Well, we made it to November; most of us with tragedies or sorrow and all of us with uncertainty.
This has been a very long year, hasn’t it? Maybe you need a little encouragement today, so I will share these thoughts.
In the last 6 months, or 6 weeks or 6 hours, how many of you have experienced fear? Fear is a normal emotion. We have a built in system of chemistry in our bodies that fear allows us to tap into when needed.
For example, I was working on a renovation in my house this past weekend and as I pulled out some old insulation, there was a bat about 18 inches away staring me in the face. Now, just to be clear, I do not like bats. We have had a couple bats get in our house and fly around and my kids claim that I giggle and squeal and run away like a frightened 4-year-old. I can neither confirm or deny that claim, but I will say that it makes no sense for a 6’2” 210 lb man to have a fearful reaction to a 3 inch long 3 oz furry little critter. The thing is, fear is not always rational and it starts our hearts racing, our mouths get dry and suddenly our senses are heightened and we are ready to fight or to giggle and squeal and run away.
And lest you judge me, just remember, the Batman also had to overcome his derision of bats and you have never seen me and the Batman in the same room or photo have you? Just sayin'.
But, just like my reaction to a tiny, furry creature, fear is normal but it isn’t always necessary. Often I fear things that I shouldn’t fear because I think about myself and how small I am and I forget how big God is.
Think about Genesis 1:1: “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” Everything we see, feel, touch, smell, hear, experience in every way was placed there and is held together by God. He is that big.
Recently the Lord reminded me that all those stories in the Bible that we take for granted or think about as bed time stories are REAL: The creation. The flood. The plagues in Egypt. The parting of the sea. The sun standing still. The exact prediction of the Messiah and the fulfillment of those prophecies through Jesus Christ. Walking on the water. Healing of the paralyzed and the sick and the raising of the dead.
It’s all real.
I don’t know about you, but I tend to go about my daily life and forget. I forget not only who God is, but that, above all, He deserves to get our praise.
I want to share a few passages to help remind us of who God is and why He is worthy of our praise.
Psalm 146
'Praise the Lord ! Praise the Lord, O my soul! While I live I will praise the Lord ; I will sing praises to my God while I have my being. Do not put your trust in princes, Nor in a son of man, in whom there is no help. His spirit departs, he returns to his earth; In that very day his plans perish. Happy is he who has the God of Jacob for his help, Whose hope is in the Lord his God, Who made heaven and earth, The sea, and all that is in them; Who keeps truth forever, Who executes justice for the oppressed, Who gives food to the hungry. The Lord gives freedom to the prisoners. The Lord opens the eyes of the blind; The Lord raises those who are bowed down; The Lord loves the righteous. The Lord watches over the strangers; He relieves the fatherless and widow; But the way of the wicked He turns upside down. The Lord shall reign forever— Your God, O Zion, to all generations. Praise the Lord !'
Psalms 146:1-10
We’re in a time in our country and in our lives where we can easily live in fear because of the Coronavirus or the civil unrest or uncertainty with our elections or because of intimidation by the government or by other people. If we look to who God is and how big He is, however, we can think of this as an exciting time, anticipating what He will do.
He wants us to have hope. As a matter of fact, He is hope.
Proverbs 23 says
'Do not let your heart envy sinners, But be zealous for the fear of the Lord all the day; For surely there is a hereafter, And your hope will not be cut off.'
Proverbs 23:17-18
https://my.bible.com/bible/114/PRO.23.17-18
So, why can we have hope?
It’s pretty simple, actually. At the end of the book of Matthew, just before Jesus ascended into heaven, He said a couple of incredibly profound things to the disciples:
Matthew 28
'Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had appointed for them. When they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some doubted. And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.'
Matthew 28:16-20
ALL AUTHORITY. Not some, not most, but ALL. The same authority that created the heavens and the earth. The same authority that made all those “bed time stories” happen. Not only that, but He promised to be with us always. Not sometimes, not most of the time, ALWAYS.
So the solution to this fear problem, according to the author of Hebrews is this:
Hebrews 12 'Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.'
Hebrews 12:1-2
Another version of this passage says “fixing our eyes on Jesus.”
I like that idea: lock in on and have tunnel vision on Jesus.
Our Savior has done all the work. It is finished. No matter what tomorrow brings or this week brings or the rest of 2020 brings, He is big enough and He is powerful enough and He is the only One worthy of our praise.