2 Timothy 1:7 ‘for God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of love and a sound mind’..
DAILY READING – Matthew 2; Exodus 22:1-23:33; Proverbs 10
In 1789, a general panic which has come to be known as the ‘great fear’ swept through the French countryside. It was based on a false rumor that the aristocrats, the ruling class, planned to use soldiers to plunder their villages and fields. Without bothering to find out the truth, the villages became filled with mass hysteria. Strangers, even animal herds, were often mistaken for this band of invading soldiers. People lived their lives in fear, tormented by the thought of soldiers about to invade them. To protect themselves, villagers formed armed militias, but this only exacerbated the problem, as the militias themselves were often again mistaken to be the invading soldiers by neighboring villages, when they happened to patrol nearby. Some militias further added to the chaos by attacking and burning down houses and fields owned by the ruling class. Confusion and fear reigned for weeks until word eventually filtered in that it was all a false rumor. It was indeed amazing how fear disorganized this people, negatively affecting their lifestyles and brought chaos to their nation.
2 Timothy 1:7 says ‘for God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of love and a sound mind’.
Today in the world, we are in a time where one can easily become afraid because of the news and rumors that fly about. However, no matter what you hear, you must be careful never to give room to fear because fear makes a victim of men.
Fear is indeed a sinker. Even as a believer and follower of Jesus, if you give into fear, you may begin to sink.
Peter was following Jesus and walking on the water in Mathew 14, but when he saw the boisterous wind, he became afraid and as a result he immediately began to sink.
When Jesus stretched forth His hand and caught him, He said to Peter ‘O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?’[Matt. 14:31]
Job also was another victim of fear. Despite his testimony of being a righteous man, and God putting a hedge around him, yet he became a victim of satan’s attack through fear.
He said in Job 3:25 ‘For the thing which I greatly feared is come upon me, and that which I was afraid of is come unto me.’
Indeed fear grants the enemy access to a person’s life, and people often become victims of what they fear.
However Faith is the spiritual antidote for fear. Where fear is, faith cannot be found and where faith is, fear cannot be found. In some versions of the Bible, “FEAR NOT” is written 365 times, as an encouragement to us for each day of the year.
Every time you notice fear, it is an indication that faith is absent. And what you need to do is sit down and diligently study God’s Word until faith fills your heart. Having adequate knowledge of God’s Word is the cure for fear.
Daniel 11:32 says ‘..but the people that do know their God shall be strong, and do exploits.’
When you know God, you will be strong in heart and mind. As a covenant child of God, your case will always be different. The things that happens to the world is not permitted to happen to you, because God has given His Angels charge over you to keep you in all your ways.
Psalm 34:7 – The angel of the LORD encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them.
Therefore despite the fearful news that may be flying around in the world today, let us always chose faith over fear. Let us fill our hearts with God’s Word so that we can always walk by faith and not by sight.
PRAYER: Lord, I thank You for the hedge of protection around me and my family. Please enable me to meditate constantly on your Word so that my heart can be filled with faith and not with fear, so that I can be strong and do exploits in these end-times in Jesus Name. .
QUOTE
Nothing liberates like truth, the truth you know and act upon will set you free.- – WORDBITE 222.