CHRIST FOR PRISONERS WEEKLY BULLETIN
Sunday, February 25, 2007

A Spirit of Fear

2 Timothy 1:6-8
⁶ Therefore (KJV – Wherefore) I remind you to stir up the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands.
⁷ For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.
⁸ Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me His prisoner, but share with me in the sufferings for the gospel according to the power of God,

2 Timothy 1:6-8
⁶ Por lo cual te aconsejo que despiertes el don de Dios, que está en ti por la imposición de mis manos.
⁷ Porque no nos ha dado Dios el espíritu de temor, sino el de fortaleza, y de amor, y de templanza.
⁸ Por tanto no te avergüences del testimonio de nuestro Señor, ni de mí, preso suyo; antes sé participante de los trabajos del evangelio según la virtud de Dios,

Scriptures that speak of Jesus’ prayer life:

Luke 3:21
²¹ When all the people were baptized, it came to pass that Jesus also was baptized; and while He prayed, the heaven was opened.

Luke 3:21 (RVR)
²¹ Aconteció que cuando todo el pueblo se bautizaba, también Jesús fue bautizado; y orando, el cielo se abrió,

Luke 5:16; Luke 6:12; Luke 9:18 Luke 9:28 Luke 11:1; Luke 22:41-44;

This is what Paul prayed for and expected:

Philippians 1:19
¹⁹ For I know that this will turn out for my deliverance through your prayer and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ,

Philippians 1:19 (RVR)
¹⁹ Porque sé que por vuestra oración y la suministración del Espíritu de Jesucristo, esto resultará en mi liberación,

Stir up the gift of God, which is in thee by the putting on of my hands:

2 Timothy 1:6
⁶ Therefore I remind you to stir up the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands.

2 Timothy 1:6 (RVR)
⁶ Por lo cual te aconsejo que avives el fuego del don de Dios que está en ti por la imposición de mis manos.

A Spirit of Boldness:

Romans 8:15
¹⁵ For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, "Abba, Father."

Romans 8:15 (RVR)
¹⁵ Pues no habéis recibido el espíritu de esclavitud para estar otra vez en temor, sino que habéis recibido el espíritu de adopción, por el cual clamamos: ¡Abba, Padre!

A Spirit of Power:

Luke 24:49
⁴⁹ Behold, I send the Promise of My Father upon you; but tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high."

Acts 1:8
⁸ But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth."

1 Timothy 4:14
¹⁴ Do not neglect the gift that is in you, which was given to you by prophecy with the laying on of the hands of the eldership.

A Spirit of Love:

1 Corinthians 13:4
⁴ Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up;

Galatians 5:22-23
²² But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
²³ gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.

The primary reason the children of Israel did not enter the Promised Land was also fear:

Hebrews 3:19
¹⁹ So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief.

Hebrews 4:2
² For indeed the gospel was preached to us as well as to them; but the word which they heard did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it.

God has obligated Himself to bless only those who believe:

Mark 16:15-20
¹⁵ And He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.
¹⁶ He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned.
¹⁷ And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues;
¹⁸ they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover."
¹⁹ So then, after the Lord had spoken to them, He was received up into heaven, and sat down at the right hand of God.
²⁰ And they went out and preached everywhere, the Lord working with them and confirming the word through the accompanying signs. Amen.

John 3:16
¹⁶ For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

Romans 1:16
¹⁶ For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.

Romans 10:9-10
⁹ that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.
¹⁰ For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

Hebrews 11:6
⁶ But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.

James 1:5-8
⁵ If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him.
⁶ But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind.
⁷ For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord;
⁸ he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.

These are the principles of God:

Mark 11:22
²² So Jesus answered and said to them, "Have faith in God.

Romans 1:17
¹⁷ For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "The just shall live by faith."

Hebrews 11:6
⁶ But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.

Romans 14:23
²³ But he who doubts is condemned if he eats, because he does not eat from faith; for whatever is not from faith is sin.

Keys to defeating fear in the life of the believer:

Romans 6:16
¹⁶ Do you not know that to whom you present (KJV – yield) yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one's slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness?

Fear must be treated just like any other temptation of Satan:

Romans 14:23
²³ But he who doubts is condemned if he eats, because he does not eat from faith; for whatever is not from faith is sin.

Submit (Yield) yourself to God:

James 4:7-8
⁷ Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.
⁸ Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.

This is the primary key to overcoming fear:

1. 1 John 4:8
    ⁸ He who does not love does not know God, for God is love.

2. 1 John 4:10
    ¹⁰ In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent
    His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

3. 1 John 4:16
    16 And we have known and believed the love that God has for us.
    God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him.

Please allow me to give another interpretation of 1 John 4:16
(This is not in any Bible translation that I have read) in light of fear:

“And we know and understand and therefore believe the love that God has towards us. God is a God of Love, and God will protect him that yields himself to God’s love instead of Satan’s fear. He will dwell in God’s principles of faith and belief and not in Satan’s principles of fear and unbelief.”

Why is it so important that we live in God’s love?

1 John 4:18
¹⁸ There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love.

Pray this prayer with me:

Father, we thank you that you are a God of Love. We thank you that your kingdom is ruled by Love. Help us to see that Satan rules his kingdom by fear. Help us to see fear as sin and to stand firm against it by your Word.

Forgive us Father for sinning against you by being fearful. We repent of it and know that you forgive us. Help us to learn from the children of Israel in the wilderness rather than learning by our own experiences with fear.

In Jesus Name, Amen