Thus saith the LORD, He that remaineth in this city shall die by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence: but he that goeth forth to the Chaldeans shall live; for he shall have his life for a prey, and shall live. {Jeremiah 38:2}
It is easier said than done to choose faith over fear. We would rather choose what makes sense to us at the moment, what is comfortable, and what we feel and believe is the safest way to confront our problems. But when God’s word is offered to us and He is showing us a different direction to take, no matter how scary it may be, it is best to choose to believe and trust in Him. No matter how uncomfortable it may be at the moment, it will be the best choice in the end.
I can’t help but feel sorry for the children of Judah in the time of Babylon, when the Chaldeans were trying to besiege their city. Here is the Lord through Prophet Jeremiah, telling them exactly what they needed to do: to give themselves up to the Babylonians, to submit to them rather than resist them or get help from Egypt. But they were all afraid. I can only imagine. Who wouldn’t be? Here they are being surrounded by a very strong army, and what else is there to do but fight for your life? I mean, you sure are dead if you don’t. Every thing in you will want to fight. You might as well fight. At one point when Prophet Jeremiah was warning them and preaching to them what to do, the leaders in Judah were so mad at him for speaking up for God and instructing them what they needed to do, that they had him beaten and locked up. They were saying we can’t have him telling us the Chaldeans are coming to this city and will burn the place. We can’t have negative things influencing people and weakening their fight. Instead of believing in the love that God has for His people, and trusting in the faithfulness of God’s word, they chose to trust in their current situation and came up with their own way to deliver themselves.
In the end, as true to God’s word through Prophet Jeremiah, the Babylonians came in and burned down their city and killed many of them. They also took the king and killed his sons and the princes that followed him. Before the king was put in prison, his eyes were gouged out. To make a long story short, it wasn’t a pretty sight. They should’ve just given themselves up to the Chaldeans and lived as captives, rather than resist and ending up prisoners in the king’s prison or dead. Some were burnt alive. They should’ve listened to the voice of the Lord talking to them through Prophet Jeremiah. They should’ve believed the Lord instead of choosing to be afraid.
Sometimes every part of our being will want to come up with a solution we think will save us from whatever mess we’re facing, rather than seeking the face of the Lord and finding His counsel. Even when we’re feeling in our spirit that we should go a certain direction rather than what makes total sense to our mind, we often choose to resist the leading of the spirit. Faith isn’t like that at all. Faith is believing that even when it’s not making sense in our minds, or in our eyes, or in what we believe is the most practical thing to do, we will go ahead and do it. We believe the word of the Lord. We have sought Him and found His counsel and followed Him. It might not make sense in the natural but it makes total sense in our spirit, in the spirit realm of trusting and believing in God.
I heard about this wonderful story of a woman who had a dream about a wise homeless man in their city, whom she believed would save a lot of people. The next day she and her husband went around to the very poor section of their city looking for this wise homeless man. They drove around for almost a day looking for the man she had seen in her dream, but they didn’t find him that day. Finally they ended up working together in a homeless shelter feeding the homeless. About two weeks later a crazy black man stormed into the hall in a rage screaming and yelling, threatening to kill the person who stole his shoes. Well, turns out, this was the man she had seen in her dream. Instead of being terrified and scared of what was before her, she set about convincing her husband to make friends with this crazy and scary homeless man. Long story short this crazy, scary homeless man turned around and became a great blessing to everyone who knew him. Because this wonderful woman chose to believe God and not fear, and her wonderful husband believed her dream and made friends with him, even though he was afraid, many were blessed. They were able to help lift this homeless man up from homelessness and self-destruction, to become someone who lifted people up around him. He turned out to be a very wise man indeed. He became an inspiring author, speaker and a philanthropist. He has come to help so many people. Today you can read all about this wonderful story in a book called Same Kind of Different As Me by Ron Hall and Denver Moore. It has also been turned into a movie. This is just one of the many examples of ordinary people choosing faith over fear, and ending up making such a great difference in the world.
God is going to speak to us if we’re available to Him. He is not a respecter of persons. He doesn’t care what your status is or where you came from, or what the color of your skin is, whether you are rich or poor or people think you’re good looking or not. He doesn’t care even what religion you’re from. He couldn’t care less about these things. What matters is that you care about who He is, and you want to have a relationship with Him. If you want Him you can have Him. You just ask Him and He will come to you. He will not turn away anyone that hopes and trusts in Him.
I think about another special man who heard the voice of the Lord and chose to follow Him. God told Abraham to leave his father and mother and the land where he was born, and go where God wanted him to go. I can imagine how he must have been a young man then when God called him, and had no idea how big and vast the world was. There was no electricity then, or Internet to show him Youtube videos to get an idea of the city he was going to be visiting next. He had no idea if there was going to be a city at all, or even if there was going to be people or stores to get supplies from. But Abraham just went. He left behind everything he knew, and just followed that voice that spoke to him to go where God wanted him.
We know the ending of Abraham. The Bible tells us that he became a friend of God. God told him that he will bless him so much that he will become a father of many nations. God told him that He will bless his descendants, and that whoever blesses them He will bless. And whoever curses them He will curse. Talk about God giving you favor. When Abraham was too old to have any children, God made good of His promise to him and his wife and blessed them with a son they called Isaac. Through Isaac we come to know about Esau and Jacob. And through Jacob and his relationship with God we come to know the descendants of Abraham, the children of Israel. Today indeed he has become a father of many nations, for not only did Abraham have many children and descendants, he has also become a spiritual father of faith to those who believe and trust in God. In his obedience to God by offering his only son Isaac as a sacrifice, and not denying him to God, our Heavenly Father was pleased to turn around and offer His only begotten Son Jesus Christ as the perfect sacrifice. And through that perfect sacrifice we can receive remission of sins and become the sons and daughters of the most High God. Indeed it pays to follow God all the way through, even when it doesn’t make sense to our carnal minds. Through faith in God, Abraham became the most famous father of faith of many nations.
In our walk with the Lord it’s going to be scary sometimes. Actually, everyday we’re going to be facing challenges in our lives to either follow Him, or follow what is easier or more comfortable for us. But when you’ve heard His voice, you can be assured that whatever it is He is asking you, He will not leave you alone. As soon as you’ve decided to obey and follow Him, He will be there for you to see you through until the end.
Imagine the disciples following Jesus. They were fishermen by trade, that’s all they knew. The Bible states they were ignorant men. None of them were educated, what could they possibly do for God? And yet when Jesus told them to follow Him, they went and left everything behind. They slept where the Lord slept and ate what the Lord ate. In the interim, they learned what Jesus wanted them to learn. When the time came that Jesus needed to leave them, He was able to entrust them to carry out His work and teach people about trusting in His name. Today we benefit so much from the teachings of the apostles and the disciples. We wouldn’t know a single thing about what a wonderful thing God has given to us through His Son Jesus Christ, in giving His life for us at the cross, if it wasn’t for their writings. Through the cross we can find forgiveness for our sins and the gift of eternal life through the shedding of His precious blood. It is through the writings of the apostles we come to know this, that we can actually find salvation for our soul today. We can actually find God through talking to Him with our hearts and asking Him to be our Lord and our Savior. He can come and enter into our bodies and become a part of us today. We can find how real and powerful He is, just through believing what the apostles wrote about in His word.
Choosing faith over fear is the only way to live a life that is pleasing to the Lord. It is the only way to make it through in this life. There are always things to be afraid of. We live in a world full of uncertainties. It is a world filled with darkness that hovers over the face of the Earth. Satan goes around seeking whom he may devour. Evil spirits are all around us. It’s no wonder there are so many scary things that are happening in our world today. There are so many things to be worried about that we can make ourselves sick just thinking about them. But if we want to live a victorious life and overcome these things that want to swallow us, all we need to do is turn and choose faith instead. We can open up to God and talk to Him about what we’re afraid of, and ask Him to show us what to think and what to feel. We can ask Him to counsel us. Through the reading of His word we can find out what He’s saying to us and showing us. Through dreams and visions and through the Holy Ghost, we can feel and experience His comfort. Fear doesn’t have to rule over us. We can instead rise above every fear and live a victorious life. All it takes is to choose faith over fear.
For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. {2 Timothy 1:7}
Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. {John 14:27}
But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. {Hebrews 11:6}
Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not. {Jeremiah 33:3}
And call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me. {Psalm 50:15}
But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible. {Matthew 19:26}
And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved. {Matthew 10:22}
I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me. {Philippians 4:13}
Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. {Matthew 7:7}
Prayer
Lord Jesus, I thank You Father for Your great and boundless love upon me. I know that You are true to Your word. Whatever You say will come to pass. You promised to never ever leave me nor forsake me. Father I hope and trust in You.
I pray Lord Jesus for even more faith in You. You said that when You come back You will look for faith from us. Will I believe You until the end? Will I continue to believe You when things are going wrong in my life and in our world, and nothing is making sense? Please Father, help me, for nothing is too hard with You. Help me to keep hoping and believing and trusting in Your great love for me. Please give me more faith, Lord Jesus. As times are getting more challenging in the world today and as things seem to be getting worse, please help me to keep believing that You are faithful. Help me to keep believing that You are there and You will not ever leave me. Let me feel Your love for me Lord Jesus. I believe in You. You will come through for me, Lord. You will work all things out for my good. You will make it well for me in the end. I pray this Father in Your most wonderful and gracious name, Jesus. Thank You, Father. Amen.
