Coping or Believing
Dearly beloved of God, once you realize that the Bible is the Word of God – it is God speaking – you have information that you can trust, and you will never have to back off of it.
When you have God’s Word you can hear from the mouth of God Himself; you are standing in the presence of God the same as Moses was when God spoke to Him out of the burning bush.
The Word of God teaches us to be confident in God because God has the power to perform His Word. He is not only able; He is willing to perform His Word for those who trust in Him.
“The eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him…” II Chronicles 16:9
God is looking for people who will believe Him so that He can deliver them by His almighty power.
The predominate psychology of our times is fear. People are afraid of “incurable” diseases, afraid of losing jobs, afraid of car accidents, afraid of what people may say about them, afraid of the future, afraid of dying. Fear is the opposite of believing what God says in His Word.
What does God say about fear?
“For God has not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.” II Timothy 1:7
Fear does not come from God; it comes from a different spirit. God gives us power, love, and a sound mind that does not have to be afraid.
“So you have not received a spirit of bondage to again cause fear, but you have received a spirit of sonship [making you sons], whereby we shout, “Abba,” that is, “Father.” Romans 8:15 WT, Rev. Walter Cummins
The spirit of bondage produces fear that ties a person in knots; it enslaves them.
The spirit we received from God makes us His sons, and it is a spirit of power, of love, and of a sound mind.
The spirit of sonship puts us on intimate terms with God; He is our Father once we are born of His spirit. He is now our constant source of supply. He is our source of deliverance from the things that cause us to be afraid.
“I sought the LORD, and He heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.” Psalm 34:4
God did not tell him how to live with His fears, when he sought the LORD, He delivered him from what made Him afraid; all of them.
“The fear of man brings a snare: but whoso puts His trust in the LORD shall be safe.” Proverbs 29:25
From the information God reveals to us in His Word, it is evident that fear is not normal for His children, it is an enemy.
Fear may be the norm for the world, but not for the children of God. Fear brings a snare, it is a trap that enslaves, it brings people into bondage.
When the ruler of the synagogue heard that his daughter had died, Jesus Christ told him, “Be not afraid, only believe.”
Our circumstances are no more difficult than his were.
We have a choice; we can believe what God says in His Word, or we can be afraid. If we believe what God says He will deliver us from the things that make us afraid. Be not afraid, only believe.
Dearly beloved, God is our Father and His ears are open to our prayers. He instructs us to come boldly unto the throne of grace so that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.
We do not have to be afraid because we have access to the Almighty God by the spirit of sonship, Now we have our Father’s resources to help us when we need them. What is too hard for Him?
We don’t even have to be afraid of death. Why? God gave us the promise of life in Christ Jesus, eternal life.
If we happen to die before the Lord Jesus Christ returns for the members of his body, the Church, he will raise us to life when he comes and give us new glorious bodies like his glorious body.
We do not have to live with the fear of death that enslaves people a lifetime. We can rest in God’s promise of eternal life. We can believe His promise to us and live with peace and confidence.
God is greater than anything that may make you afraid, dearly beloved. Instead of living in the bondage that fear produces, believe the Word of God and live a peaceful life; it always produces the results that God promises when we believe it.
Cast all your cares upon Him, for He cares for you. You are His dearly beloved child and you are highly favored in His sight.