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What should we fear? (Luke 12:4-7) November 13, 2016

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Today’s Podcast

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Today’s Bible reading plan:

Read it in a year – 1 Peter 4-5

see the whole year’s plan [here](http://www.bible-reading.com/bible-plan.pdf)

Today’s Devotional

Luke 12:4-7
Jesus: Listen, My friends, if people are trying to kill you, why be afraid? After you’re dead, what more can they do? Here’s whose opinion you should be concerned about: the One who can take your life and then throw you into hell! He’s the only One you should fear! But don’t misunderstand: you don’t really need to be afraid of God, because God cares for every little sparrow. How much is a sparrow worth—don’t five of them sell for a few cents? Since you are so much more precious to God than a thousand flocks of sparrows, and since God knows you in every detail—down to the number of hairs on your head at this moment—you can be secure and unafraid of any person, and you have nothing to fear from God either.

What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?

There is so much unwarranted fear in our country right now. I’ve been amazed at what’s been coming across the media since the elections showing the fear in so many segments of our society. But what about? What are we so afraid of? Do we think that the sky will fall because we have a Republican president? Will the world stop spinning because the elections didn’t go the way CNN said they would last week? Will cows stop giving milk and chickens quit laying eggs?

The fear that runs across the country is really ridiculous if you ask my opinion. And the fear would be equally ridiculous if Hillary Clinton had won the election and Republicans claimed the world had come to an end. Neither of these two individuals or their staffs have that much influence. Some might think they do, but trust me, they don’t. God is still in charge of this world. He allows things to happen, but He is still in charge. His plans will come to fruition whoever sits in what we think is the seat of power in this country.

So, why are so many people afraid? I doubt if next week or next month or next year there will be any squads sweeping through the streets dragging people out of their homes and taking them to the gas chambers. We don’t live in that kind of country. Neither candidate, neither party, none of the leaders we elected in the last few days would condone or put up with any such behavior. Both love our country too much to allow any such nonsense to take place here.

But there is something we should fear. We should fear the lies that Satan keeps planting in our brain. We should fear the division that keeps creeping in between us. We should fear the hatred that spews from the mouths of those that call themselves Christians in this time. We should fear the One who set the rules in place as to how we should behave in any culture, not just a republic or a democracy or a dictatorship or a theocracy. We need to read God’s rule book and obey the things He laid out for us.

The thing to fear are those who would tell us that God’s word doesn’t need to be followed. The thing to fear are those who lead us to certain destruction by lulling us into thinking God doesn’t care about what we believe or that a God of love would not let anyone be doomed to an eternity without Him. The problem with that thinking is that God isn’t the one doing the dooming. He isn’t the one sending us there. God isn’t the one who make the choice about our eternal destiny.

God takes His hands off of that decision. He lifts His omnipotence in that one area and gives that choice to each of us. We decide if we will spend eternity in heaven or hell. We decide if we will follow Him or not. We decide if we will face eternal reward or eternal punishment. God is love. That’s why He made a way for us to be with Him forever. But He also expects us to choose His way. If we choose not to follow Him, He has told us the consequences. There is no doubt about the outcome. We are empowered to choose the path.

So now what do we do? Should we fear the paltry issues the media seems to throw in our faces to raise their ratings and get us to watch their newscasts? Should we shed crocodile tears over the meaningless headline that won’t last another week before something else hits the news and takes its place? Should we fear these false Armageddons that society tells are happening all around us that might disrupt our personal comfort and pleasures?

I think it’s time we pull out the rule book of the One who will be our final judge, the One who checks our actions against our stated beliefs and looks into our hearts to see how it all matches up. I think it’s time we figure out He’s the One we need to start paying attention to and live up to His expectations. If we choose not to, then it’s time to really be in fear. Then it’s time to check the sky and see if this is the day He comes to take out His vengeance on those who fail to follow Him.

What should we fear in these days? Only God.

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

He is in control (Mark 4:39-40) July 22, 2016

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Today’s Podcast

Subscribe in: iTunes|Download

Today’s Bible reading plan:

Read it in a year – Ezekiel 37-42

see the whole year’s plan [here](http://www.bible-reading.com/bible-plan.pdf)

Today’s Devotional

Mark 4:39-40
He got up, shouted words into the wind, and commanded the waves.
Jesus: That’s enough! Be still!
And immediately the wind died down to nothing, the waves stopped.
Jesus: How can you be so afraid? After all you’ve seen, where is your faith?

What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?

The headlines in the news for the last several months seem a little scary to many people. Vacation plans to Europe cancelled. Vacation plans to America cancelled. Our State Department issuing warnings about travel and violence in various countries around the world and the need to exercise caution when traveling. Three countries now issuing warning about entering our country and exercising caution with our law enforcement. There is a lot of fear in the world.

Gun sales are at an all time high. People who would never consider purchasing a weapon because they had always felt safe in their homes, now own weapons and keep them loaded by their beds because of the fear of invasion that runs rampant across our land.

The headlines across our news papers and social media seem to want to spark racial tension and civil war. As the headlines work to grab people’s attention to the rest of the article, the headlines exaggerate what the rest of the article will share in facts, but we read the headlines and it incites hatred, anger, fear, protest, revolt, emotions that cause us to rise up against each other, often in violence.

Fear is the terrorists’ greatest weapon and they are using it well around the world. Terrorism has touched the shores of every continent and invaded the shores of our nation. And many in our nation fear for their safety because of the recent events that claimed the lives of so many people snuffed out without warning. One of the difficulties in dealing with the terrorists we face today is their willingness to die for their cause. When someone values their own life, they will stop the violence short of sacrificing themselves, but when they disregard their own life and are willing to use themselves as the device for destruction, it is very difficult to stop them. Just what we’ve seen in incidents like those in Orlando, Paris, and Nice.

We fear the things we cannot control. Whether it is terrorism, cancer, heart attacks, communicable diseases, storms, we fear these things we cannot control. That’s what was happening with these seasoned sailors. They got caught in the middle of a storm that rose up on the Sea of Galillee while transporting Jesus from one shore to the other. The winds came out of the north whipping up the waves and producing the kind of violent storms that sometimes plagued the area.

They didn’t expect it. They didn’t think the storm would come in like it did. They knew how to read the weather and this storm wasn’t predicted. But it came just the same. And they couldn’t control its effects on their small vessel. If it continued, the vessel would surely sink. They were afraid. But Jesus was with them. And that makes all the difference in the world.

He controls things we cannot. He controls the results of the storm. In fact, He should the disciples and those in all those other boats that traveled with them that He controlled the storm itself. With just a word the winds stopped, the waves calmed, the rain ceased. The storm obeyed His voice.

So what do we learn from all of this? I think it tells us that despite all the evil around us, we do not need to be afraid. Yes, there are terrorists that want to kill innocent people to advance their cause. We can’t control them, but God can and we don’t need to be afraid. He will either protect us from our enemy or use us in those moments to advance His plans for His world. He is still in control. Not the terrorist. We don’t need to be afraid. Do I understand why He allows all those things to happen? No, except perhaps He is still delaying the outpouring of His wrath in the hope that just one more will ask for His forgiveness and join the ranks of the redeemed in His kingdom.

We can be like Paul as he wrote in prison, which is better to live or die? If we live we get to continue to do God’s work, see more people won to Him, help to grow His kingdom, experience His mercy and grace here. If we die, we are ushered into His presence where we can rejoice with Him forever. So why should we fear the circumstance we face but cannot control. Things we cannot control will continue to happen all around us. But if Jesus is with us, we don’t need to be afraid. He is still in control of all things and still knows what is best for us. His actions and His timing is perfect. We may not understand it right now, but He is God and we can trust Him.

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.