February 10                                   Exod 28 - 31

WHO NOT TO FEAR

MEMORISE: ‘In God I will praise his word, In God I have put my trust; I will not fear what flesh can do unto me.’ (Ps 56:4)
READ: Matthew 10:16-28

Every believer in Christ has to define his or her relationship with fear. There is a positive aspect of fear. For instance when you fear God to the extent that you check yourself from doing anything evil, it is very healthy. Today we are looking at the negative aspect of fear. From our reading, Jesus tells us not to fear our persecutors. They may be our neighbours, relatives, parents, or even those in authority. As long as they stand in our way to stop us from following Jesus, we should not yield to them. The reason is stated:

‘And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell’ (Matt 10:28). The worst a man or demon can do to you, is engineer physical death. But should you die for the sake of the Gospel or for refusing to stop following Jesus, heaven will be opened to give you a most heroic welcome. Even if your persecutors have burnt your physical body, at the Rapture you will recover it intact, but this time in a glorified form.

Some people who belong to secret societies are afraid of coming out entirely, even after seeing the light in Jesus. They are afraid their colleagues will put into effect the death oath which they took on the day of initiation. But they fail to know that once they receive Jesus Christ as Lord, and renounce their covenant with such societies and burn all their regalia, the devil will have lost his hold over them. At such a point they come under the special protection of the blood and Name of Jesus.

Are you afraid to obey God on certain issues? Are you afraid of leaving your job for the full time ministry that God is leading you into? Are you afraid of leaving your country for foreign missions? Are you afraid of saying ‘Yes’ to that suitor, because he is not rich? If you are sure God is leading you, then do not fear for your future. It may be unknown to you, but God knows all about it. He knows why he has chosen you for that assignment. Why not trust him? After all, he has promised that he thinks good, not evil, concerning you.

ACTION POINT
Realize that if God is all-powerful, all-knowing and has your good in mind,
then his guidance must be the best for your life.