mine, because my wife kills them all for me!

These are symptoms of a greater fear – a deeper fear than the fear of heights or spiders. There are irrational fears – things that will never happen – Aliens attacking! But these fears come from real inner fears.

What we will talk about today – those deep inner fears. Where does fear come from?

The first question to ask: What do you hear when you hear the words from God, Do not fear!? How do you hear that? It could be – YOU BETTER NOT BE AFRAID, CHICKEN! Scaredy cat! We used other words that were worse, that can’t be repeated in church!

But when you hear that command, do you hear that you are a lousy person and God is pointing his finger at you?

Or is it like when your child is having a nightmare and you go in and say, don’t be afraid…?

We live in a world of things to be afraid of! If you want to be less fearful, stop watching the news.

The ultimate solution to fear is Immanuel.

Isaiah 41:10 – Do not fear, for I AM WITH YOU.

Cindy and I decided that we don’t want me to talk about my grandchild too often – because we know how pastors can tend to do that…

So…

There was this grandchild who came to his grandparents’ house for Thanksgiving. These grandparents were a bit overboard. And they set him down on the floor – and he started repeating, “Dada’s here” – Do not fear – I am with you! That is the attitude we need, not do not fear, you coward!

Isaiah 41: ‘Do not fear, for I am with you;

Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God.

I will strengthen you, surely I will help you,

Surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’

Fear is often connected with anxiety. When we are afraid, we become anxious and start looking about us for something bad to happen. We have all been there, haven’t we – when is the next shoe going to drop?

Anxiety is a byproduct of internal fear.

To address fear, we must understand it – to go in, internally, to understand where it is coming from.

Matthew 8: 24 And behold, there arose [v]a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being covered with the waves; but Jesus Himself was asleep. 25 And they came to Him and woke Him, saying, “Save us, Lord; we are perishing!” 26 He *said to them, “Why are you [w]afraid, you men of little faith?” Then He got up and rebuked the winds and the sea, and [x]it became perfectly calm.

8:26 – why are you afraid?

Last week, the question was, where are you? This week, that is the question – why are you afraid? What is it that makes me afraid? He continues – you men of little faith! There is a connection between fear and faith.

8:26-27

What is happening inside you that causes you to be afraid?

Fear reveals what is most important to us.

Fear reveals what we are most devoted to.

A good question to ask – to get at the source of your fear – and it is not an easy question – none of it is easy to do – because fear can be so controlling – what do you dread losing the most?

Because that will begin to open up why you are afraid.

Fear only happens when we believe something important to us or something we love is in danger of being lost.

Continued at http://www.gracesummit.org/Mes...