2014.12.07 The Solution to Our Fears? Immanuel!
7th December 2014
2014-12-07 Advent from Grace Summit on Vimeo.
2014-12-07 Worship from Grace Summit on Vimeo.
2014-12-07 Do not be afraid! from Grace Summit on Vimeo.
SermonAudio^^^^^^^
We are looking at – as we go through Advent, we are focusing on Immanuel, God with us. The series is not entirely focused on Christmas – the week before, I’ll do a Christmas message – but each week will have its share.
Luke 2: 8 Now there were shepherds nearby living out in the field, keeping guard over their flock at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were absolutely terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid! Listen carefully, for I proclaim to you good news that brings great joy to all the people: 11 Today your Savior is born in the city of David. He is Christ the Lord.
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.
The disciples were afraid because there was something major about to be lost – their lives! So the natural response is to be afraid. Death is maybe the biggest fear in the world. But there is something deeper at the core of that: Why? It is unknown – we are afraid of what we will lose when we die – from a human perspective. You lose your family – your future, that is why in this world there is so much fear of death.
We also fear the death of people we love – that is enormous for most of us. It is good to get that out there – because it is such an enormous loss when it happens.
Parents – fear of losing them – and for parents – of losing their children. Losing a spouse.
Within this – there are deep core emotions – we are afraid of being alone. That is one reason we are afraid of death.
We are afraid of being rejected – unaccepted – of being unloved. We are afraid of disapproval, judgment – of being found out (having to do with the previous ones) – afraid of losing control
So much of fear and anxiety is about being in control – and when things come in that we have no control over – we have fear – because we have no way to protect what is important to us.
We are afraid of pain and suffering. What is important – identify the core issues! If we wish to live as Jesus commands – do not be afraid! – We need to identify the core issues.
The bad news – at some point – many of those bad things will happen. Maybe all of them will happen. At some point. We will all die at some point. We will all lose people we love, unless we are the first to go! And it is critical that we say, okay – this is going to happen. We do not – even though these things will happen – we don not have to be controlled or paralyzed by fear.
It is not easy – especially when we are facing one of those big issues. We have seen how it controls our lives – we can’t think – we can’t move forward – but God is saying that doesn’t have to be the case.
The promise of God being with us does not mean that He will prevent those things from happening. That would be a misunderstanding of God being with us.
Psalm 23 – one of the most famous lines in the Bible – even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death – I fear no evil, because you are with me!
Notice it says – walk THROUGH the valley – it happens! Even there – at the greatest point of fear – there can be comfort and peace – somehow. I don’t know how – in knowing that God is with us.
What is needed for there to be a shadow? For a tree to cast a shadow, what does it need? Light on the other side! You see, when we walk through the valley of the shadow of death – it means there is light on the other side. Death casts its shadow, but there is light.
I have heard someone say this about death, and I believe it to be true: Death is a transition – when a believer dies – you see it with Stephen and with Jesus on the cross and in reality – where a person moves from one world to the other – and is slightly in both. Stephen is still alive – and proclaiming God’s glory. Jesus looks up – and says, Father, into Thy hands I commit my spirit – He is in both worlds.
There will be comfort to us in that moment. We will know God’s presence in that moment more than we have ever known it on this earth – I don’t know how.
Psalm 56: 3 When I am afraid, I will put my trust in You.
We tend to think – you have your facts and believe them – that is faith. But Biblical faith is so much more – our experience of God in this life.
We have the facts – and they didn’t do much for us – it is an experience of God’s presence – we will look at that next week – God is with us for all that God is. God is love. So that when He says – I am with you – He is with us in all of His love.
! John 4: 18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear [a]involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love.
God’s love drives out fear to the extent that we believe He loves us.
Romans 8: 35 Who will separate us from the love of [m]Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword.
These promises and verses from Scripture really help us.
What an amazing verse! If we really believe that, will it change our lives? To the extent we believe it, it will change our lives.
Hebrews 13: for He Himself has said, “I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you,” 6 so that we confidently say, “The Lord is my helper, I will not be afraid. What will man do to me?”
Never will I leave you – never will I forsake you –
Dada’s here!
Third –
Psalm 46: God is our refuge and strength, A very present help in trouble. 2 Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change And though the mountains slip into the heart of the sea;
One version says “Abundantly available for help.”
God is working on our behalf. He is acting! Even when the greatest catastrophes happen! He is a present help in trouble.
46:10 Cease striving and know that I am God;
Cease striving. The hardest time to surrender control is when everything is going wrong – but that is the most important time to surrender control
We need to learn to surrender our control – When my anxious thoughts multiply within me, Thy consolation delights my soul. Psalm 119.
This situation belongs to You. Even if the mountains slip into the heart of sea, I surrender it.
Because God is with us, the universe is a perfectly safe place to be no matter what happens.
It doesn’t mean there won’t be great loss or circumstances or pain – but even in the worst – we are safe in God’s hands.
The only way we can experience that is through surrender – when you hear of people who have gone through horrible things – somehow, they have learned to surrender.
Colossians – You have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God.
You are safe – when you are under attack and being destroyed – because you are dead – your life is hidden in Christ. It is not in this life – it is not in the people you love – it is not in you – it is in Christ, tucked away and secure – not going anywhere.
Psalm 112:7 – He will have no fear of bad news – his heart is steadfast –
We need to surrender our meditations to God – our minds – the wandering of our minds.
Isaiah 26: 3 “The steadfast of mind You will keep in perfect peace, Because he trusts in You.
Focus our thinking – to dwell on – the things of God. To dwell on a life that is hidden with Christ in God.
If we dwell constantly on what is about to happen or what might happen or what may never happen – we will always live in fear. We face directly our fear – we acknowledge that some of those things may happen to us – but then we have our minds fixed on Christ and God – where our real life is.
The last point – if our fears come from the things we are most devoted to – if it reveals the things we are most devoted to – if that is what fear does – Jesus tells us to shift our point of devotion.
Matthew 6 – where he talks about anxiety – do not worry about what you will wear, live, eat – your heavenly father knows you need these things – he says – change your point of devotion – Seek first!
When Jesus says – he who wishes to be my disciple cannot love husband/wife/career/money/house/land – more than me.
Let’s pray.
Lord, we all struggle in numerous ways – with many fears. For some, the holidays are a time of great fear – and there is only one solution and that is God is with us. Help us to recognize and understand that – and to begin to experience that in real and practical ways in our lives. In Your name we pray. Amen.