Do Not Fear?

Lately I have been thinking on the issue of fear. And one of the most glaring facts I have discovered from scripture is that fear almost always denotes worship, either you worship and trust God or you don't. When you fear the Lord you follow His ways. When you fear anything else, those are the ways you go. It is clear that when you fear anything other than the Lord you are not following or trusting in Him alone.



Fear obviously comes to all of us, but it is in those moments of fear that we are tempted to stray away from the One whom we must fear the most. We make a choice in our moments of worry, anxiety, concern, and fear. We choose either to cast all our burdens on the Lord, to do the right thing, to give an answer for the Hope that is in us.......or we choose to glory in that fear and turn away from the God who bought us. We all have reached this point. The point of fear isn't the moment of clarity, it's the moment after when we we choose either to fear Him who holds the power of eternity over us or not which proves to whom we own our allegience. So where do you stand? Is fear an acceptable sin in your eyes? Is fear not even a sin to you? Have you renamed it as "concern"? Fear shows everyone where your treasure lies. Where have you invested?

13 Now who is there to harm you if you are zealous for what is good? 14 But even if you should suffer for righteousness' sake, you will be blessed. Have no fear of them, nor be troubled, 15 but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect, 16 having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame. 17 For it is better to suffer for doing good, if that should be God's will, than for doing evil. 1 Peter 3

6 For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands, 7 for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control. 2 Timothy

26 For if we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, 27 but a fearful expectation of judgment, and a fury of fire that will consume the adversaries. 28 Anyone who has set aside the law of Moses dies without mercy on the evidence of two or three witnesses. 29 How much worse punishment, do you think, will be deserved by the one who has spurned the Son of God, and has profaned the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has outraged the Spirit of grace? 30 For we know him who said, “Vengeance is mine; I will repay.” And again, “The Lord will judge his people.” 31 It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God. Hebrews 10

And just in case we are tempted and we find fear one of our besetting sins, we must remember that we cannot continue in sin, simply because we are fearful or have anyother besetting sin. We cannot testify against the grace of Christ in that manner, just as the writer of Hebrews reminds us. So I find, scripture indicates.....FEAR NOT, my friend!

Fearless!