Jesus is Fearless

A number of years ago a 16 foot shark left a couple of 2-inch-long teeth marks and more than 30 gashes in a small Japanese fishing boat.

The boat was occupied by a lone 71-year-old fisherman who beat off the attacking shark with a long wooden pole.

“I thought I was going to die. So, I tried all means to repel it,” he said.

The shark rammed the small boat several times before leaving.

That shark attack reminds us of the attacks of our spiritual enemy.

James 4:7-8 says:

“Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.”

What will discourage him and send him fleeing?

It is not us fighting him off in our own strength.

Immediately before saying, “Resist the devil,” James said, “Submit therefore to God.”

Our Savior resisted the devil in the wilderness by quoting the Scriptures and submitting Himself to the Father’s care (Matt. 5:1-11).

When we fight by faith the enemy is in terror because He knows who we are in Christ.

The enemy is terrorized by Christ and Christ is in us and we are in Him.

When we resist him, based on who we are in Christ, he must flee and is terrorized.

Are we putting the enemy to flight by our faith in the victorious one?

The enemy is not terrorized by us, but by Christ.

We need to trust is His power, the enemy will flee when we do.

In order for us to have consistent victory day-by-day and moment-by-moment we need to:

“Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.”

This is the same as what Jesus said in John 15:4-5:

“Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.”

The hog nosed snake is an evil looking reptile.

It impersonates a pit viper, coiling and striking and hissing viciously.

This is how the enemy seeks to intimidate us.

If a hog nose snake fails to intimidate, it turns belly up, opens its mouth and sticks out its tongue and lets it hang loose, playing dead.

This is how the enemy has to respond to the power of Christ.

Let’s resist him in Christ’s power!

Blessings!
Pastor Ken Keeler