Written by Pastor Jack Wellman– Woodrow Kroll
Perfect Love
The Apostle John writes that perfect love casts out all fear because fear involves punishment (1 John 4:18), and the punishment that we had coming to us before we were saved was placed on Christ at Calvary. The Greek word for “casts” is “ballō” and means to “to throw away” or “to let go of,” so when a person puts their trust in Christ, they can throw away any fear of punishment because Christ’s righteousness has been imputed to us (2 Cor 5:21). Why fear anymore? Those who have never repented or trusted in Christ have good reason to fear because they will face God’s judgment after death (Heb 9:27), but for believers the condemnation is gone (Rom 8:1) because we are now at peace with God (Rom 5:1), so if the enemy makes you fear God’s judgment, cast the fear away and show him God’s Word.
In Christ
If you are a believer in Christ, you are “in Christ.” The words “in Christ” appear almost 300 times in the New Testament, so if you are in Christ, it means that Christ is also in you, and if Christ is in you, you have no need to fear the enemy because you have the power of God within you. Think about that. The very Creator God of the universe is residing in you, or, as Jesus said, “abiding” or dwelling and living in you. If you are abiding in Christ and in His Word, the Bible, then He is absolutely abiding in you and you will remain in Him (John 15:7). If the powerful, omnipotent God is dwelling in you, then the enemy should not cause you to fear. At one point we were far removed from God, but now we are “in Christ” because we have been brought near to God by Christ’s precious shed blood (Eph 2:13). Why fear a defeated enemy when we have Christ in us?
No Condemnation
I touched on this briefly in the first paragraph, but I want to expand on this. If we have placed our trust in Christ, God has lifted the condemnation that we previously had (Rom 8:1) and now there is peace between us and God (Rom 5:1). We stood condemned prior to our being saved, but even when we were still God’s enemies, He chose to die for us to reconcile us to God (Rom 5:10), and despite our still being sinners, He still chose to die for us anyway (Rom 5:8). I would die for my family. But who among us would die for someone who was wicked and our enemy? That’s why God’s grace is so amazing.
The Enemy’s Defeat
Jesus conquered not only the grave, but the enemy at Calvary, so now even the demons are subject to Christ (Luke 10:17-18). At the cross, Satan and his demons’ fate were sealed (Rev 20:7-9). Through His death, Jesus rendered the enemy powerless against us (Heb 2:14-15) and our “certificate of death” was cancelled by God Himself, by Jesus’ shed blood (Col 2:13-15). Now God has provided us with every bit of spiritual armor we will ever need (Eph 6:10-18), and nothing can ever separate us again from God (Rom 8:35). Not even death or wicked spirits, “nor any created thing” (to make sure Paul covers everything) can ever keep us from God again (Rom 8:37-39). Satan is a created being. This means that no created thing can separate us from the love of God, and this includes Satan and his demons, which are all creations of God. It’s impossible for them to snatch those who have trusted in Christ from Jesus and the Father’s hands (John 10:28-29), so with the power of God within us, we need never fear the powers around us ever again.
Conclusion
What I fear is not doing the things that Jesus commanded the church (Matt 25:35-36) as unto Him (Matt 25:40), and that includes ministering to the orphans and widows. I want to be found faithful in doing what He has called me to do when He returns and hear, “Well done thou good and faithful servant.” What about you?
