Grace Bible Church
Pastor Teacher
Robert R. McLaughlin
040120
Sudden Disaster & Misfortune. Its Meaning Often Places Believers In Panic Alley, Shocking Them!
We are continuing to look at some of the major principles of how to handle our thoughts in times of pressure, especially those thoughts from fears, worries, anxiety, panic and stress.
And, to do this, we have been studying The Doctrine of Fear and why the Lord is allowing these things to happen at a time when it seems like we were peaking spiritually but were being deceived naturally without even knowing it.
Some believers have never fallen away from God so much that evil is in control of their life and they even know and realize how blinded they really are IN THIS LIFE.
- It is possible to learn a great many doctrines, and yet fall apart in an emergency or sudden pressure situation.
- One is because for some believers, the way of forgetting often exceeds the rate of learning because of certain problems along the way.
To use doctrine under pressure requires overall spiritual strength.
And, remember that all spiritual strength is in the pre-frontal lobe of the soul; Psa 23:5.
- Therefore, the third point; sudden disaster often places the believer in panic alley, much to his own shock.
Or, you cannot remember promises which you have noted in the past.
- The difference between fear and courage then is an issue in panic alley.
And by concentration, I do not mean on the problem but on the doctrine that you have previously learned.
If you have trouble concentrating under normal situations, you will have trouble concentrating under pressure situations.
Eph 6:16 above all taking the shield of faith, in which you shall be able to extinguish all the fiery darts or the flaming missiles of the wicked.
God has left the shield of faith or the faith rest life to handle any disasters that life may bring to you.
- A coward is a person who might under normal circumstances be fine, but a coward cannot think under pressure.
And remember 1Co 10:13 God is faithful, who will not permit you to be tested above what you are able, but will with the temptation also make a way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.
Now when I use the word cowardice, I am not using it in an insulting way, but I am using it for blanking out or for blacking out under pressure situations.
- Concentration is required then, not only for learning Bible doctrine and metabolizing it, but concentration is required even to a greater extent when under a stress situation.
- Adversity, suffering, disaster, stress, is certainly designed to destroy your concentration and to cause your rate of forgetting to exceed your rate of learning. (Lose 30 years of intake to 15 minutes of legalism and religion).
Because of the kingdom conflict and the issue of human freedom
To accelerate the spiritual growth of the believer.
- This point explains in part why it is so difficult for many believers to recover: it is the suddenness of it all.
And the suddenness intensifies disaster and hinders the believer from concentration on promises and on Bible doctrine which has been learned in Bible class under the concept of epignosis.
- Normal reaction to disaster can very easily be fear and panic.
Remember, there is a fear which is an emotional sin and apart of the emotional complex of sins and it causes believers to worry.
And this fear is designed to destroy what you have learned and destroy the rate of learning to the rate of forgetting.
This is why Moses said in Deu 31:6, be strong and of courageous, do not be afraid because of them, for the lord your god is the one who goes with you, he will not fail you nor forsake you!
This is something that Moses gave to over 2 million people to use and over 95% of them failed to use it.
So much so that with few exceptions, that generation was excluded from ever setting a foot on the promise land.
And, it wasn’t a matter of their salvation but the fact that they could not handle stress.
But they had one major problem which led to many more = fear
So, believers today, in all stages of spiritual growth can find themselves in panic alley because of adversity, doubts, worries, but most of all “Fear.”
You’re going along with the usual aches and pains of life and then suddenly something comes along that shocks you and it’s filled with stress.
And the reason is that so many believers are just not in the spiritual condition to handle the shield of faith.
The principle is also found in Psa 56:3 when David said, “When I am afraid, I will trust in you.
And the word trust is batach which is the word for body slamming or casting all your worries upon the Lord. (Do it!)
True faith always selects something that is stronger than the strength of stress. – Repeat
The faith itself is nothing except for the fact that faith itself reaches out and selects a promise from God or better yet, a doctrine to handle the stress.
So, you must have doctrine resident in the soul for faith to have a large area from which to draw.
Prin – The suddenness of a change often from prosperity, or what appears to be prosperity causes stress.
And as they move out from Egypt and they are rejoicing and filled with all kinds of happiness and then suddenly a situation filled with a lot of stress comes along.
They wanted to return to slavery in Egypt.
They wanted to go back to dependence.
Back to letting someone else think for them.
Back to the bullying.
Israel is often a perfect picture of our own soul.
So, the solution is found in the faith-rest drill as a problem-solving device.
However, you cannot use the faith rest drill under the suddenness of disaster unless you have overall spiritual strength.
Now, the New Testament application to us is found in 1Co 2:5 which simply says that your faith should not stand in the wisdom of man but in the power of God.
When you hit a stress situation that comes suddenly, human wisdom is not going to handle it.
2Co 5:7 For we walk by faith and not by sight.
The pres-act-ind of peripateo is used for a moment by moment lifestyle OF FAITH AND REST for the believer.
And the shield of faith comes from your overall strength and the proper use of the mechanics from God.
Eidos which is translated sight, means human viewpoint, or external appearance.
Col 2:6 as you have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord so keep walking in Him.
How did we receive Christ?
By faith alone, in Christ alone!
Keep walking = pres-act-imp of peripateo which is a reference to using the shield of faith after salvation.
To walk in Christ means to live in His plan and function under the power of the Holy Spirit.
So, we have the Jews who now have their backs to the sea, and they moved into a sort of a valley.
So that the Jews cannot go North.
They cannot go South
They cannot go East, because of Pharaoh’s army.
1 . A sudden disaster, a sudden stress.
They had just seen the fantastic power of God in delivering them through the 10 plagues.
They know that wonderful thing that God did on their behalf and how God established Moses as the leader.
In fact, they went out rejoicing, and thanking God and praising God for what He had done for them.
Because the suddenness of the situation has caused them to become emotional and forget all those hours and hours in Bible class.
And therefore, what has happened in this time of disaster?
The rate of forgetting exceeds the rate of learning.
However, we have at least Three Exceptions.
Moses and Joshua.
Joshua and Caleb.
lifted up – kal imperfect of nasa which means that they kept staring in shock.
And by concentrating on Pharaohs army, they completely forgot the grace of God and the power of God….and the marvelous deliverance that they had experienced just a week or so before.
Griping and complaining Christians are not going to be able to handle the shield of faith.
We concentrate on the circumstances of pressure rather than the principles of doctrine.
Like the Jews, and remember they are a picture of the believer’s soul, we concentrate on the disaster rather than the solution.
You must know where to GO TO concentrate in times of pressure.
And one of the main distractions in time of pressure is mentioned in verse 10…emotion.
However, it is described by the word fear.
Prin-people who concentrate on the problem and human viewpoint, always lose out.