Hebrews 11:6 MSG
It's impossible to please God apart from faith. And why? Because anyone who wants to approach God must believe both that he exists and that he cares enough to respond to those who seek him.
Jeremiah 6:25 KJV
Do not go out into the field, Nor walk by the way. Because of the sword of the enemy, Fear is on every side
Jeremiah 6 speaks of a time when conditions and circumstances had deteriorated to the degree that fear had taken over because of the works or attacks of the enemy. Jeremiah’s day was hundreds of years ago, but this statement is equally applicable to us now. Many are fearful. Persons are fearful about the election. They are fearful about their jobs. They are fearful about their marriages—fearful about their children—fearful about not being married—fearful about not reaching goals—fearful about not being successful—fearful about what people will think—and the list goes on and on. Fear does indeed seem to be on every side. And even as believers, if we are not careful, we will succumb to the climate of our day and be fearful.
Exactly what is fear?
Webster’s Dictionary defines fear as: “A painful emotion or passion excited by the expectation of evil, or the apprehension of impending danger; apprehension; anxiety; solicitude; alarm; dread.”
The Random House Dictionary defines fear as: “A distressing emotion aroused by impending danger, evil, pain, etc., whether the threat is real or imagined; the feeling or condition of being afraid.”
Note that at the heart of each of these definitions is a common concept—Expectation. What are you expecting? Fear is the expectation of evil or danger or threat or pain. We are not talking here about the reverential fear of God, but of a device of the enemy that he uses to paralyze or capture or hold hostage the people of God. Faith is the expectation of the manifestation of the promises of God. So, again, what are we expecting? What do we wake up daily looking for? Are we fearful, expecting to be overtaken, expecting to fail, expecting to be sick, expecting to be frustrated. Or do we approach each day with faith – expecting blessings, expecting favor, expecting increase, expecting peace of mind and heart?
In the face of tragedy and negative reports and disappointments and uncertain times, we each have to decide how we will respond. Will we be crippled by fear or empowered by faith? The natural human inclination is to have a fight or flight response in the face of danger. Fear says flee. Faith says fight.
We have to choose what our response will be. But we don’t just choose when we are put to the test. We choose by either our preparation or our lack thereof. We can’t wait until we are in the fiery furnace or in the lion’s den to decide to try to believe God. We have to prepare to be able to exercise our faith. We cannot have godly faith aside from the Word of God. It is the Word of God that produces faith in us. As we devour and feast upon the Word of God, faith is a by-product. It’s hard to read the Word of God daily and be discouraged and frustrated and doubtful. “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” -- Romans 10:17 KJV
God wants you manifesting fearless faith—the kind of faith that causes you to wake each day excited because you can’t wait to see what your God is going to do today.
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