63 Times the Bible Tells Us To Fear Not

199 - Today's Prime Time Devo comes from 2Ti 1:7 “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” (2 Tim 1:7) I have a pet peeve and it involves the phrase “fear not” as found in the Bible. Perhaps you have heard it said or seen it posted on social media as gospel truth that the phrase “fear not” appears in the Bible 365 times, once for every day of the year! I know I have quoted this in the past, but then one day the Berean in me decided to check it out. Funny thing, my concordance shows the phrase fear not appearing in the King James Bible just 63 times. Ummmm, that's a little short. The idea of 365 “fear nots'”, while comforting, just isn't true. However, having said that, the concept of trusting God and not fearing is found in many places in Scripture and worthy of noting. Fact is, if it were only found in this one place in Timothy, it would be and should be enough! The recent results of the presidential election in America has stirred up the very real emotion of fear for many of those who voted against Donald Trump. The news media is long on showing us the results of this fear, but short on offering solace and comfort. That's where we, the church ought to come in. Let's just try and put the shoe on the other foot. 81% of white evangelicals cast their vote for Trump, but I wonder how those voters would've reacted to a Clinton victory? It would be foolish to think that there would've been no fear. Fear, needs to be dealt with and perhaps that's why it is indeed mentioned often in Scripture. Followers of Christ ought to have a leg up on others in the matter of fear, and if fear is gripping a believer, then we ought to point to those “fear not” verses of consolation in Scripture. If fear rises up in the heart of an unbeliever and in the streets of a nation, then we ought to take note that the nation needs Jesus. So, as we see these fearful reactions to circumstances, the best thing we can do, is pray for and work for revival. It is easy to sit on the sidelines and denigrate the protesters, but let's get past that and see the real solution. People need Jesus. How can we best bring Him to them?

The Antithesis of Fear

198 - Today's Prime Time Devo comes from 2Ti 1:6,7 “Therefore I remind you to stir up the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands. 7 For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. (2 Tim 1:6,7) Whenever we see the word “therefore” in Scripture, we need to go back a couple of verses and see what the therefore is “there for!” This “therefore” is connected with the genuine faith of Timothy. Because Timothy had come to genuine repentance and faith he is being reminded by Paul to rekindle the gift of God that was in him through the laying on of Paul's hands. With the specific mention of Paul's laying on of hands, we should get the idea of a passing of the baton to Timothy. This could be likened to Elijah passing his prophetic mantle on to Elisha! 1Ki 19:19 So he departed from there, and found Elisha the son of Shaphat, who was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen before him, and he was with the twelfth. Then Elijah passed by him and threw his mantle on him. Elijah would soon be departing and the gifts and authority of Elijah needed to be passed on to the next generation. Likewise Paul would be departing soon and his gifts of preaching, teaching, admonishing, and his mantle of authority were to be passed along through Timothy. These gifts passed along to Timothy were just as real as the gift of repentance and faith given to him and they must not be allowed to sputter and die! Fan the flame! Give the Holy Spirit air! Do not let fear douse the fire. There certainly was cause to fear with the persecution of Christians that was taking place, but Paul reminds Timothy that the Holy Spirit is the antithesis of fear. He is power! He is love! He is a sound mind, (that is a mind that is under control, not panicking, due to exterior circumstances.) Perhaps fear is creeping into your life due to external circumstances today. Remember this verse! Claim this verse! The Holy Spirit who is in you from the birth of your faith is not of fear! There is no dread in Him. He is power and love! Fan this gift! Tap into this gift as needed! And may the peace of God which passes all understanding guard your heart and mind through Jesus Christ!

Holy Tears

196 - Today's Prime Time Devo comes from 2Ti 1:3-5, “ I thank God, whom I serve with a pure conscience, as my forefathers did, as without ceasing I remember you in my prayers night and day, 4 greatly desiring to see you, being mindful of your tears, that I may be filled with joy, 5 when I call to remembrance the genuine faith that is in you, which dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice, and I am persuaded is in you also. (2 Tim 1:3-5) As I read this, I keep wondering, “What was Timothy crying about? Why was Paul “mindful of his tears?” Why did the tears of Timothy fill Paul with joy! There is a connection between tears and joy! It's like the psalmist said in Ps 126:5 Those who sow in tears Shall reap in joy.” These tears of Timothy are likely connected to the tears often accompanying repentance! Paul speaks of Timothy's genuine faith being brought to mind through these tears, and genuine faith is always connected to genuine repentance, which is godly (often tear producing) sorrow over sin. 2Co 7:10 says, “For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death.” By the way, there is a huge difference between godly sorrow and the sorrow of the world. The tears of worldly sorrow pour forth only because the offender has been caught, he or she has been found out, and there will be a price to pay, hence the tears designed to stir up empathy, and temporary regret, but the tears of genuine repentance pour forth from the realization that the guilty party has offended a holy God. A God that loves them so much that He sent His only Son to die for their offense! The tears pour forth in part due to the realization that the price has been paid by God's Son Jesus! These are holy tears! And I believe these are the tears of Timothy that Paul witnessed and fondly remembered as he awaited his execution in a Roman prison. The remembrance of the tears of Timothy persuaded Paul that Timothy's faith was genuine and that Paul's work with the gospel was not in vain, but God had used him to lead someone to repentance and saving faith in Jesus. Think about your own time of genuine repentance, and perhaps God will stir up new tears of thanksgiving! Think also of your brothers and sisters who have experienced repentance and then thank God that the Holy Spirit is still in the business of leading people to genuine repentance and a flow of holy tears!

The Power of Remembrances

196 - Today's Prime Time Devo comes from 2Ti 1:3-5, “ I thank God, whom I serve with a pure conscience, as my forefathers did, as without ceasing I remember you in my prayers night and day, 4 greatly desiring to see you, being mindful of your tears, that I may be filled with joy, 5 when I call to remembrance the genuine faith that is in you, which dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice, and I am persuaded is in you also. (2 Tim 1:3-5) Thank God for remembrances! We should not forget that Paul is writing this letter from a Roman dungeon. His home now an underground prison with only a hole in the ceiling to let in light and air! Peter has already been crucified upside down, many other Christians have suffered similar martyrdom, and Paul is on a short list of who's next. His friends have abandoned him, only Luke remains at his side! But Paul thanks God for bringing Timothy and his genuine faith to mind often! (without ceasing!) Many long hours in the dungeon and I'm sure Paul was assailed by doubts. Was this really worth it? At moments like these God brings to mind Timothy, Paul's son in the faith. He recalls grandma Lois, and Timothy's mother Eunice and how they and Timothy came to the faith of their forefathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob through the preaching of the Gospel! Paul is not talking about the misplaced faith of the Pharisees, but the true faith of Abraham who simply “believed God and it was accounted to him as righteousness,” This is the faith that produces a pure conscience! It is the gospel promise that Jesus, (who came from the seed of Abraham) would die on the cross for the sins of the world and as many as believed in Him would have the same right of Abraham to be called a child of God! This Jesus in whom Paul has faith, has cleared his conscience of any wrongdoing. It has convinced him that no matter his past, he will one day soon stand before God and declared “not guilty!” No wonder Paul is overflowing with thanks! It was worth it! It is worth it! We may struggle at times with that same question, “Is this worth it?” When we do, may God cause us to remember the depth of His forgiveness for us and also those times He used us to make a difference in the lives of others, and may we turn our doubts into concrete expressions of praise!

It Would Be Enough

194 - Today's Prime Time Devo comes from 2Ti 1:2b, “Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord. I covered this common greeting in the New Testament letters in 1 Timothy, but I think it's important to cover it again, because it's a message we all need to hear! Grace, mercy, and peace to you! Perhaps you remember your pastor starting his sermons with that same greeting, well there's a reason for it! These words are not meant to be fill material. It is the primary message that God wishes to convey to the world through His church!. There is a beautiful picture of this portrayed in the Book of Revelation! Re 4:3 And He who sat there was like a jasper and a sardius stone in appearance; and there was a rainbow around the throne, in appearance like an emerald. 4 Around the throne were twenty-four thrones, and on the thrones I saw twenty-four elders sitting, clothed in white robes; and they had crowns of gold on their heads. 5 And from the throne proceeded lightnings, thunderings, and voices. Seven lamps of fire were burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God.” There is much symbolism involved here, but let me try to briefly picture what is being portrayed: The Son of God, seated on the throne, completely surrounded by a green rainbow. It's green because it symbolizes life, it's a rainbow because it is the sign of God's covenant of grace, mercy, and peace. The picture is this: grace, mercy, and peace, emanate from the throne which is surrounded by 24 elders who represent the church, and the Office of the Word. (The 12 patriarchs of the OT and the 12 Apostles of the NT. These 24 elders (the church) receive this message of grace, mercy, and peace, and are charged with passing that message along to the world in the power of the Holy Spirit until our Lord returns. It's not that we are commanded to start every sermon in that manner, but it certainly serves as a good reminder to all who serve in the Office of the Word, and quite frankly, if that would be all the pastor said....it would be enough. So I say it to you! “Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father and Christ Jesus Our Lord!

The Three Words Your Child Longs To Hear From You

194 - Today's Prime Time Devo comes from 2Ti 1:2 To Timothy, a beloved son: Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord. Such a warm personal touch in this letter as Paul refers to his disciple, or mentoree if you will, as his beloved son. Can there be higher praise from a spiritual mentor to one whom he has taken under his wings? Mentorship has become a buzzword in Christian circles as it concerns the discipleship of new believers, and it is an important part of spiritual growth for the purpose of passing the faith along in all it's doctrinal purity. We will read about this in 2Ti 2:2, “And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.” I wonder how many “spiritual sons” Timothy was able to speak these same words to? How many felt that warm glow of healthy acceptance that comes with this declaration of fondness? “My beloved son.” These three words are powerful words of affirmation and not only spiritual sons and daughters need to hear them, but our own children long to hear them and need to hear them from mom and dad. God the Father spoke these words to His beloved Son Jesus on two occasions, at His baptism, and at His transfiguration. My question to you is, “Have you ever spoken them to your child? See if you can identify with my own personal story. I grew into an adult thinking that I didn't need anything from my father. Who cares what that alcohol addicted, abusive, person thought of me anyway? But a funny thing happened on my way to shoving him out of my life. Long story short, God convinced me to work on restoring my relationship with my father, through forgiveness and teaching me to dwell on the good things my father had done through the years. It took time, but in the end we had a good relationship, and I'll never forget the day, that I was doing some yard work for him that he was no longer capable of doing. At one point he turned to me and said, “Duane, you are a good son.” I wasn't prepared for what happened next. I thought my heart was going to leap out of my chest. It was the words I had longed to hear from him all my life! Friends, don't let your sons and daughters wait their entire lives to hear those words from you! Tell them, “My beloved son, (or daughter,” I am well pleased with you! They're waiting! Don't delay!

Blessed Assurance

193 - Today's Prime Time Devo comes from 2Ti 1:1 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, according to the promise of life which is in Christ Jesus, In Paul's introductory remarks in his first letter to Timothy, he emphasized his authority as an Apostle in order to underline the veracity of the letter that Timothy would have in his hand to show the churches that the instructions and exhortations that young Timothy would be delivering to these congregations carried the full Apostolic weight of Paul! In this second, more personal, letter to his beloved Timothy he emphasizes the promise of eternal life that awaits all Apostles and believers who remain faithful to the end. It is the promise of eternal life through faith in Christ that motivates the Apostles to follow their calling, and it is this hope that Paul wished Timothy to cling to as he follows his calling. Difficult days lie ahead and this promise will help carry him and us through! Remember Paul is facing certain execution as he writes this letter, and he uses these words to assure Timothy, that he will be just fine after his execution because of the promise of life in Christ Jesus. This is not some sort of false bravado on Paul's part. He wants Timothy to know for sure that he will be okay, and indeed that Timothy and all those who follow in the faith will also be okay no matter what they may face in this life! This little phrase in Paul's greeting, “according to the promise of life which is in Christ Jesus,” is just another way of stating, Ro 8:38 For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, 39 nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. How often the saints through the ages, and yes, even you and I need to be reminded of this truth. No matter what kind of persecution comes our way, no matter what calamity, what trial, we have Christ Jesus and a guarantee of arriving at heaven's shores “according to the promise of life which is in Christ Jesus!