This sermon:

Why Are You Afraid?

Number 4 in the series “Questions Jesus Asked”. Have you ever been afraid? Of course you have at some time, and likely many times, or perhaps even now. John reminds us that “there is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment“(1 John 4:18). Does this mean that if I love sufficiently enough then I will have no fear. Not really, it refers to the love that God has for each one of us, and because of that love, our response is to love and fully trust God in return – turning to God for help in all of life’s issues, both bad and good. Christians with a deep abiding faith in Jesus can, and often do face incredible fear, even a fear, that for some people, leads to death through martyrdom. But history records how many have dealt with this fear by relying on their personal relationship with Jesus – a loving trust. And it is then that Jesus himself gives them the strength to endure, often enabling them to ‘walk’ through the fear, with Jesus effectively calming the fear so that they can cope. They can, and you too can rely on this passage that you probably already know well, but first we need to trust that GOD IS FAITHFUL to his promise and that he really means it when he has had this written for us – “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me;” (Psalm 23:4). Jeff helps us in this video to understand how Jesus responds to the real major fear that his disciples felt.