I hope the previous four Victory Apps have helped you or someone you know. I will continue to talk about fear from another perspective. As I mentioned in my last message with today’s new words such as Covid 19 and Corona Virus being household words with the attending emotions of fear, anxiety, hopelessness. anger and confusion, we all need to find hope in Jesus.
Moses answered the people. “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.” Exodus 14: 13,14 (NIV)
The Israelites were admonished to fear not, stand still and see the Lord’s salvation. What were they up against? In the preceding verses in Exodus, the scriptures describe Israel’s exodus (departure) from Egypt and the armies of Pharaoh’s pursuit of them. Verses ten through twelve show God’s chosen people to be extremely fearful for their lives, even wanting to return to their captors, Moses proclaims to the frightened Israelis to stop fearing, stand and see God’s salvation for them. No easy task.
Let’s consider their situation. The Jewish people saw the massive armies of Pharaoh arrayed in their shiny, indestructible armor. They could hear the chariots being pulled by the swift, sleek and powerful Egyptian horses. Probably seeing and smelling the dust for miles, their fear must have been paralyzing, the noise and confusion deafening.
The purpose of the pursuit was either to take them back to Egypt as slaves or kill them. In the midst of this calamity, Moses boldly proclaims God would deliver them. It was a lot for the Israelites to believe. They had to in effect ‘draw the line on their fears in the middle of heart-stopping panic! Why were they to stand still and not fear? Verse fourteen tells us. “The Lord shall fight for you…”
The same verses apply to us today. We are to fear not, stand, and see the salvation of the Lord in our lives. Salvation includes redemption, deliverance, healing, and prosperity. The words in Exodus might seem easy but application takes effort, courage, and His enabling. In effect, we also have to ‘draw the line’ on our fears, anxiousness, and doubts in the midst of our battles.
We have many illustrations of drawing the line. Remember, as children, when two boys would fight? The bully, after shoving the other boy around for a while would draw a line. He would defiantly yell to his opponent, “Step across the line if you really mean what you say! If you have the guts!” At that time, the challenged boy would have to decide if he really meant everything he said he would or could do. He also knew once he stepped across the line, he had to make the decision to win. Isn’t it interesting how everyone looking on would wait to see if the challenged boy would step across the line? Most likely there would be silence as he made his decision.
Although we are older, life still demands stepping across ‘the line’. There are times when the ‘bullies’ of fear, anxiety and doubt scream out the potential for failure, sickness, and defeat. When we listen to them, we waver between God’s Word and their taunts. Just as the Israelites, we look at the enemies and then to the word of the Lord, while they yell at us with fear-filled taunts.
If we heed them, rather than the ‘still small voice’ of the Lord, we can fall into faithlessness. It is also interesting to note the silence as the forces of Heaven and Hell watch as we make our decision. The book of Hebrews tells us we are ‘… surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses…’ Hebrews 12:1.
We have to ‘draw the line’, not as the bully in the illustration, but as a victorious Christian. How do we do it? We say, “enough is enough! I’ll have no more! My God will fight for me!”
This line can be a literal line impression on carpeting, a chalk mark on the floor, or even a mental assessment. However, one side of the line encompasses the fears and doubts of the enemy and the other side represents faith and victory in God.
Just as the challenged boy had to summon up courage, we need to remember God’s Word to be strong and very courageous. We must believe the salvation of the Lord is with us as we step across the line – to victory! The best way to equip ourselves for this battle is to memorize those verses in the scriptures that remind us of God’s promises and His absolute power to fulfill them. Mose’s admonition to the Israelites applies to us, “The Lord will fight for you!”
Featured Image by Michael Treu from Pixabay
