CHRIST-DAILY
DEVOTIONS
 December 20th

SOLVING THE FEAR PROBLEM

"There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment.  But he who fears has not been made perfect in love" (I John 4:18).

How can Christians solve the fear problem? There are a lot of uncertainties in this world that can cause fear to grip our hearts and minds.  Man may use psychology. However, God's Word still has the best solution for solving the fear problem.  First, you have to have a healthy and strong love for God.  You have to know and understand the matchless love of our Father. John says "We love Him because He first loved us" (I John 4:19). Our Heavenly Father so loved us that He sent His only begotten Son to save us (John 3:16).  Our Father so loved us, that while we were yet ungodly sinners, "Christ died for us" (Rom. 5:8).  I don't know how many people would be willing to give up their life in a total love sacrifice for someone else.  The Lord Jesus Christ did that for the Father and for us.  Oh, to know and understand the width, length, depth, and height of the love of Christ (Eph. 3:18-19).  If perfect or complete love casts out fear (I John 4:18); then, we need a healthy and strong love for our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ  – our eternal love source.

John says, "The Father loves the Son, and has given all things into His hand" (John 3:35).  The Father put His Son in us at the Spirit birthing in order that we might have His eternal life (John 3:36; I John 5:11-12).  Another primary reason is that through Christ in us, we now have a new nature – the divine nature (II Pet. 1:4), which is a love-for-others nature.  John says that if we say that we love God and hate our brother we are a liar (I John 4:20).  Why? Christ in us is a love-for-others Spirit and nature.  If we love God, then we will fellowship with Him and His body.  Christ lives in every member of His many-membered body (I Cor. 12:27).  We are the body of the Christ in the earth today.  If we claim to have a passionate love for Christ, it must also be for the body of Christ  (I John 4:21).  The body of Christ is the body of the One for which we have a passionate love.  This perfect or complete love must be for both Christ and His body. There are no either/or choices that can fullfil this complete love requirement that casts out fear.

Psychology tries to fix you and your fears, by attempting to get you a better self image. All you will do is become more self-absorbed and your problems just shift and pop up somewhere else.  You have a perfect, passionate, and mature love for God and His body, and His Word guarantees that fear will be cast out.  What do people fear?  People fear what others think or feel toward them or the uncertainties of this world.  Just get absorbed in passionate love for Christ and His body.  Let His love-for-others Spirit and nature within you fill you.  You will find that these things, will push out every fear and doubt. The Christ-life within you, will be solving the fear problem! V

Written by Dwight Davis
Christ-Ministries
 

                                               

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