Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed
Subscribe: RSS
Fear is Frantic. It is chaotic, wild, disorienting, distraught, hurried.. We are never at our best when we are under the control of fear. The simplest things become impossible when Fear is calling the shots.
Fear seems unstoppable, all-powerful, and inevitable, but God never intended us to experience fear. The Word of God clearly says that God has not given us a spirit of fear (2 Timothy 1:7).
When we look at fear from a scriptural perspective, we see that fear is disadvantaged and destined to fail.
-Fear is conditional, but God is unconditional
-Fear is lack, but God fill to capacity
-Fear is punichment, but Christ has not come to punish
Fear 4 – Fear is Frantic from Redemption Church on Vimeo.
Fear 4 Fight Frantic Fear
Sermon notes by Pastor Chris Fluitt
Redemption Church Plano Tx
Help Bumper4
Welcome to Redemption Church. We are not a mega church, but we are mighty Church. We aren’t scared of anything, even Cotton! If you’re ever in Plano Tx please come worship with us.
My name is Chris Fluitt. I am lead pastor here at Redemption. We are thankful for you.
1 Fear title
Last week we talked to you about the table the Lord your shepherd has prepared for you. It is time that we no longer allow an enemy called fear to have seat at the table. Instead let’s invite the one who prepared to table to have a place the place of honor at the table.
In this 4th week I want you to imagine with me… The damsel is running for her life. All she can think about is getting away from the demonically possessed children’s doll. She is so focused on trying to get away that she doesn’t see the exposed tree root and trips, falling to the ground and twisting her ankle, knee, or pinky toe.
So focused on the get-away, the injured girl does not notice places to hide or potential objects that could be used as weapons.
She loses all bearing in her escape attempt and gets lost. Her only locational frame of reference is, she is here and angry killer toy is here.
She makes it to her car, but she is so frantic that she has trouble getting her keys from her pocket. Her keys once loosed somehow end up on the ground. She searches on hands and knees in the dark. She finds them and stands up. Her hands tremble as she tries to get the right key… She bumbles trying to get the key inserted. It becomes impossible to get the key into the slot…
If you have seen this movie before, you are coming unglued. You are yelling at the screen. You have leaned up in your seat and start to feel the anxiousness of the moment. Your muscles tighten as you try to somehow help the doomed lady. You may be yelling words of encouragement… “Come on! Hurry!”
Today I want to tell you that F4 1Fear is Frantic
Fear is wild, hurried, chaotic, distraught, full of anxiety and emotion.
Fear is a performance diminishing drug. Fear never enhances you.
Your nerves become overstimulated.
Your blood pressure and heart rate go up.
Your health is never good with fear. You won’t heal as fast, you will develop an ulcer… Fear can take years off your life.
Your relationships are not improved.
You never communicate well when you are afraid.
Your decision making is not improved with fear.
Your thoughts are jumbled and irrational.
Sometimes because of the diminishing effects of fear you will try too hard.
Sometimes fear will cause people to completely shut down.
Frantic fear has us falling apart! Like the woman couldn’t get the keys into the car door… fear causes us to have trouble doing the simplest things.
You do not want fear around because he makes everything worse. Fear never enhances. Fear diminishes.
If you choose to let fear hang around your life then you are choosing a diminished life.
Fear is something you have experienced, are experiencing, or will experience… BUT…
God never intended you to have fear in your life.
2 Timothy 1:7 For God has not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.
That verse says it so clearly. God has not given us fear; instead he has given us power, love, and sound mind. He has not given us fear; instead he has given us things that counteract fear.
- Don’t respond in fear. Respond in power.
- Don’t be frantic and anxious. Stand firmly in love.
- Don’t lose your mind. Use the sound mind God has given you.
Given this information that God has not given you fear but has given you everything to defeat fear… I want you to know F4 2Fear is disadvantaged
That sounds good to hear right? Because when we fear we always feel destined to lose… We feel outnumbered. Fear always seems to hold the advantage against us.
Fear makes us frantic… but if we will look at the situation from the Word of God we will see that fear is fighting a losing battle.
We talked about this one in week 2…
F4 3Fear is Conditional/God is Unconditional
Fear needs the right conditions. Fear does not work in every condition.
For example: Do you think fear works better when you are all alone or when you are surrounded by allies?
Fear loves the condition of isolation. But you can control this condition. If you are afraid you can pick up the phone and call your friend. You can go to a connect group and gain strength. You can meet someone in this altar today and pray your way to victory.
Fear is completely conditional, and you can change the conditions.
Now I ask you… Do you think God works better when you are all alone or when you are surrounded by allies?
God works when you are surrounded by friends as He does when you are all alone. God works in the fiery furnace… just as Shadrack, Meshack and Abnendigo. God works in the lion’s den… just ask Daniel. God works when you have no one to turn to and are surrounded by many enemies… Ask Alijah when he stood toe to toe against the prophets of Baal.
F4 3Fear is Conditional/God is Unconditional
Fear you lose.
We told you in week 2 that Fear operates in the condition of lack…
F4 4Fear is lack/God fills to Capacity
But God fills to capacity.
Fear comes along and points out you don’t have enough money, time, strength, talent. This seems like a position of strength for fear… but it isn’t. We serve a God who fills us to capacity
The Bible is a collection of stories of God stepping into the void and bringing fullness.
Example: God created Adam out of the dust of the earth. There was a human body that LACKED… He created man with a void… Then what happened…?
Genesis 2:7 the LORD God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.(NIV)
God filled Adam to capacity and he became a living soul.
Your lack seems like a failure and a loss, but it actually gives God room to operate. Fear looks at you through the lens, but God looks at you and sees opportunity!
If you will stop hiding your lack, and will expose your lack to God, you will be filled.
There was a man who had lack… he had a withered hand. His hand had no strength. It was crippled. It was useless. His hand represented a shame to himself and his family.
Watch what Jesus, the God of Capacity, asks this man.
Matthew 12:13 Then he said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.”
The man has 2 hands. Which hand will he stretch out? Will he stretch out the firm healthy hand.. you know the one that doesn’t lack.. Or will he attempt to stretch out the hand that will hardly stretch… the hand he tries to hide… the hand full of lack and fear?
Fear will try to convince you to hide your lack. But when you expose your lack to God it defines your capacity.
Matthew 12:13 Then he said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” So he stretched it out and it was completely restored, just as sound as the other.(NIV)
His hand was COMPLETELY RESTORED.
You can stretch forth your weakness to God and it will become STRENGTH
You can stretch forth your failure to God and it will become VICTORY
You can stretch forth your sickness to God and it will become HEALING
You can stretch forth anything that is lacking to God and it will be filled to CAPACITY.
God’s power is made perfect in your weakness (lack)(2 Corinthians 12:9)
Those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled (Matthew 5:6)
My God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:19)
Fear tries to dominate you because of your lack, but your lack brings you right to the source of everything you lack. It brings you to the God of capacity.
Remember that fear is disadvantaged…
F4 3Fear is Conditional/God is Unconditional
F4 4Fear is lack/God fills to Capacity
And finally…
F4 5Fear equals punishment
1 John 4:18 There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.(NIV)
You have probably quoted this scripture before, but you have probably left out the part that doesn’t fit on a bumper sticker or t-shirt. We leave out the part that says “fear has to do with punishment.”
I have heard this scripture preached all my life but this part is always looked over.
Fear has to do with punishment. The word punishment is the Greek word kolasis. This word is used in one other place in the Bible.
Matthew 25:46 “Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”(NIV)
Fear has to do with punishment, KOLASIS, an eternity without God, being separated for God forever.
Example: When was the first time fear showed up in scripture?
Genesis 3:9 But the LORD God called to the man, “Where are you?”(NIV)
Genesis 3:10 He answered, “I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid.”(NIV)
Adam was afraid that he was going to be PUNISHED… He was afraid that He was going to be separated from God forever.
At its base level Fear has to do with punishment.
But here is the disadvantage for Fear. Jesus Christ did not come to punish us.
John 3:17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.(NIV)
Fear has to do with punishment, but Jesus has not come to punish you. So you don’t need to fear… but there is someone who ought to fear…
Example: Do you remember what happened when Jesus came into contact with the demoniac who had thousands of demons in him. Who shows fear in this story?
Mark 5:6 But when he saw Jesus afar off, he ran and worshipped him,(KJV)
Mark 5:7 He shouted at the top of his voice, “What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? Swear to God that you won’t torture me!”(NIV)
Mark 5:8 For Jesus had said to him, “Come out of this man, you evil spirit!”(NIV)
Do you understand what is happening here. There is more than one entity inside the man. The man saw Jesus and ran to him and worshiped him… but as the man ran a voice cried out in fear asking Jesus not to bring punishment… to this voice Jesus commands COME OUT OF THIS MAN YOU EVIL SPIRIT.
The man had no reason to be afraid of Jesus. He had every reason to run to Him, worship Him, and be set free.
The only entity that ought to be afraid is Satan and his demons. BECAUSE JESUS HAS NOT COME TO PUNISH US, BUT JESUS IS COMING TO PUNISH THEM.
Jesus has not come to punish you…
F4 6Fear = Punishment & Correction = Love
Jesus has not come to punish you, but He has come to correct you. Jesus has come to lead you on the right path. Jesus has come to deliver you from sin. Jesus has come to convict you of your sin. There is a difference in CORRECTION and PUNISHMENT. Jesus corrects you out of love… On the other side of His correction is a better you.
But on the other side of PUNISHMENT is hell. And Hell, the Bible says clearly, was created for Satan and the rest of the fallen angels. (Matthew 25:41) It was not created for you.
If your future is in heaven with Jesus then you have no reason to fear. But if not… you should be very afraid.
Fear is disadvantaged. You can beat fear today in the name of Jesus Christ.
F4 3Fear is Conditional/God is Unconditional
F4 4Fear is lack/God fills to Capacity
F4 5Fear equals punishment
I want you to get ready to come and talk to God. I want you to get ready to defeat fear.
F4 1Fear is Frantic
Fear is out of control. Fear is chaotic. Fear is insane.
How about we operate from faith?
How about we operate from God’s unconditional love?
How about we operate from the hope that whatever we lack our God can fill us to capacity?
Take a step from your frantic fear and walk to this altar boldly.