Faith that overcomes fear

Matthew 10:24-33 "A student is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. ²⁵ It is enough for the student to be like his teacher, and the servant like his master. If the head of the house has been called Beelzebub, how much more the members of his household! ²⁶ "So do not be afraid of them. There is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known. ²⁷ What I tell you in the dark, speak in the daylight; what is whispered in your ear, proclaim from the roofs. ²⁸ Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell. ²⁹ Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. ³⁰ And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. ³¹ So don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows. ³² "Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven. ³³ But whoever disowns me before men, I will disown him before my Father in heaven.

Goliath dismissed David because he was a giant and David was a mere youth. The Sanhedrin dismissed Paul because they were 70 plus and he was one man. Pharaoh dismissed Moses because he had the might of the Egyptian army and Moses was a scruffy 80-year-old sheep herder. They all made big mistakes. Jerry Brown Jr. from New Castle, Pennsylvania, dismissed an 89-year-old woman when he stole her friend’s purse. His was also a big mistake.

Now, it’s true, this lady didn’t have David’s sling, Moses’ staff-into-snake skills or Paul’s Roman guard with her. But she did have her cane.

This lady, rather than standing there looking all frail and helpless, gave a good whack to Mr. Brown’s getaway car. She gave it such a whack that she scratched the paint and left a dent in the vehicle. Between the dent, the scratch and the description of the robbers, the New Castle police were soon able to arrest Brown and his accomplice.

Over the years I’ve noticed that the forces of evil tend to dismiss and discount God’s people. We don’t look like much. We turn the other cheek. We are taught to be humble. We don’t sport halos like the saints in the artists’ depictions and we don’t perform miracles.

Even so, God’s people – the young and old, the weak and frail, the persecuted and the outnumbered – can accomplish great things when they put their trust in the Lord. For it was the Lord of hosts who was with David in the valley. It was the Lord, the great I Am, who was with Moses in the court of Pharaoh. It was the Lord who stood next to Paul and said, “Take courage” in his trial before the Sanhedrin. And it is the Lord who is with us at every moment of our Christ-filled lives. With faith in the Lord we can overcome any fear.

Fear is the great enemy of faith. Fear is a common, every day emotion. What are you afraid of? Are you afraid of the economy, having your Medicare or Social Security cut or losing your job or your home? Are you afraid when your child is ill or cancer strikes or a loved one enters the hospital? Are you afraid of the monster under your bed or the bogeyman in your closet or afraid of the dark or heights?

Fear often stems from the unknown and anything unfamiliar and indefinite. Jesus speaks of the fear of persecution, the fear of death and the fear of poverty. He said: “If the head of the house has been called Beelzebub, how much more the members of his household! So do not be afraid of them. … Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. … So don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.” We could say that underlying all these fears is a common thread – the fear of being alone or of going it alone. Whether it is the fear of the little toddler standing desperately alone in the department store, crying for his mommy, or the single mom or dad, newly divorced and worried about the future, or the elderly person living alone  in the house after 50 years of marriage – the greatest fear is being alone.

In Matthew 10, Jesus is sending his disciples and us out into the mission field. We are to spread the gospel seeds for His harvest, call out to the lost and straying sheep and acknowledge Jesus before men. But we are afraid to witness our faith, timid to pray in public and terrified to correct someone’s false beliefs. We worry way too much about what other people say or think and far too little about what God says and what God thinks of us. We are afraid of rejection, afraid of failure, afraid of being made fun of, afraid of offending someone. All fears freeze us into inaction, into silence and into feeling all alone. Fear can be a very powerful thing.

Fear comes from a lack of faith. Fear comes from worry and doubts. It is a failure to trust that God is in control. It is a failure to see that God has a plan. Basically, it is a failure to see that God is standing right beside you, walking with you through this worlds’ dark valley of the shadow of death.

And so three times in today’s Gospel lesson, Jesus tells His disciples to not be afraid. Do not be afraid to speak His Word. Do not be afraid to live His Word before those who can kill the body but cannot kill the soul. And do not be afraid, because as difficult as it may seem, your heavenly Father promises that you are not forgotten, but that you are very important to Him.

“Stop being afraid” is the force of these verbs in the Greek. Stop being afraid – not just once, but always.

Why should we not be afraid? Is it because Jesus sells us life insurance to cover our losses? Because He gives us bullet-proof vests to protect us? Because He teaches us how diffuse conflict?

Do not be afraid because as a student and servant of Christ you are like your Teacher and Master, Jesus Christ. You are a student and servant, not as a result of seeking out or choosing Christ, but because Jesus has sought you out and chosen you. He sends you out against the opposition of Beelzebub (Satan) and the members of his household (this world). But Jesus has given you what you need to go – His strength to support you, His promises to sustain you and His Word which will not return to Him empty.

Do not be afraid of anyone who can kill the body but cannot kill the soul. John Chrysostom was the patriarch of Constantinople in the fourth century. Because Chrysostom was so outspoken in his witness for Christ, the Roman emperor had him arrested and charged with being a Christian. If Chrysostom did not renounce Christ, then the emperor would have this Christian leader banished from the kingdom. Chrysostom responded to the threat by saying that the emperor could not do so, “because the whole world is my Father’s kingdom.” “Then,” replied the emperor, “I will take away your life.” To which Chrysostom said, “You cannot, for my life is hid with Christ in God.” The emperor next threatened with the loss of his treasure, to which this saint replied, “You cannot, for my treasure is in heaven where my heart is.” The emperor made one last effort: “Then I will drive you away from here and you shall have no friend left.” But again Chrysostom responded, “You cannot, for I have one Friend from whom you can never separate me. I defy you for you can do me no harm.”

We are tempted to renounce our faith, ignore our commitments, compromise our loyalties, shirk our responsibilities and take the easy way out. Though standing up for Jesus, speaking out for Christ and living the sanctified life of the Holy Spirit is not easy, it’s worth it. For though the going is tough now, there is rest and joy awaiting us. Rewards that Satan and no amount of opposition here on earth can take away from us. Jesus reminds us: “Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven.”

Do not be afraid because you are not going it alone. “Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father.  And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. ³¹ So don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.”

Fear would make perfect sense if we had to deal with problems alone. However, the Lord reminds us that we are never alone. He knows if a single sparrow falls. He knows how many hairs you have on your head (although some of you make it easier on Him than others). He knows that you are very special to Him. He sees in you a soul so valuable that He was willing to sacrifice His only Son so it might be saved. We are very special people – special enough to be the recipients of God’s gracious love through His Son and by the gift of His Holy Spirit. It is a love which is seen at creation, on the cross, in the open tomb, at the font, at the communion rail, in His Word and, really, every day as God answers our prayers for daily preservation in the words “give us this day our daily bread.”

What are you worth to the Lord? Well, you’re worth more than many sparrows and much hair. You’re worth the life, suffering, crucifixion and resurrection of God’s Son. Because your Savior came to lay down His life for you. You were not purchased and redeemed from your empty, worry-filled, doubting, fearful way of life with pennies, nickels, dimes or dollars, “not with gold or silver, but with the holy, precious blood and innocent suffering and death of the Son of God.” That is how much you are worth. God’s love and care will not leave you on your own.

Did you ever have an ant farm when you were a kid? Ant farms are made out of two slides of glass with just a very thin layer of dirt. You watch the ants lay their eggs and bustle around doing ant things. But you don’t go down there with them. You’re not involved in their life; you just look at them.

That’s not how God works. He’s involved. He knows how many hairs are on your head. He engraved your name on the palms of his hands. To top it off, in the person of Jesus Christ God became human like you. He doesn’t just watch you — He came to live in your world. God’s Word guarantees that God is engaged in your life. He’s not looking at you like an ant in His ant farm, watching detached and aloof and critical, but He interacts with you as someone He’s connected to by blood. Remember that Jesus ascended into heaven with His body. He is still human, still looking out for you, still crazy in love with you.

This last week was pretty momentous in the life of my 5-year-old daughter, Belle. She learned how to swim without her floaties and ride her bike without her training wheels. Many people might discount a 31 pound, 41 inch tall little girl swimming or riding her bike. But the whole time while she was learning her dad was walking in front of her in the pool with arms outstretched or running behind her on the sidewalk with arms extended. Sure, she swallowed a little water and has a few scrapes, but that’s how she learns and gets better and becomes more confident. More able to move on to even greater things.

And that’s what Jesus is telling you today. To the devil and the world, you may appear to be frightened, weak, lonely, little boys and girls. But go ahead and let them discount you. For they cannot see whom you can see. Your Heavenly Father is with you. He is running behind you to catch you. He is walking beside you to rescue you. He is watching over you, keeping and eye on you and always protecting you. Sure, you might get some scrapes and scratches, some bumps and bruises along the way. But that’s only because your Heavenly Father is allowing you to learn, grow, get better and become more confident. He is preparing you to do even greater things. He is preparing you with a faith that overcomes all fears. Amen.

5^th Sunday after Pentecost  at Epiphany on July 16, 2011