From: Ben Kelley
Subject: Fear not, part 1
Fear is an emotion we experience more often than we would
admit. Sometimes, it is concerning "small" things, such as fearing you
might not have quite enough gas to make it to the gas station. Other
times, it arises from something much larger, such as a car suddenly swerving
head on into our path as we drive along. It almost always, though,
stems from our realized inability to do anything about the situation, a sudden
helplessness we experience towards the danger we face at that moment. Some
try to handle their fear like the imagined way an ostrich does (it's not true
about them, though), by "hiding their head in the sand." Others put out a
false bravado, saying "I'm not afraid of that!" No matter how we try to
handle it, the fear remains, for we know inside we really cannot handle it on
our own. Many times the Bible reveals examples of people experiencing
fear, but God never recommends the person suffering it handle it
themselves. HE always recommends looking to Him, reminding them and us HE
can and will handle anything if we look to Him for help and deliverance. I
want to give a series of messages dealing with several of these Biblical
examples, so we can learn to apply them to ourselves as we face similar events
or situations.
And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with
God. And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a
son, and shalt call his name JESUS (Luke 1:30-31 (KJV) What a
shock! A young (probably teenage) lady, going about her daily
activities in her parents home, when suddenly she is confronted by an angel
(probably in his heavenly glory, because she was troubled at his saying when she
saw him) telling her she is specially favored by
God. The word translated "troubled" means "agitated with alarm," so she
was really scared and shaken. Everything "normal" is suddenly gone and she
is confronted with the supernatural. Have you ever had your world suddenly
"turned upside down" as you were confronted with unexplainable phenomenon,
things beyond your understanding or imagination? The angel told Mary to
"fear not", for she had found favor with God. I ask you, child of God, do
you realize you have found favor with God? HE has
chosen you from among the billions of earth to become
His child, adopted into His family. HE loves you
and promises to be with you always, never failing or
forsaking you. You
are favored, therefore you have reason
to relax and not fear, for your Father
is in control and taking care of it. Fear
not!
But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of
the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David,
fear
not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which
is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. (Matthew 1:20 (KJV)
You fear because someone around you has supposedly sinned and
brought disruption to your plans. No, I can't say all of those supposed
sins are in the same line as what Joseph thought Mary had committed, but I can
with all assurance say, God was aware of those things from the eternal past, and
His Word tells us HE is working them all together for good (Romans
8:28) and according to His plan and purpose (Ephesians 1:11), just as
HE was with what happened between Mary and Joseph. If you are doing as you
believe God has led you, don't let fear stop you, unless
God tells you to, clearly. God knows your heart, just as HE did
Joseph's, and HE will take care of you, His beloved child. Fear
not!
And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the
glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore
afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you
good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. (Luke 2:9-10 (KJV) I know we all picture this as we've seen in
countless "depiction's", with this angel, and later the multitude of angels,
hovering in the sky over these shepherds. The word translated "came upon"
though, means "stood by." That's right, this awesome angel, resplendent
with the glory of the eternal God, was standing there beside them, up close and
personal. What we translate as "sore afraid" means they were exceedingly
terrified. We would say they were "shaking in their boots and their knees
were knocking." Imagine going about your job in a quiet, steady manner,
when all of a sudden there stands this awesome angelic being with glaringly
bright light radiating all around him. You would be terrified also,
but once again, God uses His Heavenly Messengers to tell them (and us),
"fear not, don't be afraid, I've got great news for you!"
We may not be used to seeing Heavenly Glory here on earth, but we will see it
forever, and, as awesome as it is, God's good news (the Gospel) is the
really awesome thing for us to focus on. We can truly fear
not because of that message, in fact, we can be of great
joy because of those good tidings. That angel's
message is the same as the one we have been given to share with the lost and
dying people of this world (which shall be to all people). God sent His
Son to this earth, in the form of man, so HE could take the place of each man
and woman, suffering the penalty our sins demand. HE did this, taking our
place, offering Himself as our substitute, so we could, in effect, take His
place as sinless before the Father. For he hath made him to be sin for
us, who knew no sin; that we might be made
the righteousness of God in him. (2 Corinthians 5:21 (KJV)
Through that glorious good news, we can fear not, no matter
what we are faced with, for HE, Jesus, is Emanuel, meaning God
with us. Fear
not!
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