Heart & Soul - - Faint Not, Fear Not

 

Jeremiah 51:46

Do not let your heart grow faint, and do not be afraid when the rumor is heard in the land; for a rumor will come one year—and then another the next year—of violence in the land and of ruler against ruler.

*Strong's Ex. Conc. No. 7401

Faint: tender, weak of heart

From the Hebrew word 'rakak' (pronounced raw-kak').

In this verse, weak of heart is defined as 'timid, fearful'. It is an important enough warning to warrant a double encouragement from The Lord. First, we are not to let our hearts grow faint. Second, we are not to be afraid of rumors of violence in our land. 

UNFAINTING HEART

    How do we prevent our hearts from becoming timid? We encourage ourselves and each other in The Word of God. 

>Allow God and Christ to encourage us: 2 Thessalonians 2:16-17

>Delight ourselves in The Lord: Psalm 37:4

>Jude 1:20-21

>Encourage one another: 1 Thessalonians 5:11

>Comfort one another: 1 Thessalonians 4:18

>Exhort one another daily: Hebrews 3:13

>Gather together: Hebrews 10:25

>Edify one another: Romans 14:19

>Serve/be agreeable with our neighbor for their edification: Romans 15:2

UNFEARFUL HEART

    There are several verses in Scripture telling God's people to not be fearful, not be afraid; to fear not. From Genesis to Revelation we find much encouragement from The LORD.

> Genesis 15:1 "After these things the Word of the LORD came unto Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward." 

>Revelation 2:10 "Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to cast some of you into prison, so that you might be tested; and you shall have tribulation ten days. Be faithful unto death, and I will give to you the crown of life."

    Even now, in these latter days, in these last hours, The Word of The Lord encourages His people. We do, indeed, have much violence spread across the globe. There are, as stated in Matthew 24:6 "wars and rumors of wars".  The earth itself is in upheaval "the earth groans" Romans 8:22. Yet, we are to gain strength in The Lord and not be afraid of all that is happening around us and to us. 

    For Christ has called us to suffer with Him that we might be found worthy of Him: Matthew 10:38 "And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me." That cross our Lord and Savior was nailed to was not comfortable, nor was it pretty. It was hard, heavy and painful to be on. Think you our crosses are any less? 

    The other thing about this cross we are to take up is that we don't get to choose our cross. Taking up our cross means we need to be prepared in all ways to follow Jesus Christ where He leads us. We need to be ready to suffer, ready to serve.

     Christ prepared Himself when He prayed with His Father. He spent many, many hours in prayer. His prayer times were a source of refreshing and a place of gaining strength from His Father. Our times of refreshing are also in prayer. Alone with God we acquire His peace, His strength, His wisdom. In Christ we have access to everything He is. 

    We must remember, take to heart, the encouragement of our God:

"Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’" Isaiah 41:10.

WINDS OF WORSHIP 3

Signs & Wonders of Christ's Arrival - - Fear Not

 

Luke 2:30, 31

And the angel said to her, "Fear not, Mary; for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and you will call His name JESUS."

*Strong's Ex. Conc. No. 5399

Fear: to put to flight, terrify, frighten; dread, reverence

From the Greek word 'phobeó' (pronounced fob-eh'-o). To be struck with fear, to be seized with alarm. The act of being startled at strange sights or occurrences.

FEAR NOT

It is this same frame of mind the shepherds were in when the angel appeared to them and "the glory of the Lord shone round about them" (Luke 2:10). In the previous verse, we learned that the angel suddenly appeared among them. This angel was not in the night skies to deliver the message from God. I'm sure I may have been just as terrified. My heart would have been racing and my breath would first be taken away and then my legs would have buckled under me. 

But they are both told to "Fear Not". Don't be afraid. Take courage. Strengthen your resolve to stay here. And listen to what God has to say to you. Fear is not from God: Peace is from God. Fear is a spirit that wants to defeat us (2 Timothy 1:7). Fear restrains and prevents a person from being fully obedient to God. But the Peace of God fills God's people with God's Love, God's Power and God's Prudence. See also John 14:27).

In Luke 1:13, the angel tells Zacharias, "Fear not". Daniel knew this fear in Daniel 10:11, for he was 'trembling' (shaking with fear, quaking) while the angel spoke with him. Both are encouraged to know that God has heard their prayers and He is answering them. Moses saw a burning bush and went towards it, but stopped in fear when he heard God's voice speaking from it (Exodus 3:6). He, too, is encouraged by God to stop and listen and hear. 

In Revelation 1:17 John knew this fear: He saw Jesus in all His glory and "fell down as dead" (fainted dead away). "And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am The First and The Last."

FAVOR WITH GOD

*Strong's Ex. Conc. No. 5485

Favor: grace, kindness, gratitude; a gift or blessing brought to man by Jesus Christ

From the Greek word 'charis' (pronounced khar'-ece). As the concordance states, "is preeminently used of the Lord's favor – freely extended to give Himself away to people (because He is "always leaning toward them").

Mary is not the first person to find "favor with God". In Genesis 6:8 Noah found favor: "Noah, however, found favor in the eyes of the LORD." Out of all the people populating the earth in Noah's time, he is the only one who found grace in God's eyes. The result of that being that only Noah and his family boarded the ark before God shut the door (Genesis 7:1, 16). 

To "find favor" with God is to be the man or woman who knows God's heart, God's will, and follows it. David was such a man. Even before he was king. 1 Samuel 13:14 (when the prophet Samuel rebukes King Saul), "But now your kingdom shall not continue. The LORD has sought out a man after his own heart, and the LORD has commanded him to be prince over his people, because you have not kept what the LORD commanded you.”

THE MESSAGE

The message to Moses was "Go back to Egypt and deliver God's people". The message to Noah was "Build an ark to save you and your family and the animals I have chosen". 

The message to David was shown by Samuel "anointed to be King of Israel". 

The message to Daniel was "a response from God to understand the visions he had been given". 

The message to Zacharias was "you will have a son and he will be great in the sight of the Lord, filled with the Holy Spirit in the womb, make ready a people prepared for the Lord". 

The message to Mary was "you will conceive a Son, and you will call His name JESUS". 

Moses: Go and be the Deliverer of My people.

Noah: Build and Save My people.

David: Rule over My people.

Daniel: Warn My people.

Zacharias: Prepare My people

Mary: Your Child will Save My people.

The Lord has a message for His people today and every day given them thereafter. 

REPENT

Ezekiel 14:6

Matthew 4:17

REPENT & BE BAPTIZED

Acts 2:38

BELIEVE ON HIS NAME

Acts 16:31

1 John 3:3

1 John 5:13

RECEIVE THE HOLY SPIRIT

John 20:22

Acts 1:8

Acts 2:1-4

PREACH THE GOSPEL

Mark 16:15

1 Corinthians 9:16

2 Timothy 4:2

TAKE UP YOUR CROSS

Matthew 16:24

Mark 8:34

1 Peter 2:21

FOLLOW ME

Matthew 4:19

Mark 1:17

REJOICE

Matthew 5:11,12

Luke 6:22, 23

1 Peter 4:12-14

The joy we are to have as God's people is the same joy experienced by the shepherds after they had seen the baby JESUS. Exultant, exuberant, loud, noisy, REJOICE: to have joy in such abundance that it cannot be contained, but must be expressed in such a way as to draw people to the sound and sight of such excitement. And to hear what caused such Joy to be felt in the first place. Let us express our Joy in the Savior every day that we might fulfill His will for us. 

FEAR NOT MY CHILD by Carman

GRACE OF GOD by Passion

GOD WITH US by MercyMe

EMMANUEL by Hannah Kerr

Identifying the Enemy's Tactics-Fear

1 Peter 5:8
"Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walks about, seeking whom he may devour."

    There is only one male lion per pride. The other male lions roam because they have nowhere to go. Their roaring can be heard for miles around. It is meant to put fear into whoever is in the vicinity, that a lion is in the area and he is looking for something to gobble up. (in Bible Study last night I learned an acronym for this type of fear can be False Evidence Appearing Real{thank you, Karl}).
     It is this same tactic the enemy of our souls uses. He roars fearsomely, on the lookout for whoever is not paying attention to their surroundings or environment. It is why we need to be always alert and knowledgeable about the Word. 
     For instance, God says not to covet anything that belongs to our neighbors. We can admire what they have, but it is not good to say or even think about taking what is theirs. For that would be sinful. 
     When God says, Put Me first, He means it. Waking up each morning with a greeting towards Him and speaking from a thankful heart is putting God first. Choosing to know and obey God is putting God first. When we make any decision, important or menial, seeking God's direction is putting God first. Making decisions without prayer is foolish and time consuming. 

     The devil would have you believe that God is not, when in Truth God Is. Therefore, God is the Lion of His pride, His flock. His roar is a declaration of battle. When the lion who seeks to destroy God's people gets too close, know that when you are near God, that other lion cannot get to you. Stay near God by studying His Word on a daily basis. Stay near God through prayer; wait for Him to speak when you are waiting on His response. Stay at the altar, whether in your church or in your prayer closet, until the Holy Spirit releases you. 

     Fear can only enter you when you open yourself up to it. God promises to stay near us when we stay near Him. Many times when the word 'fear' is used in reference to God it means 'reverence, to revere', in other words to honor God, preferring Him above all others; to stand in awe of God, His character (who He is) and His benefits (what He does); to place God's will ahead of personal desires and wants. 
     Yet, there are still a few times when fearing God means a person should be terrified of seeing God face to face. You know when that happens? When a person stands before God and finally realizes that the Bible was true all along, and now it's too late to make that decision to believe that Jesus Christ Is Lord. Revelation 14:7 "Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come. Worship the one who made heaven and earth, the sea and the springs of water." Judgment from God on the people who refuse to believe that God Is and that His Word Is True and Truth. Don't be one of those people. 
    As Peter stated to the jailer when he asked, What must I do to be saved?, we say to you who read and have not yet believed, “Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved, you and your household.” See Acts 16:25-34 and read for yourself. 
   It's time to stop being afraid of the wrong lion.