DEAL WITH YOUR FEARS AND UNBELIEF

Israel had fallen into idolatry. But their root sin was still unbelief,

resulting in all kinds of fears! And God sent them a prophet to expose their

root sin.



The prophet told them in so many words, “Look at you—a bunch of wimps,

hiding out, afraid to stand up and fight. You’ve already given up. But you

have a history of God’s deliverance! He gave your fathers great victories

when they trusted him. And he has promised to deliver you too—yet you don’t

believe him!” (See Judges 6:7–10.)



Many Christians are terrified the devil is going to destroy them. They’re

afraid they’ll make a mistake or go back to their sin, and the devil will

have his way. But that’s a lie from the pit of hell! The Bible says you

don’t have to be terrified as you walk through this life!



When you hold on to fear, it becomes contagious. Everybody around you catches

it! When Gideon gathered his army, God told him to send home every fearful

soldier: “Whoever is fearful and afraid, let him return and depart…. And

there returned of the people twenty and two thousand” (Judges 7:3).



God is speaking the same word to his church today. He is asking, “Why do you

fear? Why do you sin by not trusting me to bring victory to your life? I have

promised to defeat every demonic power that comes against you!”



Gideon’s father, Joash, had erected statues of Baal and the goddess Asherah,

made from huge stones. His reasoning was, “Baal has given Midian power over

us, so maybe if we worship their god, he’ll give us power.” People came

from miles around to worship there, including Midianites and Moabites; it was a

powerful, demonic stronghold in Israel!



God told Gideon, “I’m not going to deliver Israel until you get rid of this

idol that stands between us. Lay it aside—cut it down!” So in the middle of

the night Gideon “took ten men of his servants, and did as the Lord had said

unto him” (Judges 6:27). He took an ox and used ropes to pull down Baal and

Asherah!



God is giving his church today the same message he gave Gideon: “I want to

help you—but I can’t when you don’t trust me. You’re full of fear. And

before I bring deliverance, you’re going to have to pull down this

stronghold, this besetting sin!” “Lay aside every weight, and the sin which

doth so easily beset [you]” (Hebrews 12:1). We are to pull down all

strongholds of fear and sin!



Gideon pulled down demonic strongholds using a strong ox. But we have been

given weapons far more powerful than Gideon’s (see 2 Corinthians 10:4–5).



Victory comes by praying in faith. This doesn’t mean cold, empty prayer but

prayer in the Spirit, prayer that believes God to answer: “Praying always

with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit” (Ephesians 6:18).

SOMETIMES WE GROW AND DON’T KNOW IT by David Wilkerson

Some believers can tell you all about their spiritual growth. And you can
clearly see the changes in their lives. They testify to you about how the Holy
Ghost has vanquished the enemy for them, and you rejoice with them in their
victory.

Yet these kinds of Christians are the exception. Most believers are totally
unaware of any spiritual progress in their lives. They pray, read the Bible and
seek the Lord with all their hearts. There's no obstruction to spiritual growth
in them.

But they can't discern any growth in themselves. I'm an example of this type of
believer. I know I walk in the righteousness of Christ, yet I never sense I'm
making progress. In fact, I occasionally get down on myself whenever I do or
say something un-Christlike. It causes me to wonder, "I've been a Christian for
years. Why don't I ever learn?"

I think the Thessalonian Christians were stunned when they heard Paul's glowing
assessment of them (see 2 Thessalonians 1:3). They probably thought, "Me,
growing exceedingly? Paul must be kidding."

Yet Paul knew that spiritual growth is a secret, hidden thing. Scripture likens
it to the unseen growth of flowers and trees: "I will be as the dew unto Israel:
he shall grow as the lily, and cast forth his roots as Lebanon. His branches
shall spread, and his beauty shall be as the olive tree, and his smell as
Lebanon" (Hosea 14:5–6).

God is telling us, "Go to the lilies! Just try to watch them grow. I'm telling
you by day's end you won't see any growth whatsoever. But know this; I water
the lily every morning with the dew I send—and it's going to grow." The same
is true of most spiritual growth. It's imperceptible to the human eye!

When some people get saved, they never seem to struggle with a besetting sin.
They testify, "The moment I came to Jesus, the Lord took that temptation out of
me. And I've been free ever since." I know many former drug addicts who've had
this experience.

But for multitudes of Christians, it's a different story. Years after their
conversion, an old corruption has broken loose in them—something they hated
and never wanted to see again. Yet no matter how hard they struggle, that one
remaining lust simply won't let go. Over time they grow discouraged. Their soul
cries out, "How long, Lord? When will this chain ever be broken?" And eventually
the devil comes to them, saying, "You'll never make it. You know there's no way
you could grow spiritually in this kind of condition."

Take heart, friend—I've got good news for you. You are growing in the midst
of your struggle! In fact, you may be growing by leaps and bounds because of
your struggle.

Rest assured—if you have the fear of God in your heart, you're going to
emerge from the storm much stronger. You see, when you're doing battle with the
enemy, you're exercising and calling forth all the graces and powers of God. And
even though you may feel weakened, those graces and powers are strengthening
you. For one, you're becoming more urgent in your praying. And, second, you're
being stripped of all pride. So, the storm is actually putting you on
"spiritual guard" in every area of your life!