2011_07_26 Facing your fear Romans 8

Facing our fears Faith Service Worship Vision

Romans 8:31-39

26 July 2011

What is your biggest fear? What do you fear the most? In life we have a lot of things we fear. When we were little,

we may have feared things like the dark or storms. When we get older, we may fear the same things but we may also fear for our jobs, finances, marriage, children, retirement, and the list goes on.

We have a word for every kind fear; there are words for the fear of going bald (Phalacrophobia) and a fear of bald people (Peladophobia). There is a word for the fear of beards (Pogonophobia), Belly buttons (Omphalophobia), Vegetables- (Lachanophobia), Church- (Ecclesiophobia). You name the fear; there is a word for it. Fear in the extreme will freeze us in our tracks, it will keep us from doing things we should and need to do.

Fear is powerful when we allow it to be!

Is there a hidden (or not so hidden) fear lurking in your mind that is holding you back from the life you want? Do you find that you hesitate when you are presented with new opportunities? Do you allow your own negative imaginations to rule your actions?

Have you ever been in a situation where you were prepared for the worst to happen? Maybe your mind ran

wild with terrible thoughts and you were literally paralysed by fear! Soon the feared event happened! Yet when you eventually passed through the actual experience you realised that the fear you had was much worse than the actual event! We can get to the point where we fear what God thinks of us because of what has happened with other people or what has happened in our past. Have you ever feared the worst and it didn’t happen?

Christ offers us freedom from fear Two explorers were on a jungle safari when suddenly a ferocious lion jumped in front of them. “Keep calm” the first explorer whispered. “Remember what we read in that book on wild animals? If you stand perfectly still and look the lion in the eye, he will turn and run.” “Sure,” replied his companion. “You’ve read the book, and I’ve read the book. But has the lion read the book?”

Today from the book of books we are going to see we need not fear people, bad circumstance, or any potential problems! Jesus wants you to be free! Romans 8:15 “The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption”

When you belong to Jesus, you no longer have to be ruled by fear!

But the Bible DOES tell us we should fear God. Fear the LORD your God, serve him only and take your oaths in his name. (Deuteronomy 6:13) The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life, turning a man from the snares of death. (Proverbs 14:27) You who fear the LORD, praise him! (Psalm 22:23) The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom (Psalm 111:10) (God) will bless those who fear the LORD— small and great alike. (Psalm 115:13)

Again and again and again we’re told to fear God. What does it mean to have the fear of God?

For the unbeliever, the fear of God is the fear of the judgment of God and eternal death, which is eternal separation from God (Luke 12:5; Hebrews 10:31).

For the believer, the fear of God is something much different. The believer’s fear is reverence of God. Hebrews 12:28-29 is a good description of this: “Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our ’God is a consuming fire.’” This reverence and awe is exactly what the fear of God means for Christians. This is the motivating factor for us to surrender to the Creator of the Universe.

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Don’t fear people

Fear of God = Reverence of God The kind of fear the Bible endorses is the kind of fear that makes us want to please God and to praise Him - a fear that makes look forward to receiving wisdom and blessings and a safe life. By contrast the fear Paul is addressing in Romans 8 is a fear that makes us want to run away from God. It’s an irrational, baseless fear.

What, then, shall we say in response to these things?

If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? 33 Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. 34 Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. (Romans 8:31-34)

Paul says “…there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death.”

(Romans 8:1-2) What Paul is saying is: “If it weren’t for Jesus saving us we WOULD be condemned. We WOULD be under judgment. We WOULD be denied the love and blessings of God.” But now that we’re Christians - there is no condemnation.

In life we face many different types of people, some will like us and others will not like us and will do whatever they can to make life miserable for us.

Why do we care about what others think of us?

Our shame and guilt is removed.

In the context of the letter, there were many who were persecuting Christians and in the midst of that, some people thought that God had forsaken those who were being mistreated at the hand of another.

One of Don Francisco’s songs Tthere is no condemnation) said it this way: “Sitting by my window on a rainy afternoon Everything inside my head was playing out of tune I was thinking of the fool I’d made of me the night before In front of God and everyone, I’d sinned and sinned some more.

Well I thought of all the things I’d done, I winced at things I’d said.

I wallowed in self pity, I hung my weary head And right when I was so far down that even up looked wrong that’s when Jesus gave to me the chorus of this song He said “Satan the accuser has been whispering in your ear You just tell him you’re forgiven, he’s got no business here ’Cause it doesn’t matter what you’ve done - it matters what you’ll be There is NO CONDEMNATION when the Son has set you free.”

If God is for us, then who can be against us?

In the original text, the “IF” is not a doubting “if” to question whether God is for us or not, a more meaningful translation would be “SINCE” God is for us, who can stand against us. This verse does not imply that we will have no opposition in life or that we will not have people try to impede our work for the gospel - it tells us, in comparison to God, what are all these other issues.

It does not matter what position of power a person is in, they are not more powerful than God. People may be able to make you life hard, they may be able to take your life, but they cannot take away your gift of salvation, they cannot take your relationship with God away, they cannot separate you from the love of God! In verse 32 we are reminded that since God did not spare or withhold His own Son from us, will He not also give us all things in life? When God freely gives, He does it by His grace; this is what freely give means.

That’s the message Paul wants to drive home to us. When we accepted Christ’s free gift of salvation He freed us from our guilt and shame.

Romans 8

In verses 33-34 we have a shift in imagery to a court room where a person is standing there accusing God’s people before a judge. Paul asks who will bring a charge against God’s elect? We are told that God over and over again justifies His people, or declares them innocent.

In chapter 8, Paul tells us that we’ve been: 1. Freed from sin 2. Empowered by His Spirit 3. Adopted to be His children 4. And transformed to become like Jesus in how we live.

People can accuse you all they want, but if you are faithful to God, He is pronouncing you innocent. Once God pronounces us innocent and justified, there is no changing it. We cannot be condemned as long as God pronounces us justified.

And God did all this (Paul says) because He loves you.

You don’t have to be afraid of God hating you because God so loved you that He gave His only begotten Son. In the previous three chapters Paul tells us the depth of God’s love for us by showing us the many blessings we have by belonging to Him. In Romans 8:31 he says, What then shall we say to these things?

With all the blessings that are mentioned in the Bible, and the blessings we have all experienced, why do we so often doubt the love God has for us?

In verse 34 what are the four reasons why no one can condemn those who are declared innocent by God?

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Jesus died for us, Jesus was raised, Jesus is seated at the right hand of the Father, and Jesus intercedes for the redeemed. Who is greater than God? Who is against us?

Who will bring a charge against us? Who is the one who condemns us? The God we belong to is greater than all.

Don’t fear circumstance

In Romans 8:35 we see people being persecuted, not as a sign of God’s disapproval of them, they suffered because they were objects of God’s love.

Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 As it is written: “For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.” 37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. (Romans 8:35-37) 35

In Psalm 44, the Psalmist does not understand what is happening and is complaining about the circumstances, but Paul is not doing he same here. Paul exhibits a sense of rejoicing. Not only can bad times glorify God, but we are told that through Jesus we can not only conquer the things listed in verse 35, but we can be more than conquerors!

How many people do you know who have allowed bad things to turn them away from God?

Can you think of a time when God enabled you to be more than a conqueror?

If people mistreat you do you feel like God has left you?

Not only are our adversaries void of the power to separate us from the love of God, but their opposition is turned to our account, enhancing the power of our victory through Jesus. It may look like things are against us, but they are not!

Do you fear what people can do to you?

Do you feel like God does not love you if bad things happen to you?

Bad times can make us think we are not being loved by God, but instead we are enabled by Christ to have victory upon victory through Him.

Verse 35 asks the fourth questions since verse 31 to demonstrate the love God has for us. No matter what happens around us or to us, we must remember that God loves us even if circumstances may cause us to feel like He does not.

Don’t fear problems

Remember, some bad things we bring on ourselves because of things we have done, but I am not speaking of these things. When we suffer because of our faith or when we suffer something from which we have no control, we tend to feel as if God has left us.

For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

(Romans 8:38-39) 38

There is a progression with the list of bad things Paul mentions in this section.

Paul gives us the grand conclusion to this section of Romans. Paul adds some personal commentary to this section. He is completely convinced of the love of God for those who are saved. Paul faced a lot of hard times because he belonged to Jesus, yet He did not question God’s love, Paul lived a life without fear!

Trouble/Tribulation - a feeling of pressure.

Distress - the inner anxiety that comes from not knowing where to turn.

Persecution - the pursuit or hounding by enemies, sometimes including bodily harm.

Are you completely convinced of the love God has for you? How has he demonstrated His love to you?

Famine - this happens when you are fleeing your persecutors.

No condition of existence (life of death), no beings (angels, principalities) nothing in time (present of future), nothing in the way of powers of forces, nothing in space (heights of depths), nothing in all creation, can separate a Christian from God’s saving love by placing a barrier between them and that love so that it cannot reach them.

Nakedness - Stolen property, or when one has to flee, leaving possessions behind.

Peril - dangers when finally caught by persecutors.

Sword - denotes the death that finally happens to the pursued.

No matter what or who you are facing, or what you have faced or done in your life; you need not have fear if you belong to Jesus!

Psalm 44 Verse 36 is a quote of Psalm 44:22 where the Psalmist is upset and complaining over the persecution that is happening to the people at the time. Trials have always been a part of the life we live, but these trials never separated us from God. Even though the saints of old suffered at the hands of evil men, they were still the object of God’s love.

Do you allow your past to be a barrier to fully experiencing God’s love?

Are you allowing a current situation to deflect the feeling of God’s love and power and presence?

Do you let bad things or other people get in the way?

The picture in Psalm 44:22 is one of Israel suffering not because of their sin, but because of their faithfulness to God.

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In Christ we have no fear!

One thing can know that should help dispel any fear you are living with is God loves you, He is for you and He will do what He has promised us He would do. Now is the time to stop living in fear!

If you get nothing else from today understand this, Christ loves you. Notice what it says in these verses: Can Trouble separate you from the love God, NO Can hardship separate you from the love of God, NO Can persecution separate you from the love of God, NO Can Famine, NO. Can Nakedness, NO. Danger, NO. Sword, NO. Nothing, nothing, nothing can separate you from the love of God

Application Let’s look at what this means practically in our lives

When we make a mistake, do we become separated from the love of God? When everyone seems to be against us, are we separated from the love of God? If our friends turn their back on us are we separated from the love of God?

Nothing can separate us from the love of God It is impossible, you cannot lose the love of God! Say it and mean it - 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:38-39) Fear? You do not need to with Christ as your saviour remember what you have: You have God for You Christ died for You God who justify – just as if I, you Christ who intercedes for you And God loves you!

There is nothing to fear No matter what the situation God is there for you, God loves You take these promises and apply them to your life.

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