WHY BE AFRAID?

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In Christ, Mark

The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

The Lord is my light and my salvation — whom shall I fear?

The Lord is the stronghold of my life — of whom shall I be afraid?

When the wicked advance against me to devour me, it is my enemies and my foes who will stumble and fall. Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear; though war break out against me, even then I will be confident.

Psalm 27:1-3

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

What are you afraid of?

We all have our fears in life. In fact, there has been a whole psychological science dedicated to the matter of phobias, fear of certain things that can be so severe that they leave people petrified.

Are you afraid of heights? Then you have acrophobia. Fear of flying? Aviophobia. Fear of being in a confined space? Claustrophobia.

Maybe you have arachnophobia or a fear of spiders. Or cynophobia, the fear of dogs, Or ophidiophobia, the fear of snakes.

When you were a child you probably had vaccinophobia or the fear of vaccination and that might morph into aichmophobia when you are an adult as you fear needles.

I could go on and on but you get the point. We all have our fears.

But why should we be afraid? Why should we fear when we have an Almighty God who watches over us and promises to keep us in His care?

As the 27th Psalm opens, we find David speaking boldly about his confidence in God, a confidence that took his fears away, a confidence God wants you and me to have as well.

Look at David’s words:

The Lord is my light and my salvation — whom shall I fear?

The Lord is the stronghold of my life — of whom shall I be afraid?

When the wicked advance against me to devour me, it is my enemies and my foes who will stumble and fall. Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear; though war break out against me, even then I will be confident.

Do you feel the steadfast self-assurance in David as he testifies in these verses? There is no fear in David there.

Why?

Because David placed his full faith and trust in God the Father, the Lord of Lords who was always with him, no matter his circumstance.

It wasn’t that David was trouble-free. There were plenty of wicked people he could have feared, plenty of enemies and foes he could have been afraid of. There were armies that wanted to war against David and take over his kingdom. They sought worldly power. David, on the other hand, stood firm on the foundation of God’s power, the power of the Lord.

We know this because of David’s testimony. Going back to the scriptures, David speaks of three things that gave him the kind of confidence that dispelled fear.

First, David knew that the Lord was his light.

Faced with decisions that could be life or death in the midst of challenges by his adversaries, David relied on the light of the Lord to illuminate his paths and guide him to safety. He didn’t need to be frightened by what might come against him because he knew he was being led by the Lord, his Refuge and his Light. The same Lord who shined his light on David shines on us today, leading us from harms and into refuge. With Him ever guiding us from danger, we need not be afraid.

Second, David knew Lord was the stronghold of his life.

A stronghold was a place of survival and refuge. Think about the important cities where people lived in the times of David. Were they not protected by walls and gates that would protect the people within? For the ages, strongholds have been built to keep danger out and shield those within.

Yes, there were strongholds but there was and is only one real Stronghold (capital “s”) and that is the Lord. In Him, David continually found refuge and safety for no enemy could get to David when He was protected by the Stronghold of the Lord. This same Stronghold screens us from jeopardy today and provided us a safe haven from anything that might bring us fear. Truly, if God, our Stronghold, is with us, who can stand against us? (Romans 8:31)

Finally, David knew that the Lord was his salvation.

No one could truly save David but the Lord and David didn’t just know it, he proclaimed it. He acknowledged the Lord as his Sustainer and Keeper, his Protector and his Rescuer. And knowing he had a salvation from the Lord that no one could steal from him, David could live boldly in faith and hope, no matter what life brought his way.

In Christ Jesus, the Savior sent to all of mankind, those who place their trust in Him are saved. Nothing or no one can take away the salvation freely given once attained. Our future becomes set, our hope secured, our promised inheritance sealed. The Lord’s salvation should remove any hindrance that would distract us from fully carrying out the command of Jesus to make disciples of all nations. We’re told to go, and we can do so without fear, because the Lord has and will save us from all harm, even death.

Friends, the Lord our God is our Light and Stronghold and Salvation. So why should we be afraid in life and live like people who are unprotected, misguided, and unsaved? Why do we allow worry and anxiety and stress to rule over our hearts and minds, paralyzing us and hindering us from doing the kingdom work of the same Lord who is our Almighty Guardian and Defender?

The good news today is that the Lord is ready to bring you into a life full of peace that surpasses understanding. You just need to trust Him for who He is to you, the powerful Lord of all creation who can do all things.

Truly, there is nothing impossible with the Lord and thus He can easily handle anything that comes against you and me. It’s time we live like it, put away our phobias, and live with the bold confidence of David.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

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