Do Not Be Afraid

THE DAILY WORD
By Jim Seekamp

Wednesday January 9, 2008

Luke 1:68-75 (NIV) (Prophecy given by Zechariah)
68. "Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, because he has come and has redeemed his people. 69. He has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David 70. (as he said through his holy prophets of long ago), 71. salvation from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us-- 72. to show mercy to our fathers and to remember his holy covenant, 73. the oath he swore to our father Abraham:
74. to rescue us from the hand of our enemies, and to enable us to serve him without fear 75. in holiness and righteousness before him all our days."

I just love the last part of that prophecy. Jesus came to "enable us to serve him WITHOUT FEAR!" We are NOT to be afraid in these New Testament times! God has enabled us to serve Him WITHOUT FEAR!

When the angel appeared to Zechariah, he said, "Do not be afraid!":

Luke 1:13 (NIV)
But the angel said to him: "Do not be afraid, Zechariah"

Then when the angel appeared to Mary, he said the same thing!

Luke 1:30 (NIV)
But the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid..."

Then when the angel appeared to the shepherds at the time of Jesus' birth, what did he say??

Luke 2:10 (NIV)
10. But the angel said to them, "DO NOT BE AFRAID. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people."

When Jesus healed the synogogue ruler's daughter, He said:

Luke 8:50 (NIV)
Hearing this, Jesus said to Jairus, "DON'T BE AFRAID; just believe, and she will be healed."

When Jesus told the disciples about the Kingdom of God:

Luke 12:32 (NIV) (Jesus speaking)
"DO NOT BE AFRAID, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom."

When Jesus came to the disciples, walking on the water, what did He say?

John 6:20 (NIV)
But he said to them, "It is I; DON'T BE AFRAID."

When Jesus told His disciples about how He would have to leave them, He reminded them again:

John 14:27 (NIV) (Jesus speaking)
"Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and DO NOT BE AFRAID."

When the women went to the tomb after Jesus' death on the cross, the angel at the tomb told them:

Matthew 28:5 (NIV)
The angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid"

Then when Jesus Himself appeared to the women, HE told them not to be afraid:

Matthew 28:10 (NIV)
Then Jesus said to them, "Do not be afraid."

Do we see a trend here? God, through His angels and through Jesus, is always telling us NOT to be afraid! By telling us that, He is also telling us WE HAVE A CHOICE whether to be afraid or not!!!!!

God has enabled us to serve Him WITHOUT FEAR all our days! Jesus preached the opposite of fear; He preached PEACE!

Ephesians 2:17 (NIV)
He (Jesus) came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near.

Jesus left His peace with us:

John 14:27 (NIV) (Jesus speaking)
"Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and DO NOT BE AFRAID."

PRAYER
Thank You Father for Your Word. Thank You for enabling me to serve You without fear. Help me to remember not to be afraid, because You are always looking out for me, and Your Holy Spirit is inside me.
In Jesus' Name, Amen

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Check out the Daily Word Archives at:
http://www.jimseekamp.com

To subscribe to the Daily Word, send an email with the subject "SUBSCRIBE" to mailto:dailyword@jimseekamp.com

If you wish to unsubscribe, please send an email with the subject "UNSUBSCRIBE" to mailto:dailyword@jimseekamp.com

To have Jim Seekamp speak at your church or group meeting, email him at: jimseekamp@jimseekamp.com