Fight The Fear #1: No Fear, Know Faith -2 Timothy 1
Also Remember, What You Believe and Who You Are

There is a great assurance, a great foundation of courage that comes from knowing the true faith and standing on its unshakeable foundation. Don’t play at Christianity, this is not a sideline, not a game. If you are saved then this is who you are a child of God, a servant of Christ, a member of the Body of Christ. You need to know what that means to you and what it meant to all those who have gone before you.

C. S. Lewis once said, “We must not fall below the standard our fathers set for us, and because we are their sons there is good hope we shall not.”

There is confidence and courage and a duty that overcomes fear if we remember our heritage. We are who we are because of those who has have gone on before us. Faithful men and women who walked the same path we are now on and we owe them and those who will walk this path after us. We have a rich, deep and glorious heritage of family, church and truth. I will not shrink from those things. I am not ashamed of being a committed Child of God, having a rich Christian heritage or being a member of a Bible believing Baptist church. To be ashamed of those things is to be lose the very things we need to remember, in order to fight against the fear.

If you remember, then you will overcome, time and time again, and it will be true for you as Paul said in Ephesians 6, “Having done all to stand.”
Finally, Remember the Gifts of God.

God has given us gifts as His children, powerful, supernatural, fear-defeating gifts. We have the dynamite of God’s word; We have the desire of God’s love and we have the determination of the Holy Spirit’s control. We are equipped, so never regard the fear, never retreat and never refuse to enter the battle.
Quotes: From those who Fought The Fear

I am in earnest, I will not retreat a single step and I will be heard. – William Lloyd Garrison’s epitaph.

I am only one, but I am one. I cannot do everything, but I can do something. What I can do, I should do and with the help of God, I will do. – Everett Hale

I charge you, my people fix your feet on the solid rock, your hearts on Calvary and your eyes on the throne of the Lamb – John Jasper , 1812-1901

Conclusion: I am part of the fellowship of the unashamed

During a time of persecution and martyrdom in Africa many years ago, Christians, their families and especially their pastors were arrested, tortured and then killed. Just as Jesus told us, “they will hate you for they have hated me.” Christians are and have always been the most persecuted people on earth. That will not change, it is and will grow worse. At such a bad time in Africa after several pastors were led out to a stadium and publically executed, this writing was found nailed to the wall of one of the cells where they had been held the night before. It has no author that I know of and so it speaks as though in the voice of every child of God who choose to Fight the Fear.

"I am part of the fellowship of the unashamed. I have Holy Spirit power. The die has been cast. I have stepped over the line. The decision has been made. I'm a disciple of His. I won't look back, letup, slow down, back away, or be still.

My past is redeemed, my present makes sense, my future is secure. I'm finished with low living, sight walking, small planning, smooth knees, colorless dreams, tamed visions, mundane talking, cheap living, and dwarfed goals.

I no longer need preeminence, prosperity, position, promotions, plaudits, or popularity. I don't have to be first, recognized, praised, regarded, or rewarded. I now live by faith, lean on His presence, walk by patience, lift by prayer, and labor by power.

My face is set, my gait is fast, my goal is heaven, my road is narrow, my way rough, my companions few, my guide reliable, my mission clear. I cannot be bought, compromised, detoured, lured away, turned back, deluded, or delayed.

I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice, hesitate in the presence of the adversary, negotiate at the table of the enemy, ponder at the pool of popularity, or meander in the maze of mediocrity.

I won't give up, shut up, or let up, until I have stayed up, stored up, prayed up, paid up, and preached up for the cause of Christ. I am a disciple of Jesus. I must go till He comes, give till I drop, preach till all know, and work till He stops me. And when He comes for His own, He will have no problem recognizing me - my banner will be clear(ly seen)!" - by an Anonymous African Pastor- nailed to his wall after his execution.

image