March 4, 2018

JRCC at Port Kells

Fear Not

“I Am with You”

Text: Isaiah 41:1-13

Focus: We are commanded to not fear change. How do we do this?

Top 100 Phobias (sampling)

Change???  Change!!!

#33 on the “Top 100 Phobias List” is Metathesiophobia.

• Can anyone tell me what this is a fear of?
  • The fear of change.
• Thankfully, less than 1% of our N. American population suffers from this in the extreme form of a “phobia”.

• However, research does indicate that almost 70% of North American’s do not like change … while only 30% of people say they do like change.

So let’s do our own JRCC survey:

Raise your hand if you like change.

• (Cordless mic to 1 person) – Why do you like change?

• Top 5 reasons people like change:
  • Change = opportunity
  • Change = growth/learning
  • Change = adventure/risk/fun
  • Change = new beginnings
  • Change = self-discovery

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• Change = faith/God-discovery

Raise your hand if you do not like change.

• (Cordless mic to 1 person) – Why don’t you like change?

• Top 5 reasons people do not like change:
  • Change = unfamiliar/uncomfortable
  • Change = work
  • Change = loss of control
  • Change = signals a need for help
  • Change = possible failure/what if I can’t do this?

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• Change = God doesn’t care about me and my circumstances

Whatever our personal preferences concerning change, we all have a level of embracing change, and we all have a level of fearing change.

• Your “tipping point” often balances on your desire for control and comfort.
• For example, those of us who don’t like change, will embrace change when we initiate it and it gets us what we want (i.e. a new car, a vacation, a girlfriend).
• On the flip-side, those of us who don’t like change, also reach certain points where we know that change would be better than maintaining our status quo. (i.e. you may not like going to the doctor but at some point, you go anyway).

• Now, for those of you who love change … lack of change tends to dull, limit you, and makes you feel “stir-crazy”.
• But even those of you who love change have habits that you maintain … not everything in your life is in a constant state of flux (i.e. eat the same thing for breakfast).
• And certain levels of change will invoke anxiety/fear (i.e. aging & dying … my dad loves change and yet when you talk about aging & dying, he will leave the room).

So we all have varying levels of embracing and fearing change, and how we debate the pros and cons of change usually hinges on our personal desire for control and comfort…

• But one thing we cannot debate is the reality of change!
• The 6^th Century BC Greek Philosopher, Heraclitus of Ephesus, stated it best when he recognised that “only one thing will remain constant in our lives, and that is change!”
• So whether you embrace it or fear it, we all need to have a sound foundation for dealing with change.

• And if you read the Scriptures through the lens of change, you quickly come to see that God is absolutely committed to change in our lives.
• And that commitment to change stems from his love for us.
• You’ve heard the saying, “God loves us enough to accept us as we are, but he also loves us enough not to leave us that way.”
• Whether you like or dislike change, God is going to allow and initiate change in your life … without exception.
• So when (not if), when change comes in our lives, we need to have a foundation of truth to stand on in the midst of that change.

2 Commands Supported by 5 Truths

For that, we turn to Isaiah 41:1-13.

• Continuing in our “Fear Not” series, Isaiah 41 speaks into our need to deal with change, especially when we fear it.

• The context within which the Prophet Isaiah is writing is one of intense change for God’s people.
• The nation of Israel is split into two: the northern kingdom of Israel is in captivity and the southern kingdom of Judah is far from God, mired in idolatry and sin.
• The kingdom of Assyria is a constant threat to the north and now the Babylonians in the east are rising up as a new threat.
• The international scene is changing quickly around Israel, and internally, the people of Israel are questioning their lot in life – how can they survive all of this upheaval.
  • How will they survive exile?
  • Will they change their sinful practices?
  • Will exile be permanent?
  • Will they get to return to their homeland?
  • Will they cease to exist as a community?
• These are the questions that God’s people are wrestling with, both in the immediate and for future generations.
• And in Isaiah 41, God addresses his people.

“Listen in silence before me, you lands beyond the sea. Bring your strongest arguments. Come now and speak. The court is ready for your case.

² “Who has stirred up this king from the east, rightly calling him to God’s service? Who gives this man victory over many nations and permits him to trample their kings underfoot? With his sword, he reduces armies to dust. With his bow, he scatters them like chaff before the wind. ³ He chases them away and goes on safely, though he is walking over unfamiliar ground. ⁴ Who has done such mighty deeds, summoning each new generation from the beginning of time? It is I, the Lord, the First and the Last. I alone am he.”

⁵ The lands beyond the sea watch in fear. Remote lands tremble and mobilize for war. ⁶ The idol makers encourage one another, saying to each other, “Be strong!” ⁷ The carver encourages the goldsmith, and the molder helps at the anvil. “Good,” they say. “It’s coming along fine.” Carefully they join the parts together, then fasten the thing in place so it won’t fall over.

⁸ “But as for you, Israel my servant, Jacob my chosen one, descended from Abraham my friend, ⁹ I have called you back from the ends of the earth, saying, ‘You are my servant.’ For I have chosen you and will not throw you away. ¹⁰ Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand.

¹¹ “See, all your angry enemies lie there, confused and humiliated. Anyone who opposes you will die and come to nothing. ¹² You will look in vain for those who tried to conquer you. Those who attack you will come to nothing. ¹³ For I hold you by your right hand—I, the Lord your God. And I say to you, ‘Don’t be afraid. I am here to help you.’

The familiar verse that we may know and quote when we face challenge, uncertainty and change is Isaiah 41:10,

¹⁰ Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand.

• It’s a verse with 2 commands and 5 supporting “truths for fearlessness” that legitimize these commands.
• “Don’t be afraid” is the first command.
• And the second is “don’t be discouraged” or “don’t anxiously look about you.”
• And as always in the Bible, there are reasons for the commands.
• Friends, whenever God gives us commands, there is supporting truth/reason provided with those commands.
• In other words, God’s commands don’t just hang in the air with no basis in reality for us to be able to do them.
• If God commands us to do something, there is good reasoning and support to do it.
• And our ability to carry out his commands, like “do not be afraid or anxious about the change you are experiencing,” comes from understanding and believing these truths.

So God’s people during the time of Isaiah are in the midst of tremendous change and uncertainty.

• And it’s safe to say that at least 70% (if not all) of them dislike/fear the changes.
• Today, God’s people, we as Jericho Ridge, are in a season of change and uncertainty.
• How many of us dislike our circumstances?
• For God, it’s not a matter of liking or disliking, embracing or fearing the change.
• He has signaled to us that change is coming!
• What he is focused on, and what we need to focus on is “who is God and how do we walk through this change with him.”
• And for that, just like the Israelites of Isaiah’s time, we are given 2 commands and 5 truths:
  • “Don’t be afraid… Don’t be discouraged…”
    • I am with you
    • I am your God
    • I will strengthen you
    • I will help you
    • I will hold you up with my victorious right hand
  • Restated, we could say these are our 2 commands and 5 truths for fearlessness in the midst of change:
    • “I will not be afraid… I will not be discouraged…”
      • God is with me
      • God is my God
      • God will strengthen me
      • God will help me
      • God will sustain me

When God calls you to be free from fear in changing circumstances:

• as you change a job or a move into a new home
• as you travel to a foreign country
• as you leave a comfortable setting and take a risk
• as you face a medical dilemma
• as you lose a friend or a spouse
• as you change venues and times for church worship…

• …when God calls you to be free from fear (to overcome this natural emotion and replace it with peace), he does not leave you hanging in the air to figure it out on your own.
• He puts pillars of truth/promises to support you in carrying out these commands:
  • Do not be afraid of change … God is with you;
  • Do not be afraid of change … God is your God;
  • Do not be afraid of change … God will strengthen you;
  • Do not be afraid of change … God will help you;
  • Do not be afraid of change … God will sustain you;

The Context to Overcoming Fear

The key to overcoming our dislike/fear of change is believing in the truth of God’s promises.

• God is with you; God is your God; God will strengthen you; God will help you; God will sustain you!
• So what do we know to be true about this God?
• Can he really do all this for us?
• Look at the context of chapter 41, in which we find vs. 10.

Isaiah 41:1,

“Listen in silence before me, you lands beyond the sea. Bring your strongest arguments. Come now and speak. The court is ready for your case.

• Our God is so great, so able, that he calls all the lands, all the people of the earth to stand before him.
• He is not called to account; he calls creation to account.
• He is not on trial; everyone enters his courtroom.
• Only he has the supreme power to judge.
• And this is the God who will strengthen and help you.

Isaiah 41:2-3,

² “Who has stirred up this king from the east, rightly calling him to God’s service? Who gives this man victory over many nations and permits him to trample their kings underfoot? With his sword, he reduces armies to dust. With his bow, he scatters them like chaff before the wind. ³ He chases them away and goes on safely, though he is walking over unfamiliar ground.

• It’s a picture of God raising up a victorious king.
• It’s a picture of God ruling over the historical rulers.
• God controls the affairs of humans; God controls the affairs of kings and nations for his purposes.
• Nothing happens to us that doesn’t first pass through the hands of the King of kings and Lord of lords.
• And this is the God who will sustain you in the midst of changing circumstances.

Isaiah 41:4,

⁴ Who has done such mighty deeds, summoning each new generation from the beginning of time? It is I, the Lord, the First and the Last. I alone am he.”

• God not only judges the nations and rules over the rulers of the earth, but he spoke them into existence from the beginning of time.
• God was before any mighty king or nation appeared on earth.
• He is the uncreated first … and he will be there with the last when all is accomplished according to his purposes.
• This is the God who is with you when times are uncertain!

Isaiah 41:5-7

⁵ The lands beyond the sea watch in fear. Remote lands tremble and mobilize for war. ⁶ The idol makers encourage one another, saying to each other, “Be strong!” ⁷ The carver encourages the goldsmith, and the molder helps at the anvil. “Good,” they say. “It’s coming along fine.” Carefully they join the parts together, then fasten the thing in place so it won’t fall over.

• The nations and rulers are desperately trying to convince themselves that they and their gods/idols are strong enough.
• The people stand unrepentant against God.
• They dig in deeper into a self-reliance and idolatry as the sand is shifting underneath them.
• And God says to his people, you are different than them:

⁸ “But as for you, Israel my servant, Jacob my chosen one, descended from Abraham my friend, ⁹ I have called you back from the ends of the earth, saying, ‘You are my servant.’ For I have chosen you and will not throw you away.

• God calls/chooses his people … he does not leave them hopeless.
• We don’t need to try harder or conjure up idols to get us through difficult and uncertain times.
• No, God, particularly in the person of Jesus Christ, calls us to identify as his heirs, his people.
• This is the God who is your God, who is with you at all times.

This is the God who gives us the commands, “Do not be afraid” and “Do not be discouraged.”

• I am with you;
• I am your God;
• I will strengthen you;
• I will help you;
• I will sustain you;

Or, think of this in terms of God’s presence in your life.

• Instead of 5 truths, think of 5 positions:
  • Don’t be afraid of change… I am with you (by your side);
  • Don’t be afraid of change… I am your God (over you);
  • Don’t be afraid of change… I will strengthen you (from within);
  • Don’t be afraid of change… I will help you (on all sides);
  • Don’t be afraid of change… I will sustain you (from underneath).

Do Not Fear Change

Jericho Ridge, change is happening … change is always happening.

• It’s taking place in your life.
• It’s taking place in the life of our church.
• And in the very middle of this change, God commands us, “Do not be afraid … do not be anxious”
• And he provides us with truths for such fearlessness.
  • I am with you.
  • I am your God.
  • I will strengthen you.
  • I will help you.
  • I will sustain you.

• As you look around and see the very reality of change taking place for you/us as God’s people, I call you to not define/limit your future based on your desires for control or comfort.
• I call you to not limit our future as a church based on our past.
• Instead, I call you to embrace the future in light of our God.
  • Recognize that he is greater than our personalities, our likes and dislikes, our desires and fears.
  • Understand that he is more than our past experiences.
  • Agree that he is not limited by our circumstances.
  • Believe that he is ruling over our future.

¹⁰ Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand…. ¹³ For I hold you by your right hand—I, the Lord your God. And I say to you, ‘Don’t be afraid. I am here to help you.’