"See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. 2 Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears,[a] we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. 3 All who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure." 1 John 3:1-3

Insurance -- we have insurance for everything. We get to just in case something happens. 

Assurance -- God paid the "policy."

We are called the children of God. We didn't earn this. What that means is we have no worries. Faith in Father. When you're a child it's natural to have faith in your parents. We need to hve this same kind of child-like faith (or even greater) in our Father.

It's not about you or me. God loves you.

"Though I am free and belong to no one, I have made myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. 20 To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law." 1 Corinthians 9:19-20

So often we feel worthyless -- the world reinforces this feeling. This is a lie! I am valuable to God. You are valuable to God.

No matter what you think He says you're worth it.

"Were you a slave when you were called? Don’t let it trouble you—although if you can gain your freedom, do so. 22 For the one who was a slave when called to faith in the Lord is the Lord’s freed person; similarly, the one who was free when called is Christ’s slave. 23 You were bought at a price; do not become slaves of human beings." 1 Corinthians 7:21-23

God freed us to be more than who we are. God will correct us because He loves us. Celebrate His love for us.

"You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. 7 Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. 8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." Romans 5:6-8

The Example of Gideon: Gideon was not a man of strength or wisdom or vision or anything. He was the weakest member of the weakest clan.

"When the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, he said, “The Lord is with you, mighty warrior.'" Judges 6:12

Gideon recognized the Israelites abandoned God.

"The Lord turned to him and said, “Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midian’s hand. Am I not sending you?'" Judges 6:14

I want you to go! I'm sending you. It isn't aobut your abilities. It is about Me (says God) and your willingness to go.

Gideon's faith and approval -- 32,000 down to 300 men -- this was God's plan (and of course it worked).

Gideon doesn't do it all super confidently -- he does what God tells him to do in the middle of the night so no one sees him....but he still does it.

And Gideon, in faith uses the 300 and the enemy is destroyed. Israel is freed!! He believed in the One who can change things. He used his own history to remember God is faithful.

Where's your faith coming from?

"For we live by faith, not by sight." 2 Corinthians 5:7

Our faith must be deeper than the surface. God doesn't bargain with us.

"know that a person is not justified by the works of the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ. So we, too, have put our faith in Christ Jesus that we may be justified by faith in[a] Christ and not by the works of the law, because by the works of the law no one will be justified." Galatians 2:16

All God asks is that we believe in Him.

"What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? 33 Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. 34 Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us." Romans 8:31-34

Our Assurance.

God doesn't want us to try and work things out without Him. What are we to do?

Draw Near to Him! That is assurance.

"Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded." James 4:7-8

"let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water."
Hebrews 10:22

"Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." Hebrews 4:16

"I, in my Savior, are blessed." 

Insurance is doubt. Assurance is faith.

We are at war with the world. Jesus says rest in Me. The world wants to deny it all. Jesus is our battle standard. If you keep your eyes on Jesus....It's God's battle. Not ours. Draw near to Him.

"Filled with His goodness. Lost in His love." 

"This is My story!"

Each of us has a story, unique and precious. God has a story being written in my life, in your life. Common thread -- Jesus!

"Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God—" John 1:12

"I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you." John 15:15

Read the story God is writing in your life rather than trying to write it yourself.
​

"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge,
    but fools despise wisdom and instruction." Proverbs 1:7

We have a tendency to panic and fear. This doesn't need to be how we react. God gives us a better way.

Why should we fear God?

3 kinds of Biblical fear:
Terror: fear of the power of God
Respect: as a servant servicing a master.
Reverence: Understanding who He is and who we are.

Reverence is a deep, deep respect. Knowing who God is, who we are -- what God is capable of.

The benefits of fearing God (as in the reverence kind):
1. Hate Evil.
"To fear the Lord is to hate evil;
    I hate pride and arrogance,
    evil behavior and perverse speech." Proverbs 8:13

The world has a problem of saying something is evil -- like sin. We need to look at the world through God's view. We get understanding when we look with God's perspective.

2. Live a "Long" Life (abundant, full life)
"The fear of the Lord adds length to life,
    but the years of the wicked are cut short." Proverbs 10:27

When God disciplines us He is loving us.
 "Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children. For what children are not disciplined by their father? 8 If you are not disciplined—and everyone undergoes discipline—then you are not legitimate, not true sons and daughters at all." Hebrews 12:7-8

"Because He said so" is somehting we should accept from God.

Healthy vs. unhealthy fear:

Healthy fear: "Good judgment wins favor,
    but the way of the unfaithful leads to their destruction." Proverbs 13:15

Unhealthy fear: "Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden. 9 But the Lord God called to the man, “Where are you?” He answered, “I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid.”" Genesis 3:8-10

Unhealthy fear can be based in shame or blame or condemnation.

We continue to hide in sin. You can't hide anything from God. 

Godly sorrow vs Worldly Sorrow:

"Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death." 2 Corinthians 7:10

Choose Him or don't choose Him. Admitting sin is uncomfortable. We have a choice on what or who we fear. We can fear God or fear people. If I hide the good news from other people, if I don't share the "Cure" to fallenness, I am a coward, a selfish coward (those are Jane's words speaking to herself). 

“Whoever acknowledges me before others, I will also acknowledge before my Father in heaven. 33 But whoever disowns me before others, I will disown before my Father in heaven." Matthew 10:32-33

Those verses should scare us!
When we fear God we don't need to fear anything or anyone else. If we fear the world more than we fear God we distance ourselves from Jesus.

Jesus came to bring us home.

 “Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters." Matthew 12:30

Am I gathering or scattering?

It's not multiple choice. It's true or false. Is there something stopping us from living for God?

The fear of God leads to a life of fearlessness! Halleluia!!

"The fear of the Lord leads to life;
    then one rests content, untouched by trouble." Proverbs 19:23

If we find contentment in God everything will be provided. We serve a living God who is here right now.

"For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
    so great is his love for those who fear him;
 as far as the east is from the west,
    so far has he removed our transgressions from us.
 As a father has compassion on his children,
    so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him;" Psalm 103:11-13

"For those who fear Him" has to be part of the equation. It's okay to "rock the boat." It's okay to "stand alone." If you fear God, He'll take care of everything. We need not to have any fear of Satan or the future:

"We know that anyone born of God does not continue to sin; the One who was born of God keeps them safe, and the evil one cannot harm them." 1 John 5:18

"For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,[a] neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." Romans 8:38-39

God is a jealous God. He won't let anyone take you from HIm.

#1. Everything we do is seen by God.
#2. If I repent God will take care of me.
#3 We have to choose to fear God and not people. God or people. That's it.

Who do you choose to fear?

"But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.” Joshua 24:15

We are all bound in some ways, but we don't need to be.

"Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble,
    and he saved them from their distress.
14 He brought them out of darkness, the utter darkness,
    and broke away their chains.
15 Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love
    and his wonderful deeds for mankind,
16 for he breaks down gates of bronze
    and cuts through bars of iron." Psalm 107:13-16

We all are meant to be free!

"See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him." 1 John 3:1

This love is a strange, foreign love to anyone who doesn't know Jesus. We have no way to comprehend it without the Spirit.

5 Steps to Breaking the Chains:

1. Remember who you are. You don't have to give in.

"It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm,then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery." Galatians 5:1

2. Rely on God's strength, not your own.

"I can do all this through him who gives me strength." Philippians 4:13

3. Fight the lies. Focus on the Truth. Don't deceive yourself. Don't justify sin.

"Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” John 8:32

4. Be willing to be set free.

Jesus asked the man at the pool of Bethsaida: "Are you willing to be healed?"

Do you want to lose your chains?

5. Leave the chains at the altar. Don't pick them up again.

"For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with,[a] that we should no longer be slaves to sin-- 7 because anyone who has died has been set free from sin." Romans 6:6-7

If we grab that sin willingly that is disobedience. Don't let sin become your normal. The norms of the world aren't the norms of God's way of life.

God handles it for me. Walk away from the chains.

If you have a habit that is sin, you need to lose it.

God wants us to be free.

Take your chains to God.
Pray often.
Pray specifically.
Pray for others.

You don't have to do anything alone.  Bring sin to the light. Then, it will lose its power.

"So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was earnestly praying to God for him.
6 The night before Herod was to bring him to trial, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and sentries stood guard at the entrance. 7 Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him up. “Quick, get up!” he said, and the chains fell off Peter’s wrists." Acts 12:5-7

God is the same always! What He did for Peter He can do for you, for me. 

God wants us to come to Him, pray and believe.

"You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them,because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world." 1 John 4:4

There is no problem, no chain that God can't overcome for you.

Jesus had a way of dealing with people groups -- radical!  Sometimes we're afraid of crossing lines. Jesus never is.

GASP! Jesus went to Samaria.

5 "So He *came to a city of Samaria called Sychar, near the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph; 6 and Jacob’s well was there. So Jesus, being wearied from His journey, was sitting thus by the well. It was about [a]the sixth hour." John 4:5-6

He goes through and stops in the middle of the day.

7 There *came a woman of Samaria to draw water. Jesus *said to her, “Give Me a drink.” 8 For His disciples had gone away into the city to buy food. 9 Therefore the Samaritan woman *said to Him, “How is it that You, being a Jew, ask me for a drink since I am a Samaritan woman?” (For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.) 10 Jesus answered and said to her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, ‘Give Me a drink,’ you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water.” 11 She *said to Him, “[a]Sir, You have nothing to draw with and the well is deep; where then do You get that living water? 12 You are not greater than our father Jacob, are You, who gave us the well, and drank of it himself and his sons and his cattle?” John 4:7-12

She falls back on tradition.

13"Jesus answered and said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will thirst again; 14 but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never thirst; but the water that I will give him will become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life.”
15 The woman *said to Him, “[a]Sir, give me this water, so I will not be thirsty nor come all the way here to draw.” John 4:13-15

Water was a big deal.  Her shame was relived every day as she walked to the well.

16 He *said to her, “Go, call your husband and come here.” 17 The woman answered and said, “I have no husband.” Jesus *said to her, “You have correctly said, ‘I have no husband’; 18 for you have had five husbands, and the one whom you now have is not your husband; this you have said truly.” 19 The woman *said to Him, “[a]Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet." John 4:16-19

God knows all our sin. He knows all our dark spots. He knows it all but He still offers His living water.

She brings up a religious argument. Her question goes back to religion.

20 "Our fathers worshiped in this mountain, and you people say that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship.” 21 Jesus *said to her, “Woman, believe Me, an hour is coming when neither in this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father. 22 You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. 23 But an hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for such people the Father seeks to be His worshipers. 24 God is [a]spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.” John 4:20-24

True worshippers worship in Spirit and Truth.

Being filled with the Spirit.

Think of the disciples like us. 

27"At this point His disciples came, and they were amazed that He had been speaking with a woman, yet no one said, “What do You seek?” or, “Why do You speak with her?” 28 So the woman left her waterpot, and went into the city and *said to the men, 29 “Come, see a man who told me all the things that I have done; this is not [a]the Christ, is it?” 30 They went out of the city, and were coming to Him.
31 Meanwhile the disciples were urging Him, saying, “Rabbi, eat.” 32 But He said to them, “I have food to eat that you do not know about.” 33 So the disciples were saying to one another, “No one brought Him anythingto eat, did he?” John 4:27-33

Disciples uncomfortable with Jesus's actions but didn't confront him on them.

Woman took this encounter with Jesus and ran with it. Allowed it to change her! She goes to the ones who shun her and told them the Good News!

Jesus has just fulfilled His purpose with this woman. He was full. He gave. She accepted.

34"Jesus *said to them, “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me and to accomplish His work. 35 Do you not say, ‘There are yet four months, and then comes the harvest’? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look on the fields, that they are white for harvest. 36 Already he who reaps is receiving wages and is gathering fruit for life eternal; so that he who sows and he who reaps may rejoice together. 37 For in this case the saying is true, ‘One sows and another reaps.’ 38 I sent you to reap that for which you have not labored; others have labored and you have entered into their labor.” John 4:34-38

He stayed two days. The Harvest was in process!

39"From that city many of the Samaritans believed in Him because of the word of the woman who testified, “He told me all the things that I havedone.” 40 So when the Samaritans came to Jesus, they were asking Him to stay with them; and He stayed there two days. 41 Many more believed because of His word;" John 4:39-41

Live water= running water

Do you have a stock pond or a river in reference to your faith? Is your faith a stock pond (stagnate) or a river (deep and flowing)?

Live water is overflowing, pressurized, bursting out. Spirit will overwhelm us.

37"Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “[a]If anyone is thirsty, [b]let him come to Me and drink. 38 He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From [c]his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’” 39 But this He spoke of the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were to receive; for the Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified." John 7:37-39

#1 You gotta be thirsty.
#2 Come to Jesus.
#3 Drink!

What's keeping us from drinking from the well?

What's separating us from the living water?

What fears keep you from commitment?

Whose rules are limiting your witness?

What is stopping your harvest?

We're missing the harvest. God's harvest will happen, but are you giving away the opportunity to take part in that harvest?

Have you encountered Jesus in this radical way?

Have you asked for the living water?

Have you received the living water?

"Then he showed me a river of the water of life, [a]clear as crystal, coming from the throne of God and of [b]the Lamb, 2 in the middle of its street. On either side of the river was the tree of life, bearing twelve [c]kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit every month; and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. 3 There will no longer be any curse; and the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and His bond-servants will serve Him; 4 they will see His face, and His name will be on their foreheads. 5 And there will no longer be any night; and they [d]will not have need of the light of a lamp nor the light of the sun, because the Lord God will illumine them; and they will reign forever and ever." Revelation 22:1-5

Take it now!

10"And he *said to me, “Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is near."
Revelation 22:10

The time is near!

12 “Behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to render to every man [a]according to what he has done. 13 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.” Revelation 22:12-13

He is coming soon!

He doesn't want us to be fans. He wants us to be followers.

What have you done for the kingdom of God?

Take them to the well!

Let the river flow!

You need a place of safety. Home is where you feel safe.

There are conditional promises in the Bible and unconditional promises in the Bible. The conditional or "If" promises fall on us. 

"He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High Will Abide in the shadow of the Almighty." Psalm 91:1

If you dwell in the shelter of God you will live in His shadow.

It is a choice. 

"Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you, unless you abide in Me." John 15:4

If you abide in Christ you will bear fruit. 

Don't visit. Dwell. Live there.

"I will say to the LORD, 'My refuge and my fortress, My God, in whom I trust!'" Psalm 91:2

A fortress is a place that is defendable.  All people had a fortress (a stronghold) a place easy to defend. God knows we fear so He provided us with a safe place, a safe space -- Himself.  Our houses aren't fortresses. God's fortress is a place of defense.  No getting past God's defenses. 

"The name of the LORD is a strong tower; The righteous runs into it and is safe." Proverbs 18:10

The name of the Lord is our fortress. We run to Him.

"For it is He who delivers you from the snare of the trapper, And from the deadly pestilence." Psalm 91:3

It is an ongoing thing to be save me from the snare of the trapper. The trapper is the devil. He sets out traps and minefields continually (spiritually speaking) for us to fall into if we walk off the path. He can't take our salvation but he can muffle us with fear so we don't speak or shine for Jesus.

"The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear Him, And rescues Him." Psalm 34:7

God is always fighting on behalf of those who fear Him. 

"He will cover you with His pinions, And under His wings you may seek refuge; His faithfulness is a shield and bulwark." Psalm 91:4

There's no worry for those who have run under the wing. 

Bulwark = tower

Get behind the bigness of God.

Ephesians 6:10-18 -- the armour of God.

​Your faith should not be shaken by your circumstances. When we become Christians we don't lose challenges or problems or trials. What changes is that now Jesus is on our side and we can run into God's shelter. 

"You will not be afraid of the terror by night, Or of the arrow that flies by day; Of the pestilence that stalks in darkness, Or of the destruction that lays waste at noon." Psalm 91:5-6

Arrows can be seen coming and you can't do anything about them. But with God you can. Disease, night terrors -- these are things you can't fight alone. But in God we are free from them destroying us. 

"For you have made the LORD, my refuge, Even the Most High, your dwelling place. No evil will befall you, Nor will any plague come near your tent." Psalm 91:9-10

"If we want the safety then we have to make God our refuge. Do you dwell there?

Fear is immobilizing. Fear causes panic. Fear takes over our senses. God says Fear not for He is with us. Trust Him. He's got the end of the rope.

"Remain in Me" John 15:7

Psalm 91:11-13
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Dwell, don't visit. 

"Because he has loved Me, therefore I will deliver him; I will set him securely on high, because he has known My name. He will call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will rescue him, and honor him." Psalm 91:14-15

If you love God He will rescue you. If you're one of His He'll take care of you.  Are you one of His?

"With a long life I will satisfy him, And let him behold My salvation." Psalm 91:16

​long life = eternal life in the fortress of God.

"Fear not" is in the Bible 365 times. 

Dictionary says fear is a natural feeling of alarm or impending disaster.

There are 500 documentated phobias, to include:

Dentaphobia -- fear dentists
Cacaphobia (might be spelled wrong) -- fear of ugliness
Gynaphobia -- fear of women
Isaiah 43:1-743 But now, thus says the Lord, your Creator, O Jacob,
And He who formed you, O Israel,
“Do not fear, for I have redeemed you;
I have called you by name; you are Mine!
2 “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;
And through the rivers, they will not overflow you.
When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched,
Nor will the flame burn you.
3 “For I am the Lord your God,
The Holy One of Israel, your Savior;
I have given Egypt as your ransom,
[a]Cush and Seba in your place.
4 “Since you are precious in My sight,
Since you are honored and I love you,
I will give other men in your place and other peoples in exchange for your life.
5 “Do not fear, for I am with you;
I will bring your offspring from the east,
And gather you from the west.
6 “I will say to the north, ‘Give them up!’
And to the south, ‘Do not hold them back.’
Bring My sons from afar
And My daughters from the ends of the earth,
7 Everyone who is called by My name,
And whom I have created for My glory,
Whom I have formed, even whom I have made.”

Satan loves to use fear to make us stumble.

You could live in a state of fear all the time.

Fear is just fear (it's not bad or good). It is what you do with it, how you react to that makes it positive or negative.

In positive terms, fear can help you be more alert, more careful.

In negative terms, Fear will freeze you up or keep you from doing what you need to do. 

Fear not is the most common command in the Bible. We need to hear it over and over.

Why we shouldn't fear:

#1 People of God should not have fear because we belong to God:
Psalm 139:16:
16 Your eyes have seen my unformed substance;
And in Your book were all written
The days that were ordained for me,
When as yet there was not one of them.

#2 We are redeemed by God.
Galatians 3:13:
13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a [a]tree”--

Children run to Mom and Dad to be safe. We need to do the same thing with Father God when we're scared. 

1 Peter 2:9:
9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;

#3 Don't fear because God is with us.
Matthew 28:20:
" I am with you [a]always, even to the end of the age"

In Romans 8 we are told that If God is for us who can be against us?

When we couldn't He did it all.We have an abundance of "back up.' 

I'm not invinsible but God is.

Hebrews 13:5:
for He Himself has said, “I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you,”

Fear not is an action word. God's protection is an active thing. Armor is necessary to do the job.

Ephesians 6:10-18 (click here to read the entire scripture-- it's great). 

Shield of faith. A wall of shields.

Christians should set up a shield wall.  The most dangerous thing to do in a fight is nothing. When you freeze up you lose. Make a decision even if it is a bad decision.

Joshua....Be strong and courageous. Every time that's said in the BIble they are sent out to conquer.

Plow forward.  You can get through it. Finish, finish, finish.

We are living in the eye of the storm. Prepare for the next battle. You get a second wind in the ey. We're in the pause. Prepare for the storm that's coming. Arm yourselves. 

Belt on our truth. Study New skills are harder to use than ones we've had for a long time.  Prayer and scripture need to be second nature for us.

2 Timothy 1:7 -- God gave us a spirit of power, love and self-discipline.