Eastsiders and God: “It’s really scary out there!”
Pastor
We have been letting Eastsiders tell us about what is on their mind. Today, we want to look at the issues of safety and fear. Our data came from before September 11 so I can only imagine how much worse it is now.
27.6% listed Neighborhood crime and safety as something they were primarily concerned about. Dealing with neighborhood gangs was of concern to 9.1% of the people. More than a quarter of the people are concerned about being robbed or hurt in some other way. It seems like every day there is some incident reported on the news that is really scary. Then when you add to that the specter of political and religious violence from the Muslims, people are thinking a lot more about safety.
I have known of people who sleep with weapons in their bed. We have alarms on our cars, self-locking doors, security systems that are amazing. We spend billions for police and jails and have a couple of million Americans behind bars. Then we spend hundreds of billions more for military defense.
Even though the issue for Eastsiders is mainly about physical safety, I would like to expand the topic slightly to include fear in general. I think the same principles apply.
Scripture
1 After this, the Moabites and Ammonites with some of the Meunites came to make war on Jehoshaphat.
2 Some men came and told Jehoshaphat, "A vast
army is coming against you from
21 After consulting the people, Jehoshaphat appointed men to sing to the LORD and to praise him for the splendor of his holiness as they went out at the head of the army, saying: "Give thanks to the LORD, for his love endures forever." (NIV)
Before we use this account for a
spiritual lesson for ourselves, let’s look at a little background.
He is a good illustration for our
discussion of fear. I don’t know if you
have ever had somebody trying to kill you.
That is scary. However, when tens
of thousands of people are trying to kill you and they are on their way, its
even more scary. When they are about 35
miles away, you are scared.
I am most interested in this story as an illustration of how to approach really scary situations.
First, He reached out to God. That in itself is significant, but we also need to consider four elements of how he did that.
One, He fasted. The fasting showed that he was serious, not
casual. God is not interested in just a
distant friendship. He wants
marriage. Fasting is one way that we
show that we are really reaching out to God.
In this case, the king not only fasted, he called upon the people to
fast as well.
Two, He
recognized and acknowledged the supremacy of God over all the universe. In verse
six we have his prayer: "O LORD, God of our fathers, are you not the God
who is in heaven? You rule over all the kingdoms of the nations. Power and
might are in your hand, and no one can withstand you. God is not
small. He is not weak. He is God. This is faith in action. Those kings who are approaching are under
God’s rule. What happens to them in the
end will be up to God.
God is very patient or he would grow tired of the
way some people pray. They really don’t
pray they whine. They grovel in their
pain. They rehearse their injury. They express how miserable and unhappy they
are. When they are done, God is
depressed!!! I suppose some of that is
necessary and you are entitled to it, but at some point in that prayer you need
to turn the corner. The king didn’t go
over the details of how tiny the pieces of his body are going to be if those
kings finally show up.
Some people, when they pray, are always talking to
the devil. Talk to the King. Let him talk to the devil. It’s more effective that way.
Listen to how David prayed in Psalm 27: “The LORD is my light and my
salvation-- whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life-- of whom
shall I be afraid? 2 When evil men advance against me to devour my flesh, when
my enemies and my foes attack me, they will stumble and fall. 3 Though an army
besiege me, my heart will not fear; though war break out against me, even then
will I be confident. 4 One thing I ask of the LORD, this is what I seek: that I
may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon the
beauty of the LORD and to seek him in his temple. 5 For in the day of trouble
he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his
tabernacle and set me high upon a rock. 6 Then my head will be exalted above
the enemies who surround me; at his tabernacle will I sacrifice with shouts of
joy; I will sing and make music to the LORD. 7 Hear my voice when I call, O
LORD; be merciful to me and answer me.”
That is what God is to you. He is King.
He is Lord. He is your light and
your salvation.
Three, he anticipated the
future based upon the past. God’s
past help was the basis of his anticipation.
In verses 7-9 he rehearses that. “ O our God, did you not
drive out the inhabitants of this land before your people
God had already given
Four, They waited without
knowing….even though the enemy was already close. In verse 12 we have their
prayer as they waited. “O our God, will you not
judge them? For we have no power to face this vast army that is attacking us.
We do not know what to do, but our eyes are upon you."
God’s answers always take time and they always come in time. Faith is knowing he will come when the enemy seems closer than God.
Secondly,
the people received a clear word from God. God
reached out to the People with the word of assurance. The
battle is God’s, not theirs. This was
the moment they had been waiting for.
Verse15 says it all, “This is what the LORD says to you: 'Do
not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not
yours, but God's.”
At that point, it was all over but the shouting. This is a wonderful moment in the life of any fear. It wasn’t as if anything had actually changed on the ground. The powerful enemy was still coming and was closer than ever.
One of the ladies of our church, when I asked her about how she handled fear, told about when her husband died. For a month, she went to sleep in her clothes. The trauma of losing her husband made her terribly afraid. It took about a month for that word from the Lord to come to her.
Another woman told of her husband being killed. Like the other woman, she cried out to God. Ironically, after his death she was no longer afraid. She just felt that God is a protector of widows and he was watching over her life.
As a Pastor, I love this moment in people’s lives. The deep lines of anguish and fear just seem to melt away. The burden has lifted because they know that God has arrived. It will be all right because God has spoken. In the text, God did not even promise victory, he just said the battle was the Lord’s. I know its kind of the same thing, but I just wanted to note that small distinction.
Thirdly, once you have a victory promise, the actual fight is anti-climactic but still needs to be fought. Just go out praising God.
One thing you learn from this story, there is nothing really wrong with having fear. If you have an army chasing you and you are not afraid, there is something wrong with you. It is not the arrival of fear that is bad. It is what we do with it.
A fearful spirit is not from the Lord. A loving spirit is. A feeling a power or ability is from God. A sound mind is from the Lord.