"Can I Drive, Please?"
Fear, He Is a Liar • Sermon • Submitted
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· 3 viewsSetting the theme for the year. Given the significant events which occured throughout 2020, it is not surprising we are dealing with a multitude of fears. The Bible has in excess of 500 passages dealing with the topic of fear. We will spend 2021 in intense Bible study around one phrase, common throughout the Bible - "Do not fear." In this first series, we will examine how so very often, our fears are anxieties about what MIGHT happen - not what will happen
Notes
Transcript
Letting go of the Fear of Letting Go
Letting go of the Fear of Letting Go
Why controlling personalities and the Christian walk often don’t mix well
Let’s see if you can identify with anyone in this story
And the king of Sodom said to Abram, “Give me the persons, but take the goods for yourself.”
But Abram said to the king of Sodom, “I have lifted my hand to the Lord, God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth,
that I would not take a thread or a sandal strap or anything that is yours, lest you should say, ‘I have made Abram rich.’
I will take nothing but what the young men have eaten, and the share of the men who went with me. Let Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre take their share.”
Integrity
Integrity
After these things the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision: “Fear not, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great.”
Listen...
Listen...
For this is God’s constant call to children in the Valley of Shadows
“Fear not…, take my hand.”
“Fear not…, take my hand.”
But Abram said, “O Lord God, what will you give me, for I continue childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?”
Humanity’s too common reply, “But...”
And Abram said, “Behold, you have given me no offspring, and a member of my household will be my heir.”
And behold, the word of the Lord came to him: “This man shall not be your heir; your very own son shall be your heir.”
And he brought him outside and said, “Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.”
“I, the Great I AM, make you a promise. Trust me.”
“I, the Great I AM, make you a promise. Trust me.”
And he believed the Lord, and he counted it to him as righteousness.
So far, so good.
And he said to him, “I am the Lord who brought you out from Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to possess.”
But he said, “O Lord God, how am I to know that I shall possess it?”
There is that “But” again.
There is that “But” again.
He said to him, “Bring me a heifer three years old, a female goat three years old, a ram three years old, a turtledove, and a young pigeon.”
And he brought him all these, cut them in half, and laid each half over against the other. But he did not cut the birds in half.
And when birds of prey came down on the carcasses, Abram drove them away.
As the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell on Abram. And behold, dreadful and great darkness fell upon him.
Then the Lord said to Abram, “Know for certain that your offspring will be sojourners in a land that is not theirs and will be servants there, and they will be afflicted for four hundred years.
But I will bring judgment on the nation that they serve, and afterward they shall come out with great possessions.
As for you, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you shall be buried in a good old age.
And they shall come back here in the fourth generation, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete.”
When the sun had gone down and it was dark, behold, a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch passed between these pieces.
On that day the Lord made a covenant with Abram, saying, “To your offspring I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates,
the land of the Kenites, the Kenizzites, the Kadmonites,
the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Rephaim,
the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Girgashites and the Jebusites.”
God’s mind-boggling capacity for compassion.
God’s mind-boggling capacity for compassion.
But...
But...
Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him no children. She had a female Egyptian servant whose name was Hagar.
And Sarai said to Abram, “Behold now, the Lord has prevented me from bearing children. Go in to my servant; it may be that I shall obtain children by her.” And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai.
So, after Abram had lived ten years in the land of Canaan, Sarai, Abram’s wife, took Hagar the Egyptian, her servant, and gave her to Abram her husband as a wife.
“But....” Well, you know the rest of the story.
“But....” Well, you know the rest of the story.
The fear of letting go - does it own you?
The fear of letting go - does it own you?
1. Do you struggle with anxiety, or fear?
1. Do you struggle with anxiety, or fear?
Do you tend to worry about things like safety precautions, germs, or symptoms you’re experiencing? Do you obsess over what family members might be saying about you, or what your boss might be thinking?
What about fear? Do you imagine the worst when your teen is 10 minutes late? Do you suspect the worst when your husband/wife doesn’t answer his phone?
Fear and anxiety are common for Control Addicts because they constantly have to face things that they would like to control but can’t, such as the future, unknowns, risks, and the opinions of others.
2. Do you struggle with anger?
2. Do you struggle with anger?
Are you likely to respond angrily when someone doesn’t meet your expectations? Do you erupt when someone interrupts your plans? Do you inwardly seethe when someone cuts in or takes whatever you had your eye on?
3. If you think about it, does it seem sometimes like others are sending subtle hints?
3. If you think about it, does it seem sometimes like others are sending subtle hints?
If you’re a Control Addict who doesn’t yet know it, chances are, other people have tried to tell you. Now, they probably haven’t said, “Stop being a Control Addict.” Instead, they tactfully give you subtle cues. Such as when…
· Your husband says, “Honey, the mechanic couldn’t hear the sound either. The car is fine.”
· Your adult daughter says, “We’ve been over this, Dad. We want our kids in this school district.”
· Your teenage son says, “Mom, for the tenth time. I’m not cold. I don’t want to wear a jacket.”
All of these are cues that the other person would like you to back off and stop trying to control. You might not see it as controlling, but they apparently do.
4. Do control addicts send you over the edge?
4. Do control addicts send you over the edge?
Let’s face it, Control Addicts drive everyone crazy. After all, Point Three was about those closest to Control Addicts trying to let the addict know, “Hey, I love you, but you bug me with your controlling ways.” So, almost everyone can answer yes to this question.
Control addicts cannot deal with other control addicts. Non-addicts develop ways to work with the control addicts in their life. Two addicts cannot come to an agreement, and if an addict cannot exert the control they desperately seek - they drive off the other, or find some excuse to leave. This helps explain the final sign of a control addict.
5. Does God seem distant and uncaring to you?
5. Does God seem distant and uncaring to you?
Does God seem like He’s too far away to notice you or hear your prayers? Do you think of God as too indifferent, apathetic, or disinterested to concern Himself with things that matter to you? By nature, the control addict loathes letting another, or others have control. It is no wonder then, that control addicts struggle so much in the Christian faith. It is not unusual that at some point they conclude that God has left them, but in truth - the opposite is true. It is also no wonder that both 4 and 5 are closely linked. The control addict desires a church, and a God - of their own making. They thrive in churches of low expectations, and in need of their help. If they cannot make that happen, then they leave. Those left behind seldom are surprised. There might be much affection towards the Controller, but the absence of drama is a relief.
Everything points to this
Everything points to this
(Baptistery and Lord’s Supper)
Jesus; “You broke the Covenant,”
Jesus; “You broke the Covenant,”
Over, and over, and over and over - for millennia - for countless generations
When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.
Jesus; “You broke the Covenant, but I’ll take the curse.”
Jesus; “You broke the Covenant, but I’ll take the curse.”
“Do not fear. Trust me. Follow me.”
“Do not fear. Trust me. Follow me.”
My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.
I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand.
My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.
I and the Father are one.”