Fear Part 5: March 18, 2011

MARCH 18, 2011. TODAYS WORD FOR FRIDAY MARCH 18, 2011.

FEAR
PART FIVE
DEFINITION:

Timid; apprehensive; a reverent awe towards God.

SCRIPTURE:

For God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. 11Timothy 1:7

After these things the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision, saying, “DO NOT BE AFRAID, ABRAM. I am your shield, your exceedingly great reward. Genesis 15:1.

For I the Lord your God will hold your right hand saying unto you; Fear not, I will help you. Isaiah 41:13

KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:

We have been looking at the word “fear” this week from several perspectives. Today we want to look at the word fear from a different perspective. God does not want us to live in fear. Many times in the Bible we read the words: FEAR NOT! The angels said this to the shepherds when Jesus was born. In the verse above, God said to Abram, “DO NOT BE AFRAID.”

First, we want to look at the reason Abram was afraid. In Genesis 14 Abram’s nephew Lot had been taken captive. Abram took his 318 servants at night and defeated a much superior army and rescued Lot and all his possessions. Most likely Abram feared reprisal. He had defeated an army of four kings with only 318 servants who had no experience in battle. He was afraid that they would attack him in revenge.

God saw Abram’s need for assurance so He assured Abram that He was his protector and his shield. God told him that he did not have to fear these barbarians who were wicked and ruthless kings. God said to him, I am God almighty; I will shield you; I will keep My promises and make you a great nation. I will give this land to your descendants. God said: ABRAM, DON’T FEAR!
We need to learn from this event. Even though the odds are against us, there is no situation in life that God cannot handle for us if we put our complete trust in Jesus. This is what Abram did. Because Abram put his trust in God, God was there for him when Abram needed Him.

God, Himself, appeared in a vision to Abram to calm his fears. Not only did God tell Abram that He would protect him but He promised Abram a reward. God made a covenant with Abram that very day to give him a son and many descendants and a land for them to dwell in.

God does not want any of us to be afraid. Isaiah 41:13 tells us that, “the Lord your God will hold your right hand saying unto you; Fear not, I will help you.”Each day we can get up and put everything in the hands of God and then watch Him be our shield and protector.

In Psalm 111:10, the Psalmist tells us that, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” In Isaiah 35:4 we are told to, “say to those who are fearful hearted, BE STRONG, DO NOT FEAR.” And in the New Testament Paul says in II Timothy 1:7 that, “God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” In I John 4:18 we are told that, “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear.”

The first mention of fear in the Bible is in the Garden of Eden with Adam and Eve. God was merciful and gracious to Adam and Eve. He provided them a covering of animal skins and gave them a promise of a redeemer who would come and shed His blood and cover their sins. God is with each of us today and we are not to fear because of the “THINGS” of life because He is not only our protector and our shield but He is our provider and most importantly, He is our redeemer.

LEARNING:

Our memory verse for this week is found in Psalm 33:8.

Let all the earth fear the Lord; let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him.

PRAYER:

Thank You for being the awesome God that You are to me and my family. Help me to learn today to put every situation I face in Your hands so that I might not fear the “things” of life because You are holding my hand. Give me faith to trust in You knowing You are my shield and protector and my provider.