In our private prayers and in our public services we are forever asking God to do things that he either has already done or cannot do because of our unbelief. We plead for him to speak when he has already spoken and is at that very moment speaking. We ask him to come when he is already present and waiting for us to recognize him. We beg the Holy Spirit to fill us while all the time we are preventing him by our doubts. A.W. Tozer
I think that the words of Tozer sum up where we often find ourselves … We ask God to come when the Holy Spirit is already present and waiting for us to recognize Him. That is really the secret to having a relationship with Jesus; remembering that His presence is here with us 24×7 and the blessings and benefits He has given us are beyond measure. Just as Paul reminded Tmothy:
2 Tim 1:7 for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control [sound mind]. ESV
This is one of my favorite verses in the entire Bible. It reminds me that I do not have to stand in fear or shrink back from the threats of the enemy. I have faith, and where faith is present fear cannot be! Not only has He given me a sound mind but He has given me the sound mind of Christ.
1 Cor 2:16 “For who has understood the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ. ESV
And that is a sound mind that is full of common sense and it is mine every time I put on the Helmet of Salvation.
Eph 2:16 … and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility. ESV
Look at 2 Timothy again and note that He also gave us a spirit of power. That word is dunamis and it represents potential miracle-working power. But lest we use that power in a devastating or destructive manner, He gave us the Holy Spirit controls of love (agape) and a sound mind (self-control). These two, taken together and mixed with faith, are the perfect antidote for fear.
Look at the meaning of the word fear as used here. Fear (deilia) comes from the word deilos, which means timid or faithless; cowardice. We have not been given a faithless or timid spirit; we are not spiritual cowards. We have been given a bold spirit to stand in faith when the enemy challenges us.
1 Peter 5:8 Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. ESV
Note that it does not say he “is” a roaring lion, only that he acts “like” a roaring lion. There is a big difference and whether you buy into his act or not is determined by you and you alone. Your spirit isn’t timid and you don’t need to be fooled by his roaring in your face. You have the power to turn him away, the power exercised in love and self-control.
In simple terms: God did not give us a coward’s spirit, He gave us a spirit with power to encounter the enemy, bear up under trials and persecutions, and speak the truth. We have a spirit that loves God and man with the same love that God has for us, a love that casts out fear.
1 John 4:18 There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love. ESV
We have a spirit of soberness and common sense that is well balanced and keeps things in perspective while making sound judgments. Unlike the servant and his one talent.
Matt 25:24-25 He also who had received the one talent came forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed, 25 so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.’ ESV
It was out of fear that he buried his talent and did not invest it in the kingdom to make a return for his master. The enemy wants us to do that with the Gospel so the world will be robbed of the blessing. Charles Spurgeon understood the impact of fear on our investment in the kingdom.
Brethren, it is not ours to hide in holes and in corners; our Gospel is like the sun, whose line has gone out through all the earth. Let us not speak timidly; for we have not received the spirit of fear, neither will we hide our candle under a bushel. We are to publish the tidings of that life from the dead which has brought life for the dead.