8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, ~ Ephesians 2:8
It is only by faith that we are saved. And if we dwell in fear, then we don’t have faith. And if we don’t have faith, then we cannot please God. In other words, we cannot be saved. We have to dwell in love if we want to be with God, and the only way to dwell in love is to dwell in faith.
Faith comes by knowing God, which can only be done by spending time in His word as well as spending time in prayer and worship. We can’t expect to get to know God without spending time with Him. So, spend time with God. Get to know who He is, and you won’t live in fear or doubt; you will dwell in faith and love.
20 years ago, the Spirit of Fear made its way to the center of every culture. In today’s world, fear has seemed to overcome all people, including the Church. The Church seems to be more afraid today than the early Church under Roman persecution. Is there anything wrong with being afraid? Is it a sin to be afraid? Join ArieRashelle as she searches through Scripture to find the answer to the question, Is Fear a Sin?
Hebrews 2:14-15 Romans 8:15 1 John 4:18 2 Timothy 1:7 Revelation 21:6-8 Matthew 8:26 Mark 4:40 Hebrews 11:6 Ephesians 2:8 James 4:8a Revelation 3:20
Is Fear a Sin?
Command Not To Be Afraid
If God commanded us not to do something, then it is a sin to do it. God commanded us not to be afraid. Therefore fear is a sin.
9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.
Joshua 1:9
10 fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
Isaiah 41:10
How To Overcome Fear
If fear is a sin, then do not be afraid.
Know Who Your God Is
27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. 28 I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. 30 I and the Father are one.
John 10:27-30
31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? 33 Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies.
34 Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us. 35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? 36 As it is written,
“For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.”
37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.
Romans 8:31-37
4 Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.
1 John 4:4
Don’t give into the Spirit of Fear because your God is for you, and with you.
32b Let no man’s heart fail because of him. Your servant will go and fight with this Philistine. ~ 1 Samuel 17:32b
After 40 mornings and 40 evenings of being:
Ridiculed
Threatened
Harassed
Provoked
Intimidated
Terrified
This vast Israelite army was about to get a reprieve at the hands of a young boy. A young boy who remembered his quiet times of prayer, worship, and faithfulness and how God was faithful to him in return. He did not fear. He did not cower. He did not shrink back, but rather he knew what God did for him in the past, and he was sure God would do it for him again.
When king Saul insisted, he was too young and too inexperienced to go and fight this monster of a man, David remained confident.
‘I know he is big and bad; I know he is a giant; I know all the other men in the army are running in fear, I know he has four other brothers just as big as he, but I am not afraid.’ So, what was David’s confidence? In his God. David knew who His God was. The moment that you realize who your God is, is the moment fear will lose its hold on you. Your confidence is no longer in yourself; it’s now in your God. And our God is greater than all others.
Peace. Love. Go Forth and Put Your Confidence In Your God.
1 To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul. 2 O my God, in you I trust; let me not be put to shame; let not my enemies exult over me. 3 Indeed, none who wait for you shall be put to shame; they shall be ashamed who are wantonly treacherous. ~ Psalms 25:1-3
Fear tells us that we are so distant from God. That He won’t come to our rescue. That He doesn’t care. Fear will tell you that following God isn’t worth it. That what the world feels and thinks matters a lot more than what God feels and thinks. That right now is more important than Eternity. But Fear is a liar.
Fear tries to use whatever it can to separate God and His children. The fear of rejection holds so many back, but don’t let that stop you. None who trust in the LORD shall be put to shame. The LORD will avenge you. He will bring justice. You don’t have to let fear keep you in your own little bubble. You aren’t alone. Focus on God, not on anyone or anything else.
Don’t allow fear to steal your eternity. The world is constantly changing, but God is the same yesterday, today, and forever. He is constant.
24 Saul said to Samuel, “I have sinned, for I have transgressed the commandment of the Lord and your words, because I feared the people and obeyed their voice.” ~ 1 Samuel 15:24
Fear leads to compromise. What fear does, is it whispers lies in the minds of its victims. The fear of failure, rejection, loneliness, etc. will overtake those who focus on the favor of the world instead of the favor of God. When we focus on abiding in the love of God instead of abiding in the infatuation of the world, the chains of fear will begin to melt off of us.
Don’t allow the people around you to intimidate you into losing your blessing, race, or battle. Hold on to the mighty hands of God and stand confident in your faith. Be strong and courageous.
Peace. Love. Go Forth and Melt the Chains of Fear.
6 Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the Lord your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you. ~ Deuteronomy 31:6
God just takes it for granted that you can have some comprehension of how great and awesome He is. If we can only understand the concept of:
How much we mean to Him
How much He loves us
How powerful He is
There’ll be no stopping us
If only we can but get a hold of that, we will have complete boldness and confidence. We would be fearless, even in the face of death.
Fear is not of God. Fear is from the devil. God did not give us the spirit of fear. When we dwell in fear, we don’t dwell in love. And if we don’t dwell in love, we don’t dwell in God. The moment we let go of our fear and allow ourselves to fully trust God, we will be able to dwell in His presence. We will no longer have a spirit of fear but of power, love, and a sound mind.
Peace. Love. Go Forth and Be Filled With The Spirit.
7 For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. ~ 2 Timothy 1:7KJV
We cannot operate in power when we walk in fear. Because you cannot cast out or drive out what you are afraid of. You will run from what you fear, just like the Israelites ran from Goliath because they feared him greatly.
You cannot cast out, drive out, or overcome what you fear! Fear is a form of weakness that leads to distrust. When we distrust God, our faith dwindles. And as our faith dwindles, our relationship with God dwindles. The Spirit of Fear tries to dominate us and put us into submission so that it can separate us from God. Because if we are separate from God, Fear and other evil spirits can wreak havoc in our lives freely.
But if we stand firmly in faith because we know whom we serve, then we become more than conquerors. Then no weapon formed against us can prosper. Because now we are working, living, and abiding in the love, protection, and arms of the Almighty. So, trust God because He will never leave you, nor will He forsake you.
Peace. Love. Go Forth and Abide in the Arms of the Almighty.
