Post by Rev. Jim Cunningham on Nov 19, 2008 5:03:15 GMT -5
From: Manager Rev. Jim (Original Message) Sent: 6/7/2008 12:44 PM
Brothers and Sisters,
Thus saith the Lord..............
God hath not given us the spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.
- 2 Timothy 1:7
I will both lay me down in peace, and sleep: for Thou, Lord, only makest me dwell in safety.
-Psalm 4:8
He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the LORD, “He is my Refuge and my Fortress: my God; in Him will I trust. Surely He shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence.”
He shall cover thee with His feathers, and under His wings shalt thou trust: His truth shall be thy shield and buckler. Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night, nor for the arrow that flieth by day, Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness, nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday. A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee. Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked.
Because thou hast made the LORD, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation, there shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling. For He shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways. They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone. Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder: the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under feet.
Because he hath set his love upon Me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known My Name. He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him. With long life will I satisfy him, and shew him My Salvation.
- Psalm 91
Many of us have come to believe that everything that happens to us is God’s will. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard people say, “Well, when your time’s up, your times up!” Even Christians say, “You just never know.” When someone dies prematurely, like a small child, or a newly wed bride or groom, or a new mother, there is always someone around to say that God took them home. But, friends, those things are based on faithlessness.
God’s Word says that those who love the Lord will be satisfied with long life. God promises that those who trust Him will be sheltered from all harm. He says that NO evil will come near our dwelling place. Yet, because we see bad things happen to good people all the time, we’ve come to tell ourselves that this is the way it is. The lie we tell ourselves is that, even though we know that God is ABLE to protect us, we just never know IF and WHEN He WILL protect us. That is not the Truth, that is not God’s Doctrine. That is faithlessness.
But what is it to believe? What is faith?
Faith is knowing that something which you cannot see is real and true, or, as the Bible says, "faith is the evidence of things not seen". It is being so sure of something that you simply expect it. You simply know that the sun will rise in the morning. You simply know that there will be air each time you take a breath. We don’t even question these things. We just KNOW in our hearts.
Having faith in God’s protection means that you know in your heart without a shadow of a doubt that He will protect you at all times. When you know that God is protecting you, you have no fear. I’m not referring to bravery, like getting on a lunacidal roller coaster. But it’s amazing to note that more people trust the safety of a frail man-made roller coaster than they trust in the protective hands of their Creator who balances the stars in the heavens and keeps the earth on its track around the sun. Bravery, or courage, is not faith. Faith is knowing and believing in a specific outcome; bravery and courage is manufactured self trust in the undertaking of a risk with an uncertain outcome.
We falsely think that, since God is in control, we therefore have no part in what happens to us. “It’s God’s will,” people say. Yet in the verses above we see that we most certainly do have a part in it. The Psalmist tells us, “I WILL SAY OF THE LORD THAT HE…”. Our part is to CONFESS that our God is not like the other gods that people worship. He is not like Zeus, who may or may not intercede in his worship’s life, who randomly blesses or inflicts sorrow on the lives of people. We must confess that our God IS God, that our God does not lie, that our God loves His people and that He will protect them at all times. We are different from the world in that we profess boldly with our mouths, from our hearts, that not only is our God ABLE to protect us, but that He WILL protect us. We do not fear, because there is nothing to fear. Our God will not betray our trust in Him. Our God will protect us in a car, in an airplane, on a boat; He will protect us from disease and from murderers and from thieves and from violence, when we glorify Him by believing and declaring it.
God said that, though A THOUSAND people perish at your side and TEN THOUSAND at your right hand, yet YOU will not be harmed. Do you understand this? If you have the trust of a child and simply believe in your heart without fear that the Lord is your fortress and your shield, and if you confess this, then an atomic bomb can fall on you, leaving you unharmed. The protection of the Lord will split a path in an oncoming tsunami tidal wave for you if you simply believe with your heart without fear that God is your God and that He will protect you. Didn’t Jesus tell you, “All these thing soever you have seen Me do, you shall do and more.” And He said that all you had to do was to just trust that the Father has power over all things and that He will in fact PROTECT YOU AND SATISFY YOU WITH LONG LIFE.
When John in the Book of Revelation foresaw the Tribulation and the plagues that the Lord was inflicting on the wicked, one of the things that infuriated God so much was that no one would glorify Him specifically by accrediting to Him that He “had power over all of these things.” The Lord God has power over ALL THINGS. By KNOWING in your heart and confessing with your mouth that He has power over any evil that might befall you, and by standing confidently on that truth, NO EVIL SHALL BEFALL YOU. It will not come nigh your home. You will lay down at night in peace and you will sleep. The only terror you will behold with your eyes will be God’s judgment upon the wicked.
But you must believe without fear. Fear is distrust. Fearing that God may not protect you is a declaration that you do not trust God. Quoting verses from the Bible about God's protection without trust in God is witchcraft. It is an attempt at using the Bible as a spell book to affect change by your own sayso. That is not how faith works. Faith is KNOWING WITHOUT FEAR that God will keep you safe, so that when you do quote God's Word, you do so based on conviction and confidence. When danger comes your way, confidence in the Lord's protection will lead you to say boldly, "The Lord is my refuge and my fortress!", rather than faithlessly crying , "God, please please please help me!!!"
So sleep, ride in a car or an airplane or a boat or a train, work, and live life in peace and without fear, confessing and dwelling in the promise and reality of the safety of God. Simply trust Him. Yes, we live in perilous times, and the peril grows each day. But what is that to you? Your God has power over all of these things, and in His arms will you be sheltered.
in Jesus,
Rev. Jim
Brothers and Sisters,
Thus saith the Lord..............
God hath not given us the spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.
- 2 Timothy 1:7
I will both lay me down in peace, and sleep: for Thou, Lord, only makest me dwell in safety.
-Psalm 4:8
He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the LORD, “He is my Refuge and my Fortress: my God; in Him will I trust. Surely He shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence.”
He shall cover thee with His feathers, and under His wings shalt thou trust: His truth shall be thy shield and buckler. Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night, nor for the arrow that flieth by day, Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness, nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday. A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee. Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked.
Because thou hast made the LORD, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation, there shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling. For He shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways. They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone. Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder: the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under feet.
Because he hath set his love upon Me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known My Name. He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him. With long life will I satisfy him, and shew him My Salvation.
- Psalm 91
Many of us have come to believe that everything that happens to us is God’s will. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard people say, “Well, when your time’s up, your times up!” Even Christians say, “You just never know.” When someone dies prematurely, like a small child, or a newly wed bride or groom, or a new mother, there is always someone around to say that God took them home. But, friends, those things are based on faithlessness.
God’s Word says that those who love the Lord will be satisfied with long life. God promises that those who trust Him will be sheltered from all harm. He says that NO evil will come near our dwelling place. Yet, because we see bad things happen to good people all the time, we’ve come to tell ourselves that this is the way it is. The lie we tell ourselves is that, even though we know that God is ABLE to protect us, we just never know IF and WHEN He WILL protect us. That is not the Truth, that is not God’s Doctrine. That is faithlessness.
But what is it to believe? What is faith?
Faith is knowing that something which you cannot see is real and true, or, as the Bible says, "faith is the evidence of things not seen". It is being so sure of something that you simply expect it. You simply know that the sun will rise in the morning. You simply know that there will be air each time you take a breath. We don’t even question these things. We just KNOW in our hearts.
Having faith in God’s protection means that you know in your heart without a shadow of a doubt that He will protect you at all times. When you know that God is protecting you, you have no fear. I’m not referring to bravery, like getting on a lunacidal roller coaster. But it’s amazing to note that more people trust the safety of a frail man-made roller coaster than they trust in the protective hands of their Creator who balances the stars in the heavens and keeps the earth on its track around the sun. Bravery, or courage, is not faith. Faith is knowing and believing in a specific outcome; bravery and courage is manufactured self trust in the undertaking of a risk with an uncertain outcome.
We falsely think that, since God is in control, we therefore have no part in what happens to us. “It’s God’s will,” people say. Yet in the verses above we see that we most certainly do have a part in it. The Psalmist tells us, “I WILL SAY OF THE LORD THAT HE…”. Our part is to CONFESS that our God is not like the other gods that people worship. He is not like Zeus, who may or may not intercede in his worship’s life, who randomly blesses or inflicts sorrow on the lives of people. We must confess that our God IS God, that our God does not lie, that our God loves His people and that He will protect them at all times. We are different from the world in that we profess boldly with our mouths, from our hearts, that not only is our God ABLE to protect us, but that He WILL protect us. We do not fear, because there is nothing to fear. Our God will not betray our trust in Him. Our God will protect us in a car, in an airplane, on a boat; He will protect us from disease and from murderers and from thieves and from violence, when we glorify Him by believing and declaring it.
God said that, though A THOUSAND people perish at your side and TEN THOUSAND at your right hand, yet YOU will not be harmed. Do you understand this? If you have the trust of a child and simply believe in your heart without fear that the Lord is your fortress and your shield, and if you confess this, then an atomic bomb can fall on you, leaving you unharmed. The protection of the Lord will split a path in an oncoming tsunami tidal wave for you if you simply believe with your heart without fear that God is your God and that He will protect you. Didn’t Jesus tell you, “All these thing soever you have seen Me do, you shall do and more.” And He said that all you had to do was to just trust that the Father has power over all things and that He will in fact PROTECT YOU AND SATISFY YOU WITH LONG LIFE.
When John in the Book of Revelation foresaw the Tribulation and the plagues that the Lord was inflicting on the wicked, one of the things that infuriated God so much was that no one would glorify Him specifically by accrediting to Him that He “had power over all of these things.” The Lord God has power over ALL THINGS. By KNOWING in your heart and confessing with your mouth that He has power over any evil that might befall you, and by standing confidently on that truth, NO EVIL SHALL BEFALL YOU. It will not come nigh your home. You will lay down at night in peace and you will sleep. The only terror you will behold with your eyes will be God’s judgment upon the wicked.
But you must believe without fear. Fear is distrust. Fearing that God may not protect you is a declaration that you do not trust God. Quoting verses from the Bible about God's protection without trust in God is witchcraft. It is an attempt at using the Bible as a spell book to affect change by your own sayso. That is not how faith works. Faith is KNOWING WITHOUT FEAR that God will keep you safe, so that when you do quote God's Word, you do so based on conviction and confidence. When danger comes your way, confidence in the Lord's protection will lead you to say boldly, "The Lord is my refuge and my fortress!", rather than faithlessly crying , "God, please please please help me!!!"
So sleep, ride in a car or an airplane or a boat or a train, work, and live life in peace and without fear, confessing and dwelling in the promise and reality of the safety of God. Simply trust Him. Yes, we live in perilous times, and the peril grows each day. But what is that to you? Your God has power over all of these things, and in His arms will you be sheltered.
in Jesus,
Rev. Jim