| Whatsoever
Things Are True
by Dan Coburn Pastor, Emmanuel Baptist Church pastordan@mtida.net Most of a man's adult life is spent trying to convince himself and everyone else that he is not afraid. Fear of failure (I know some who have a fear of success, but we'll address that later), fear of commitment, fear of pain, fear of peer pressure, fear of change, fear of not being accepted, fear of ridicule, fear someone will "find out" and the list goes on and on. There are 404 references to fear in the Bible; the vast majority of which are in the negative, meaning "do not do it". This sounds cool. We all want it (fearlessness). We have motivational speaking and seminars which are little more than Professional Pep Rallies, the effects of which seem not to linger to any great benefit. We admire those we believe to be fearless, while I guarantee, they fear we will find out the truth, that they are not. If you go to your local "Barnes and Noble", you will discover the largest section by far, is the Self Help section designed to most often, assuage your fear. Let's turn the Spiritual Switch: In John 20 vs 19-23, we find Jesus appearing to some His closest friends following His resurrection. Note: They were all hiding from the world. We always think of Peter denying Jesus, but in point of fact, they all had or were now denying Him in part or parcel. Sound familiar? One would think Jesus might come back and rebuke them for their lack of faith, or their cowardice. Instead He 1) Came to them miraculously (through locked doors and windows). Why? What would their reaction be? When you really Really let someone down, you are not anxious to see them. Then there is the little matter of His appearance combined with the fact the they knew He had been killed - and were they feeling guilty because they had doubted his resurrection? Good news. "He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities". Psalm 103:10 2) He reassured them: by showing them His wounds. This was for more than identification purposes. They were evidence of the price successfully paid for our salvation, forgiveness, being quickened (made alive Eph. 2:1), being "accepted in the beloved", having citizenship and a commission. Nugget: This is the removal of all fear - see Romans 8. Nugget: The basis for all peace is found in the person and work of Jesus Christ - "Faithful are the wounds of a friend" Prov. 27:6 Nugget: Only after Jesus saw the disciples fear turn to joy, did He commission them - vs 21. Nugget: We are loved with the same love The Father has for His Son - "As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you" - John 15:9 And, we are "in the Father" just as Jesus is - John 17:21-22. 3) Jesus enabled them - vs 22. In Gen. 2:7, God breathed physical life into man. Here, Jesus breathed Spiritual Life - not to be confused with the Holy Ghost Baptism in Acts 2. Nugget: Vs 23 must not be interpreted to mean Jesus issued a select few or their descendants the right to forgive sins or decide who can or can't enter heaven. Remember, there were others present, and Thomas was absent. In the Greek, this would be translated: "whosoever sins you remit (forgive) shall have already been forgiven them, and whosoever sins you retain (do not forgive) shall have already not been forgiven them". Neither the disciples nor we can provide forgiveness, but rather proclaim it on the basis of the message of the Gospel. As they (and us now) went into the world, they announced the Good News that if sinners would repent and believe on the Lord, their sins would be forgiven them. "Who can forgive sins but God only?" Mark 2:7 Now the believers had lost all fear as evidenced by their martyrdom in the book of Acts. "Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." Phil. 4:6-7 Do you doubt His coming? Are you afraid He might? God Bless. |
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