Don’t Be Afraid

“Joseph, son of David,” the angel said, “do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. For the child within her was conceived by the Holy Spirit.”

Matthew 1:20

AN ANGEL APPEARED TO Joseph in a dream and told him to not be afraid to take Mary as his wife, despite the fact that she was pregnant and the baby was not Joseph’s. You can imagine how the news of her pregnancy could have caused some concerns about the viability of their relationship. After all, a marriage is supposed to be built on trust, and Mary getting pregnant before their marriage and without Joseph’s involvement was not part of their plan. Joseph likely would have been tempted to be afraid of what others would think of Mary and him for going through with the marriage despite what appeared to be a moral indiscretion. But things were not as they seemed.

We cannot know God, love God, or obey God without faith. Hebrews 11:6 says, “It is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.” Our faith is a gift from God (Ephesians 2:8), and it pleases Him for us to develop it. He wants us to trust Him.

Fear is the great enemy of faith. Living in fear is looking at circumstances as if God doesn’t exist, as if everything depends on us. Fear is trying to control the uncontrollable. It shrinks our world and can cause us to be ineffective. But God’s love casts out fear and gives us the faith we need to trust Him.

BOTTOM LINE

There’s a battle going on in each of our lives between fear and faith. Over and over again, the Bible tells us to not be afraid. We can look to God instead.

Moment of Strength: 1 John 4:18