fear on SermonAudio

1) Fighting God 2) Fearing God 3) Finding Help

Pastor Patrick Harrison The Fear of The Lord Proverbs 8:13-16 Proverbs 9:10-12

The sermon examines the grave sin of unbelief by analyzing God's lament in Numbers 14 regarding Israel's refusal to trust His promises. It highlights how unbelief is an unreasonable rejection of God's truth, driven by fear and a reliance on visible circumstances rather than divine word. The preacher emphasizes that God's patience is extensive but finite, warning that persistent distrust provokes His judgment. While addressing non-Christians with an urgent call to repentance, the message also challenges believers to overcome their own tendencies toward doubt and discontent. Finally, it urges immediate faith in Christ as the only remedy for the hardening heart.

God gave Abram the land as a promise, but now the land is a problem: famine. Here we see that God's promises do not mean that God's people will never experience fear and famine. For often, God uses these things to form and mature our faith. However, this passage also teaches us that God's purposes and promises never depend upon us. For while we may be faithless, He remains faithful. Because the purposes and promises of God rest upon the perfect faithfulness of Jesus Christ.

This sermon examines Paul's final letter to Timothy against the backdrop of Nero's brutal persecution of Christians in Rome. The preacher highlights how Paul, facing imminent death, encourages Timothy to maintain genuine faith and minister with boldness rather than fear. Central to the message is the theological truth that God has not given believers a spirit of cowardice but one of power, love, and sound mind through the Holy Spirit. The text emphasizes that this divine strength is a gift received by faith, enabling Christians to endure hardship and pass on the pure gospel with courage. Ultimately, the sermon calls listeners to rely on the Holy Spirit's character rather than their own resources when facing spiritual challenges.

The sermon addresses the pervasive issue of human insecurity, distinguishing it from sin while acknowledging its roots in trauma and a fallen world. It identifies common manifestations such as fear of rejection, feelings of inadequacy, worry about the future, and shame over past mistakes. The central message emphasizes that true confidence and identity are found exclusively in God through the relationship established by Jesus Christ. By relying on Scripture and the Holy Spirit, believers can overcome these emotional struggles and find lasting security in their status as adopted children of God. The preacher encourages immediate repentance and trust in divine provision rather than human approval or self-effort.

Sermon Idea: The Lord's Supper calls us to examine ourselves before coming to the table. Fallen Condition Focus: No one likes to be judged. We fear God's judgment and despise the judgment of others. This is because we often think of condemnation when we hear the word judgment. But our passage calls us to seek another form of judgment, namely, self-examination. And as we do this, we are called to focus ultimately not on our sin, but on the Savior who cleanses us completely through the power of grace and the Gospel! This will help us prepare our hearts to come to the table of the Lord's Supper this morning.

Someone has said something about you that is not true, it was believed, and no court on earth is ever going to clear your name: Psalm 7 is the song David sang from exactly that place. He refuses to swallow the injustice and he refuses to strike back; instead he hands the whole case to a Judge who, the psalm says, feels indignation every day. That verse is the one our generation least wants to hear, but Psalm 7 insists on the opposite of what we fear: God is angry because He is good, and the daily anger of a righteous Judge turns out to be the refuge of everyone who commits his case to Him. By the end, the psalm has turned to ask one question of everyone in the room: whose righteousness are you standing on today, and where did the wrath you have earned actually go?

The sermon explores the theological depth of God as a refuge, moving beyond familiar scripture to address the ultimate danger of divine judgment. By contrasting Psalm 46 with Nahum, it establishes that while creation may shake under God's wrath, believers find safety in His character rather than circumstances. The central message resolves the tension between God's holiness and mercy through the atoning work of Christ on the cross. Jesus absorbs the full punishment for sin, allowing God to remain just while justifying the ungodly. Consequently, those in Christ face no condemnation and possess an immovable security that transcends earthly turmoil and death.