Sermon: I’m Afraid God

2 Timothy 1:7

Jacob Anderson

April 26, 2026

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

 

Fear mongering, refers to the deliberate use of fear-based tactics including exaggeration and continual repetition to alter a person’s perception of their situation.

 

Satan loves to remind us of things that are bad in our life. Your health is not good, your relationships are struggling, your job is not what you wanted, God will never forgive you, because your sins are too bad.

 

I read an anonymous quote recently that said, “Fear has two meanings, Forget Everything And Run, or, Face Everything And Rise.”

 

Jesus said in John 14:27 “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”

 

Jesus understood fear and what it can do to you, remember the garden of gethsemane, there was a battle going on in Jesus’ mind about what was going to happen to Him.

 

Luke 22:44 “Jesus prayed more fervently, and He was in such agony of spirit that His sweat fell to the ground like great drops of blood.”

 

But what did we learn from Jesus in this extreme situation? Matthew 26:42 “My Father, if this cup cannot pass unless I drink it, may Your will be done.”

 

How did Jesus overcome fear, and push it out of His mind? He gave it over to the Father. Jesus said, I don’t want to face this, but it isn’t about what I want, but what the Father wants.

 

Romans 8:15 “For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons and daughters by which we cry out, ‘Abba! Father!’”

 

Fear is a result of not understanding that our “Abba Father” is someone we can cry out to when we are in need. As children of God, we have nothing to fear, because we know that God has everything in His control.

 

II Timothy 1:7 “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.”

 

First, we need to understand what fear is, “For God has not given us a spirit of fear.”

 

The first truth we see, is that fear is a spiritual issue!

 

Paul describes how the Spirit of God gives good and healthy emotional responses, as we see in Galatians 5:22 – 23, “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.”

 

John 14:26 “The Helper, the Holy Spirit whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and remind you of all that I said to you.”

 

Why do we fear?

 

Fear arises when we Satan causes us to lose our trust in the goodness of God.

 

Fear is the antithesis of everything God is, fear is distrust, fear is anxiety, fear is uncertainty, fear is the anticipation of bad.

 

Romans 8:28 “We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”

 

“For God has not given us a Spirit of Fear.”

 

Then Paul tells us how to combat fear, and he gives us three tools we can use in our battle against the spirit of fear.

 

First, we have power!

 

Colossians 1:11 “We also pray that you will be strengthened with all God’s glorious power so you will have all the endurance and patience you need. May you be filled with joy.”

 

We have no need to be afraid, for we know that God controls all things, and nothing is out of His control, because God holds everything in his powerful hands.

 

Colossians 1:17 “He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.”

 

Isaiah said it well in Isaiah 41:10 “Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you; I will surely help you; I will uphold you with My right hand of righteousness.”

 

Second, we have love.

 

I John 4:18 “There is no fear in love, but perfect love drives out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love”

 

There is no fear, because we know that God loves us, and because of that love, we have absolutely nothing to fear.

 

God will never take His love away from us, it is an irrevocable gift, as we can see from the words of Paul in Romans 8:29 “For God’s gifts and His call are irrevocable.”

 

Romans 8:38 – 39 “I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the troubles of today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

 

The love of God is sure and trustworthy, so we don’t let fear into our hearts.

 

Third, we have a sound mind.

 

To understand what Paul meant, we have to go to the origin of the word “sound mind”, which is the Greek word, “sóphronismos.” This Greek word, literally means “to practice self-control or have self-discipline.”

 

To have a sound mind, means you are able to control your emotions, and you are able to stay grounded when life throws you a curve ball.

 

 If we want to defeat fear in our lives, then we need to be able to control our emotions, and control our emotional responses to stressful situations.

 

Fear is the absence of assurance, assurance that we are not alone, assurance that we are not forgotten, and assurance that what we are facing in our life will not be permanent.

 

Satan wants you to believe all is lost, and he’ll use to fear to convince you. But remember this important truth, Satan is a liar, and so fear is also a liar.

 

Three practical ways to combat fear; utilize the power of God, embrace the love of God, and practice self-discipline so as to have a sound mind.

 

“For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.”