Day 8 - Gen 21:16-20 & Ge 28:16

Do Not Fear
Genesis 21:16-20 - ¹⁶ Then she went and sat down opposite him a good way off, about the distance of a bowshot, for she said, “Let me not look on the death of the child.” And as she sat opposite him, she lifted up her voice and wept. ¹⁷ And God heard the voice of the boy, and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, “What troubles you, Hagar? Fear not, for God has heard the voice of the boy where he is. ¹⁸ Up! Lift up the boy, and hold him fast with your hand, for I will make him into a great nation.” ¹⁹ Then God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water. And she went and filled the skin with water and gave the boy a drink. ²⁰ And God was with the boy, and he grew up. He lived in the wilderness and became an expert with the bow.

Fear God
Genesis 28:16-17
When Jacob awoke from his sleep, he thought, "Surely the Lord is in this place, and I was not aware of it." [17] He was afraid and said, "How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God; this is the gate of heaven."





When hope was gone, God hears the voice of the boy, and responds to Hagar. His words "Fear Not" are followed by a promise to make Ishmael into a great nation, but also a supernatural opening of her eyes to see as well. A great reminder that, God not only hears our cry and commands us not to fear, but to trust in him as well. Jacob gets a similar experience after he wakes, and God opened his eyes during a dream. Jacob now experiences a new understanding of the closeness of God and grows in His fear of God. I think part of the reason we don't fear God is we don't know or believe in His closeness. It is similar to the pride we experience in long periods of stability and comfort and then a windstorm or a huge thunderstorm or flooding or when a 9/11 happens, it reminds us of our smallness. God is close and sometimes we are reminded of our smallness when God shows up unexpectedly. It leads to a proper fear of a powerful, almighty and holy God.

Day 7 - Genesis 15:1 (The first Fear (Not) in the Bible...)

Genesis 15:1 -After these things the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision: “Fear not, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great.”

Genesis 22:12
"Do not lay a hand on the boy," he said. "Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son."

As far as what I can see, this is the first time God says to anyone, "Fear Not!" It came after a great victory, and yet, before the great miracle of a child. He is striving to be faithful and yet desiring so badly to see a child born to him. In response to his courage in defeating the armies and rescuing his nephew, God says, I am your shield, meaning I did and I will protect you. And, in response to his obedience not to take the wealth that the king of Sodom wanted to give him, he says, I will be your reward. Fear not, because I am your protector and I am you reward. I am all you need to fear. What a great reminder to us that he is both our protector and our reward. Are these not the two things that cause us the most fear? The fear of our lives being hurt seems to dominate most of our fears. But I think we also fear not having enough money to survive as well. And this next verse to Abraham (coincidentally?) is the first reference to fearing God and occurs when Abraham was in faith being obedient to God to slay his only beloved son. God proved to both Abraham and God that Abraham truly did fear God. The fear of God is the prerequisite for obedience. If Abraham did not fear God, he would not have made the three day walk to Mount Moriah. What have we not obeyed that shows our lack of fear of God?

Day 6 - Psalm 27:1

Psalm 27:1 The Lord is my light and my salvation-- whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life-- of whom shall I be afraid?

I memorized this Psalm as a little boy to encourage me when I was afraid. I love this verse and now I quote it to my kids... The answer to his questions? I shall fear only God and there is no one and nothing that I should be afraid of...

Day 5 - Acts 20:22-24

Acts 20:22-24 (NIV)
"And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there. [23] I only know that in every city the Holy Spirit warns me that prison and hardships are facing me. [24] However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me--the task of testifying to the gospel of God's grace.


Though this verse does not explicitly say, "Do not fear," Paul is demonstrating that neither prison nor hardships nor fear of man is enough to hinder him from completing the task the Lord has given him... Paul fears God. It is clear in this verse that fear can keep us from doing God's will. What are you fearing today that is keeping you from completing the task that God has given you?

Day 4 - Luke 12:4-7

Luke 12:4-7 (NIV)
"I tell you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that can do no more. [5] But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear him who, after the killing of the body, has power to throw you into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him. [6] Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten by God. [7] Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.

I love that line. Do not be afraid of those who can kill you and do no more... He is talking about eternity and that is much more important than just here and now. Again, Jesus says, fear the one who has the real power with much bigger repercussions. And yet, again, he picks something of mass, sparrows, and identifies that even in his power, his eye is on the individual. He knows, cares for us, protects and watches over us. What a great God we serve!

Day 3 - Matthew 10:28-31

Matthew 10:28-31 (NIV)
Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell. [29] Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. [30] And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. [31] So don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.


We are not only not to fear men, but we are clearly commanded that we are to fear God. Don’t fear anything except God. Now this isn’t be afraid of God like you would be a cobra ready to strike or a mugger or war, but to hold in awe, worship and honor God as you would a king, as your creator, as your judge and as your Father in Heaven. He is all you need to fear. And when he becomes all we fear, he also becomes a sanctuary of peace and protection and safety as Isaiah says, or here, he says, he knows the number of hairs on our head. We are worth much more than sparrows and yet, our Father knows them intimately. Fear and love him. Fear and trust Him. Fear and honor Him.

Day 2 - 1 Peter 3:13-14

1 Peter 3:13-14 (NIV)
Who is going to harm you if you are eager to do good? [14] But even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed. "Do not fear what they fear; do not be frightened."

I believe Peter was referencing the verse in Isaiah when he commanded the believers who were experiencing heavy persecution not to fear. I just love this verse, and I can't believe that I haven't really ever noticed it before. Don't fear what those who do not believe in a sovereign, good, powerful God fear. If we do, what are we saying? There should be a marked difference between what we fear and what the person who does not believe in a God fears... We have nothing to fear.

Here is a quote by John Piper:

"Why? Why would God be so displeased and offended if Isaiah or we feared men? The answer is that God had made many promises to his people that should have taken away their fear and filled them with confidence and hope; and so if Isaiah feared man, it would show that he doesn’t trust God’s promise. And when someone doesn’t trust an honest man, he is offended and displeased."

Don't fear what you read in the paper, don't fear what people will think of you, don't fear tomorrow, for God is in control.