Be safe without fear…

While we marvel at the work God is doing in a certain person’s life, a few friends fearfully say, “Oh, she is not out of danger yet.” I don’t understand that. When someone enters the kingdom of God through faith in Jesus Christ, their lives are in His hands. Any ‘danger’ they face is used for good in their lives. Not only that:

God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control. (2 Timothy 1:7)

Power, love, and self-control are works of the Holy Spirit. All Christians have the Spirit who takes us from living by our ideas, whims, or fears to Knowing that God wants the best for us. It is a journey, but eventually He shows us that the power to love is real and it changes us from selfish living to people motivated by love. This includes our prayers.

John Piper explains that if our prayers seem unheard, it could be that they have been motivated by selfish reasoning rather than the love of God. He adds that the reason God answers the prayers of those who believe in the name of Jesus and love others like Jesus is that God loves to magnify Jesus.

Godly love is not a feeling. It is action that involves sacrifice. This is why the NT says this about how I should live: 

No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him. An athlete is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules. It is the hard-working farmer who ought to have the first share of the crops. Think over what I say, for the Lord will give you understanding in everything. . . . Now in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver but also of wood and clay, some for honorable use, some for dishonorable. Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from what is dishonorable, he will be a vessel for honorable use, set apart as holy, useful to the master of the house, ready for every good work. (2 Timothy 2:4–21)

God wants me to stick to what He says. Fear is not it. I need Holy Spirit power that puts off selfish flesh and live in love and self-control. This means I must:

Have nothing to do with foolish, ignorant controversies; you know that they breed quarrels. And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will. (2 Timothy 2:23–26)

This is not easy. I read the news and want to hide and not be involved in this messy world. God even tells me to avoid much of what is going on:

But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people. (2 Timothy 3:1–5)

Instead, I’m to ‘hide’ in God’s Word so I can live in this world as He wants.

All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work. (2 Timothy 3:16–17)

There is a sense of immediacy to this. “For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths.” (2 Timothy 4:3–4)

PRAY: Oh dear Lord Jesus, I need not fear, not for myself or for other Christians, even those new to the faith. You give me and all Your children the ability to live for You and You promise: “The Lord will rescue (us) from every evil deed and bring (us) safely into his heavenly kingdom.” This is why I can say, ”To You be the glory forever and ever.” Amen. (2 Timothy 4:18)