“For our sake He made Christ [virtually] to be sin Who knew no sin, so that in and through Him we might become [endued with, viewed as being in, and examples of] the righteousness of God [what we ought to be, approved and acceptable and in right relationship with Him, by His goodness].”
2 Corinthians 5:21
“Therefore if any person is [in grafted] in Christ (the Messiah) he is a new creation (a new creature altogether); the old [previous moral and spiritual condition] has passed away. Behold the fresh and new has come!”
2 Corinthians 5:17
“Because you are precious in My sight and honored, and because I love you, I will give men in return for you and peoples in exchange for your life.”
Isaiah 43:4
“Even as [in His love] He chose us [actually picked us out for Himself as His own] in Christ before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy (consecrated and set apart for Him) and blameless in His sight, even above reproach, before Him in love.”
Ephesians 1:4
I will not live in fear.
“For God did not give us a spirit of timidity (of cowardice, of craven and cringing and fawning fear), but [He has given us a spirit] of power and of love and of calm and well-balanced mind and discipline and self-control.”
2 Timothy 1:7
The well-known advice columnist Ann Landers reportedly received some ten thousand letters per month.
When asked to name the most prevalent problem in her audience’s lives, she responded, “The one problem above all others seems to be fear. People are afraid of losing their health, their wealth, and their loved ones. People are afraid of life itself.”
Landers’s assessment is not hard to believe. I see so many people who are ruled by fear. It can absolutely take over a person’s life, which is why I believe this power thought-“I will not live in fear”-is so important. Until the power of fear is broken in our lives, we are held captive to it, which means we are not free to follow our hearts or to follow God. To fulfill His good plan for our lives and to enjoy all the blessings He wants to give us, we simply must refuse to live in fear.
If fear rules in our lives we cannot enjoy anything we do. Let’s say Sarah is invited to a party. She is excited that she got invited but when she arrives she’s afraid she doesn’t look right. She becomes uncomfortable and starts comparing herself with the other guests. She begins watching to see who is talking to whom. Then she overanalyzes who is talking to her and how friendly they seem to be. She is so afraid of being rejected that she can’t relax and simply enjoy the party.
Sarah is so focused on herself that she really can’t reach out to anybody else, and that makes her appear aloof and unfriendly. As you might expect, she doesn’t get invited to the next party. The result of all this is that in her mind all of her fears that she is unwanted and unacceptable are confirmed. The sad thing is that the entire scenario was created by her fear. The war on the battlefield of Sarah’s mind was raging so fiercely during the party, that she felt confused and could not enjoy anyone or anything. She was too busy trying to sort out her negative emotions and engaging the enemy of fear. Fear brings torment and we must refuse to entertain it or our lives will be miserable.
Think about It
Take a moment to think about how your life would be if you were free from all fear. How would a fear free life differ from the life you have today?
