Acting in Fear
Trusting God's Word and plan is essential to avoiding chaos and disorder, and to experiencing God's victory and deliverance.
David Wilkerson emphasizes the dangers of acting in fear and unbelief, using the story of King Asa to illustrate how reliance on God leads to blessings, while turning to human solutions results in chaos. Asa initially trusted God and experienced miraculous victories, but when faced with a new crisis, he panicked and sought help from an enemy, demonstrating a lack of faith. This act of unbelief not only jeopardized Judah's safety but also led to ongoing turmoil. Wilkerson warns that acting in fear always brings confusion, while trusting in God's Word provides strength and victory in challenging times.
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"[Jesus] did not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief" (Matthew 13:58). Unbelief always hinders the fullness of God's revelation and blessing and Scripture makes it clear that God does not take it lightly. He gives us an example of this in the story of King Asa, a righteous king and descendant of David who ruled over Judah (read the account in 2 Chronicles 14 through 16).
During King Asa's reign, he wiped out idolatry and brought revival to the land. Then, as the people enjoyed God's blessing, a huge army from Ethiopia invaded Judah, causing Asa to turn to the Lord in prayer, calling out for help. Judah won a tremendous victory in one of the greatest miracles of faith in the history of God's people. After the battle, a prophet came to Asa and, rather than congratulating him on the great victory, he issued a warning: "King Asa, as long as you rely on the Lord and fully trust in him, you will be blessed. You will win victory after victory and the Lord will walk with you. But if you turn away from him and trust in your flesh, chaos and disorder will follow you."
King Asa faithfully walked with the Lord and Judah was greatly blessed by God, as the prophet had said. But then another crisis came and Judah was attacked again. The enemy captured a town just five miles from Jerusalem, Judah's capital, and cut off the vital trade route into the city, which could cause Judah's entire economy to collapse.
This time, King Asa panicked and instead of trusting the Lord, he turned to an enemy, the king of Syria, for help. Unbelievably, Asa stripped Judah's treasury of all its wealth and offered it to the Syrians to deliver Judah -- an act of absolute unbelief. God had in motion his plan to deliver Judah but Asa aborted it by acting in fear. Because Asa did not trust the Lord, from then on Judah had wars.
Acting in unbelief always brings turmoil and confusion -- no exceptions. But trusting God's Word will enable you to stand firm in the face of any challenge and let God bring victory.
Sermon Outline
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The Problem of Unbelief
- Unbelief hinders God's revelation and blessing
- Scripture warns us about the consequences of unbelief
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The Example of King Asa
- King Asa's faithfulness to God brought blessing and victory
- King Asa's unbelief led to chaos and disorder
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The Consequences of Unbelief
- Acting in unbelief brings turmoil and confusion
- Trusting God's Word enables us to stand firm in challenges
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The Importance of Trusting God
- We must trust God's Word and plan
- God's plan is to bring victory and deliverance
Key Quotes
“Acting in unbelief always brings turmoil and confusion -- no exceptions.” — David Wilkerson
“But trusting God's Word will enable you to stand firm in the face of any challenge and let God bring victory.” — David Wilkerson
Application Points
- We must trust God's Word and plan, even when we don't understand the circumstances.
- Acting in unbelief will always lead to turmoil and confusion, but trusting God will bring victory and deliverance.
- We must stand firm in the face of challenges, trusting that God will bring us through them.