Today I will continue my current series entitled, REASONS WHY NOT TO FEAR! Before I get into the message, I know some people may be thinking, “How long are you going to teach on this? I think I have it by now.” First of all, this is the Lord’s ministry. This is His forum. I have to teach whatever He leads me to teach. When I get on a topic I have no idea how long I will be flowing in the vein. I just have to flow until the Holy Spirit leads me to go another way. Second, this is a very pertinent message in this season. People all over the world need to be reminded that FEAR IS NOT OKAY! Fear tolerated will cause your faith to be contaminated. Everything in God’s Kingdom operates on faith. Everything in the kingdom of darkness operates on fear. You cannot please God without faith (Heb 11:6). You cannot please satan without fear. This is a message we need to get down in our hearts.
So here is Reason #14 why NOT to fear: God Already Knew! Let’s take a look at Romans 8 today.
So what does this mean for you today? A few things.
1. God can work GOOD out of BAD situations.
Romans chapter 8 is an awesome passage. In it, the Apostle Paul gives us a picture of how we are to live as victorious Christians in the world. Paul opens the chapter teaching us to be led by the Holy Spirit and ruled or dominated by our flesh. He then goes on to teach us about the glory that can be revealed in us if we truly learn to be led by the Holy Spirit in all things. Later on in the chapter we get to the passage that I want to highlight for this morning. Paul says, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” (v.28). Let’s briefly discuss this point.
a) Not everything that happens to us in life is good. Bad things do happen to good people. But no matter how bad a situation may seem, God is more than capable of turning it around for our good.
b) God can take what the enemy meant for evil and cause it to turn out for our good.
c) The situation the world is in right now is NOT good. God did not cause it. God did not “put Coronavirus on us” as some sort of punishment. The devil comes to steal, kill and destroy (John 10:10), not God. However, while God did not start it, He can finish it! For the believer, God has the final say. Even as bad as this global pandemic is, God is capable of causing good to come out of it. So instead of allowing fear, doubt, and unbelief to creep into your heart in this season, ask God to show you how He can work GOOD in a BAD situation. He is more than capable of doing so!
2. Knowing God Knew Is Important!
In our last point, we looked at Romans 8:28, where Paul said, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” Now we will look at what he went on to say. Paul continues, “For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.” (verses 29&30). Let’s discuss this passage.
We know the Bible teaches that those who call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved (Romans 10:13). Two chapters earlier (Romans 8) Paul is teaching on the sovereignty of God. While ONLY those who call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved, Paul is teaching us that God obviously already knows who those people are going to be. He already knows and He already made a plan.
You are a free moral agent. You had to accept Jesus as Lord as an act of your free will. But since God does not have to wait until Tuesday to know what you are going to do on Tuesday, God already knew you would accept Jesus, and He already knew what decisions you would make. Based on His foreknowledge of your decisions, God predestined you, He justified you, and He glorified you in advance. Let that sink in for a minute. This is an awesome revelation.
When we realize that God had a plan for us before we were even born, it gives us a new level of boldness, confidence, comfort, and peace. It also helps us to resist fear. Because if you are sure that God made plans for you before the world began, and you are living your life out as an outworking of the internal revelation the Holy Spirit is giving you about the plans God already made for you, then when something bad happens, like COVID-19, you are not moved! You are not moved, shaken or phased, because you know this was NOT a surprise to God. While you did not know it was coming, you know God knew. And since God knew, then every promise God has ever made to you is STILL VALID! Everything God ever spoke to you about your future is STILL going to COME TO PASS! If you truly believe this, you will not open your heart to fear in this season. You know that this season has come, and this season will go, but God’s promises will remain. Everything God planned for your life is shall STILL COME TO PASS in the fullness of His timing! That’s good news!
3. What shall we SAY to these things? How should we respond to BAD situations?
In the first point, we looked at Romans 8:28, where Paul said, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” In the second point, we looked at the next two verses, where Paul said, “For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.” (verses 29&30). Now let’s get to verse 31.
After explaining all of this to us, Paul says, “What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us?” Think about it. If God already has a plan for us (and He does), and if God is working that plan out in our lives (and He is), then who can really mess with us? Who is bigger and badder than God? Let me give you the answer: NO ONE!
Let all of this sink in for a minute.
a) This means you don’t have to be afraid when circumstances go haywire because God already knew what was going to happen and He prepared for it. God has a plan. Not only did He already prepare, but what God does, through the Holy Spirit, is to prepare you for what He prepared!
b) You were built for this! Coronavirus will not be the end of you, your business or your family. If your confidence is in God and the in the plans God made for you before the world began, then you never lose hope because of a bad situation. Why? Because you know God already knew and your confidence is in God and not in you!
c) Say this, “God made a plan for me before the world began. I am confident that His plan includes responses to calamities and troubling times. Knowing this, I don’t have to be afraid of the situation the world is in right now, nor any other seemingly bad situation. Because I know, as Paul said, that God is FOR me! If God is FOR me, He is more than the entire world against me. I have nothing to fear!”
Declaration of Faith:
Father, You are awesome and amazing. You know all things. You are the master planner. You made contingency plans for everything that would happen before they happened. You are never caught off-guard. You are never surprised. You are never in dismay. You made plans for my life before the world began. You prepared for me and You are now preparing me for what You prepared. I am led by Your Spirit daily. The Holy Spirit leads me to walk-out Your plans and purposes in this world. Because I am relying on You, and not me, I live my life with fearless confidence. If things seemingly get out of hand, I have peace in knowing that You already knew about it. You are FOR me and You are bigger than anyone or anything against me. I have no need to fear! I declare this by faith! In Jesus’ name. Amen!
This is Today’s Word. Apply it and prosper!
