ESOCS Devotional 29 December 2024 – Fear Not
MEMORY VERSE: “Fear thou not; for I [am] with thee: be not dismayed; for I [am] thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.”Isaiah 41: 10 KJV
TEXT: ISAIAH 41:8–20
“But you, Israel, are My servant,
Jacob whom I have chosen,
The descendants of Abraham My friend.
9 You whom I have taken from the ends of the earth,
And called from its farthest regions,
And said to you,
‘You are My servant,
I have chosen you and have not cast you away:
10 Fear not, for I am with you;
Be not dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you,
Yes, I will help you,
I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’
11 “Behold, all those who were incensed against you
Shall be ashamed and disgraced;
They shall be as nothing,
And those who strive with you shall perish.
12 You shall seek them and not find them—
[a]Those who contended with you.
Those who war against you
Shall be as nothing,
As a nonexistent thing.
13 For I, the Lord your God, will hold your right hand,
Saying to you, ‘Fear not, I will help you.’
14 “Fear not, you worm Jacob,
You men of Israel!
I will help you,” says the Lord
And your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.
15 “Behold, I will make you into a new threshing sledge with sharp teeth;
You shall thresh the mountains and beat them small,
And make the hills like chaff.
16 You shall winnow them, the wind shall carry them away,
And the whirlwind shall scatter them;
You shall rejoice in the Lord,
And glory in the Holy One of Israel.
17 “The poor and needy seek water, but there is none,
Their tongues fail for thirst.
I, the Lord, will hear them;
I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them.
18 I will open rivers in desolate heights,
And fountains in the midst of the valleys;
I will make the wilderness a pool of water,
And the dry land springs of water.
19 I will plant in the wilderness the cedar and the acacia tree,
The myrtle and the oil tree;
I will set in the desert the cypress tree and the pine
And the box tree together,
20 That they may see and know,
And consider and understand together,
That the hand of the Lord has done this,
And the Holy One of Israel has created it.
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Throughout the Bible, God encourages us not to be afraid or anxious because as His children, we have no basis for fear. In our text, God sought to silence the fears of the people of Israel and to encourage their faith. God’s words to His people are an expression of His commitment to them because of His covenant relationship with them. When you become born again, you also become a partaker of God’s promises.
When the God who rules over the nations as described in Isaiah 41:2-4, the God who chose us and loves us as described in Isaiah 41:8-9, when that God tell us fear not, we must take it seriously! But there is also a promise. We fear not, because the Lord has told us, I am with you. What more do we need? “If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31).
Sometimes, you feel that nothing is going your way; everything seems to be attacking you; this can be overwhelming; Fear and Anxiety mount until life seems paralyzing.
God’s word says, “Fear thou not”. You are God’s servant, God’s chosen, the seed of His friend, Abraham (vv. 8–9, 13). He has promised to strengthen us, help us and uphold us with His righteousness (v 10). He has also promised to disgrace all those who are against us (v 12).
What do you trust in at a time of trial? Where do you turn in a time of helplessness? Think of that trial that you’re going through right now, and be honest with yourself: What is it that you trust in to get you through it? Is it the God of Israel? Or is it, perhaps, some man-made resource that is likely to topple just when you need it the most? Have you ever considered that the trial you’re in is intended by God to help you see what it is you really trust in? What does this trial tell you about your ultimate trust?
I want to encourage you that it is absolutely right for you and me, as believers in Jesus Christ, to claim this as God’s word of encouragement to us in a time of trial. The Bible tells us that there indeed was a time when we were “strangers and foreigners” to the promises of God; being “Gentiles in the flesh” (Eph. 2:11–20). In Christ, we enjoy today full claim to the “exceedingly great and precious promises” of the God of Israel (2 Peter 1:4).
- Are you facing a trial right now? Would you claim this as your promise from the living God?
- Father, help me to always trust you and to never be afraid even in the midst of trials. Amen.
Further Reading: Isaiah 12:1–end; Philippians 2:1–11; Colossians 1:1–20
ESOCS Devotional 29 December 2024
