What is the foundation of worry?

We saw 3 Truths that we fail to embrace, which will lead us to worry. Just to review:

1. We fail to believe that God is Sovereign!

2. We fail to believe that God is not mean!

3. We fail to believe that Rom 8:28 is true

But what is the foundation of worry? This story gives the perfect example:

An unidentified English woman, according to the London Sunday Express was climbing into the bathtub one afternoon when she remembered she had left some muffins in the oven. Naked, she dashed downstairs and was removing the muffins when she heard a noise at the door. Thinking it was the baker, and knowing he would come in and leave a loaf of bread on the kitchen table if she didn't answer his knock, the woman darted into the broom cupboard. A few moments later she heard the back door open and, to her eternal mortification, the sound of footsteps coming toward the cupboard. It was the man from the gas company, come to read the meter. "Oh," stammered the woman, "I was expecting the baker." The gas man blinked, excused himself and departed.

Just the thought of what was building up in that woman’s mind…FEAR! Now, I understand her fear, but look how it controlled her. All she had to do was yell, “just a minute,” and then put a robe on and she could have easily let the man in fully dressed. Instead, fear paralyzed her and she did not think…then all she could do was think (worry) about what was going to happen.

Fear is the foundation of worry. The word in the New Testament for fear is φόβος  phóbos, which we draw our word “phobia” from. Place any word in front of that and it means you have a fear of something. I am “acrophobic” which means I have a fear of heights. This is a popular word today because you can marginalize someone when you disagree with their opinion by just calling them “blankaphobic.” It’s become a very political word.

Sadly, political or not, as human beings we struggle with fears of all kinds. Some are healthy.

For example, it is wise to fear death; that fear will drive you to meditate what to do about that reality.

Romans 3:23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

Ezekiel 18:4 “Behold, all souls are Mine; the soul of the father as well as the soul of the son is Mine. The soul who sins will die.

Hopefully you will discover the plan that God has offered to all so they can escape the most tragic death. None of us can escape physical death, that is when our spirit is separated from our body, but that is only temporal.

Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Ezekiel 18:32  “For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone who dies,” declares the Lord God. “Therefore, repent and live.”

The “second” death is the terrible one, when our spirit is separated from our Creator. No one has to experience that; God has made a way to escape that outcome.

His Son paid the price for sin in full! When you accept His forgiveness and enter into a relationship with the Lord, only your body will die, and it will be resurrected anew when Christ returns to this earth to claim what is His.

Romans 6:8–10 Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, ⁹ knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, is never to die again; death no longer is master over Him. ¹⁰ For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God.

1 Corinthians 15:50–57 What I am saying, dear brothers and sisters, is that our physical bodies cannot inherit the Kingdom of God. These dying bodies cannot inherit what will last forever. ⁵¹ But let me reveal to you a wonderful secret. We will not all die, but we will all be transformed!⁵² It will happen in a moment, in the blink of an eye, when the last trumpet is blown. For when the trumpet sounds, those who have died will be raised to live forever. And we who are living will also be transformed.⁵³ For our dying bodies must be transformed into bodies that will never die; our mortal bodies must be transformed into immortal bodies. ⁵⁴ Then, when our dying bodies have been transformed into bodies that will never die, this Scripture will be fulfilled: “Death is swallowed up in victory. ⁵⁵ O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?” ⁵⁶ For sin is the sting that results in death, and the law gives sin its power.⁵⁷ But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ.

I have more to say on fear, but I will deal with that next time. The most important item I want to communicate is, to deal with all other fears, we must deal with the greatest fear of all. What will happen to me after I die? This is a fear we cannot escape, for all have died that have ever lived. Scripture states:

Hebrews 9:27 And inasmuch as it is appointed for men to die once and after this comes judgment,

This is the norm for all of us since the fall. No one is exempt, but everyone can have victory over the fear because of what our Lord did.

Hebrews 9:28 so Christ also, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time for salvation without reference to sin, to those who eagerly await Him.

The so what? Take a moment…are you afraid of death? I am nervous about dying, because that is how we get there. That remains an unknown, and like all I would rather just fall asleep and wake up in heaven, but I do know that no matter how I die, my God will be with me. However, I am not afraid of death. My sin has been paid for, and undeserving as I am, Christ has forgiven me, taken away the penalty of sin for my soul and has made me a child of God. This is a peace that allows a restful sleep in a dangerous world. What about you? All you need to do is acknowledge that you also are a sinner, that you believe Jesus, God in the flesh, came to this earth and offered His life to pay for your sins. If you do, then just ask Him to forgive you and trust Him as your Savior and Lord.  Overcome the fear of death by embracing the Life God wants you to have!