We are never defenseless. God has promised to never leave our side (Deuteronomy 31:8). He will always stand with us. A.W. Tozer wrote, “If you accept the gospel of Jesus Christ, you will have all the power of God back of you to defend you; all the will of God on your side; all the justice and righteousness of God pledged to your defense, as well as all the infinite love and mercy of God to welcome and bless you.” What amazing promises!
Too many of us spend too much of our lives living in fear. Whether it’s a fear of failure, intimacy, confrontation, inadequacy, rejection, whatever, we spend much of our lives in fear. The fear of what complete strangers will think of our appearance or actions keeps us huddled within a protective cocoon. Jesus called us to live in love, not in fear (John 13:34-35; 1 John 4:18). He didn’t call us to shrink back but to go out (Matthew 28:18-20)!
With God, we need never be afraid. He has our back. Always. With all the power of God available to defend us, why would we ever be afraid? People can laugh. They can say words intended to wound. All we must do is remember we are God’s children and He is here with us. He loves us more than we could ever imagine. He loves the way we look, walk, act, sound, and smell! God is not One who differentiates between people like a human would (Acts 10:34-35). While it is always God’s pleasure for us to grow more and more to look like Jesus, we must remember He loves us exactly as we are. Nothing you do will ever make Him love you any more or any less. It’s difficult for us to wrap our minds around, but it doesn’t change the truth. Having been created in the image of God, when He looks at us, He sees His perfection. He sees His Son.
When we keep our eyes on Jesus and live according to His example and instruction, we can know we are in the will of God. There is no more powerful or dangerous place to be. It’s powerful because we are acting in concert with God. He is bringing His full power to bear on our behalf. It is dangerous because a man or woman acting in the will of God will draw the attention and fire of the evil one. Again, while this is a dangerous place to live, it is not one which should cause us to fear. Remember, Jesus already defeated everything the devil could throw at us. The war is over. Jesus won. Don’t be afraid of the desperate skirmishes Satan uses to try and convince you otherwise.
God is near. He stays even closer than a brother (Proverbs 18:24). He lives inside of those who have invited Him in. Satan can rage, tempt, discourage, and cause us to doubt, but he cannot harm your soul. What matters to us in this life is nothing compared to what we are building for the life to come. It is in the eternality of God’s Kingdom that Satan can do no harm. All his attacks are useless and meant only to confuse us and make us turn from God’s truth. The truth is we have all the power of God available for our defense and our offense. We are the children of God. We are never defenseless. If we keep our eyes on Him, we cannot be stopped. Let’s stop living in fear and begin employing the full force of God.