General Articles

Whom Shall I Fear? :: By John Lysaught

Published on: by RR7

Psalm 27:1- “The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?”

I think it is appropriate to talk about fear, especially in this time of world history. There is an abundance of fear happening before our eyes, a dread, per se, of what is going on. There is a fear of disease (COVID). There is the fear of the division in America of the left and right that has led to violence and may lead to more. There is fear of the social and political attacks of the Christian faith in the name of safety from COVID. There are many more, but I think these are the most prominent right now.

Psalm 27:1 asks the question of whom should we fear or be afraid of with God as our center? The answer, if you could not guess, is no one or nothing. With God at our side and as the God of the universe, we need not have a hint of fear in our lives.

It is easy to get sucked into a sense of fear. There is plenty of fearmongering going on in the media and social media sites. If paid attention to, or drawn into, fear is the likely outcome of spending too much time with those.

Instead of following the news or social media, may I suggest picking up your Bible instead? The Bible will not scare you but will bring you comfort and peace.

Isaiah 41:13 says, “For I the Lord thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, Fear not; I will help thee.” God does not want us to live in fear. He does not want us to wake up each day wondering what bad things can happen or what ills we will face. He wants us to live in peace, not a worldly peace but a peace in Him, to rest in His presence.

We are not perfect and will get sucked into fear at times, but knowing that God is the God of peace and comfort for believers gives us that assurance that all is and will be well because His plan of redemption is still unfolding before our eyes.

In those moments where we find ourselves in fear, we can be confident that God is holding us and will take us through and out of the fear that envelops us. This is not a maybe but a surety that we can count on Him to be there for us and to hold us up.

We forget this at times when we let fear begin to invade our minds and thoughts. When we do this, we start sliding on a slippery slope of worry, which leads to stress and anxiety in our lives. When we fall into the trap of fear, it diminishes our trust and faith in God’s ability to supersede the fears we have.

Fear is like a cancer. Once it gets lodged into our minds, it will spread and overtake us, leaving no room for the peace and comfort that God has for us. This cancer will affect our spiritual walk with God and will eat at us until our trust in God to handle and oversee the world is gone.

With all that is going on in the world, has your fear brought you any comfort or finality to any of those issues we are seeing? I doubt it. I know people who, since March of 2020, have rarely left their residences because of their fear of COVID. This fear has been so ingrained in them that they refuse to leave their homes or, to a lesser extent, will not go beyond the grocery store and have isolated themselves so much that they are lacking the human contact that humans need.

I am not saying that there should not be precautions or that COVID is not real, but what I am imparting in this example is that if not kept in check, fear will eat you alive. Living in fear leaves no room for the power of God in one’s life. God implores us not to fear because He knows by succumbing to fear, He is pushed out of lives.

Psalm 34:4- “I sought the Lord, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.”

When faced with fear, we have two choices: let fear control you or turn to God. When fear makes its face known to us, this is when we need to seek God and not entertain the fear that is facing us.

When we seek God in the moments of fear, He will not shun us. He will not leave us or let us deal with it on our own. No, He is there for us and wants us to call upon His name to catapult those fears away from our minds before fear infects our hearts.

When we came to a saving grace through the sacrifice of God’s Son, Jesus, on the cross, we did so because we trusted that God DID send His Son. We base our belief not only on Jesus’ death but that the God of all sent Him. Why then do we fall prey to fear and have trouble trusting God in those times? In other words, why do we trust God with our salvation but not with fear?

I speculate that in the hearts of those that fear, there is a lack of trust in some areas of their life that God does not have control over the world and history. If one can accept that God is the orchestrator of history, that nothing happens without His approval or knowledge, then fear should not be a driving force in our lives.

You know who loves to see fear in us? Satan and the world. What a great tool fear is for Satan to drive a wedge between us and God. Who do you think is controlling the media and the world to project fear over man? It is Satan, of course! God will not send fear to man, but Satan will. He will and does because he knows that fear can and will draw some from God.

Satan is the propagator of fear. Fear creates chaos in our hearts, and he knows it will cause people to question the power and omnipotence of God in all situations. The unsaved fall for this, and sadly, so do believers.

The stronger your walk is with God, the stronger your relationship with Him is, the less likely fear will seep into your minds to take root and the eventual control of how you view the world and react to those things that cause fear. There is no strength in fear but only strength in and through God.

Psalm 46:1 says that “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” How fitting is this reminder for the times we are living in right now, and as we walk into each new day as time moves on?

In times of trouble, Psalm 46:1 is telling us that God is here to help, that we can come to Him to rest and gain strength when we face those things that can cause fear. We can stand in His light and not be affected by the darkness that partners with fear. We can live knowing He is bigger than our fears and will protect us from the ills that fear brings with it.

I encourage you that when you feel a sense of foreboding coming, when a situation or whatever has fear tied to it, that you turn to God and only God. Instead of looking for another website to confirm your fears or going to social media to see what others are saying (fearmongering), pull out your Bible.

Open this sacred Book with the living words of God and read. Spend time in God’s word and search the scriptures to find the words that will give you the peace God wants you to have and the comfort afforded by Him, and pray.

Pray. Pray. Pray. Talk to God about your fears and how they are affecting you. Pray for peace in the storm. Pray for calm. Pray for assurance that He is in control.

We live in a time where fear is always at the forefront. Whatever those things are that cause your fear, there is peace and comfort through the Great I AM. God is in control — trust Him. God is not going to leave you or put you aside to face fears yourself. He wants you to turn to Him and is waiting for you to embrace Him.

Johnflysaught@gmail.com

The Gospel According to Luke: Part 52 :: By Dr. Donald Whitchard

Published on: by RR7

An Exposition

Luke 19:1-10: “The Signs of True Repentance”

“And He entered and was passing through Jericho. And behold, there was a man called by the name of Zacchaeus, and he was a very wealthy chief tax gatherer. He was trying to see who Jesus was, and he was unable because of the crowd, for he was small in stature. He ran on ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree in order to see Him, for He was about to pass through that way.

“When Jesus came to the place, He looked up and said to him, ‘Zacchaeus, hurry and come down, for today I must stay at your house.’ He hurried and came down and received Him gladly. When they saw it, they all began to grumble, saying, ‘He has gone to be the guest of a man who is a sinner.’

“Zacchaeus stopped and said to the LORD, ‘Behold, LORD, half of my possessions I will give to the poor, and if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I will give back four times as much.’ And Jesus said to him, ‘Today salvation has come to this house because he too is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man has come to seek and save that which was lost’” (Luke 19:1-10, NASB).

It is amazing how some people came into the presence of Jesus, and yet ignored, mocked, or came to hate Him for His claim to be the Messiah and Savior of His people and all who would come to Him throughout history. Jesus shatters every and any belief that we can save ourselves and make everything right between ourselves and whatever people want to call their deity, or if they believe in anything other than themselves. The flood of books, TV shows, seminars, and an endless line of motivational speakers and celebrities who think that they know what is best for you spread special secrets, mantras, formulas, talks, and luxury dreams for a modest price or fee guaranteeing success, happiness, satisfaction, or anything that avoids the gnawing fact that this is not all there is to life and something more meaningful has got to exist.

We are also witnessing the number of non-religious homes, and preferences are growing rapidly in the country, stating that they practice no religious observation, or prefer not to reveal what they consider valuable and personal, or are outright hostile to any form of devotion or acknowledgement of a Supreme Being. There are people who see the political upheaval of the nation as an exercise in freedom from religion and a desire to do away with it altogether, along with anyone who has a practicing faith, namely Christians if you have been paying attention to the conflicts between churches and government powers in more progressive states and cities.

We are also seeing more so-called “Christian celebrities” and “pastors” publicly renouncing and walking away from the faith, embracing atheism or skepticism. In doing so, they fan the flames of rank unbelief and doubt in young people and those who had followed these artists and their sermons, songs, or teachings that expressed an alleged devotion to the LORD, but really is a means of making a living and earning fame – until they got what they wanted and then left, leaving a trail of shattered souls, mocking the God whom they claimed to serve.

Major Christian denominations have embraced political and social issues and acceptance of behaviors that were at one time declared sinful and perverse, but now are welcomed in the name of “love” and “tolerance” in order to get along with what some churches tend to think is a way of sharing the Gospel with these people. Perverse behavior and its demands allow for no surrender of their lives to Jesus Christ, but to be accepted as they are or else face the consequences.

Bible colleges and seminaries do not even know how to define the term “salvation” in terms of believing in the exclusivity of Jesus Christ alone to provide it by His sacrifice for our sins on the cross. For fear of being seen as “non-inclusive” and “intolerant,” or “narrow-minded,” many have embraced a type of spiritual relativism that approves of the idea that any old path will get you to eternal bliss, and Jesus is just one of many ways. Far too many confessing “Christians” are now aligning themselves with that idea for fear of being labeled intolerant or losing a job or being flunked out of a class or other situations. Too many people identifying themselves as “followers of Jesus Christ” have no idea about Him or what the Bible tells about Him, if they even read the Bible regularly instead of letting it collect dust in the back of the closet or shelf.

Due to what I am convinced of is a lack of basic knowledge of what it really means to be a genuine follower of Jesus Christ, along with a fixation on world events and personal apathy towards anything related to godly conduct and living, there are only a scant few who really know what it means to live and act in a manner that glorifies and honors our Lord and Savior. We need to return to the purity of God’s Word to understand what is involved concerning authentic salvation and a life that reflects a genuine change of heart that is witnessed by others. The encounter of Jesus with Zacchaeus presents such a scene.

Zacchaeus is a man who lives under a cloud of hatred and personal contempt by the citizens of Jericho for who he represents and what he does for a living. He is a chief tax collector and is responsible for the establishing of revenue, fees, customs, and other measures that the local citizens are compelled to pay to either the hated Romans or the corrupt local officials, and also for the upkeep of roads, defense, government operations, and other services established by the Romans. The local Jewish population detested these foreign occupants of their land, and in particular, men like Zacchaeus, who had turned his back on his countrymen in order to serve what they saw as a pagan Gentile occupant who was brutal towards all foes of the Empire.

Tax collection was also a lucrative means to obtain wealth for oneself by overcharging for fees and taxes and keeping what they obtained while sending Caesar what was legally due to him. It is a certainty that Zacchaeus’ demeanor was less than civil towards the population that had no love for him or his work. He probably had a bad reputation and character that developed over time. He was barred from attending the synagogues due to what was seen by the population as betrayal of God and His people and ignored when he was in public. It was a bad scene overall and seemed to be a fixed part of life for him.

Like Matthew, who had been part of the same racket before being called by the Lord Jesus as an apostle, the overall scene and situation had gotten to him, and he had come to realize that wealth does not buy compassion, respect, or a solid character. He was experiencing the sting of his sinful nature, which is a sign that the Spirit of God was quietly at work, putting everything into place for the next step of his life.

All too often when we think of “repentance,” we tend to believe that it is an act of sorrow on the surface for something done or said that was seen as deplorable, bad, or a deliberate act that resulted in troublesome consequences. Anyone can say that they are “sorry” for what they had done or said, but may not be genuine in their reply or are going through the motions in order to move on, satisfied that they have settled the issue. Their “sorrow” may be in getting caught, not because of what they had caused.

True repentance is when you are feeling emotional pain and deep regret over what has been done or said on your part. The thought of what has occurred weighs in on your soul, and you truly want to make amends between you and the other person, and also to come before God with a grieving heart, asking for mercy and forgiveness from Him.

The Spirit of God will convict you of your sins and make you miserable and anxious until the issue is settled. You face the fact that actions and words have consequences, and you have got to remedy the situation. Zacchaeus’ conscience was quietly at work as he desired to see Jesus enter Jericho, and by climbing up the tree to get a better view of everything, he was exposed for all to see, and Jesus saw him as well. This tax collector, who had gotten wealthy off of the backs of his fellow citizens and in their eyes deserved no mercy, forgiveness or even attention, now heard Jesus say, undoubtedly, to the surprise of the crowd that He was to be Zacchaeus’ guest that night and share a meal with him.

Think on this when you feel that your sinful behavior and life is not worth God’s time or attention. It is at that precise moment when His gracious Spirit lets you know that He is ready to meet with you and get the issue settled. He is not willing that any should perish, but that all come to Him for eternal life (Matthew 11:28-30; Mark 1:15; John 10:28-30; Acts 16:31, 17:30; Romans 5:6-11, 8:31-39; Ephesians 2:8-9; 2 Peter 3:9) through Jesus Christ, the ONLY way to the Father (John 14:6).

Zacchaeus demonstrates his change of heart as he joyfully embraces and commits all he has to the Lord Jesus by declaring his intention to repay anyone he defrauded four times over and to give half of what he owns to the poor. While some of the citizens of Jericho grumble about Jesus’ decision to be with someone who has been labeled a “sinner,” we are witness to a man transformed by the love and compassion of Jesus Christ, for this is very reason for which He came to this sin-infested world (Matt. 9:13; Mark 2:17; Luke 15:7; Romans 5:8; 1 Timothy 1:15).

He came to rescue you from the punishment you deserve for your wicked actions and sinful deeds you have committed throughout your life, and the lives of others who are guilty of the same thing (Romans 1:18-32, 3:10-18). Like Zacchaeus and everyone who has lived throughout the ages, you cannot redeem yourself or “clean up your act” or do “good works” in your own strength. It is like taking a bath in a cesspool. Only the sinless blood of Jesus Christ, shed on a horrid cross, is able to cleanse you from your sins and give you the promise of peace for your soul and the promise of eternal life (John 3:16, 11:25, 14;6). There is no other way or person who can make that promise and secure it.

When sinful thoughts, deeds, or words occur in our lives, even if we are followers of Jesus Christ, He is always there to grant forgiveness and restoration if we come to Him in true sorrow and the desire to make things right with Him and those we have offended. The key is to walk daily with Him in prayer and the study of the Scriptures, to find a church or group of believers with whom you can grow, develop relationships, and watch out for one another (Hebrews 11:25).

If this were to be the last article I write, I would plead with those of you who do not have a relationship with Jesus Christ to get that settled NOW (2 Corinthians 6:2). Things are not going to get better, and He is coming back sooner than we think. Be ready, even if you need to climb a tree to get closer to His heaven. Amen.

donaldwhitchard@gmail.com

www.donaldwhitchard.com