The Soul Anchor [Hebrews 6:19] - March 15, 2023
1. Many people would conclude that the opposite of fear is courage. I believe that if your have a relationship with the living God through Jesus Christ the opposite of fear is faith. If you are relying on your courage then you have to have the ability to ramp up your level of courage depending on the situation but the Bible says that if you have faith the size of a mustard seed you can move mountains. It's not about you - it's about the size of the God you have faith in. If you look at the 12 spies sent to investigate the Promised Land and how to, Caleb and Joshua wanted to move ahead with faith while the other 10 succumbed to fear because there were giants in the land. A couple of important points of the account of theses spies:
We tend to underestimate the power of God to work not just in our hearts but in the hearts of our enemies. Before the attack on Jericho, Joshua sent out two spies to investigate the land. I think it’s interesting that Joshua sent two spies. Moses sent 12 but only two brought a good report so Joshua only sent two. The book of Joshua tells us that Rahab hid the two spies so they wouldn’t be caught and then she tells them something very interesting.
Joshua 2:8-11 says,
Before the spies lay down for the night, she (Rahab) went up on the roof and said to them, ‘I know that the LORD has given this land to you and that a great fear of you has fallen on us, so that all who live in this country are melting in fear because of you. We have heard how the LORD dried up the water of the Red Sea for you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to Sihon and Og, the two kings of the Amorites east of the Jordan, whom you completely destroyed. 11 When we heard of it, our hearts melted and everyone's courage failed because of you, for the LORD your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below.
Rahab said that the hearts of her people melted at what God had done for Israel but all the spies could do was to focus on how the land was filled with the descendants of Anak and they looked like grasshoppers in their own eyes. They succumbed to their fears and the result was 40 years of wandering in the wilderness
2. After the 40 years of wandering in the wilderness as the land is being divided among the 12 tribes. Joshua 15:13-14 says,
In accordance with the LORD's command to him, Joshua gave to Caleb son of Jephunneh a portion in Judah--Kiriath Arba, that is, Hebron. (Arba was the forefather of Anak.) From Hebron Caleb drove out the three Anakites--Sheshai, Ahiman and Talmai--descendants of Anak.” It speaks volumes to me that while 40 years ago it was the fear of the sons of Anak that frightened the Israeli spies Caleb wants the assignment of taking out the descendansts of Anak- he was all in for the battle and wasn’t going to stop until victory was complete.
Every year we celebrate the death and resurrection of Jesus. Jesus came so fully committed to complete his mission that as He hung on the cross He cried out, “It is finished,” which means, “Paid in full.” As Paul says in 1 Corinthians 15:26 “The last enemy to be destroyed is death.”
What battle are you facing today? Does victory seem out of reach? The Bible tells us that we can fearlessly fight the battles of life until victory comes. God is for you, keep on fighting in faith!