Having Fearless Faith In The Infinite Good Of A Heavenly Father

1. Flesh: Limited Good, fear, self-defense, fight-or-flight reaction, under-the-sun perspective, carnal, worldly, greedy,
grabbing, selfishly ambitious, predatory, jealous, afraid of death,

2. Spirit: Infinite and Expanding Good, the Cross, emotional and spiritual mastery, heavenly perspective, spiritual, 3. 4. 5. 6.
peaceful, reasonable, generous, kind, patient with God and man, sees death as a transition to Heaven Carnal Christian still squabbling and petty, ruled by fight-or-flight social dynamics Fight-or-Flight Reaction: ruled by adrenalin, reacts to perception of threat by either running or fighting (rage /anger) does not master situations. Cain 'sin (rage) is crouching at the door but you must master it'. We cannot be fearless if we see life as a Limited Good that is with only so much love, money, kindness, social status and so on to go around so that if I get more, then you get less. We need a vision of Infinite Good: infinite and unstoppable love, infinite grace, infinite provision, infinite honor available to the saints and so on. Nothing is impossible with God, all things are supplied, no need to panic over perceived limitations, abundant life just appears from nowhere, a full net of fish, loaves and fishes, feeding of the 5000 Faith helps us to perceive the infinite, and once we 'get' that perspective then we do not see life the same and we can let go of grasping and struggling and accept a simpler life 'living in tents' like Abraham or 'seeing the invisible' like Moses (Hebrews 11) The goodness of God toward us is not limited. With Christ He 'gives us all things' (Romans 8:32) The goodness of God is expanding goodness if brother X gets a good thing it does not mean I am deprived of it. God can keep on multiplying, bearing fruit, providing and conquering. Not a 'fixed pie' but an expanding and evermultiplying pie Confidence in blessedness that comes through covenant, not through my/our works Threat = a fearful perception of a sudden limit on the good that will be available to us. Limit on our life, love, relationships, approval, property, job, money, health, freedom, or ability to enjoy something. Even a billionaire seeing his stock portfolio reduced to 500 million dollars will feel threatened because the good is being limited. How we perceive and handle threat is key: turning the other cheek, blessing those who curse us, overcoming financial and worldly anxiety, loving enemies, Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, Loving our enemies = perfect attitude to threat & fear = spiritual perfection (Matthew 5:38-48) Perfect love casts out all fear, he who fears is not yet perfected in love, (1 John 4:18) has not overcome the fight or flight reaction, is still being influenced by the flesh and reacting to threat in a negative manner Jesus Christ: no 'fight or flight' in any situation, just perfect authority and mastery of each and every situation Satan controls through fear, threat and anxiety , persecution aims to intimidate and silence the Church God grants us faith, hope and love and delivers us from feelings of fear, threat and anxiety and brings us into peace, grace and blessedness so that we can courageously proclaim the Gospel with power Satan stresses the urgency and importance of an immediate and limited good ' I MUST have THIS now!!!' God emphasizes patience, self-control, and waiting for the Infinite, Higher & Better Good. Fears lead to sins. Most (initial) dishonesty comes from thinking that the honest path will not meet one's needs, 'need to embezzle to make ends meet' / cover gambling debts etc. Courage leads to righteousness. Without courage no real virtue is possible (Churchill). Courage is not just a virtue, it is the form of each virtue at its testing point (C. S. Lewis). Fearlessness increases our authority in life while fearfulness can diminish it to zero Fearlessness is not thrill-seeking or stupidity. The daily Cross is not bungee-jumping! Fearless action is not rashness, it must be for God and upon His will and instruction (Peter walking on water, was invited by Jesus) Job - trusting God when He seems to have betrayed you Faith & Fear are opposites, anxiety, 'o ye of little faith' incidents Unbelief = refusing to believe in God's infinite love, goodness and ability in real life (ten spies in Canaan) and thus refusing to believe God's clear Word, will and instruction Pharisees, High Priests etc. felt threatened by Jesus therefore could they not believe in Him.

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Fearlessness for God is a sign of the 'heroes of faith' in Hebrews 11, David, Daniel & friends etc The Tribulation will require great courage Life requires moments of great courage and they can be pivotal Courage is the ability to believe and hold on to God's Word in every situation. We need holy fearlessness if we are to walk by faith and not by sight. (2 Corinthians 5:7) The Holy Spirit imparts a great and holy boldness to those who believe. (Acts 4:31) The Holy Spirit opens our spiritual ears and spiritual eyes to God's infinite love, goodness and ability Peter walking on the water fearless faith in Christ, God's delight in those who 'step out of the boat' Noah: terrible and wicked times, preaches the word faithfully, builds the Ark, does not flee into cave or not raise up an army against the wicked but just does what God says and saves his household Abraham & Isaac confident that God would still fulfill His promise, un-threatened by the order from God, just immediately obedient Poise comes from faith, unbelief ruins our poise in life, tossed here and there, unstable (James 1:5-8) Revelation wisdom comes best to a fearless mind, doubt often comes from fear / perceptions of threat Believing in Jesus involves also believing in the effective goodness of Jesus. We endure because we believe that God's goodness will come through in the end. Jesus despised the shame of the cross for the joy set before Him! Need to believe Romans 8:28 that God is working all things together for good for those who love Him and who are called according to His purposes. We are called to suffering (1 Peter 2:20-25) but it is temporary and is for our strengthening in the end (1 Peter 5:10) and will result in an 'eternal weight of glory' ( 2 Corinthians 4:17) - so ultimately even suffering and persecution does not reduce the good that will come to us. Psalms taking our fears and perceptions of threat to God until they are resolved (Ps 34, 37, 73 etc) Casting all your burdens upon the Lord (Psalm 55:22, 1 Peter 5:7) Prayer as a key for ending anxiety and perceptions of threat (Philippians 4;6,7) If fearful: Face the situation, start on the journey 'Even jelly legs will get you there' ; Accept don't fight; Float don't tense; Let time pass; Don't overemphasize the magnitude of the event. Calculate the cost of fretting, rage and anger in your life then determine to cease from fretting and to forsake wrath (Psalm 37:8). The wrath of man does not work the righteousness of God. (James 1;19,20) Worship gaining the eternal and infinite perspective on life, lets us see that the wicked have only temporary prosperity and are no real, long-term threat The eternal perspective allows us to be masterful and to leave things up to God. Jesus did not strike Judas with lightning but accepted the kiss knowing Judas was the son of perdition and would soon commit suicide and be judged by God. Believing that nothing is impossible with God removes the impatient fear of obstacles and perceptions of threat and frustration. Even time is not limited with God. He is in no hurry. Therefore we do not need to be in a hurry. Nor do we need to take short-cuts. God will peacefully accomplish His purposes and he can do a thousand years work in a single day! The resurrection of believers means that we conquer in the end, in fact we are more than conquerers. (Romans 8, 1 Corinthians 15) Sword, famine, nakedness death etc are not true threats to the Christian. Because God's goodness is infinite and expanding we can boldly expect great things from the throne of God and boldly attempt great things for God. God's continual invitation to believe in His ever-expanding goodness and love, Prodigal Son God provides the Feast!!! We can boldly come to the throne of grace! (Hebrews 4:12-16) No condemnation (Romans 8:1,2) Justification means God is for us, means we are at peace with God, means God is 'no longer a threat' therefore nothing is a true and actual threat (not even the Devil), indeed our faith overcomes the world The need to panic is gone. Goodness is unlimited! Holy fearlessness brings great spiritual freedom, no need to obey the rules and commandments of men When we realize that God is an infinite, powerful Heavenly Father and that His good to us is infinite and everexpanding and peaceful and wise, then we can let go of all human anxiety and move with the Holy Spirit!