Fear is a great motivator–if used correctly. It’s why we fear the LORD above anything else.

⁴ Humility is the fear of the Lord; its wages are riches and honor and life.
⁴ “Dear friends, don’t be afraid of those who want to kill your body; they cannot do any more to you after that. ⁵ But I’ll tell you whom to fear. Fear God, who has the power to kill you and then throw you into hell. Yes, he’s the one to fear. Luke 12:4

Continuing:
Chaste- Virtuous, undefiled, stainless, kept.
Thoughts lead to actions. God says for us to guard our hearts.
Thoughts, hearts/feelings, actions–they’re all connected!

There are quite a few areas in which we humans are susceptible to sin: Entitlement, Lust, Pride, Vanity, Impatience, Selfishness, Sloth, Anger, Spite, Rage, Hate, Gluttony, and Fear, to name a few. Yesterday, we looked at Gluttony. The last one we will cover is Fear.

Fear- We serve Who or what we fear the most. If forced to make a decision, we will choose that which we fear every time. In the case of heroes, they fear someone else getting hurt over the fear for their own lives. It’s why firemen rush into burning buildings, policemen stand in the way of evil, and soldiers fight for liberty and justice for all.

In  the case of our LORD and Savior Jesus Christ, His followers fear the price for our sin being paid for nothing, the cross of Christ borne in vain. In our lives, we fear not the LORD’s wrath, for we have been saved from it. What we learn to fear is this: Not living up to the name we have been given, the family name of God Himself. More than money, more than security, more than success or power or health or long life, we want to live for Him, stand for Him, and, if He asks us, die for Him. KNOW THIS: If it ever comes to that, He walks the veil with us. Beth Moore puts it like this: “Sometimes He delivers us by the fire straight into the arms of Jesus! Our faith is finished (perfected).” With this knowledge, we no longer fear what can happen to these bodies of ours, to our loved ones, even to our nation–or the entire world! We know that God’s got this and us, and we literally have nothing to truly fear. We will always have feelings, but we know better than to trust our feelings. We trust our faith, which is believing what Jesus has told us about Himself, His Plan, and what He has in store for us.

We could spend all day talking about His Plan and what he has in store for us, so suffice it to say that He will in our daily Bible readings reveal His plan to us and confirm it by His Spirit within us. Really, we only need to know one verse about fear, “for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.” 2 Timothy 1:7.

1. God gave us His Spirit.
2. His Spirit brings peace, not fear.
3. His Spirit gives us both the desire and the power to do what God asks us to do. We love God, therefore, we obey Jesus by the power of the Holy Spirit.
4. Our self-control is really His control in and over us. We willingly submit to His Spirit; it’s the only way to be truly free and to truly know our Savior.

Today, let’s put all our eggs in His basket. Let’s place all our money–our very lives on Him. Our goal must not be to live long and happy lives–that’s the world’s goal. Our goal is to be pleasing to the Father regardless of any hardships, any conflicts, and any suffering we do on this earth. IT’S NOT OUR HOME! Let’s act like it’s not, okay?

Abba, may we take very seriously the commitment we have made to You to love You, to serve You, and to follow You wherever You lead. In the words of Peter, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.” (John 6:68). Lead us today, LORD Jesus, and we will follow. Amen.