SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 10/29/2021 9:38 AM
My Worship Time Focus:
“A Disciple Does Not Fear the World”
Bible Reading & Meditation Reference:
Matt. 10:26-31
Message of the verses: “26 “Therefore do not fear them, for
there is nothing covered that will not be revealed, and hidden that will not be
known. 27 “What I tell you in the darkness, speak in the light; and what you
hear whispered in your ear, proclaim upon the housetops. 28 "And do not fear those who
kill the body, but are unable to kill the soul; but rather fear Him who is able
to destroy both soul and body in hell. 29 “Are not two sparrows sold for a
cent? And yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your
Father. 30 “But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 “Therefore do not fear;
you are of more value than many sparrows.”
In our SD for this morning all I want to do is to
write about a rather long introduction to these verses, and then Lord willing
in our next SD we will begin to look more closely at verses 26 and 27.
As
disciples of Jesus Christ we are not only to emulate Him but we are to also not
be afraid of the world. Now notice the
three highlighted times in these six verses that Jesus says “do not fear.” He tells us this in light of what He had just
promised, His exhortation not be afraid was in order. Jesus had told His Apostles that He was
sending them out as sheep in the midst of wolves, that they would be tried and
scourged in Jewish courts, “brought before governors and kings” for His sake,
delivered up in various ways, betrayed by their families, hated and persecuted
by the world in general, and called satanic (vv.16-25).
Proverbs
29:25 warns us that “the fear of man brings a snare.” MacArthur writes “Fear of what people may
think, say, or do has strangled many testimonies and hindered much service in
the Lord’s name. Human nature wants to
avoid problems and conflicts, especially if they might bring ridicule and
hardship. People do not naturally want
to be though little of or mistreated and even less to suffer or die. Christians who have fallen prey to today’s great
emphasis on self-preservation find it especially difficult to confront sinful
society with the demands and standards of the gospel. Our culture has produced an unacceptable ‘softness’
among evangelicals.”
MacArthur
goes on in his introduction to these six verses by writing “Continued refusal
to confront the world gives strong evidence that a professed believer may not
belong to Christ at all. ‘If anyone
loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him,’ John says. ‘For all
that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the
boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world’ (1 John
2:15-16).”
We
all probably know the story of what happened to Peter while the Lord was going
through His trials, something that the Lord warned him would happen to him, but
Peter said it never would, and that is as he was warming himself by a fire in
the courtyard found that it was difficult to speak out for the Lord for fear of
being considered foolish, backward, extremist, unsophisticated, obtrusive or
even strange. As believers we can all
find ourselves in that kind of situation.
MacArthur
concludes “Because criticism, abuse, and danger would become frequent
companions of the apostles, Jesus repeatedly exhorted them not to be afraid
(see, e. g., Matt. 14:27; 28:10; Luke 12:32; John 14:27). At this time Jesus gave three reasons for His
followers not to be afraid; their vindication by God, their veneration of God,
and their valuation by God.”
Lord
willing we will begin “Vindication by God” in our next SD.
Spiritual meaning for my life today: Fear can be a compelling problem, something
that I need to trust the Lord to teach me not to fear because He is in control
of all things that come into my life each day.
My Steps of Faith for Today: Trust the Lord as many believe that we are to
go through a great problem of not being able to get the things we need, things
that we are use to having in our country, but God has promised to care for His
children, and I believe that He will.
10/29/2021 10:05 AM
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