Fear Not!

LUKE 8:50 KJV
50 But when Jesus heard it, he answered him, saying, Fear not:
believe only, and she shall be made whole.

The KJV Bible tells us 63 times to "fear not," and 31 times to
"be not afraid" or "not be afraid." Obviously, God is trying to
tell us something!

If it makes no difference whether we fear, or not, then God
wasted a lot of time in Scripture telling us to not be afraid.

Fear is the absence of faith. It can be understood as faith in
the devil. Fear is the opposite of believing and trusting in
God. Fear stops faith from working. You could say that fear is
faith in reverse.

Fear is the cause of all worry, for worry is meditation on
fear.

Some may think some fear is healthy, but no true fear is good.
We don't have to fear something to have a healthy respect for
it, and thus to act wisely. Fear makes people do irrational
things. Reverence for God, sometimes called the "fear of God"
is healthy, but it has nothing to do with actually being afraid
of God.

2 KINGS 6:15-17 NKJ
15 And when the servant of the man of God arose early and went
out, there was an army, surrounding the city with horses and
chariots. And his servant said to him, "Alas, my master! What
shall we do?"
16 So he answered, "Do not fear, for those who are with us are
more than those who are with them."
17 And Elisha prayed, and said, "Lord, I pray, open his eyes
that he may see." Then the Lord opened the eyes of the young
man, and he saw. And behold, the mountain was full of horses
and chariots of fire all around Elisha.

When we look at the world situation, it is easy to cry out like
the servant of Elisha. But when we are tempted to be afraid, it
is only because we are not seeing the reality of the whole
picture. God is for us, so no matter what comes against us, it
can never prevail over us.

We should ask God to open our eyes to the truth. Then keep our
focus on God's Word, not on the temptations, lies, and roarings
of the devil.

Fear is fed by what we look at and listen to. We can resist
fear by choosing to always focus on God and His promises.

DEUTERONOMY 31:6 NKJ
6 "Be strong and of good courage, do not fear nor be afraid of
them; for the Lord your God, He is the One who goes with you.
He will not leave you nor forsake you."

When you remember that the Almighty God is ALWAYS with you (and
in you!) why should you be afraid?

LUKE 12:7 NKJ
7 "But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not
fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.

One way to understand how valuable you are to God is to
consider the great price He paid to set you free -- the life of
Jesus Christ Himself!

Not even a good earthly parent would allow his child who
trusted in him to be harmed. God loves you more than any
earthly parent ever loved their child -- and God has the power
to fully protect you. So you can trust in Him.

But when we act in fear, we run from the protection of our
wonderful Father God and open the door to our enemy.

We should be free from fear because God is for us and watches
out for us. The worst that can happen to us (from a worldly
perspective) is to die, but even then we will go to be with
Jesus. With God on your side, there is really nothing to fear.

Yes, there will be struggles. There will be trials. But these
are just opportunities to overcome and gain eternal rewards. In
all we face in life, God has promised to be with us, and to
help us. So what is there to fear?

JOSHUA 1:9 NET
9 I repeat, be strong and brave! Don't be afraid and don't
panic, for I, the LORD your God, am with you in all you do."

SAY THIS: I will not fear! Jesus is Lord!