FEAR OF EXPOSURE

TRANSFO

RMING FEAR BY G

RACE

FEAR IS BOTH POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE

We often consider fear a negative emotion, but it also can be posit ive.

Proverbs 9:10 states that ‘To fear God is the beginning of Wisdom.’

There are steps in the process if this is just the beginning and that God’s plan is much bigger than a fear based relationship.

1 John 4:18 states that, ‘There is no fear in love for perfect love casts out all fear.’

God’s love is perfect love demonstrated through Jesus .

TODAY WE ARE GOING TO LOOK AT:

• Righteous Fear vs Unrighteous Fear

• Forgiveness vs Sin

• Fear of God vs Fear of Man

• Walking in the Light vs Walking in Darkness

• Repentance and Grace vs Shame, Guilt and Rebell ion

RIGHTEOUS FEAR VS

UNRIGHTEOUS FEAR

BEING TR

ANSFORMED BY G

RACE

RIGHTEOUS FEAR VS UNRIGHTEOUS FEAR

RIGHTEOUS FEAR

• Reverence

• Repentance

• Walking in the l ight

• Walking in truth

• Self-Exposing

• Submissive

UNRIGHTEOUS FEAR

• Shame & Guilt

• Anxiety over past sin

• Walking in darkness

• Fear of Exposure by God or others

• Unrepentant

• Rebellious

FEAR GOD AND KEEP HIS

COMMANDMENTS, F

OR THIS IS

THE W

HOLE DUTY OF M

AN.

Ecclesia

stes 1

2:13

SIN VS FORGIVENESS

TRANSOFRMIN

G GRACE

THE CYCLE OF SIN AND REPENTANCE

We all experience this cycle.We try to keep God’s commandments, yet we fai l . We recognise our sin. We confess. We repent. We

embrace forgiveness by grace through Jesus. And then we try again.

Romans 7:15“I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do

not do, but what I hate I do.”

The key is to adopt a mindset of confession and repentance instead of a mindset of fear and guilt. To embrace grace instead of embracing shame.

CAN WE HIDE OUR SIN FROM

GOD?

Adam a

nd Eve in

the g

arden tr

ied to

hid

e their

sin.

But all

thin

gs are

open b

efore

God’s

eye

s.

In a position to bless the early church because they had sold a property, but they contrived together to hold back some money and to deceive the Apostles.

Their sin was not that they didn’t give all they had, but rather that they chose to l ie about how much they had sold the property for.

They chose deception but their deception was exposed by the Apostles and the consequence was instant death.

ANANIAS AND SOPHIRA – ACTS 5:1-11

THE PARABLE

OF THE TA

LENTS

AND THE W

ICKED SERVANT

Matth

ew 25:1

4-13

THE DESTRUCTIVE POWER OF NOT UNDERSTANDING THE MASTER

The wicked servant lost everything because he didn’t understand the character of the master.

If we don’t understand grace, we too can lose the opportunity to l ive l i fe abundantly on earth.

God is love.Jesus paid the

price, once and for al l t ime that we might receive forgiveness.

WE NEED TO UNDERSTAND THE NATURE OF GOD, HIS PLAN AND PURPOSE IN SENDING JESUS

FEAR OF GOD VS FEAR OF MAN

TRANSFO

RMING G

RACE

12 In the meantime, when there were gathered together an innumerable multitude of people, insomuch that they trode one upon another, he began to say unto his disciples f irst of al l , Beware ye of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy.

2 For there is nothing covered, that shal l not be revealed; neither hid, that shal l not be known.

3 Therefore whatsoever ye have spoken in darkness shall be heard in the l ight; and that which ye have spoken in the ear in closets shal l be proclaimed upon the housetops.

4 And I say unto you my fr iends, Be not afraid of them that kil l the body, and after that have no more that they can do.

5 But I wil l forewarn you whom ye shall fear: Fear him, which after he hath ki l led hath power to cast into hell ; yea, I say unto you, Fear him.

LUKE 12:1-15 – WHY WE SHOULD FEAR GOD

What does Jesus mean by this?

That was is said from a posit ion of ignorance and choice to disobey, wil l be interpreted from the posit ion of knowing the truth yet choosing to disregard it .

‘SPOKEN IN DARKNESS, HEARD IN THE LIGHT’

FEAR OF GOD VS FEAR OF MAN

FEAR OF MAN

• Scheming to cover up

• Bending rules to be accepted

• Being deceptive to save face

FEAR OF GOD

• He sees all , knows al l , and so there is no barrier for confession and repentance

• Living transparently before God and man

SCRIPTURES ABOUT GOD EXPOSING SINPs 90:8 (NIV) You have set our iniquities before you, our secret sins in the

l ight of your presence.

 

Job 12:22 (NIV) He reveals the deep things of darkness and brings deep shadows into the l ight.

 

Job 28:11 (NIV) [God] ... brings hidden things to l ight.

 

Dan 2:22 (NIV) He reveals deep and hidden things ; he knows what l ies in darkness, and l ight dwells with him.

 

1 Cor 4:5b (Phi) He wil l bring into the l ight of day all that at present is hidden in darkness, and he wil l expose the secret motives of men's hearts.

IS IT NOT B

ETTER TO

DEAL

WITH OUR SIN BEFORE GOD

DOES?

REPENT AND BELIE

VE YOU ARE FO

RGIVEN BY GRACE.

TRANSFO

RMING GRACE

Moves u

s from

Unrig

hteous F

ear to R

ighte

ous Fear

From

Fear o

f Man to

Fear o

f God

WALKING IN TH

E LIGHT V

S

WALKING IN DARKNESS

TRANSFO

RMING G

RACE

WALK IN

THE LI

GHT

…but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fel lowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin

1 John 1

:7

WALKING IN THE LIGHT VS WALKING IN DARKNESS

WALKING IN THE LIGHT

• Fellowship with God

• Love for our brothers and sisters

• Following truth

• Fruits of the spir it – love, joy, peace

• LIFE

WALKING IN DARKNESS

• Broken relationship with God

• Broken relationship with others

• Fruits of unrighteousness -Fear, shame and guilt

• DEATH

JESUS IS TH

E LIGHT

"I [Jesus] have come into the world as a l ight, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness."

 

John 1

2:46

LIGHT O

F THE W

ORLD

Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the l ight of the world. Whoever fol lows me wil l not walk in darkness, but wil l have the l ight of l ife.”

John 8

:12

WE WALK IN DARKNESS, LIKE BLIND MEN WHEN WE FEAR EXPOSURE

Isa 59:9b-10a (NIV) We look for l ight, but all is darkness; for brightness, but we walk in deep shadows. Like the blind we grope along the wall , feeling our way l ike men without eyes.

 

Job 12:25 (NIV) They grope in darkness with no l ight; he makes them stagger l ike drunkards.

OTHER SIN & DARKNESS SCRIPTURESJob 24:13,15,17 (NIV) "There are those who rebel against the l ight , who do not

know its ways or stay in i ts paths.. . The eye of the adulterer watches for dusk; he thinks, 'No eye wi l l see me,' and he keeps his face concealed.. . For al l of them, deep darkness is their morning; they make fr iends with the terrors of darkness."

 

Isa 29:15-16 (NIV) Woe to those who go to great depths to hide their plans from the Lord, who do their work in darkness and think, "Who sees us? Who wil l know?" You turn things upside down, as i f the potter were thought to be l ike the clay!. . . Can the pot say of the potter, "He knows nothing?"

 

Isa 28:15 (NIV) You boast, " . . . for we have made a l ie our refuge, and falsehood our hiding place."

 

Ps 139:7,11-12 (NIV) Where can I go from your Spir it? Where can I f lee from your presence? If I say, "Surely the darkness wil l hide me..." the night wi l l shine l ike day... .

 

WHEN EVERYTHING IS

EXPOSED

TO GOD

For the word that God speaks is alive and active; it cuts more keenly than any two-edged sword; it strikes through to the place where soul and spirit meet, to the innermost intimacies of a man's being: it examines the very thoughts and motives of a man's hear t. No creature has any cover from the sight of God; everything l ies naked and exposed before the eyes of him with whom we have to deal.

Hebrews 4

:12-1

3

God sees all .

God knows all .

God understands our weakness.

So confess and be free from guilt and shame.

REPENTANCE MAKES SENSE

Ps 32:5 (NIV) Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, " I wil l confess my transgressions to the Lord," and you forgave the guilt of my sin.

THE PSALMIST DAVID LEADS THE WAY

CONFESS YOUR SINS ONE TO

ANOTHER AND PRAY

FOR ONE

ANOTHER TH

AT YO

U MAY

BE

HEALED

Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another , that you may be healed. The prayer of a r ighteous person has great power as it is working.

Jam

es 5:1

6

DALLAS W

ILLARD QUOTE

"Almost all evil deeds and intents are begun with the thought that they can be hidden by deceit ."

THE LIE EXPOSED

The kingdom of evi l is built on l ies, secrets, and darkness. It requires the absence of l ight to survive. Thus, for al l i t 's fearsome appearance, the kingdom of evi l is structurally very weak. Turn on the l ight, and l ike cockroaches, evi l scrambles to escape the l ight.

Confession is a way of turning on the l ight.

Honesty is the best policy. 

REPENTANCE &

GRACE VS

SHAME, GUILT

& REBELL

ION

MAKE THE TR

ANSFORMAT

IONAL J

OURNEY NOW

PSALM 51

1 Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfai l ing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions.

2 Wash away al l my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.3 For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me.4 Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evi l in

your sight; so you are r ight in your verdict and justif ied when you judge.

5 Surely I was sinful at birth,  s inful from the t ime my mother conceived me.

6  Yet you desired faithfulness even in the womb; you taught me wisdom in that secret place.

7  Cleanse me with hyssop, and I wil l be clean; wash me, and I wil l be whiter than snow.

8  Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones you have crushed rejoice.

9  Hide your face from my sins and blot out al l my iniquity.1 0 Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast

spirit within me.1 1 Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit

from me.1 2 Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a wil l ing

spirit, to sustain me.

LITTLE FOXES THAT SPOIL THE GRAPE VINELIES

It is okay to tell a white l ie to cover up an error or mistake you have made.

What they don’t know, won’t hurt them.

It is okay to do a l ittle sin, as opposed to a big sin.

TRUTH

A lie is a l ie, no matter how big or small you think it is.

Anything hidden will eventually be revealed and hurt them.

There is no such thing as a l ittle sin. Sin is sin.

DAVID’S REVELATIO

N

David was concerned about his sin, but this psalm is about him transforming his fear and anxiety over his sin into a confident knowledge that God would cover his transgressions because he was repentant.

 He reveals to us here the

pathway of confession and humbling ourselves before God and I see this is a key to breaking anxiety over the fear of being exposed.

Repent and re

ap the re

wards

PSALM 103:12

1 2  He has removed our sins as far from us

     as the east is from the west.

New Inte

rnat io

nal Vers

ion

CONCLUSION

EXPOSE YOURSELF

TO G

OD AND ENJOY TR

UE FREEDOM