Fear Not
We all have a shared experience of living through the fear and anxiety of a pandemic. The Covid virus that brought about many deaths, sickness and changes to the way we work, educate and socialize. Covid took many of us out of our comfort zones and routines and even displaced some. Covid caused fear and anxiety to grip our nation as we tried to figure out how to survive without a vaccine to help preserve our lives. In this week’s scripture (Isaiah 43:1-4; 10-12), Israel would face the existential crisis of captivity in Babylon. They would experience the fear and anxiety of not knowing what the future held for them. But God sent them a message through the prophet Isaiah, telling them to fear not, for He was with them. And because they were His, He would redeem and save them. I pray that whatever fear and anxiety you may experience, that you will call on the God who loves you and paid a great ransom to save you, for He has promised to be with you even in your most dire circumstances.
But now, this is what the LORD says—
he who created you, Jacob,
he who formed you, Israel:
“Do not fear, for I have redeemed you;
I have summoned you by name; you are mine.
When you pass through the waters,
I will be with you;
and when you pass through the rivers,
they will not sweep over you.
When you walk through the fire,
you will not be burned;
the flames will not set you ablaze.
For I am the LORD your God,
the Holy One of Israel, your Savior;
I give Egypt for your ransom,
Cush and Seba in your stead.
Since you are precious and honored in my sight,
and because I love you,
I will give people in exchange for you,
nations in exchange for your life. (Isaiah 43:1-4). God spoke to His people who would experience captivity in Babylon. His message to them was that He was their creator and their redeemer and because they belonged to Him, He would not leave them in bondage. He knew them each personally enough to call them by name. And He would not allow their situation to overwhelm them (as in rushing waters) nor consume them (as in fiery flames). Why? Because even in those most disastrous situations, God said that He would be with them. Instead, He promised that He would redeem them (buy them back out of bondage). He would pay their ransom, using Egypt, Cush and Sheba to exchange for their lives. He was willing to do all of this for them because they were precious to Him and He loved them. He alone was their God and He alone would save them. In the same way, the same God loves us so much that He exchanged the life of His only Son to redeem us. He sent Jesus to the cross to buy us back from our bondage to sin, because we too are precious to Him and our Lord is the only one who could save us. Do you know that you are precious to God and that He paid a great price to save you?
“You are my witnesses, ” declares the LORD,
“and my servant whom I have chosen,
so that you may know and believe me
and understand that I am he.
Before me no god was formed,
nor will there be one after me.
I, even I, am the LORD,
and apart from me there is no savior.
I have revealed and saved and proclaimed—
I, and not some foreign god among you.
You are my witnesses, ” declares the LORD, “that I am God. (Isaiah 43:10-12). God declared that His people would be witnesses and serve Him. They could look back over their history to see proof that He is the one true God. And they would know Him, knowing that He alone is God and that He alone had saved them. Israel had worshipped the gods of foreign nations and been led into apostasy (abandoned God’s laws and commandments). But as His witnesses, they would not only know God, but believe that He alone is God and understand what He required of them. Not only would they know and believe, but they would begin living like they truly knew who God is and what He had done for them. Are you a witness to God’s salvation in your life? Do you live like it?
All of us have found ourselves in bad circumstances. We've been in places (physically and mentally) that caused us to experience fear and anxiety. We've experienced fear and anxiety over our futures, because when we don't know what will happen, our minds tell us all of the negative things that might happen to us. But God’s message to His people is that regardless of what the future holds, He is the one who holds the future! And because He loves us and we are His, He made a way for us to be saved. And we are witnesses to His love and salvation, His grace and forgiveness. Our witness should not only tell others about our God and His salvation, our witness to the world about our God should also be manifested in the way we live. We should live like we know and believe that He is the one true God. The one who created everything and loves us so deeply, that He will redeem all who come to Him for salvation. When we really learn to live like His witnesses, we start trusting Him enough to turn to Him as our first resource and not our last resort. Then, we can live boldly and confidently (not fearful and anxious about the future), because God has spoken and He is faithful to His word. For we serve a God who has promised us that He will be with us on every mountain top and in every valley…He is with us, so fear not!
Blessings,
Rev. Glenn
Listen to Richard Smallwood and Vision singing “Trust Me”
