Fear or Faith # 264

2 Kings 6:16

Fear not: for they that be with us are more than they that be with them.

Our hearts often strive over the situations we dwell on whether they be good or bad. David said, O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee. David’s heart was determined to give God the glory no matter what took place in his life. During the great battle against the Philistines, Israel’s army stood paralyzed as they woke up each morning to hear Goliath’s rants as he preached his daily fear-mongering message to them. And the Philistine drew near morning and evening, and presented himself forty days.

Peter was an experienced fisherman by trade who faced many sea-faring storms in his past. During the storm of Galilee, the disciples cowered in fear at their circumstance yet, Peter had a moment of faith when he saw Christ in the midst of the storm. Peter did the impossible and walked out on the water as long as he focused on Jesus. The moment his eyes looked upon the waves, fear gripped his heart and he began to sink.

When Israel fled Egypt, they faced many dangers and uncertainties on their journey to the Promise Land. Now they had to depend on God to provide for and protect them from their enemies. Consider Moses’s situation as he sent twelve spies to the land of Canaan. Ten cowardly spies came back with a fearful report but only two, Joshua and Caleb reported that the land was good for the taking. Let us go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it. Those with an evil report saw something different. We be not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we. And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.

All of these scenarios are experiences and examples God has given to us in the Scriptures. What dwells in our hearts determines whether we live by fear or faith. Those who focus only on the storms and giants of life see them as undefeated problems that will never be resolved and will dwell in their fearful state. Those who live a faith-filled, Christ-centered life give God glory by allowing Him to reveal Himself by turning impossible situations around for good.

Dear brethren, today we face unprecedented challenges such as the world has never seen before; to survive, we must choose to live by faith instead of fear. Consider the wars and rumors of wars, high crime rates, immorality, greed, financial collapse, unpredictable weather, earthquakes, and pandemics occurring, just to name a few. Each country on earth is being shaken. Each person’s belief system is being challenged. The storms are escalating and the giants of the land are rising. Today, where is your faith? Brethren, trust in the Lord our God; cling to that old rugged cross, make Christ the solid rock on which you stand and He will shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.

Ps 63:1, 1Sam 17:16, Num 13:30-31, Num13:33, Jer:33:3

KJV