A Life without Fears
BY TOM HOLT
John 14:27; Hebrews 12:1-11 "'T was grace that taught my heart to fear, and grace my fears relieved." That, as most of you know, is how the second stanza of Amazing Grace begins. At first glance, it seems paradoxical. If it's good to have fear in our heart, why then is it also good to be relieved from our fears? But that succinct statement, of course, is talking about two different kinds of fear.
The first has to do with the fear of God. It is a fear that is essential to one's salvation. If we do not fear the holy God and the prospect of Him condemning us to hell, we would never repent, nor would we beseech the Lord Jesus to be our Savior.
By nature, however, people do not fear God. Hence, it is by the grace of God that He taught our heart to fear. As the Father begins to draw us to Christ, the Holy Spirit applies the gospel to our heart, convicting us that we are sinners and causing us to fear eternal damnation in hell.
Second step. But God doesn't just stop there. After He has drawn us to Christ, He graciously relieves us from all other fears. That God wants us to live a life of inner peace can be seen from the fact that He says "Do not be afraid" and "Be strong and courageous" well over 100 times in the Bible!
In Genesis 15, for example, God said to Abraham, "Do not be afraid. I am your shield, your very great reward." In Deuteronomy 31, Moses told the Israelites, "Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid...for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you."
In Luke 1, an angel appeared before the virgin Mary and said, "Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God." After Jesus was born, the shepherds in the field were told, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy." And in Revelation 1, when John saw Christ in heaven and fell at His feet, the Lord placed His right hand on him and said, "Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last."
To be unafraid of anything is to have the divine peace of Christ. Remember what Jesus said the night He was betrayed? "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives."
Notwithstanding that marvelous gift, sadly, many Christians are still overwhelmed by worries and fears. So, I would like to share with you some thoughts about what we Christians do not have to fear and why.
I. We do not have to fear God's wrath.
The best news of the Good News of the Bible, of course, is that those who truly believe in the Lord Jesus Christ never have to fear damnation on Judgment Day. Once we have become saved, we can never lose our salvation.It's not that Christians no longer sin. Nor does God hate the sins of believers any less than those committed by unbelievers. But when Christ died on the cross, He paid in full the penalties for all the sins of all believers. On top of that, He has clothed us with His robe of righteousness so that in God's eyes, we are perfectly blameless.
Since God has forgiven even the sins that believers have yet to commit, does it mean that we can do whatever we want as long as we accept Christ into our heart? No, that's not the way Christianity works. Salvation doesn't come to us by our accepting Jesus. We become children of God only because He has accepted us and has given us a new life in Christ.
If a person is truly saved, therefore, he has a new soul, a soul that longs to do everything to please God. He has a new life, a life that he wants to live for Christ. He has a new nature, a nature that is characterized by meekness and humility. And he has a new desire, a desire for the things above, not the things of this world.
That's why whenever true Christians disobey God, they are much bothered by their conscience. The indwelling Holy Spirit convicts them of their sins. If you find that to be true in your life, then you are indeed a child of God. And you do not ever have to be afraid of having to face God on Judgment Day.
II. We do not have to fear death.
In the last couple of years, we have seen reports of numerous parts of the world being plagued by acute famine and deadly diseases, bloody civil wars and major natural disasters. Some of the victims, especially those in Africa, have virtually no prospect of getting lasting relief. Everyday is a new day of misery for them. Yet, those people desperately struggle to stay alive. Why? Because, as Hebrews 2:15 puts it, all humans "are held in slavery by their fear of death."This universal fear of death can be traced to the truth found in Ecclesiastes 3:11: "God has set eternity in the hearts of men." In other words, all humans consciously or subconsciously know that they have a soul that will exist beyond this life. But they do not know what will happen to their soul after it has left this body.
Some people do believe there is a hell, so they try their best to be a "good" person hoping that they will escape hell as a result. But they have no assurance that they will make it. Others think that they will be ghosts floating around in misery. Some others are told that they will be sent to a place called purgatory. Still others are taught that they will come back to this earth as a pig or some lowly animal. Can you see why they are all afraid to die?
By the grace of God, we believers do not have to fear death. In fact, death is a blessed moment for the believer. We read in Psalm 116:15, "Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints."
True, even when a Christian dies, his survivors will feel the hurt. But for that believer, it is the moment when his work on earth is done so that he can go back to his blessed home in heaven. To be away from the body is to be at home with the Lord, the Apostle Paul says, and it is better by far.
III. We do not have to fear evil spirits.
In the Bible, there are numerous accounts of people possessed by demons. Even today, many are victimized by evil spirits. In some underdeveloped countries, the practice of voodoo and witchcraft brings curses to many.But again, we Christians need never fear such things. Remember how scared the demons were every time they saw Christ? And remember the time Jesus sent the seventy-two disciples out with the gospel? When they returned, they said with great excitement, "Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name" (Luke 10:17). Yes, because we are indwelt by God the Holy Spirit and because we are disciples of Christ, even demons are afraid of us.
While Satan cannot possess us or corrupt our mind, he can and does try to hurt us from the outside. He uses unbelievers to persecute us. And he uses the world to deceive us, tempting us to disobey or mistrust God.
Here, too, God assures us in James 4:7, "Submit yourselves to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you." Satan, you see, is nothing more than a paper tiger. He is a defeated foe. If we let him bully us, he would do so more and more. But if we resist him, he will flee from us.
To resist the devil, though, we must first submit ourselves to God. We must follow the leading of the Holy Spirit. Remember what Jesus did when He was tempted by Satan? He applied the word of God to the situation. Likewise, if we stand firmly on the word of God and put on the armor of Christ, we need never be afraid of the devil and any of his schemes.
IV. We do not have to fear adversities in this world.
Besides death, people by nature fear many other things. They are afraid of losing their health, their wealth and their social standing in particular. Because these are the things from which they find security.Not so with us Christians. We have Jesus and all His promises. No matter how many promises God has made, the Bible assures us, they are "Yes" in Christ. True, we often face the same adversities as the unsaved. But we can better cope with our trials if we only remember that God sends them to us for a different reason.
The disasters that come upon the unsaved are judgments from God. The Bible says, "The wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men" (Rom. 1:18). Because we are born with a sinful nature, we are by nature all under the wrath of God.
God could have wiped out mankind altogether long ago. But in His mercy, He had decided to save a group of people for Himself even before time began. And until all of His elect have become saved, God patiently lets this sinful world go on. From time to time, though, He reminds the world of His anger by striking this earth with earthquakes, famines, hurricanes, floods, massacres, plagues or whatever. That's how God reveals His wrath from heaven collectively.
Sometimes, God also punishes the unsaved individually. True, God lets many unbelievers prosper in worldly things; He will take care of them on Judgment Day. But God does make many others suffer the consequences of their sins. The deadly disease AIDS, for instance, is undoubtedly the due penalty He imposes on those engaging in sexual perversion and fornication.
God is never angry with believers, however. Although we are still imperfect people, as I said earlier, God looks at us and sees us pure and
blameless. That's because our sins have been covered by the blood of Christ. Moreover, God is just. He cannot punish believers for any sin for which Christ has already suffered. Otherwise, He would undermine what His Son went through at the cross.
We can better cope with our trials if we only remember that God sends them to us for a different rea Discipline. When God sends trials to us believers, therefore, he does it in love to refine and discipline us. He is treating us as His true sons, not illegitimate children. "No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful," God explains in Hebrews 12:11. "Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it."
You see, God is training us. He is helping us to develop patience, character and hope. He is molding us into the image of Christ. He is teaching us how to be content with whatever lot He has ordained for us.
That's why we believers need not fear trials and tribulations. While we shouldn't take the Lord's discipline lightly, we should always remember that God is doing it in love. While it may seem painful at the time, it will in the end produce for us a harvest of righteousness and peace. This is the divine peace that Jesus has given us. This is the peace that transcends all understanding.
Then, there is that familiar promise in Romans 8:28, "In all things God works for the good of those who love him..."
Notice that it doesn't say that in all things God works for the good of those who regularly attend church. It is for the good of those who love Him. If you are among those who love God, then you can count on God to work all things together ultimately for your good.
Love in deeds. How can we tell if we love God the way He wants us to love Him? Here are two guidelines that Jesus Himself sets forth:
(1) In John 14:15, Jesus says, "If you love me, you will obey what I command." Everyone who truly loves God naturally desires to obey what He commands. Being obedient is the believer's way of expressing his heartfelt love and gratitude to his Savior.
To obey what Christ commands, we must know what His commands are. So, as those who love God, we instinctively want to learn what the Bible tells us to do, and then practice them in our everyday life.
(2) After Jesus had resurrected, remember, He asked Peter three times, "Do you love me?" And three times Peter answered, "You know I love you." Now, notice how Jesus responded afterwards: He said, "Feed my lambs" the first time; "Take care of my sheep" the second time; and "Feed my sheep" the third time.
It is generally believed that Jesus asked Peter "Do you love me?" three times because Peter had denied Him three times earlier. This is His way of reinstating Peter. But by using three somewhat different responses, I believe the Lord is also teaching us how we are to display our love for Him.
The local church. In Biblical language, of course, to feed is to provide spiritual food. So, the Lord is teaching us there that if we truly love Him, we should demonstrate that love first by feeding the gospel to people at large, helping thereby His elect to become His lambs. Next, we are to take care of them. We encourage them; we carry their burdens, and we nurture them into maturity. Thirdly, even to mature Christians we keep on providing spiritual food so that they continue to grow in Christ.
These are not functions that Christians can readily do individually. They are better carried out collectively by the local church. Hence, to love Christ is to be an active participant of a local church, a church that is faithful to the Word of God.
Yes, in all things God works for the good of those who love Him. If you are among those who love Him, therefore, you can confidently expect God to work all the events in your life together to your ultimate good. And you can look forward to reaping a bountiful harvest of righteousness and peace once you have gone through God's training program.
So, beloved bothers and sisters, be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid, for the Lord will never leave you nor forsake you. o