FEAR vs FAITH

FEAR: False Evidence Appearing Real
vs
FAITH: Forgetting All I Trust Him

Jesus had been teaching by the seaside with His disciples. When He finished speaking to the masses, He expounded on the teachings for His disciples. Afterwards, they sent the people away and Jesus decided to go to the other side of the sea. It was evening and, as He journeyed with His disciples in a ship surrounded by small boats, a great storm arose on the sea.

The storm was fierce and the waves splashed into the ship until it was full. The disciples were terrified and thought they were going to die. Jesus was sleeping on a pillow in the rear of the ship and they woke Him up asking if He did not care that they were going to die. I can just imagine how many things they mumbled before waking Him up.

These men had the creator (John 1:1-3) in the ship with them and they thought they were going to die! Unbelievable! All day He had been teaching them and prior to that He had done all kinds of miracles. He had healed multitudes of sick people (Mark 3:10). Even the demons had recognized Him as the Son of God (Mark 3:11). Despite all that the disciples had seen Jesus do, they still feared that they were going to die in the storm. They were standing there rooted and grounded in fear.

Jesus rose up immediately, rebuked the wind, and told the sea to be still. I can just imagine the look on all their faces. They must have felt relieved at first, shocked after thinking about what had just happened, and guilty after the realization hit them. Jesus, the Messiah, the Son of God, the Creator, was in the ship!

Christ gave us an awesome revelation in this scripture:
Fear is diametrically opposed to faith.

Look at what Jesus said to them after he had calmed the storm:

"And he said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith?" Mark 4:40 (KJV)

The Greek word for fearful is DEILOS, pronounced dā-lo's. It is found in only three (3) places in the Bible and also means timid. It is used in Matthew 8:26, as well as in the book of Revelation. In Revelation it refers to Christians who give in to persecutions and turn away from Christ because of cowardice (Revelation 21:8). The scripture is saying that anyone who has this type of fear is a coward. Wow!

The Greek word for faith is PISTIS, pronounced pē'-stēs. Faith is conviction of the truth of anything. You use faith when you are completely convinced about the truth of something. You used faith when you believed in Jesus. You were completely convinced that Jesus died for your sins, was resurrected, and is seated at God’s right hand talking to Him about you. This how you became born-again, through faith. This means every born-again believer has faith.

As born-again believers, Jesus is much more than ‘in the ship with us during the storm’. JESUS IS IN US! We do not have to fear anything because the creator is in us (John 14:20). He represents us at the same level that we represent Him. The more faith you have the more He manifests Himself in you.

Can you believe that the disciples were still in fear after all Jesus did (Mark 4:41)? It was a different type of fear (PHOBEO). This word refers to being startled by strange occurrences, to treat someone/something with reverential obedience, and to be struck with amazement. The scripture says they were wondering what type of man Jesus was. When anyone is in fear they Forget Everything And Run. When fear tries to get at you do not forget but remember who JESUS is to you. We are fearless in Christ when we stand in FAITH!

Be faithful, that is, be full of faith.

God Bless You!