Overcoming Fear Through Faith || Who Am I Again? || Part 7

Isaiah 54:14

NASB	NLT	VOICE
14 In righteousness you will be established; You will be far from oppression, for you will not fear; And from terror, for it will not come near you.	14 You will be secure under a government that is just and fair. Your enemies will stay far away. You will live in peace, and terror will not come near.	14 This time, you will be founded and grounded on right thought, speech, and action. And no one will trouble you, abuse or oppress you; you will know no fear and have no worries.

Righteousness as a Sign of Hope

Righteousness and fear are two key concepts described in this verse. Biblically, righteousness is connected to God’s character and His relationship to us. In the context of Isaiah, he is describing this promise of restoration. It is a renewal for the Israelites after their exile to Babylon. For us, it connects to the fulfillment of Jesus – our foundation of righteousness. It describes a future where God’s people can live in a place of peace. They will be free from the reign of sin and evil. 

Fear Leads to Security

The Israelites are fearful in this context, so hearing this from the prophet Isaiah, brought some assurance. Fear, biblically, is often addressed through God’s promise of presence and protection. An absence of fear is a sign that a healthy relationship with God is here. Isaiah describes security that comes through God. He also mentions peace. It shows that fear is gone, and the terror is far from our sights. All of this is promised by God to us by the covenant relationship we have in him. 

Force is Not the Way of God

Let’s discuss the promise of being far from oppression and fear. This issue is highly prevalent in our American society right now. It’s not Christians that are being oppressed. Many of the marginalized communities are affected by Christians. These Christians want to impose the laws taught in the Torah over the love taught by Jesus. We have to admit something: America was not founded as a Christian nation. It had Christian principles to abide by, but it was not defined as a Christian nation. We have to stop forcing people to have a relationship with God. God doesn’t force his ways on to us, so why are we doing that to others?

Realistically Applying God’s Law

We force people to abide by the Hebrew laws against homosexuality. We force people to abide by the Hebrew law and apply it to abortion. We force people to abide by the marriage covenant laws as man and woman. Society has developed over time and we have not done well at adapting it to it. “But Marc, God’s law is eternal, meaning it’s never changing.” Yes. I agree. Society does change, though. Culture changes. People change. God’s law is about loving him with all of us and loving each other as He loved us. How that happens is what changes. The Mosaic laws were all about setting themselves apart from their pagan communities. Christians are being called to set themselves apart. They must do this in what they say. They must also do this in how they act. We can view the world as judgmental, evil, hypocritical, greedy, and the list goes on. How are we countering that? How are we showing that it is possible to live in a loving, caring, kind, and compassionate way? Are we doing that through our legislation and represented officials? Are we doing that through our state and local laws and programs? Are we doing that through our community and church outreach programs? Are we doing that for our own families? It starts with us. It starts with our relationship with God. It starts with how much we trust God. We trust Him to guide our words, thoughts, and actions. This allows us to show his grace and mercy to the world. It starts with ensuring that our foundation with God is built on love, compassion, mercy, and trust. 

Above everything remember this: I am far from oppression, and fear doesn’t come near me.

Reflection Questions:

1. Think about those that live or work around you. People that you are not friends or acquaintances with yet. How are they being affected by what’s going on in the world?
2. Does your relationship with God impact how you perceive anxiety, fear, and insecurities? 
3. Think about different ways you can help meet the needs of those in your community. Which one choice would be most practical for you?

Call to Action

Pause. Breathe. Pray. I know that the words in my recent blogs have been overwhelming. Your action today is to exist. Practice sabbath rest. Practice self-compassion. Pause. Breathe. Pray.

Next part: Who Am I Again? #8