Text: Isaiah 36:4-20
Memory text:
“For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.”
II Timothy 1:7 NKJV
One of the most powerful tools of the devil is fear. This was the strategy that Rabshakeh wanted to use against the people of Judah in our text.
It’s important to differentiate this fear from the good fear, that is, the fear of God. The scriptures commend us to fear God and to increase in it. Those who fear God are blessed and are wise (Deut 6:13; Prov 1:7). The fear of God gives you protection from evil and other fears. When you fear God, you will have no reason to fear any other thing or person. God gives this type of fear. It is the fear of love and that which comes out of reverence for God. It’s not a mere fear of God’s judgment or His power but a wholesome fear of displeasing the God that loves you so much, and you have come to love. You won’t want to hurt the one who loves you and whom you sincerely love. This is the prayer that Chris Rice expressed in his hymn, “Come Thou Fountain of Every Blessing”. He prayed, “Let that grace now, like a fetter,
bind my wandering heart to thee.
Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it,
prone to leave the God I love;
here’s my heart; O take and seal it;
seal it for thy courts above.”
Unlike the fear of God, which is positive and productive, the other fear is negative, unproductive, terrifying, and panicking. It does not flow out of love but out of dread. It is a torment. “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love.” (I John 4:18).
This type of fear takes away your peace and rest. You lose your sleep. You live under the dread that something evil or bad will happen to you or around you. It can be a phobia, such that it completely occupies your thoughts. In fact, it puts its captives under the bondage of what they fear. This fear is killing. It’s the advanced squad of death. Many people are killed by fear even before death comes. According to our memory text, it’s a fear that originates from the devil and not from God.
Fear is not just an emotion, like psychologists say, rather, it is a spirit. It is a spirit of bondage, torment, and terror (Rom 8:15). Being a spirit means it has a spiritual root, which is deeper than what you can see physically.
Friends, the fear of God is an insurance against all other fears. You need spiritual tools and strategies to deal with the spirit of fear.
Prayer points
1. Father, thank You for giving me the spirit of sound mind, love, boldness, and adoption to call you, ‘Abba Father’.
2. I take authority over the spirit of slavery to fear, I bind you, and I cast you out of my life now, in Jesus’ name.
Today’s declarations
1. Since I know that fear is a spirit, I use my spiritual tools to deal with it
2. The fear of God is positive and productive, and I fear God out of reverence and love for Him.
Contact: pastor@thf.org.ng