We live in a very troubled world. There are fears on every hand - fears of war, famine, sickness and desertion. Why is there so much fear? Man, by sinning against God, brought this upon himself. Is there no way out of such depressing fear? How is it that we can so often read in the Bible the expression “fear not”? It is because only God can deliver us from all our fears. Man can only give us a false sense of security, but God can speak positively because nothing is too hard for Him. Do you know of anyone who is not ruffled by all that is happening in the world today? They spend much time in prayer and seem to be happy in the most trying circumstances. The God of peace (Romans 15:33; 16:20; 2 Corinthians 13:11; Philippians 4:9) seems to be at their side all the time. We read in 1 John 4:18 that God’s “perfect love casteth out fear.” This verse also says that “fear hath torment.” How true that is! People who don’t know the Lord have good reason to be fearful. The end of a life lived without Christ is eternal damnation. But for those who are saved, there are many admonitions to “fear not.” We will look at a few in only one book of the Bible.
1. What did the angel tell Zacharias about his prayer and about his wife Elisabeth? Luke 1:___
2. Why did the angel of the Lord tell the shepherds to “fear not”? Luke 2:___
3. Instead of fish, what did the Lord tell Simon he would henceforth catch?
Luke 5:___
4. When the ruler of the synagogue heard that his daughter was dead, what did Jesus say? Luke 8:___
5. Why is the little flock told to “fear not”? Luke 12:___