Fear No Evil

Monday, December 26, 2011, 6:05 a.m. – The Lord woke me with the song, “He Keeps Me Singing,” playing in my mind, and then he followed that song with the song, “Fear Not!”

He Keeps Me Singing / Luther B. Bridgers

There's within my heart a melody
Jesus whispers sweet and low:
Fear not, I am with thee, peace, be still,
In all of life's ebb and flow.

Though sometimes he leads through waters deep,
Trials fall across the way,
Though sometimes the path seems rough and steep,
See his footprints all the way.

Soon he's coming back to welcome me
Far beyond the starry sky;
I shall wing my flight to worlds unknown;
I shall reign with him on high.

Jesus, Jesus, Jesus,
Sweetest name I know,
Fills my every longing,
Keeps me singing as I go.

I inquired of the Lord as to where he wanted me to read next in scripture. I had just finished reading the book of Acts. He had me read in Isaiah 53, Acts 8 (quoting from Isaiah 53) and Ps 118 last evening, and he had me reading Psalm 25 yesterday during the day, which is a Psalm of much encouragement and a prayer for guidance and direction. In it the Psalmist prayed to the Lord to be shown his ways, to be taught his paths, to be guided in the Lord’s truth, for his hope was in the Lord all day long. He proclaimed that God is good and upright; “therefore he instructs sinners in his ways, he guides the humble in what is right, and teaches them his way.” Here the Lord reminded me of the song he woke me with yesterday morning, “Bring Back the Glory,” which is a prayer for revival of the Lord’s people.

And, then then the Psalmist declared that “All the ways of the Lord are loving and faithful for those who keep the demands of his covenant,” and that God will instruct the man (or woman) who fears the Lord in the way chosen for him. As well, he proclaimed that “The Lord confides in those who fear him; he makes his covenant known to them.” And, he concluded the Psalm with these words: “Guard my life and rescue me… May integrity and uprightness protect me, because my hope is in you. Redeem Israel, O God, from all their troubles!” And, I added, as applied to spiritual Israel today: “Revive your church, O Lord!”

The Lord then led me this morning to read Psalm 23 for my quiet time with him:

The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters,
he restores my soul.
He guides me in paths of righteousness
for his name’s sake.
Even though I walk
through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil,
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
they comfort me.

You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
Surely goodness and love will follow me
all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the LORD
forever.

My Understanding: The Lord began my time with him this morning with two songs that say “Fear Not!” So, the Lord has a message here for me about not fearing, and about rejoicing in tribulation, which was the same message he was giving me throughout the day yesterday, too. Along with this primary theme of not fearing and of rejoicing is a subtheme concerning times of trouble, hardships, persecution, unjust treatment, and difficulties in life in which we are to see the hand of God in our lives, and through which we are to place our trust in the Lord. He will give us the strength, courage, determination to endure, joy, peace, and guidance and direction we need to lead us and to give us hope and healing during times of great suffering for the sake of his name, and for the sake of his gospel.

As well, Psalm 23 continues with that theme. David declared that the Lord was his shepherd. We learn in John 10 that Jesus Christ is the good shepherd who lay down his life for the sheep. He knows his sheep and his sheep know him. His sheep listen to his voice and follow him because they know his voice. Yet, they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from a stranger because they do not recognize a stranger’s voice.

Jesus declared that he was not only the good shepherd but he was also the gate for the sheep, and that whoever enters through him will be saved. “He will come in and go out, and find pasture,” Jesus said. Jesus also said that he came that his sheep might have life, and have it to the full. Yet he also spoke of “thieves and robbers,” i.e. of false shepherds (the strangers). The true sheep do not listen to the false shepherds who come only to steal and kill and destroy the sheep. These false shepherds of the people will abandon the sheep and run away when they see a wolf coming, so that the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it, because these false shepherds care nothing for the sheep, but only for themselves.

In contrast, thus, to these false shepherds of the people is Jesus Christ, our good shepherd. Where the false shepherds come to destroy us spiritually by leading us into sin, and/or by leading us away from pure devotion to our Lord; and away from following him as our only Lord, and toward becoming followers of man and of a false gospel, Jesus, as our good shepherd, leads us in paths of righteousness, i.e. in following our Lord in obedience to his commands for our lives, as true followers of Jesus Christ. Whereas these false shepherds try to rob us of our close relationships with Jesus Christ and they try, instead, to instill in us the fear of man, the good shepherd supplies us with all we need for godly living.

Jesus Christ leads us to be contented and to rest securely in him, even in the direst of circumstances. He gives us all that we need for life and for service to him so that we can walk in obedience to him. We cannot do this in and of ourselves, for surely we will fail. We must be dependent upon the shepherd to supply us with all we need to live the Christian life in faith and in victory. Jesus leads us to rest quietly in him, especially in times of trouble. He provides all that we need to refresh our spirits, to revive our souls, and to give us peace of mind and heart so that we can live spiritually healthy lives for him and for the sake of his name.

So, even though we may walk “through the valley of the shadow of death,” i.e. through times of great tribulation that will try our faith, we don’t need to fear evil, for Jesus Christ overcame evil on the cross of Christ and through his resurrection back to life. We don’t need to fear whatever God may take us through, because Jesus is with us to give us hope, healing and comfort. He will use his rod (authority) to guide, rescue and protect us, though not necessarily to protect us physically, but to protect us spiritually through our difficulties. He will be our support (represented by his staff), and he will reassure us of his continued presence with us no matter what we may go through.

Even though man may reject us, our Lord will receive us at his table and will take us into his loving arms - his nurturing - and his words within us will offer us much encouragement and hope. And, he will do this in the presence of our enemies, showing how much he loves us. Whereas man may dishonor us and mistreat us, our Lord will honor us and will call us his own. Our lives will overflow with his many words of joy, comfort and assurances during times of distress and great sorrow, as he will continue to demonstrate his abiding grace and love for us over and over again. His goodness and love to us, in giving us his hope and peace, even in the face of trouble, hardship and distress, will be with us all our lives and for eternity, as we have the promise, if we are truly his, of dwelling in his eternal home forever.

Fear Not! / An Original Work / October 20, 2011

Based off of Philippians 4

Rejoice in the Lord!
Gentle be always.
The Lord is near you.
Fear not in all things.
But in ev’rything
By prayer, with thanksgiving,
Share your requests.
God will guard your hearts
With His peace always.

Think about these things:
Whate’er is honest;
Pure and is lovely;
And is praiseworthy.
Whate’er you have learned,
Or you have received, or
You heard from Christ,
Make it your practice.
God will be with you.

I can do all things
Through Him who gives strength.
Whate’er I go through,
Satisfied I’ll be.
My God will meet all
My needs according to
His riches in
Jesus Christ, my Lord.
Praise Him forever!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6oZOuR7S8eY